Preview

Nov

2025

Preview: Under pressure Reds welcome Villa to Anfield

With the clubs level on points in the table, the stakes are high ahead of Saturday’s clash on Merseyside.

By Filip Mishov

Slot’s comments raise eyebrows and fuel Emery’s confidence

Liverpool’s sixth defeat over their past seven matches across all competitions resulted in EFL Cup elimination with the Eagles flying high at Anfield and into the quarter-finals, prompting the under-fire Arne Slot to publicly question the squad’s depth after spending over €480 million during the summer transfer window. With matches against Aston Villa, Real Madrid and Manchester City coming ahead of November’s international break, the champions’ crisis could unravel further if the Reds’ form does not improve quickly.

With the Villans free of midweek EFL Cup action following last month’s exit, Unai Emery enjoyed a full week to prepare his in-form squad for the visit to Anfield, which is an unfavourable ground for the Midlands club to go to, with their last win in Merseyside dating back to 2014. However, Aston Villa are on an impressive four-match winning streak and are undefeated in the Premier League since August, sparking confidence ahead of Saturday’s clash. Furthermore, the Lions’ aggressive defence ended Erling Haaland‘s 12-match scoring streak for club and country at Villa Park and kept City’s fruitful attack at bay last weekend, perfect preparation for facing Mohamed Salah this weekend, who scored in each of their previous two visits.

Key players

Cody Gakpo is the champions’ most dangerous and reliable attacker this season, and the Netherlands forward is the squad’s leading scorer (3), assist maker (2) and chance creator (19) in the Premier League, earning him an average FotMob rating of 7.52. The Dutchman’s performances have been a shining light in Liverpool’s underperforming forward line, and impressively, the 26-year-old’s output could have been even higher, if he was not the player who has hit the woodwork the most time (3) this campaign.

Matty Cash signed a new contract to extend his stay in Birmingham until 2029 at the least, following his Player of the Match performance against Manchester City, with the Polish right-back scoring a stunning winner and helping Emiliano Martínez record a clean sheet by keeping, both Savinho and Jérémy Doku quiet. The energetic defender is one of Villa’s top performers this season and the 28-year-old’s impressive attacking output (2 goals) makes him the squad’s joint-top scorer in the Premier League.

Team news

With Arne Slot deciding to field a heavily-rotated side against Crystal Palace during midweek, most of the first-team players were given a rest and are expected to return, with Ryan Gravenberch closing in on a return as well, while Curtis Jones and Alexander Isak are almost certain to join Alisson Becker and Jeremie Frimpong on the sidelines.

Emiliano Buendia recorded an assist for Villa’s winning goal against the Cityzens before coming off with a foot injury and the Argentine left Villa Park on crutches, which puts him out of contention, just like Harvey Elliott who is ineligible to face his parent club, and Youri Tielemans, who is also sidelined.

Prediction

The Reds’ form is going from bad to worse, but the champions are unbeaten against the Villans since 2020 across all competitions, and despite the visitors’ current winning streak, Anfield has been an unconquerable fortress for them, so perhaps a draw is the most realistic outcome.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, player ratings. Download the free app here.

Nov

2025

Preview: Spurs and Chelsea meet in London Derby

Bitter London rivals Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea meet in this weekend’s headline Premier League fixture, with three points and six places between them.

By Neel Shelat

Chelsea eyeing a fifth consecutive win over Spurs

Chelsea are the more successful team in the history of this fixture with a record of 79 wins, 42 draws and 53 losses overall. The Blues have taken all three points in the majority of their Premier League meetings, winning 37 of 66. They certainly are enjoying a good spell at the moment, having done the double over their rivals in each of the last two seasons.

The Blues’ last five-match winning streak in the league over Spurs came right after the turn of the millennium, and was capped off with a sixth victory thanks to Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s hat-trick in March 2002.

Red cards continue to plague the Blues

Chelsea will naturally hope to see one of their forwards step up big time in this game, but all signs seem to suggest that is pretty unlikely. None of their attackers have more than two league goals this season, Cole Palmer is set to remain unavailable due to his groin injury, and to top it all off, lead striker Liam Delap is suspended after getting sent off in the dramatic midweek EFL Cup tie against Wolves.

That was the fifth time in just the last nine matches that Enzo Maresca’s side have gone down to 10 players. The Italian coach will have an important job to do to ensure that his youthful squad keep their heads in this heated fixture.

Tottenham almost missing an entire XI

Tottenham Hotspur certainly won’t share any sympathy for their opponents’ absences given the length of their own injury list. Guglielmo Vicario is expected to be back for this match, but an entire line-up’s worth of outfielders are unavailable. The defensive department is the worst hit as Cristian Romero, Radu Drăgușin, Kota Takai, Destiny Udogie and Ben Davies are all on the treatment table. Archie Gray could join Yves Bissouma in the injured XI’s midfield, while chief creators James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski are there to support lead striker Dominic Solanke.

