Football writer Alex Keble analyses where the weekend fixtures could be won and lost, including:
- Can Liverpool calm their temper after Merseyside derby?
- Does Jackson injury put Chelsea’s top-four place in peril?
- Can new-look Arsenal attack stay in the title race
- Can post-January Villa kick-start a run to the top four?
- Will fast-transitioning Newcastle midfield expose familiar flaws?
- Which of Amorim and Postecoglou can relieve some pressure?
- Can improving Palace begin to correct their home form?
- Can Evan Ferguson solve West Ham’s goalscoring problems?
- How will Forest deal with their toughest run of the season?
- Is this the weekend AFC Bournemouth move into the UCL places?
Can Liverpool calm their temper after Merseyside derby?
A 2-2 draw at Goodison Park isn’t a bad result. Liverpool are still seven points clear and, after news of Kai Havertz’s injury, were in a better position at full-time than they were 24 hours earlier.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Liverpool
LIV
|
24 | +35 | 57 |
| 2 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
24 | +27 | 50 |
| 3 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
24 | +13 | 47 |
| 4 |
Chelsea
CHE
|
24 | +16 | 43 |
But there is the slight risk that the bedlam at full-time – the red cards for Curtis Jones and Arne Slot, the frayed tempers and sense of injustice about James Tarkowski’s late equaliser - will affect a campaign so far defined by serenity.
Slot has brought calm composure at Liverpool, or at least he had done until Wednesday night. His job this week is to help the players breathe deeply, drop their shoulders, and move on from a difficult night at Everton.
He is helped in that mission by the fixture computer. Wolverhampton Wanderers have lost their last two on the road, have conceded more away goals (28) than anyone bar Leicester City (32), and had lost four in a row before a shock 2-0 home win against a depleted Aston Villa.
This is the sort of match Liverpool usually win comfortably, and if they can do so again, then memories of their final Merseyside derby at Goodison Park will soon fade.
But drop points on Sunday and all of a sudden the emotional stability that has defined their surge to the top of the league will be under threat.
Does Jackson injury put Chelsea’s top-four place in peril?
Chelsea’s first match without Nicolas Jackson - ruled out until April with a thigh injury - did not go well.
They lost 2-1, crashed out of the FA Cup, and managed only six shots on goal and one on target in a below-par away performance.
The biggest frustration for Enzo Maresca, as he looks to recalibrate his attack, is that Friday’s match is against the same opponent and on the same ground.
Chelsea are already on the longest winless streak away from home in the Premier League, going four without a win since early December, and have won just two of their last eight in the competition.
They somehow need to correct that sequence without a recognised striker.
Cole Palmer, with three goal contributions in his last 10 in all competitions, needs to rediscover his form if Chelsea are to avoid a decline - and he needs to do it without Jackson’s runs to hit.
There is now a lot of pressure on Christopher Nkunku’s shoulders if he starts. He will try to avoid a repeat of the way he was shepherded at Brighton last weekend, where he failed to have a single shot on goal.
Chelsea are only three points above seventh and six above Villa, with a trip to Villa Park coming next. There’s a world in which defeat against Unai Emery's side leaves Chelsea eighth.
Maresca needs a forward to step up.
Can new-look Arsenal attack stay in the title race?
Jackson’s absence might be affecting Chelsea but it’s nothing compared to the injury crisis at Arsenal.
News of Havertz being out for the season means he joins Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli on the treatment table, leaving Mikel Arteta with only three fit attackers in his squad.
Raheem Sterling, Leandro Trossard and Ethan Nwaneri should be the makeshift front three at Leicester City, where the form book suggests the first test of Arsenal’s new attack should be among the least difficult.
Leicester have lost each of their last four Premier League home matches without scoring, while only Southampton (54) have conceded more Premier League goals this season than the Foxes' 53. They also haven’t kept a clean sheet in any of their last 17 matches.
That should provide Sterling, Trossard and Nwaneri with the chance to find patterns and forge a relationship on the pitch, beginning - Arteta will hope - a partnership that can keep the pressure on Liverpool after their slip at Goodison Park in midweek.
Can post-January Villa kickstart run to top four?
Three matches without a win has dropped Villa to six points shy of the top four, meaning that, on the surface, they are falling out of the race for UEFA Champions League football.
But a flurry of transfer activity in late January has changed the narrative. All of a sudden Villa look resurgent.
Marcus Rashford, Marco Asensio, and Axel Disasi are all set for their Premier League debuts this weekend at Villa Park, where head coach Emery will expect a free-flowing attacking performance after a strong showing in the FA Cup against Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
Kieran McKenna’s side have lost each of their last four Premier League matches, their longest streak of the season, while Villa have been considerably stronger on home soil.
Since the start of last season, only Everton and Brentford have won a larger share of their total Premier League points at home than Villa (60 per cent or 63 out of 105).
With Ollie Watkins back and serious attacking quality ready to come off the bench, Villa fans can expect a powerful showing on Saturday to kickstart their Champions League push.
Will fast-transitioning Newcastle midfield expose familiar flaws?
Manchester City’s flaws are all-too familiar by now: a brittle central midfield open to counter-attacks and hard-tackling opponents.
