Dan’s EPL Predictions – Will the Arsenal players believe they can get a result at the Etihad? | OneFootball

Dan’s EPL Predictions

Newcastle 2-2 West Ham As expected, Eddie Howe struggled to lift the Toon’s spirit and make them believe they could win in the FA Cup. The Hammers will go 7 points clear of their opponents if they win making it increasingly hard for Geordies to believe they have anything left to play for this season. They are going through the motions.

Cherries 1-1 Everton Everton have won one of their last 15 games. Recently they have actually been more productive at making chances, the only issue being them not having the quality in the final third. Bournemouth made a headache of dealing with Sheffield United and Luton, confirming my perception that they are not comfortable the few times they are favourites.

Chelsea 3-1 Burnley Chelsea fans have started to boo Pochettino’s subs and chant ‘you don’t know what you’re doing’. Off the pitch, financial experts are claiming that the club need to raise 100 million in transfers by the end of June or face sanctions next season.

It’s complicated but because they need to show a profit on players, essentially, they have to get rid of any home-grown talent. We are talking about James and Gallagher.

Other clubs will be aware of this so will either take advantage by offering discount prices, knowing Chelsea are desperate to sell or won’t mind the prospect of a rival getting a points deduction. I have as much sympathy for their fans as they did for Gooners when we are paying off stadium debt while they smugly brought trophies. Like Everton and Forest, they have an owner happy to spend over a billion, more than aware of the rules.

Notts Forest 1-1 Crystal Palace A lot has happened since Forest last kicked a ball. A 4 points deduction means they are now in the bottom three. They will appeal but like Everton, I have little sympathy, and it’s crucial for FFP that the League set an example. Both clubs are arguing they were transparent, but there is no rule that says just because you admit to your guilt that you don’t get punished.

To clarify these are teams who are spending money knowing they are breaching laws, constantly being warned they have crossed the threshold. Their owners were simply arrogant thinking the sanctions wouldn’t be serious. Any result for the Eagles probably is enough to keep them up.

Spurs 4-0 Luton Spurs’ win at Villa Park put their destiny in their own hands. Victory at Fulham would have put them in the top 4. Yet they didn’t show up at the Cottage which was very Spursy. Maybe Conte 12 months ago was right all along? Luton are currently staying up based on events off the pitch. That’s based on the outcome of an appeal. The quicker the League clarify the situation the better. Having the bottom of the table filled with asterisks is not a good look for ‘the best league in the world’.

Sheffield United 0-3 Fulham Fulham were terrific against Spurs, again showing that on their day they can give anyone a fight. They could yet be a club to do us a massive favour in the title race. Get an early goal on Saturday and they should win comfortably.

Villa 2-1 Wolves So much has happened in the last two weeks that it’s gone under the radar that Wolves blew a golden opportunity to go to Wembley. They only had to beat a Championship side at home and would have been in an FA Cup semifinal. Will the season now just fade out with nothing left to play for? Villa need the points more as they might kick off in 5th.

Brentford 0-1 Man United It would be very Man United after their famous win over Liverpool to then struggle to defeat Brentford. Ten Hagg might have imagined that victory in the FA Cup would have given him some breathing space. Instead, the last two weeks have been dominated by speculation that Sir Jim Radcliffe prefers Southgate as manager, and will sack the Dutchman if United don’t qualify for the Champions League.

Liverpool 3-1 Brighton We all for fun like to forecast the run in and predict who picks up points when and where. In reality at this time of year it’s not as simple as that. 12 months ago, who would have said Arsenal would draw at home to Southampton, Lose at home to Brighton and away to Forest?

So, I’m careful when I write that on paper Liverpool do seem to have the kinder fixtures remaining, especially at Anfield where the emotion of the Kop will get them over the line. One of the few stadiums in the world that can dictate a result.

It was noticeable in the FA though that players were looking tired but that could be wishful thinking. Not much was made of Jürgen Klopp yet again being aggressive towards a journalist at Old Trafford. Show me a good loser and they are not a winner, but it’s never okay to be disrespectful to someone. The the German gets paid enough money to conduct himself better. The manager rightly gets a lot of praise so needs to accept the few times things go wrong. Pundits put less effort into discussing his passive aggressiveness compared to Arteta over celebrating. What a surprise !

Man City 3-1 Arsenal I read one reader write the other day he is losing zero sleep over this fixture. In reality to win at the Etihad we have to do something that we haven’t done in nearly a decade. As many of you know I think mentality is vital in sport, what separates the good from the great. It’s zero disrespect meant towards Mikel Arteta, more a reflection of the standards Pep Guardiola has set. For years, not just have the champions coped with dealing with must-win conditions every few days, they do it with a smile on their faces. It’s no disgrace to lose on the blue half of Manchester (most do). It’s how you lose. Too often we get defeated at this ground by 3-5 goals, conceding in the first 20 minutes. What’s fascinating this Sunday is if our manager can send us into battle believing we can get a result?

Top 24 qualify for euros

Dan Smith

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Top 24 qualify for euros

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