Set-pieces set to be key

Capital clubs are leading the way in the Premier League’s dead-ball revolution. Leaders Arsenal also top the charts in terms of goals scored from set-pieces with nine in as many games. Chelsea are right behind them with eight (three of which came thanks to the charitable West Ham defence), while Spurs round out the podium with five. The last time Thomas Frank’s side scored a game-state-altering open play goal was almost a month ago against Leeds United.

At the other end of the pitch, Tottenham have been quite solid in all respects. They have conceded just once from dead-ball situations in the league this term, while Chelsea have let in four. The Blues’ xG conceded tally in this regard is even higher at 6.10, which is the worst in the division. Spurs will surely look to take advantage of this potential mismatch.

Prediction

Both sides have just two wins in their last six league games and have generally struggled for cohesion in their attacking performances, so a cagey and feisty battle is to be expected. Multiple goals going in would be a pleasant surprise.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Nov

2025

Preview: Man United test their unbeaten run at Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest are a mess and Manchester United are finding their feet. Can the Red Devils continue their upward swing at The City Ground?

By Ian King

United are spreading their wings, but Forest remain a mess

October, it’s fair to say, was a good month for Manchester United. Three wins out of three, including a win at Anfield, have lifted them to the dizzy heights of sixth place in the table heading in to the weekend, the first time they’ve been this high since April 2024 (They did beat Fulham 1-0 on the first Friday night of the 2024-25 season to go top, but we’re not counting that since no-one else had played a single game at that point).

Nottingham Forest remain a mess. They’re on their third manager of the season. They’ve lost their last four Premier League matches in a row and remain without a league win since beating Brentford on the opening weekend of the season. The optimism of August has drifted away down the River Trent and it’s difficult to avoid the conclusion that, yes indeed, they are one of the worst three teams in the Premier League right now.

Forest’s 2024-25 double over United already feels like a long time ago

Forest were one of six clubs to complete a league double over Manchester United last season, with a win at Old Trafford in December and at The City Ground on April Fool’s Day. Prior to that, however, United had won twelve of their last thirteen games against them going back to 1995. Last season’s performances really were the outliers, in terms of previous meetings between these two teams.

Forest are in a goalscoring crisis, and their best hope of resolving that is injured

There aren’t too many blights on Manchester United’s horizon at the moment, but the arrival of Benjamin Šeško hasn’t quite worked out exactly as they might have hoped just yet. He’s only managed two League goals in nine Premier League appearances for them – although four of these did come from the bench – and if they can get him firing the way that Bryan Mbuemo has, the final piece of Ruben Amorim’s intended United team could be into place.

*United’s top scorers in the Premier League*

Nottingham Forest haven’t scored a single goal in their last four league matches and have only scored two since their opening day win against Brentford. Furthermore, none of their strikers have scored since Chris Wood did so in first half stoppage-time in that match, and he’s doubtful for this match.

Igor Jesus made his first start for them at Bournemouth last weekend, but was hoicked off at half-time. He was replaced by Taiwo Awoniyi to little effect. Awoniyi has only started one game for Forest too, in their previous game against Chelsea. He was also hoicked off at half-time. It’s time for Morgan Gibbs-White to step up to the plate. Forest went to great lengths to keep him at the club during the summer, and he did put in an excellent shift in their recent win against Porto in the Europa League. They need more of that from him, and as a matter of urgency.

United may welcome Maguire back, but Wood still out for Forest

It had been hoped that Lisandro Martínez might be fit for Manchester United again by this time, but he’s still not ready. There’s better news on the Harry Maguire front. A knock kept him out of their 4-2 win against Brighton, but there’s a good chance he’ll return for this one.

Forest also have two doubts for this match. Chris Wood remains doubtful after picking up an injury during the last international break, while Oleksandr Zinchenko was subbed off against Porto with a hip injury and hasn’t returned since. He’s also likely to miss out on this match. Ola Aina and Dilane Bakwa are longer-term absentees.

Sean Dyche should get Forest looking more coherent, but Manchester United should be too strong for them

If nothing else, Manchester United have picked up a little of that all-important Big Club Arrogance again in recent weeks, with their win against Brighton last week – the sort of match that would have seen them have a major case of the collywobbles last season – being a case in point. It remains to be seen whether this is a temporary state of affairs or not.

Nottingham Forest, meanwhile, are a mess. Having somehow found themselves on their third (completely different type of) manager of the season before the end of October, they’re a team stuffed with talented yet underperforming players and apparently in thrall to the mood swings of their volatile owner. It’s now down to Sean Dyche to pick up these fallen pieces and make something coherent out of them.

Forest should improve. Dyche should get them a little more organised than the shambolic look of Ange Postecoglou’s teams. But it’s still a bit soon to be seeing huge changes, and Manchester United are starting to look like a Proper Football Team again, so getting much from this match may be beyond him. A 3-0 United win, and steam to be emerging from Evangelos Marinakis’ ears again by the full-time whistle. Don’t do it, Evangelos. You can’t have a different manager for every match.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Oct

2025

Preview: Arsenal look to continue winning streak against Burnley

Burnley host Arsenal at Turf Moor on Saturday afternoon as they bid to end the Gunners’ impressive eight-game unbeaten run in all competitions

By Ross Kilvington

Arsenal’s set piece success has them flying

So far this season, Arsenal have scored 11 goals via set pieces. Such is their effectiveness from a dead-ball situation under Mikel Arteta, a total of 85 Premier League goals have been scored since start of the 2020/21 campaign via this route.

