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Premier League previews: Time for more festive football
Sunderland v Tottenham (12.45)
Confidence will be high in the Sunderland camp when they play host to Champions League hopefuls Tottenham on Saturday.
Sunderland claimed the scalp of defending champions Manchester City on Boxing Day, with Adam Johnson’s second-half strike proving the difference against his former side.
The victory was Sunderland’s second win in succession and third in four games, while it was their second straight clean sheet.
And despite Sunderland’s position in the Premier League – 13th – they boast one of the best defences with 24 goals conceded in 19 games, meaner than pacesetters Manchester United, who have shipped 28 goals.
The games are coming thick and fast, though, and it won’t get any easier at the Stadium of Light on Saturday.
Tottenham, who thrashed a youthful and inexperienced Aston Villa outfit 4-0 on Wednesday, are on track to achieve their objective of a return to Champions League football.
Gareth Bale’s stellar hat-trick at Villa Park, his first in England’s topflight, ensured Tottenham remain ahead of Everton in the coveted fourth position and just two points shy of London rivals Chelsea.
Tottenham’s lofty standing is down to their current form, which has resulted in only one defeat from their past seven league fixtures.
And recent history against Sunderland bodes well for Tottenham, who are unbeaten in four games against Saturday’s opponents since losing 3-1 in April 2010.
Andre Villas-Boas has no new injury concerns apart from Clint Dempsey and Younes Kaboul, who both missed the Boxing Day clash.
Verdict: Tottenham
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Aston Villa v Wigan (15.00)
Paul Lambert has his work cut out trying to restore confidence in his Aston Villa side ahead of their clash with fellow strugglers Wigan.
Villa are in freefall and in danger of slipping into the relegation zone following two hefty defeats.
The Birmingham-based outfit were five-games unbeaten in the Premier League, a run that included a stunning 3-1 victory over Liverpool at Anfield.
But their youth and inexperience was there for all to see last Sunday as they suffered an 8-0 capitulation at Chelsea and they received no gifts over the Christmas period, falling to a comprehensive 4-0 defeat against Tottenham.
The demoralising results have seen them fall to within three points of the drop zone.
However, Lambert is remaining upbeat and confident his Villa players will not sink without a trace.
“They will be fine,” he said.
“One thing in football is that you can’t dwell on it and you have to bounce back. There is no other way.”
They have a chance to bounce back at home to Wigan on Saturday but will need to improve in front of goal, having netted a paltry 15 goals, the lowest amount in the Premier League this season.
Wigan, themselves, are facing a crucial period in the next few weeks.
But a win at Villa Park would propel the club out of danger and potentially up to 16th position, with games against Manchester United and Fulham in the coming weeks.
Verdict: Draw
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Fulham v Swansea (15.00)
Fulham have gone off the boil over the past two months and are in desperate need of a win against visiting Swansea City on Saturday.
After a steady start to the Premier League season, which included four victories, Fulham have picked up just one win in their past 11 league fixtures.
Martin Jol’s team are on a three-game winless streak after defeats to Queens Park Rangers and Liverpool and a draw at home to Southampton on Boxing Day.
The south-west London club have slipped to 14th in the standings, only six points clear of the relegation zone heading into the New Year.
And they will be facing a Swansea outfit just as eager to return to the winners’ circle.
And Swansea’s bid to claim a third successive victory against Fulham has received a blow with leading scorer Michu in doubt for Saturday’s trip to Craven Cottage.
“His ankle is twice as big now. We don’t know how bad it is,” Laudrup said.
“The doctors and the physios say it shouldn’t be the ligaments, which is the most important thing.
“He is one of the top scorers in the league, definitely our top scorer. He has played nearly every match this season.
“Even if he is the most important player, we have to deal with it (if he is out). If you rely so much on one or two players it is not good for any team.”
Fulham’s most recent league victory against Swansea was in 1997, when both teams were competing in League Two.
Verdict: Swansea
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Manchester United v West Brom (15.00)
Manchester United showed that even when not at full flight they are capable of winning some of the most remarkable matches in football.
United trailed three times at home to Newcastle on Boxing Day but claimed a stunning 4-3 victory courtesy of Javier Hernandez’s 90th-minute goal.
The Red Devils were far from their best, struggling defensively and misplacing passes.
But as seen so often this season, United’s firepower has been good enough to get the team out of trouble.
And next up for the championship hopefuls is a showdown with one of the league’s surprise packets West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.
Under the guidance of rookie manager Steve Clarke, West Brom are sixth, level on points with Everton and Tottenham.
A four-game winless streak threatened to derail a potential Europe League berth but two successive wins against Norwich and Queens Park Rangers has the club firmly entrenched in the top seven.
Since the competition was founded in 1992, the pair have met 12 times, with United claiming 10 wins and two draws.
In the past five games, United have netted a whopping 17 goals, while only conceding four.
The Premier League leaders will be without Rooney for the next three weeks after he sustained knee ligament damage during training but Ferguson is hopeful of welcoming back Young and Phil Jones for Saturday’s match.
Midfield pair Youssouf Mulumbu (one-game ban) and Claudio Yacob (injury) are set for a return to the West Brom starting line-up.
Verdict: Manchester United
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Norwich City v Manchester City (15.00)
An already tricky away trip to Norwich City on Saturday looks even tougher for Manchester City now, after their upset loss at Sunderland.
Roberto Mancini’s team were surprisingly beaten at the Stadium of Light on Boxing Day, their third consecutive 1-0 loss away to Sunderland in the past three seasons.
