Good day everyone,
I hope you are all well and had an excellent week so far, welcome to CryptoGod-1’s blog on all things sports. This weekend will see only 4 games taking place due to clashes with the FA Cup Quarter Finals. The games taking place will include Burnley hosting Brentford, Luton welcoming relegation rivals Forest to Kenilworth Road, Fulham hosting Spurs, and West Ham welcoming Villa to the London Stadium.
Fixtures — Times are shown as U.K. Time
This weeks round of fixtures will see the games spread out across two days from Saturday morning until Sunday afternoon.
Saturday 16th March 2024
Arsenal - Chelsea 12.30pm KO (Postponed - Chelsea playing in FA Cup)
Burnley - Brentford 3pm KO
Crystal Palace - Newcastle 3pm KO (Postponed - Newcastle playing in FA Cup)
Luton - Nottingham Forest 3pm KO
Manchester United - Sheffield United 3pm KO (Postponed - Manchester United playing in FA Cup)
Wolves - Bournemouth 3pm KO (Postponed - Wolves playing in FA Cup)
Fulham - Tottenham 5.30 pm KO
Sunday 17th March 2024
Everton - Liverpool pm KO (Postponed - Liverpool playing in FA Cup)
West Ham - Aston Villa 2pm KO
Brighton - Manchester City 4.30pm KO (Postponed - Manchester City playing in FA Cup)
Predictions
Now for the most exciting part, as I go through the latest info regarding each team to make an attempt at predicting the results for this week matches. Remember this is just my fun analysis and should not be taken as advice or a guarantee.
Burnley - Brentford
The Clarets sit in nineteenth with 14 points while Brentford are fifteenth with 26 points.
Burnley drew away to West Ham last weekend but remain firmly in the relegation zone, and only off bottom spot on goal difference. Forest sit ten points ahead in safety, but Kompany's have dropped 20 points from leading positions this season and with Sheffield United only behind on goal difference, last season's Championship winners are all but set for a return to the lower division. With 10 games to go and a worse goal difference than the sides above them, Burnley cannot afford more loses but they enter this game being winless in the last 11 across all competitions.
Brentford lost 2-1 away to Arsenal last weekend and remain five points above the relegation zone after suffering their 16th top-flight defeat of the season. They have dropped 28 points from winning positions this season, Having lost nine of their last ten games on the road in all competitions, the Bees have also conceded 13 goals in their last five games in the league. Frank's side have beniffited from the return of Toney, who has managed 4 goals in his 9 games this season. Shoring up the defence is still the biggest issue going forward.
Burnley will be missing Ramsey, Foster, Redmond, Koleosho, and Al-Dakhil, with Beyer needing assessment ahead of the game. Brentford are without Dasilva, Henry, Mee, Hickey, Schade, Norgaard, and Pinnock. They will also need to check on Mbeumo and Reguilon.
Form Last Six League Games:
Home: DLLLLD
Away: WLLLDL
Brentford secured a 3-0 win at the GTech Stadium back when these sides met in October but have not won at Turf Moor since 1996-97 in the Second Division. With Brentford's poor away record and Burnley's failures in front of their own fans this should be an interesting encounter. Brentford will be favourites, but a result for Burnley would be huge in the relegation battle, but I think Brentford should have enough to secure the win.
Final score: 1-2
Luton - Nottingham Forest
The Hatters are eighteenth in the table with 21 points Nottingham Forest in seventeenth with 24 points.
Luton managed a draw against Palace at Selhurst Park last weekend and in their midweek rearranged fixture against Bournemouth the Hatter when 3-0 up only to lose the game 4-3. The Hatters missed their chance to move out of the bottom three and remain three points off Nottingham Forest. Any win here would move them above their opponents, and know that potential points deductions for Forest and Everton could still work out in Luton's favour come the end of the season. They are winless in their last eight, conceding three or more in six of them, but have scored in their last 16 league games.
Nottingham Forest lost for the third league game in a row as they suffered a 1-0 loss away to Brighton. It was the second league game in a row where Forest failed to score, and they have an anxious wait over a potential points deduction. They will drop into the bottom three with a loss here and Nuno Santo's side are without a clean sheet away from home in the league since October. They have drawn eight of their last nine away games and the Garibaldi are in real danger of relegation unless they can improve their form.