Real Madrid were just the latest team to expose their longstanding issues and they won’t be the last. Newcastle United, in fact, are perfectly set up to add salt to the wounds.
Eddie Howe’s side like to burst through the centre of the pitch, using the ball-carrying of Joelinton and the line-breaking passing of Bruno Guimaraes to split open weaker midfields.
Their recent victories at Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal were testament to the fire in their midfield, as well as the tenacity of Howe’s man-to-man press.
It is easy to imagine Newcastle doing something similar at the Etihad Stadium, winning the midfield battle before setting away Alexander Isak in behind that vulnerable Man City back line.
On the other hand, for long periods against Real, Man City looked more like their old selves, benefitting from John Stones’ role as a No 6, although that still wasn’t enough to prevent another chaotic end-to-end game breaking out.
There have been 51 goals in the last 10 Man City matches in all competitions, an average of over five per game. The visit of Newcastle promises to conform to the pattern.
Which of Amorim and Postecoglou can relieve some pressure?
It’s hard to recall a time in Premier League history when this fixture has had so little riding on it for either club. It has never been played this late into a Premier League season with both teams residing in the bottom half of the table.
That does not, of course, mean there is nothing to play for. Far from it. Both head coaches are in desperate need of a win.
Spurs have already beaten United twice this season, winning 3-0 at Old Trafford in the league and 4-3 at home in the EFL Cup quarter-finals. After beating Brentford 2-0 last time out Ange Postecoglou is looking for back-to-back Premier League wins for only the second time this season.
Postecoglou's side are favourites, then, but only just. Spurs' defensive injury crisis saw them bow out to Villa in the FA Cup and Liverpool in the EFL Cup, suggesting Ruben Amorim can win the points should Amad rediscover his form.
But Amad has struggled since being moved into the forward line, and, more significantly, Man Utd look most brittle when opponents sit deeper and launch counter-attacks, as we saw in Crystal Palace’s 2-0 win at Old Trafford a fortnight ago.
Postecoglou has let go of his all-out attacking philosophy, with Spurs beginning to drop deeper over the last few weeks. At last, this change of tack might prove fruitful, because if United are lured forward there will be space for Son Heung-min and Mathys Tel to cause damage at the other end.
But, there is just no way of knowing what either of these teams will produce. For the neutral, at least, it should be a lot of fun.
Can improving Palace begin to correct home form?
Oliver Glasner’s side are returning to the level we expected pre-season, but there is still one problem left to solve.
After winning only three of their opening 18 Premier League matches this season (D8 L7) Crystal Palace have since won four of their last six, and if you include cup fixtures they are on a run of five wins from six.
They have also kept three clean sheets in their last four Premier League matches and are a mere six points behind Fulham in ninth. Catching the Cottagers, and therefore attaining their highest-ever league finish, is back on the cards.
But they won’t get there unless they can fix their home form. Only Ipswich and Southampton (both with one win) have won fewer Premier League home matches this season than Palace's two victories.
Their most recent was against Southampton at the end of December, and even that was a narrow 2-1 win against the league’s bottom club.
Three of their next four Premier League matches are at home, which gives Glasner’s side the chance to put that record right.
Palace's next four fixtures
Everton are unbeaten in four under David Moyes, but after an emotionally exhausting midweek Merseyside derby, are surely vulnerable.
Saturday could be the start of something big for Palace.
Can Ferguson solve West Ham’s goalscoring problems?
Graham Potter teams have never been known for scoring goals, and, this season, neither have West Ham United.
The Hammers have only scored more than one goal once in their last 10 matches in all competitions, which is partly explained by the unavailability of Michail Antonio.
The club’s revival this season rests, it seems, on loan signing Evan Ferguson, set to make his West Ham debut this weekend.
The 20-year-old has struggled for minutes this season and while injuries have slowed his development, he will hope the move to West Ham will be a fresh start.
Then again, Ferguson worked well with Potter at Brighton, so it’s possible being reunited with a manager who understands him will revitalise Ferguson’s career.
How will Forest deal with toughest run of season?
Nottingham Forest have won eight of their last 10 Premier League matches and have kept five clean sheets in their last eight, amounting to half of their season's total of 10.
There isn’t a cloud in the sky for Nuno Espirito Santo - but the weather can change remarkably quickly in the Premier League.
Here begins the toughest spell of Forest’s season: Fulham (A), Newcastle (A), Arsenal (H), Man City (H), Ipswich (A), Man Utd (H) and Villa (A).
Their buffer in the top five is only four points, and Forest play four of those Champions League hopefuls in their next six league matches.
Is this the weekend AFC Bournemouth move into UCL places?
AFC Bournemouth were briefly fifth in mid-December, but otherwise throughout an impressive 2024/25 campaign they have always hovered just outside the battle for Champions League football.
That could change this weekend.
A trip to Southampton is surely a strong chance of picking up three points for Andoni Iraola’s side.
Should Newcastle and Man City draw, and Chelsea lose at Brighton, then a big Bournemouth win at St Mary’s Stadium would lift them into the top four.
It would be no less than Iraola and the Cherries deserve.