Kevin Doyle talks Liverpool, Man United and Arsenal v Man City
Published:
Liverpool v Watford, Saturday @ 12:30
It would be a shock to see Watford getting a result here, but I wouldn’t put it past them – they have done it before!
They have changed managers and seem to have a habit of getting results on the back of that. They are playing against a top performing Liverpool team though which leaves it hard to see anything else other than a Liverpool win.
In truth,I’m not sure about Watford’s security in the league. If they don’tshape up in the next few weeks, then it could be too late for them.This could be the season where their managerial merry-go-round is not going towork.
Ican see Liverpool remaining at the top of the table for the rest ofthe season. I had made a brave call back in late September andsaid I could see them winning, and my opinion hasn’t changed.
Theyhave lots of games coming up and need to rotate, they can’t play thesame players in every game. It could be a good move for them to makesome new signings in January as the squad is slightly light.
Liverpool are far too strong for Watford and I see them scoring some nice goals in this game.
Prediction: 3-0 Liverpool
Leicester v Norwich, Saturday @ 15:00
Leicester arehaving a far better season than Norwich. However, on paper there isnot as much of a difference between the two as the table says. TheCanaries could surprise us; they have surprised a few top teams this season.They could get something out of the game, but I find it hard to see anythingother than a Leicester win.
Jamie Vardy is still going strong. Having scored nine games in a row, they are getting a fantastic return from him. I don’t know if he will make it past 30 goals, but I can see him being top scorer and getting the Golden Boot. He is playing with confidence and is fit and as fast as ever.
This will be a tough game for the Norwich fans to watch. My advice to the team would be to get out there and try your best and put everyone behind the ball.
Prediction: 2-0 Leicester
Southampton v West Ham, Saturday @ 17:30
Southampton arein better form than West Ham and playing at home this will be anadvantage for them. Having conceded two late goals against Newcastle lastweekend, they will be disappointed as they had been looking for three winson the bounce and it was big blow for the squad.
Psychologically for Southampton this will be tough, but I do think they have better form than West Ham and should be able to dust themselves off to win in this game.
The Hammers have been struggling and look to be coming close to a managerial change. It will be interesting to see how this will affect the team.
Prediction: 2-1 Southampton
Man Utd v Everton, Sunday @ 14:00
Last weekend I had predicted a relatively comfortable Man City win, so as a supporter when Man Utd came out 2-1 on top, I was pleasantly surprised! Being a derby, I could see Man Utd playing well and being more aggressive, however I didn’t see them doing this for the whole 90 minutes.
They ended up having enough quality to win and they rightly deserved to. Hopefully Ole Gunnar Solskjaer proves everyone wrong and can keep this form up.
Everton’swin against Chelsea under caretaker manager Duncan Ferguson last weekend was ashock to me also. Duncan is a club legend, if it comes to him beingoffered the full-time position, there will be no issues with the fans acceptinghim.
Peoplewho work with Duncan everyday will know if he should get the full-time managerposition or not. Coming in and winning one game has got him off to a goodstart however, it does come down to him being able to maintain thisform.
Man Utd are facing a totally different proposition to the Everton team pre-manager change. I am most looking forward to watching this game this weekend as Man Utd seem to be on the rise and I am hopeful they can maintain this great effort to win 2-0 at Old Trafford.
Prediction: 2-0 Man United
Wolves v Spurs, Sunday @ 14:00
Thisis an evenly matched game and I don’t think there will be much in it.They are two strong teams who are very closely matched however, Spurs dohave a slight upper hand. If I was to choose a best value bet, this wouldbe a 1-1 draw.
Wolves at home will give them a little edge. But with José Mourinho on Spurs’ side, he has them performing well and playing as a solid team. Having given Troy Parrott his Premier League debut last weekend, I don’t think he will be blanked totally.
If Mourinho continues to offer him 10-15 minutes playing time to integrate him into the Premier League, this will allow him to gain confidence and really show his manager what he can do.
Prediction: 1-1 Draw
Arsenal v Man City, Sunday @ 16:30
Man City haven’tbeen performing at their best for the past month of two. Losing to Liverpoolwas a big blow to them and now having lost to Man Utd, it will be a punch inthe gut. Arsenal’s 3-1 win against West Ham last weekend should give thema confidence boost.
Weare looking at two teams who have not been playing to their full potential. Itis hard to predict what way this game will play out.
Thisis the first time I have seen Pep Guardiola ruffled. He had been talking aboutMan Utd having the strong team last weekend, but Man City have much better formand probably the best squad in the League! For the first time he is under somepressure and it will be interesting to see how he deals with this.
I can see Man City wanting to get back into winning action with this game and Pep putting his foot down and getting the squad back to playing at their best.
Prediction: 3-1 Man City
My 1-2-Free prediction
Southampton v West Ham: 2-1 Southampton
Man Utd v Everton: 2-0 Man Utd
Arsenal v Man City: 3-1 Man City
My Five-Fold ACCA
Liverpool v Watford: Liverpool win
Chelseav Bournemouth: Chelsea win
Southamptonv West Ham: Southampton win
Leicesterv Norwich: Leicester win
StokeCity v Reading: Reading win
Kevin