Luton will be missing Lockyer, Bell, Potts, Adebayo, Nakamba, Osho, Brown, Andersen, and Johnson. They will also need to assess Lokonga. Forest will be missing They will also be missing Tavares and Montiel. Both Aina and Reyna will need to be assessed.
Form Last Six League Games:
Home: DLLLLD
Away: DLWLLL
Forest were held to a 2-2 home draw when these sides met back in October and Forest are winless in their last five against the Hatters. This is a huge game, with Luton winning seeing them climb out of the relegation zone and Forest winning meaning they will build a nice distance between themselves and the bottom three. I think it will be a tight game, with both sides likely to waste good chances, but Luton should have enough about them to get the win and make a statement regarding their ability to remain in the division.
Final score: 2-1
Fulham - Tottenham
The Cottagers are twelfth with 25 points while Tottenham are fifth with 53 points.
Fulham lost 2-1 away to Wolves last weekend as SIlva's side to end their impressive run of form while also losing pace in the race for a top half finish. They are five points off tenth place Newcastle, eight off the European places, while they sit 14 points clear of the relegation zone. They have managed to score in each of their last six league games, while 25 of their points tally have been gained at Craven Cottage. Fulham have also managed to win in each of their last three London derbies at home in the league.
Tottenham overcame Villa 4-0 last time out and closed the gap on fourth to only two points and having a game in hand. Postecoglou will see his side move into the top four with a win here as Villa do not play until Sunday. They have managed to score 7 and concede just once in their last two games and will want to push on from here in their bid for a return to the Champions League. They have also scored multiple goals in each of their last six Premier League away games.
Fulham will be need to assess Raul Jimenez. Tottenham will be without Sessegnon, Forster, Solomon, and van de Ven. They also need to assess Richarlison.
Form Last Six League Games:
Home: DWLWWL
Away: WDWLWW
Tottenham secured a 2-0 home win over Fulham when these sides played the reverse fixture back in October and have won the last four games between these sides. While Silva's side will more than likley score against a Spurs side with one clean sheet since Christmas, I think Postecoglou's men will have too much firepower and get the result.
Final score: 1-3
West Ham - Aston Villa
West Ham sit in seventh with 43 points
The Irons drew at home with Burnley last weekend and remain in the final European position by a single point. Their Europa League Round of 16 game against Freiburg at the London Stadium on Thursday saw West Ham progress into the last eight with a 5-0 win. Sitting four points off United in sixth, West Ham will look to close the gap and strengthen their grip on Europe. The Hammers have scored 11 times in their previous three games at the London Stadium, and have only lost once in their last 14 games.
Aston Villa lost heavily at home to Spurs in their last league game, conceding four and allowing Spurs to close the gap on fourth down to two points. In their Europa Conference League game during the week Villa against Ajax saw Emery's side win 4-0 to progress. The Europa Conference League quarter-finalists have three wins from their last three away league games. They are also unbeaten on the road in 2024 in all competitions, but with Spurs now hot on their heels for fourth Emery will want to build, or a least maintain, a healthy points gap between themselves and the Lilywhites.
West Ham will be without Cornet while they also need to check on Emerson. Villa will be missing Buendia, Mings, McGinn, Kamara, and Diego Carlos. They will also need to check on Ramsey and Watkins.
Form Last Six League Games:
Home: LLLWWD
Away: WLWWWL
Villa managed a 4-1 home win over West Ham back in October but have not beaten West Ham away from home since 2011. Both sides will be tired from their European exploits, but both sides go into this on the back of a big win. With none of their direct European rivals playing this weekend, its a huge opportunity for both sides. With Villa suffering a number of key absentees, it will be a tough task for them away from home. Moyes side will need to make the most of it to win, and therefore I feel this will end as a draw.
Final score: 2-2
Match Prediction Summary
Burnley 1-2 Brentford
Luton 2-1 Nottingham Forest
Fulham 1-3 Tottenham
West Ham 2-2 Aston Villa
Check out my 2023/24 Season Predictions here: Predictions 23/24 Season
Have a great day, I hope you enjoyed the preview of the matches and have a wonderful weekend.
Peace. CryptoGod-1.
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