Good day everyone,
I hope you are all well and having a great start to the weekend, welcome to CryptoGod-1's blog on all things sports. After the recent pauses in the matches due to the Queen's death and then the international break, we are back to kick off an action packed October before the World Cup begins next month. This weekend will see some big games including the North London and Manchester Derbies, Newcastle visiting new boys Fulham, Brighton's new manager De Zerbi facing a tough trip to Anfield, and struggling Leicester welcoming Nottingham.
Fixtures - Times are shown as U.K. Time
This weekends round of fixtures will see the games kicking off on Saturday lunchtime and finishing on Monday evening.
Saturday 1st October 2022
Arsenal - Tottenham 12.30pm KO (Kick Off)
Bournemouth - Brentford 3pm KO
Crystal Palace - Chelsea 3pm KO
Fulham - Newcastle 3pm KO
Liverpool - Brighton 3pm KO
Southampton - Everton 3pm KO
West Ham - Wolves 5.30pm KO
Sunday 2nd October 2022
Manchester City - Manchester United 2pm KO
Leeds - Aston Villa 4.30pm KO
Monday 3rd October 2022
Leicester - Nottingham 8pm KO
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 weekends matches. Remember this is just my fun analysis and should not be taken as advice or a guarantee.
Arsenal - Tottenham
Arsenal managed another win against Brentford last time out, keeping them top of the table and new boy Vieira getting his first for the club. Arteta also saw his side end a run of four games without a clean sheet, while they have now won in each of their previous six games at home. The only drawback from that winning run is that they have managed to concede at least one goal at home in each of those six games and Arteta will know they are up against a formidable Spurs front line. Last time out, against Leicester, Spurs saw Son get his first goal of the season, and he went on to score three in that game. Sitting third and only one point behind Arsenal, Spurs will know a win will take them top for the moment at least. Conte has dispelled any rumours of him returning to Juventus, and Kane will be looking to put relegation in the Nations League, making him the first England Captain ever to be relegated at international level, behind him. Arsenal will be missing Smith-Rowe, Nelson, Elneny, and Soares, there is hope that Partey, Zinchenko, and Tierney can make it back from injuries. Spurs meanwhile will be hoping all of Lloris, Davies, Kulusevski, and Lucas Moura are back and available for this one. These games are always feisty and exciting, with both sides looking to continue their great starts to the season. Arsenal are on a hot streak at home but Spurs will certainly expect to score here, therefore I am going to back a 2-2 draw.
Bournemouth - Brentford
These two clubs will be meeting in the top flight for the very first time having both lost the last time they played. Bournemouth are twelfth with eight points, while Brentford are ninth with nine points. Bournemouth are on the verge of getting a new billionaire takeover, meaning they will hope to have a new manager in place after that most likely. Gary O'Neil has done a fine job so far since replacing Parker, with a positive run of form seeing them moving slowly away from the relegation places. They have however failed to score in either of their previous two home games. The Bees meanwhile have won three of their last four and have only lost twice so far this season. They have scored 15 times in seven games which is the fourth best attack in the league. However, they have looked vulnerable defensively as they have conceded 12 goals and are on a run of conceding in each of their last 19 away league matches. Bournemouth will be without Rothwell, Kelly, and Brooks, while Pearson and Fredericks will need to be assessed. Lewis-Potter and Norgaard are out for Brentford, with Pinnock a doubt. This will an interesting game for both sides, as Bournemouth will be looking to take advantage of Brentford's leaky defence to secure more points. Frank will be pinning his hopes on Toney continuing his excellent form which saw him called up to the England squad, therefore it really could be anyones game. I can see this being end to end and overall I believe the winner will be whoever can defend better. Therefore I am going for a 2-3 away win.
Crystal Palace - Chelsea
Palace will welcome Chelsea in what will be Potter's first league game in charge of his new side. Vieira sees his side in sixteenth with just six points and are desperately looking for what would be just their second win of the season. Chelsea meanwhile are seventh on ten points so far. Last time out Palace managed a 0-0 with Newcastle and although their start has not been the best, Vieira's side have only suffered one defeat in their last six in all competitions. They ended last season with five consecutive clean sheets at Selhurst Park but so far this term have conceded in each of their three top-flight home games. Chelsea have only managed two wins from seven in all competitions so far this season, and it will be interesting to see how Potter has moulded his new side over the previous weeks. He is under immediate pressure to reverse a trend that has seen Chelsea lose each of their last three away games in all competitions, while they have only managed to score twice away from home this season. Palace will be without Ferguson, Butland, and McArthur, while Tomkins will needed to be assessed. Chelsea meanwhile have seen Kante and Mendy back in training but this game will come too soon for them, while Cucurella and Chukwuemeka are ill and will not travel. Selhurst Park is not an easy place to visit for any side and Palace will look to make the most of that advantage while Chelsea continue to adapt to Potter and his style. It will be a close game with neither side really showing anything that makes me believe they will outdo the other, therefore I am backing a 1-1 draw.
