The festive season is nearly upon us. And you know that that means, don’t you? More football. So much football, in fact, you’ll be fed up with it. It becomes almost a daily occurrence as broadcasters everywhere give us a steady stream of live Premier League football to gorge on.
By Sam McGuire
Before that, though, we have Matchday 13 in the English top-flight to look forward to. So here’s what you can look out for this weekend.
The João Pedro show
João Pedro is looking to make up for lost time.
The Brighton forward suffered an ankle injury against Nottingham Forest in September and missed a chunk of the season. It ended what had been a bright start for the former Watford forward. Pedro found the back of the net in the win over Manchester United and a draw with Arsenal.
He returned for the recent match against Manchester City, coming off of the bench to win the game for the Seagulls with a goal and an assist. The 23-year-old was then named in the starting XI for the game against Bournemouth and, again, he turned out to be the difference-maker for Brighton. He scored the opener and then played one of the passes of the season to assist the winner, with Kaoru Mitoma finding the back of the net.
The Brazilian striker now has four goals and two assists in 370 minutes for the Seagulls. He’ll fancy his chances of adding to those numbers this weekend as Brighton take on South Coast rivals Southampton on Friday evening. The Saints have one of the worst defensive records in the Premier League having conceded 24 goals while Fabian Hürzeler’s side are quite potent in attack having scored 21 goals. Only Manchester City (22), Chelsea (23), Liverpool (24) and Spurs (27) have found the back of the net with greater regularity.
A win for the Seagulls would lift them into second position in the Premier League, at least momentarily. And Pedro will be key to whether or not this happens.
Wolves are on the prowl
Gary O’Neil’s side are currently on a four match unbeaten streak. Wolves held Brighton and Crystal Palace to 2-2 draws before recording a 2-0 win over Southampton in a bottom-of-the-table clash and then romping to a 4-1 victory against an in-form Fulham side.
A win at Molineux on Saturday could lift them as high as 15th in the Premier League table. Wolves host an out-of-sorts Bournemouth side. The Cherries are 13th in the table and have recorded wins over Manchester City and Arsenal this term, as well as picking up a draw against Aston Villa. However, they have lost their last two outings.
Brentford claimed a 3-2 win over Andoni Irola’s side before Brighton picked up all three points against Bournemouth last time out.
If results go against them this weekend, they could end Matchday 13th just three points above the dropzone. Their good work earlier in the season will have been undone, to an extent.
To get anything out of this game, they are going to have to limit the involvement of Matheus Cunha. The Wolves forward is in ridiculous form. His 9.3 rating against Fulham was the highest of Matchday 12 and he’s got seven goal involvements in his last four outings in the English top-flight.
Momentum shifter
On Sunday afternoon, Chelsea host Aston Villa in a game that could be pivotal for both sides.
Unai Emery’s men have hit a rough patch at the worst possible time. Villa are winless in seven across all competitions. Their last victory arrived well over a month ago and it was in the Champions League against Bologna.
Defeat this weekend could see them drop into the bottom half of the table. A win, however, would lift them back into top four contention. One positive result can completely change the momentum of a team. And Villa will be banking on this before the 2024/25 campaign gets away from them before we even enter 2025.
Chelsea, meanwhile, could finish the weekend in second if results go their way. Enzo Maresca has his side playing some good football this season. The Blues have the fourth highest Expected Goals haul in the Premier League and they’ve averaged the third most goals in the English top-flight.
The Blues have lost just twice all season, to reigning champions Man City on the opening day and to current leaders Liverpool at Anfield. They’re on yet another four-match unbeaten streak and the longer they’re able to extend this, the more momentum they have heading into the busiest time of the season.
Reigning champions versus title contenders
Liverpool and Manchester City played out some classics during the Jürgen Klopp era. Over the last 12 matches, City have four wins and Liverpool have three. Generally, they’re quite tight affairs.
But when City pick up a victory against the Reds, they usually romp to victory. They have scored four goals in three of these wins, for example.
The same cannot be said for Liverpool. They usually eke out wins over Pep Guardiola’s side.
There might be an opportunity for revenge this weekend. The Reds are in rampant form this season. They have ruthlessly won 15 of the 17 games they have played in all competitions. They are top of the Premier League and have a 100% record in the Champions League. They’re coming up against an out-of-sorts Manchester City side who are winless in six having lost five on the bounce before their 3-3 draw with Feyenoord.
If ever there was an opportunity to send a message or put in a statement showing against the reigning champions, it is now. If they manage it, they’ll have an 11 point advantage over City with just 13 games on the board.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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