Gameweek 18 offers us the last round of Premier League football before Christmas.
There will be nine fixtures across four days during Gameweek 18, beginning with the A23 derby between Crystal Palace and Brighton on Thursday evening. However, the headline fixture comes on Saturday, table-toppers Arsenal travelling to second-placed Liverpool.
There are two teams not in action though, Manchester City’s FIFA Club World Cup commitments seeing their clash with Brentford postponed.
Here is how 90min thinks the pre-Christmas fixtures will play out.
In a slightly unorthodox gameweek, Thursday night Premier League football makes a surprise return when Crystal Palace face Brighton. The Eagles managed an impressive comeback draw against Man City last weekend, while the Seagulls’ 32-game run of scoring in league fixtures came to a halt with a 2-0 defeat to Arsenal.
Aston Villa know a victory on Friday evening could see them top on Christmas Day, Unai Emery’s side needing all three points against Sheffield United for that to be possible. The Villans have won a remarkable 15 home games in a row in the league, a major blow to the Blades’ hopes of getting something from the Midlands.
The bulk of the Premier League action comes this Saturday, kicking off with West Ham vs Manchester United in the day’s early game. The two sides have experienced different trips to Anfield in their most recent match, the Hammers losing 5-1 to Liverpool in the Carabao Cup and the Red Devils earning a respectable point. A victory for the Irons this week would see them jump ahead of Man Utd in the table.
Fulham, fresh from booking their spot in the Carabao Cup semi-finals midweek, welcome a struggling Burnley to Craven Cottage on Saturday. Marco Silva’s side, bar a ten-man defeat to Newcastle United, have been flying in the Premier League, while the Clarets continue to struggle for consistency.
Newly-promoted Luton Town endured a traumatic afternoon at Bournemouth last weekend as Tom Lockyer suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch at the Vitality Stadium. The defender has since been discharged from hospital, with the Hatters hosting Newcastle without their captain this Saturday. The Magpies were dumped out of the Carabao Cup midweek and suffered several more injury blows.
|
Date |
Kick-off time (GMT) |
Fixture & prediction |
|---|---|---|
|
21/12/23 |
20:00 |
Crystal Palace 1-1 Brighton |
|
22/12/23 |
20:00 |
Aston Villa 3-0 Sheffield United |
|
23/12/23 |
12:30 |
West Ham 1-1… |
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