Fulham - Newcastle
Sixth place Fulham welcome tenth place Newcastle this weekend, with Fulham yet to lose at home after three games at Craven Cottage, while the Magpies are still searching for their first away win of the campaign. Silva will be delighted with eleven points from their first seven games, as Fulham have settled nicely back into the top flight. Mitrovic has only managed to not score in two of those matches and has been key to their rise up the table so far. They have have won three of their last five Premier League matches, which was the same as they had managed in their previous 30 games in the top flight combined. Newcastle already have five draws in their seven matches so far this season, showing a determination not to lose but also a lack of clinical finishing to win games. New striker Isak has looked good so far and after £200m spent on new players since January they will be hoping to kick on from here. Palhinha, Wilson, Robinson, and Solomon are all out for Fulham, while Newcastle will be without Wood, Krafth, Darlow, Shelvey, and Isak after he picked up a slight injury with Sweden. Saint-Maximin, Wilson, and Guimaraes are also doubts. Expect plenty of goals in this one, with at least three goals in each of Fulham's last five league fixtures. Newcastle will be without a lot of key players and that will likely have a big impact on them. Therefore, I am going to back Fulham to secure a 2-1 home win here.
Liverpool - Brighton
The Reds enter this month after a horribly slow start to the season, having not played in four weeks due to the Queen's death. They are eight in the table on nine points, and even a win cannot see them overtake a Brighton side who are fourth on thirteen points. Brighton have not played since Potter moved to Chelsea, with that game seeing them thump Leicester 5-2. Liverpool have won only two of their six league games so far and Klopp knows they need to up the gears soon. Nunez will be looking to integrate into the side and with Jota back in attack Klopp has options. Arthur and Thiago promise an interesting option in midfield if Klopp goes that route, but he will not be pleased if his side drops more points here. Brighton meanwhile are now under the management of De Zerbi and it will be interesting to see how he goes about things. He had a very attacking style at Sassuolo in Serie A but is unlikely to do the exact same here, at least for his first game at Anfield. The Reds will be missing Robertson, Keita, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jones, and Ramsay, but could hope to see Konate and Kelleher back. As for Brighton, Moder and Mwepu are out with Lallana needing a late fitness test. Brighton will take the game to Liverpool here I imagine, not allowing the hosts to get a grip on the match. However, with Thiago pulling the strings and Liverpool spurned on to improve their results, I can see a home win here with a score of 3-1.
Southampton - Everton
The Saints will be hoping to avoid a third straight loss in the league as they welcome thirteenth placed Everton. Southampton have suffered back-to-back 1-0 away defeats since they beat Chelsea, leaving them in fourteenth in the table. They are yet to keep a clean sheet this season and have conceded first in six games so far this campaign. Hassenhutl will need them to improve on their shooting also, as they have only managed two shots on target of their last nineteen, Lampard finally saw his side win this season when they managed a narrow victory over West Ham last time out. Four draw in their opening six had made for another relegation battling season, and Lampard will be hoping to avoid that this time around. They have however managed to kept a clean sheet in their last two but they have picked up maximum points in only one of their last 20 Premier League matches on the road. Southampton will be without Livramento and Lavia, while Everton will be without Godfrey, Townsend, Patterson, Mina, and Holgate. Both sides will fancy their chances going into this one, and a win for either side will take them into double digits for points this season. While it should be a close match, I think a final score of 1-1 is the most likely result here.
West Ham - Wolves
Two sides hovering around the relegation zone meet in this encounter as seventeenth placed Wolves travel to eighteenth placed West Ham. The Hammers have managed two wins in the Conference League but domestically they have been disastrous. Their struggle in front of goal is showing with only one win and a three goals scored to show from their opening seven games of the Premier League campaign. They are on a six game winless steak at the London Stadium in the Premier League, and have the leagues worst attack, along with Wolves. Lage's side were well beaten by Man City last time out, but before that boasted a four-game unbeaten streak in all competitions. Their attack has been weak but new striker Diego Costa may bring the bite they need upfront. They boast the joint-best defensive record on the road so far having conceded only three times away from home this season. Moyes will see his side without Aguerd here but will be hoping to have Johnson back available. Wolves meanwhile will be without Collins, Jimenez, Kalajdzic, and Francisco Tavares Oliveira all ruled out. With Wolves having to deal with their defence being broken up and their striker on the rusty side, its a great opportunity for West Ham to take advantage. They will need to be at their best but I can just about see the Hammers sneaking a 1-0 home win here to kick start their season.