With title rivals Manchester United snatching a dramatic 4-3 win at home to Newcastle, Sir Alex Ferguson’s men now lead City by seven points at the top of the English Premier League table, placing greater importance on the outcome of the champions’ visit to Carrow Road.
For Norwich, the arrival of the title-holders is set to be a second major examination in front of their own fans in the space of three days after a home match against Chelsea on Wednesday.
Defeat left Norwich 11th on the table, a more than respectable situation midway through what is Hughton’s first season in charge since succeeding Paul Lambert as manager in June.
Mancini’s biggest concern going into the game will surely be a lack of goals from his expensively assembled front line.
The likes of Carlos Tevez, Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and David Silva have all failed to fire in their past two outings, with City held goalless at Sunderland and forced to rely on a late Gareth Barry effort to beat lowly Reading 1-0 on December 22.
But the visitors are unlikely to have such an easy time of it this time around – Norwich have lost just twice at Carrow Road this season, conceding only nine goals in their nine home games to date.
With John Ruddy sidelined due to a thigh injury, Hughton has had to make do without his first-choice goalkeeper in recent weeks, and Mark Bunn will continue to deputise between the posts.
Defender Steven Whittaker and midfielder Andrew Surman are due to return from hip and knee problems respectively.
For City, fullbacks Gael Clichy (knock) and Aleksandar Kolarov (leg) and midfielder Samir Nasri (groin) are all doubtful.
Defender Micah Richards (knee) and holding player Jack Rodwell (hamstring) are long-term absentees and will not feature.
Verdict: Manchester City
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Reading v West Ham (15.00)
Reading have a good opportunity to create some much-needed momentum when West Ham make their way to the Madejski Stadium on Saturday.
The promoted outfit ended a seven-match losing streak with a goalless draw at home to Swansea on Boxing Day – the club’s first clean sheet since returning to England’s top flight.
Reading moved off the bottom of the table but still remain in the relegation zone, six points adrift of safety.
However, manager Brian McDermott is confident his team can build on Wednesday’s result.
“We have got a point and a clean sheet and we are off the bottom of the table.”
Reading will do battle with fellow promoted club West Ham, who are in the midst of a three-game winless run.
After stunning Premier League giants Chelsea 3-1 at the start of December, Sam Allardyce and his team have lost to Liverpool and Everton, while playing out a goalless stalemate at West Bromwich Albion.
Last Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Everton, a game they led up until the 64th-minute mark, also saw striker Carlton Cole dismissed for two bookable offences.
West Ham were scheduled to meet Arsenal on Boxing Day but the match was postponed due to proposed travel issues, meaning Cole will serve his suspension on Saturday.
McDermott has no new fresh injury concerns ahead of the match, while Allardyce is expected to welcome back midfielder Yossi Benayoun from a knee injury.
Verdict: Reading
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Stoke v Southampton (15.00)
Stoke City will hope to extend their unbeaten streak to 10 games when they host Southampton ahead of a tough period for the home team.
Forward pair Jonathan Walters and Kenwyne Jones will head into the clash with Southampton with plenty of confidence after they almost single-handedly destroyed Liverpool 3-1 on Boxing Day.
Stoke have moved up to eighth in the English Premier League but with games against Manchester City, Chelsea, Swansea to come after the visit of Southampton, a win on Saturday will be crucial to stay as high on the table as possible over the next month.
Southampton have the fifth-worst defence – statistically – in the Premier League this season and while Stoke are not prolific in front of goal, Pulis’ players should be confident they can break open the visitors’ back four on Saturday.
And going on past results, there should be plenty of goals at the Britannia Stadium.
In the other fixture of the 2007/08 season, Southampton won by the same margin on their home turf.
Southampton will head to the Britannia with one loss and a draw in their two matches during the busy festive period.
The promoted club lost to Sunderland 1-0 before claiming a 1-1 draw away to Fulham on Boxing Day with Rickie Lambert scoring from the spot for Southampton.
Adkins should have a full team to choose from apart from Adam Lallana, as the Southampton captain continues to struggle with a knee injury.
For Stoke, Pulis may have Michael Owen available, although the striker is unlikely to be brought into the starting line-up after Walters and Jones’ impressive performance against Liverpool.
Verdict: Draw
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Arsenal v Newcastle (17.30)
Newcastle produced a spirited display on Boxing Day and came away empty handed, but can they bounce back against Arsenal on Saturday?
Goals from James Perch and Papiss Cisse and an own goal from Jonny Evans had Newcastle on the verge of an historic victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford.
However, Alan Pardew’s side was unable to claim at least a point as United ran out 4-3 winners in wet conditions.
The defeat was Newcastle’s seventh in nine Premier League fixtures, sending the club down to 15th position, just five points clear of the dreaded relegation zone.
Arsenal head into the match fresh and ready to go after their Boxing Day meeting with West Ham was postponed.
The London outfit will have had seven days rest before kick-off on Saturday, compared to Newcastle’s two after an energy-sapping encounter in Manchester.
Arsenal’s last Premier League outing resulted in a hard-fought 1-0 win over Wigan and victory against Newcastle would keep Arsene Wenger’s team on track for a Champions League berth.
The most recent Premier League meeting between the two sides saw Arsenal claim a 2-1 win thanks to goals from Robin van Persie and Thomas Vermaelen.
With a number of key personnel absent including Hatem Ben Arfa (hamstring) and Yohan Cabaye (groin), Newcastle are set to receive a welcomed boost with no-nonsense midfielder Cheick Tiote free to play after serving a one-game ban.
Meanwhile, besides Abou Diaby (thigh), Lukasz Fabianski (ankle) and Andre Santos (abdominal) Arsenal have a full squad to pick from.
Verdict: Draw
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