Manchester City will look to climb up the table at least temporarily when they host Everton at the Etihad Stadium in the day’s early kickoff. The Citizens were 3-1 winners over Brentford in their last game, with Phil Foden netting a fine hat trick after Neal Maupay had given the Bees the lead. City have now won their last nine games in all competitions, scoring 27 goals and conceding six, while also winning 11 and drawing two of their last 13 games against Everton. They also boast a formidable record at home, winning 29 of their last 35 in front of the City faithful. Everton on the other hand have fallen off the rails since picking up four wins in a row without conceding in December. They currently lie in the relegation zone having failed to win any of their last six league matches. They have also failed to win any of their last 12 visits to the Etihad, with the last win coming in January 2017. A truly mammoth task lies ahead for the Toffees.
Liverpool will take on Burnley at Anfield as they look to bounce back from their catastrophic defeat to Arsenal. The Reds fell to a 3-1 defeat, with huge errors from Alisson and Virgil Van Dijk ultimately proving costly. They remain top of the table, but their lead over Arsenal and Man City has now been cut down to two points, and they will be down to second by kickoff should Man City get the better of Everton. The Reds are dominant in front of the Anfield faithful as they have avoided defeat in their last 23 home games, while Burnley, who occupy 19th place on the table , have failed to beat them in their last four matches, with the most recent being a 2-0 defeat at Turf Moor. Given what is at stake, a straight forward win is expected for the home side.
Tottenham will be eyeing a fifth straight home win when Brighton visit the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The Lilywhites were held to a 2-2 draw against Everton in their last fixture, which saw them slip to fifth, but a win here will see them move into the top four temporarily at least. They have won just one of their last four games, conceding seven goals, so a return to home comforts will be very much welcomed. Brighton were comfortable 4-0 winners over Crystal Palace, and they lie eighth on the table, a point behind West Ham in the race for European places. They have failed to score win any of their last five matches on the road, while also failing to score in the last two. They were 4-2 winners over the Lilywhites in December, but have never beaten them in consecutive fixtures. A tough one for Roberto De Zerbi’s men.
Nottingham Forest and Newcastle will battle for the points at the City Ground. Forest lie in 16th place on the table having had an inconsistent season, and they haven’t fared well at home recently, losing five of their last six home games. Newcastle on the other hand are ninth on the table and fought from two goals down to draw 4-4 with Luton Town at home. It has been a below par season from the Magpies, largely influenced by injuries, and they will look to take advantage of Forest’s home woes.
17th placed Luton Town will host bottom of the table Sheffield United at Kenilworth Road knowing that a win can lift them as high as 15th on the table.
12 and 13th place face off as Bournemouth travel to face Fulham at Craven Cottage.
Wolves will look to build on their emphatic 4-2 win over Chelsea when they host an out of sorts Brentford at the Molineux Stadium.
Tomorrow, Arsenal will face a tricky fixture against West Ham United at the London Stadium. The Gunners seem to be well and truly back in form, and are on the back of a fine 3-1 win over League leaders Liverpool at the Emirates, which kept their title hopes well and truly alive. They will have it all to do against their opponents here though, with Mikel Arteta’s men winless in their last three games against the Hammers. They fell to a particularly surprising 2-0 loss at the Emirates at the end of December, and any such result here will be far from ideal. West Ham are on a six match unbeaten run at home, winning three and drawing three, and having fallen to a heavy 3-0 loss to Man United on the road, will aim to get back to winning ways here.
Manchester United will travel to Villa Park to face Aston Villa, as they look to stretch their unbeaten run to six games. United followed up a thrilling 4-3 win over Wolves with a 3-0 thrashing of West Ham at Old Trafford, and will now look to take the game to a Villa side who were 5-0 winners over basement dwellers Sheffield United. United lie sixth on the log, eight points behind Villa who occupy fourth. The Lions fell to a 3-1 loss to Chelsea in their FA Cup fourth round replay and will look to shake off that disappointment and avoid a second straight home loss. Unai Emery’s men were 3-1 winners on this ground last season, but threw away a two goal lead to lose 3-2 at Old Trafford back in December. They are the favourites here, but whether that will translate into three points remains to be seen.