Manchester City - Manchester United
The other big derby of the weekend will see Man City welcome Man United. Last time out Pep's side beat Wolves 3-0, while United have not played since they beat Arsenal 3-1 on September 4th. City are second and will be hoping for a good result in the NDL to see them go top with a win here, while United are fifth and five points behind their local rivals. Man City are the Premier League's leading scorers on home turf this season, scoring 14 in just three games while only conceding two at home so far. They are led by the ever impressive Haaland and he will be looking to add to his amazing start to the season with 11 goals already. United have been on an excellent run of late after their early struggles under Ten Hag and will have been disappointed the international break came when it did. Ten Hag won the Premier League's Manager of the Month award for September after guiding his side to three successive away wins, along with three clean sheets. Not since Sir Alex has a United manager managed to win in their first Manchester Derby so Ten Hag will be up against it here. Phillips and Stones will be out for City, but they will be hoping to have Laporte back from his long term injury. As for United, Dubravka, van de Beek, Williams, and Wan-Bissaka, are all out with Maguire also expected to miss out. They could have Rashford and Martial back after injuries to boost the attack. While United have been on good form, this will be a real test for them. Haaland will be looking to score three successive hatricks at home and would love to do it against United. City are often in the mood at home and this will be one that Pep wont allow anything other than top performances from his players, therefore I am going to back a 3-0 home win.
Leeds - Aston Villa
Leeds will look to put an end to a three game winless run which sees them sitting in eleventh with eight points as they welcome a Villa side sitting in fifteenth with seven points. Leeds lost badly at the Brentford Community Stadium on September 3rd and have not played since. They have managed only one point from their last three games, but Elland Road has been something of a fortress so far this season, having won three of four games there in all competitions. Gerrard managed to see his side return to winning ways last time out against Southampton on September 16th. They will look to build on this momentum and move away from the relegation zone. Villa have lost all four of their last away games in the league, conceding ten in the process. Leeds will be without Dallas and Rodrigo, with Forshaw needed assessment. Villa meanwhile have lost Digne, Diego Carlos, and Boubacar Kamara to injuries. Cash is returning to fitness for a boost to this side though. Elland Road has been a happy hunting ground for Villa in recent memory, but with Gerrard's side short in confidence and at the back this will not be an easy task. Leeds have been strong at home and that will make it a tough place to visit for Gerrard's side. Therefore, I am backing the home side to end their recent poor run of form and secure a home win with a result of 2-1.
Leicester - Nottingham
The pressure in mounting on Rodgers, as his Leicester side sit bottom of the table with only one point so far. Nottingham visit the King Power having failed to really click so far this season, sitting nineteenth without four points. Leicester were well beaten by Spurs last time out, while Forest threw away a lead at home and lost to Fulham. Things have seemingly gotten worse, not better, for the Foxes. They are yet to win a game this season and in their previous two they have scored four but conceded eleven. This east midlands derby should hopefully see a step up but it is difficult to see how the team will pull themselves together, especially with rumours it would cost too much to dismiss Rodgers. Forest meanwhile have lost their last two games by a scoreline of 3-2 but have showed some positive signs. They will have hoped to use the break as a good time to ensure all their new players are understanding each other and clicking together. The Foxes will be without Pereira and Bertrand, while Daka and Ndidi will be assessed ahead of this one. Forest meanwhile will be without Richards, Niakhate, Mangala, and Worrall, while McKenna, Gibbs-White, and Dennis will need assessing. This should be a fiery and frantic match, as shown by both sides poor defending so far this season. It is difficult to determine a winner and I honestly do not see Leicester getting their first win of the campaign, therefore I will back a 2-2 draw.
Check out my 2022/23 Season Preview and Predictions here: Premier League 2022/23 Prediction
Also check out my review of the group draw and prediction of the Champions League for this season here: Champions League 2022/23 Prediction
Have a great day, I hope you enjoyed the preview of the matches and get to see the games over the weekend.
Peace. CryptoGod-1.
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