The Steifmaster WEEK 5 EPL Predictions

So it’s five weeks into the new season and Liverpool are still leading the league, aren’t they? Too early to celebrate I know but that’s a feeling that the football erudite supporters of the Merseyside club have not had feeling for way too long. They can enjoy that as long as it lasts, hopefully that will be long enough into the 38^th match of the season. Now into the close-to-perfect predictions.

 Liverpool 2 0 Southampton

For once, I am going for a loss for Victor Wanyama’s Saints against the league leaders. Yours truly has become a fan of the St. Mary’s club for some apparent reason. Haven’t you? But here am being realistic and using both my head and errr… heart.

Daniel Sturridge can’t just stop scoring and after netting the second in Liverpool’s 2-2 draw against Swansea in the Monday night kickoff, he became the first player in Liverpool’s Premier League history to find the back of the net in the opening four games of the season. Methinks his 5^th and 6^th will come against Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

 Southampton lost the corresponding fixture at Anfield 1-0 last season but won 3-1 at St. Mary’s. Having noted that, I still see the L4 club cruise past Southampton in what will be Liverpool’s last match before they welcome back fiery frontman Luis Alberto ‘El Pistolero’ Suarez. Good times ahead for Brendan Rodgers’ team.

 Chelsea 1 1 Fulham

Considered as some sort of a derby thanks in part to the fact that both clubs are based in London, this is one fixture that has been short on goals at least until April this year when Chelsea won 3-0. Before then, the previous five fixtures had ended on either a drab 0-0 on 1-1 scoreline.

Jose Mourinho has found the Premier League perhaps tougher than he had anticipated on his return and after setting the pace in the first two matches of the season, they have faded a bit as they now lie 6^th albeit only a win away from top spot. Still reeling from the shocking 2-1 capitulation against FC Basel in the Champions League, the Blues face Martin Jol’s side who have won only once this season. Don’t expect fireworks in this match and consider yourself lucky if you see more than two goals.

 Arsenal 1 2 Stoke City

After frustrating Manchester City last weekend and actually coming so close to beating the mega rich club, Stoke City travel to the Emirates to face the Gunners who seem to be on a roll after the singing of Mesut Ozil. The German has added a breath of fresh air into Arsene Wenger’s midfield and has fitted in almost seamlessly.

When Ozil, Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey, Santi Carzola and Mikel Arteta are all fit, Arsenal will have one of the best midfields in the Premier League. However, their Achilles heel, at least until January, is the defence which needs strengthening in many ways than one. That backline will face a stern test in the shape of the bully Stoke City forwards led by Kenwyne Jones and Peter Crouch. Charlie Adam’s lethal left foot will be a constant problem to Gunners custodian Wojciech Szczesny (hope I got that name right!) I don’t see Arsenal winning this early Sunday kick off.

Manchester City 4 2 Manchester United

Is this the biggest derby in England? Not in my books. I still rate Liverpool versus Manchester United as the biggest game in English football. Tottenham versus Arsenal, Liverpool versus Everton and the Tynesside derby pitting Newcastle and Sunderland are to me still way above this Manchester Derby. Having said that, I still expect the two teams to give this match their all on Sunday evening.

The last time the Manchester bigwigs met this early in the season was in 2011 when City mauled United 6-1 at Old Trafford. A repeat of a scoreline close to that would be delusional but when you have players with the quality of the likes of Sergio Aguero, Yaya Toure, Wayne Rooney, Van Persie and Alvaro Negredo, goals will always be there.

A win for either will see them open a 3-point cushion on each other, a draw will lock them together still. I’ll not only go for a Manchester City win but they’ll find the back of United’s net not twice, not thrice, four times. Let the noise begin.

 Collated Predictions

Aston Villa 3 0 Norwich City

Newcastle 2  1 Hull City

West Brom 0 0 Sunderland

Crystal Palace 0 4 Swansea City

Cardiff City 0 2 Tottenham Hotspur