PL game week 33

After a dramatic goal-laden and drama-laden midweek of European football it is back to the rather dull Premier League. There is no early Saturday kick-off and half the games are on Sunday. The final two relegations could be sealed - or the title could be done and dusted.

Saturday 3pms
Manchester City headline, and they go to a team that has been a thorn in the sides of many CL chasers - Everton. The Toffeemen beat Forest last week and have just 1 defeat in 12, a run that includes draws against Liverpool, Arsenal, Brighton, Spurs, Man Utd, West Ham, Wolves. They also drew at the Etihad in a run of 3 draws against Chelsea, Arsenal and City. Simply put, they draw a lot!!
City are threatening to find form, and a comeback from 2 down to win 5-2 last week was inspired by a de Bruyne masterclass.

Brentford vs Brighton and Hove Albion is 10th vs 11th - but both teams have a chance of European qualification. The Bees haven't won in 3, and are a bit off the pace for Europe. It is worse for the Seagulls, 4 league games without a win as their bid for CL died before it really got going.

Crystal Palace vs Bournemouth is 12th vs 8th - but the Eagles have seen European qualification by league position massively damaged by conceding 5 twice in 4 days. Concentration seems to have gone towards the FA Cup semi final. The Cherries managed to end a poor run of league form with a 1-0 win over Fulham last week. Before then they had gone 6 games without victory.

West Ham United vs Southampton is one of those pretty meaningless end of season kickabouts you can get. Southampton are still fighting to be not the worst ever, while the Hammers may see finishing above Spurs as motivation - with about £3.1m for each place their owners will want a winning run.

Aston Villa vs Newcastle is Saturdays 5:30 showing on Sky.
Villa suffered heartbreak on Tuesday with a win but ultimately defeat in the CL quarter. 4 PL wins on the bounce has them back in contention for Top 5 and a return to CL - currently 1 point behind City and 3 behind Forest.
Newcastle, however, have even better form - 5 wins from the last 5. A 5-0 hammering of Palace midweek moved them into 3rd and any Cup winning hangover fears have not materialised.
Can Villa get back on track after the disappointment and derail the Newcastle steam train in this CL place 6 pointer.

Sunday 2pms
It could be D-Day for Ipswich Town. Failure to win combined with wins for West Ham and Wolves and Spurs at least matching their result will confirm their relegation. They host an Arsenal side riding a high of a famous Bernabeu win. Arsenal are a couple of wins away from securing top 5, and with Palace on Wednesday, will hope to do it this week. However, they could freshen the team up so a chance of a shock Ipswich win? This is the Sky 2pm game and they hope it will set up part 2 nicely...

Fulham vs Chelsea is a big derby for boths European hopes. Fulham are 9th and need a win to keep in the fight for the secondary competitions. Their win over Liverpool the only points they have picked up in the last 3. Chelsea hope to qualify for the CL, but draws with Brentford and Ipswich leave them chasing after being in a position of strength following a win over Spurs.

Manchester United vs Wolves is a battle for places. Wolves are one of the form teams in the league, 4 wins on the bounce including vital ones over bottom of the table rivals Southampton, Ipswich and Spurs which has left them all but safe.
United will be forgiven if they are physically and mentally tired after last nights drama.

Leicester City vs Liverpool - Sunday 4:30
Liverpool could go into the game needing just a win for the title - if Arsenal lose earlier in the day.
Leicester City could be relegated by the time this kicks off. If Wolves and West Ham win it is all over for the Foxes.


Tottenham Hotspur vs Nottingham Forest is the Monday Night Football offering. Spurs could be safe from the threat of relegation if Arsenal beat Ipswich. For Forest it is a much bigger game. After a long run in 3rd place, they fell to 4th on Wednesday and could kick off this as low as 6th and outside the coveted top 5. 2 defeats in a row have really hit them hard, and with Newcastle, Man City, Chelsea and Villa all hot on their heels it really is pressure.




The action doesn't stop there, with 3 of the FA Cup semi-finalists moving games to midweek. Manchester City vs Aston Villa on Tuesday could be a key game in the top 5 fight, while Arsenal vs Crystal Palace will see two teams excited for a semi meet.