Nottingham Forest and Man United will look to build on boxing day victories when they clash at the City Ground. Forest picked up an impressive 3-1 win on the road against Newcastle United to secure Nuno Espirito Santo his first win in charge, with the result leaving them 17th on the table, two points clear of Luton Town.
They will have it all to do here though as they have lost their last 11 meetings with the Red Devils, with their last victory on this ground coming all the way in March 1992. United looked down and out against Aston Villa after going two goals down but roared back to win 3-2 courtesy of an Alejandro Garnacho brace and a first Premier League goal for summer signing Rasmus Hojlund.
It was their first win since Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s 25% stake at the club was confirmed, and they will be looking for more of the same against a team they have had a lot of joy against.
They are yet to win any of their last three away games, but they haven’t lost their final league game in any of the last 11 years. More of the same will be the words from Erik Ten Hag.
Manchester City will eye a third league win in a row when they host Sheffield United at the Etihad Stadium. City came from behind to beat Everton 3-1 in midweek, leaving them in fourth place and five points behind leaders Liverpool with a game in hand.
They have now won five of their last six games in all competitions, but remain frail defensively as they have conceded in their last eight Premier League matches.
They have also drawn their last three at the Etihad, losing a total of six points from winning positions, but they will be confident of victory nonetheless against a Sheffield side who also gave up a winning position against Luton Town, scoring two own goals in the final 13 minutes to lose 3-2.
They remain rooted to the bottom of the table having collected just nine points, conceded 47 goals, the most in the League, as well as failing to keep a clean sheet away from home so far this season. City have not lost any of their last 11 games against the Blades and that record is expected to continue.
Third place Aston Villa will aim to snap a two game winless run when they host Burnley at Villa Park.
A surprise home draw with Sheffield United was followed by a 3-2 loss to Man United, a game which saw them lead 2-0 at halftime.
With Manchester City just two points behind while also having a game in hand, Unai Emery understands the importance of claiming all three points here.
Burnley on the other hand were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool at Turf Moor, leaving them 19th and five points away from safety. Yet another defeat will only spell further doom for the Clarets, especially if other results fail to go their way.
Following a crucial win over Sheffield United on the road, Luton Town will play host to an inconsistent Chelsea at Kenilworth Road.
A 3-2 win over Sheffield United has left the Hatters just one point adrift of safety, and will now look to pile further misery on Mauricio Pochettino’s men, who returned to winning ways against Crystal Palace at home after slumping to a 2-1 loss to Wolves on the road. Luton, despite the defeats, have been a tough nut to crack at Kenilworth Road, and will hope to use that to their advantage against a Blues’ side who have lost their last three games away from home.
Everton will hope to bounce back from their loss to Tottenham when they travel to the Molineux to take on a resurgent Wolves side on the back of a stunning 4-1 win over Brentford on the road.
Crystal Palace and Brentford will both aim to bounce back from defeats when they face off at Selhurst Park.
On Sunday, Arsenal will be desperate to return to winning ways when they travel to Craven Cottage to take on Fulham. The Gunners picked up a surprise 2-0 defeat at the hands of West Ham at the Emirates, which ultimately saw them lose their grip on top spot.
Mikel Arteta’s men now have a chance to arrest that blip against a Fulham side who have lost their last three games, conceding eight goals. They have also won their last five trips to Craven Cottage, with the most recent being a 3-0 win back in march.
Bournemouth will make the trip to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to face Tottenham. The Cherries continued their fine run of form by thrashing Fulham 3-0, with striker Dominic Solanke continuing to get amongst the goals. Spurs on the other hand were well beaten in a 4-2 loss to Brighton, and have failed to keep a clean sheet in five of their last six games, conceding nine goals.
It’s something that needs to be addressed against a Bournemouth outfit who have won five and drawn one of their last six games, but Spurs have won their last two games at home, and they will hope that can see them through here.