With such physicality in their squad, players such as Gabriel have reaped the rewards and Jamie Carragher has even dubbed the defender “the most influential player in the league”.

They might not play the most aesthetically pleasing football, but Arsenal are winning games and that is all that matters.

Defensively, the club have conceded just three goals this season across all competitions. Keep this sort of form up, and Arteta will be celebrating Arsenal’s first title since 2004.

Burnley had adapted well to the Premier League

Following a Championship winning season in 2022/23, Burnley struggled in the top flight, winning just 24 points as they went straight back down.

It was a case of Déjà vu for the club as they sealed yet another promotion last term. This time round, however, Scott Parker has them playing football which could see the Turf Moor side remain in the Premier League.

With ten points from nine matches, Burnley occupy 16^th in the table, five points clear of the relegation zone.

Parker’s men head into the clash with the leaders having won two league games in a row. Pulling off a shock result this weekend might be beyond them, yet Burnley will make things tough for the away side, that much is certain.

Team news

Parker will be missing three players for this vital clash at Turf Moor on Saturday. Jordan Byer and Connor Roberts will be absent until the beginning of January at the earliest.

For Zeki Amdouni, however, it will be a major surprise if he returns before the start of April due to having surgery on an ACL injury.

Arsenal will still be without captain Martin Ødegaard, who sustained a keen injury against West Ham United earlier this month.

Elsewhere, Noni Madueke is out, while Gabriel Martinelli and William Saliba doubts for the Burnley clash.

Both will be tested on Friday ahead of the match to see if they are fit to play.

Prediction

It is hard to see anything but an Arsenal win on Saturday, especially given their growing confidence amid Liverpool’s struggles.

With a four-point cushion at the top of the Premier League table, a victory at Turf Moor could see them stretch this lead to seven points if other results go their way.

As proven several times this season, Parker’s charges wont make things easy for the Gunners, but Arteta and his side should have more than enough to continue their winning streak.

We at FotMob predict a vital 2-0 win for the away side.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow all the games from the Premier League on FotMob in the 2025/26 season – with in-depth stat coverage, including xG, shot maps, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Oct

2025

Preview: Manchester City head to Swansea City in the Carabao

One of the more one-sided ties in the EFL fourth round takes place in Wales on Wednesday where even a heavily rotated Manchester City side should see off Swansea City – with Pep Guardiola’s side aiming for a first final in five years in a competition they once dominated.

By Karl Matchett

From four in a row to two off top

The strength in depth is what kept City competitive in this competition in the early part of Guardiola’s tenure, with even changed teams still boasting hosts of internationals and big-money signings. It led to an incredible six League Cup trophies in the space of eight seasons, including four in a row from 2016 to 2020. It also took City to joint-record holders alongside Liverpool with the most wins in the competition – but the depth now perhaps isn’t quite what it was in that particular period.

*Man City’s list of honours in the Carabao Cup*

City haven’t made the final in what will be five years come the Wembley date later this season, with Liverpool winning twice more in that period to reestablish supremacy in this second-tier tournament. But if winning the League Cup is not on the list of requirements for owners, big-club coaches have seen it as a springboard to greater successes. After last year’s fall from grace you can be sure Guardiola and his squad would love to kickstart things by winning the EFL Cup in March 2026.

A who’s who of nearly made it

Opponents and hosts Swansea have bigger things on their mind than an improbable run to Wembley right now. Another middling campaign so far of hit-and-miss football leaves them in bang average territory: Championship midtable, 13th, zero goal difference, as many matches won as drawn…as lost.

The squad speaks to a collection of could-have-beens and almost-men, once-young-hopefuls and career journeymen. There is nothing of shame or disrepute in that – these players are a single step away from the elite. But, the shortcoming of the modern-day Swansea side is perhaps that almost all of them have always been a step away from that.

Jay Fulton managed 11 games one season in the Premier League, but was never a regular until the second tier beckoned. Josh Tymon couldn’t crack it with Stoke until they were relegated. Ben Cabango didn’t break through until after Swansea went down. Cameron Burgess has yet to play a top-flight game anywhere and Ethan Galbraith debuted for Man United, but had never even played Championship level league action until this year. On-loan Malick Yalcouyé will hope in time to break that trend but he’s yet to debut for Brighton.

Recent form

Swansea have two wins, two draws and two defeats in six. Man City had won five of six prior to the weekend but lost at Aston Villa.

Team news

Ricardo Santos is missing for the hosts, with Rodri and Rayan Aït-Nouri out for the visitors.

Key player

Omar Marmoush has just returned so should start here and is a matchwinner: over the past year he’s top 82% for chances created, 92% for shots and 70% for goals compared to Europe’s finest.

Prediction

Nothing too clever about an away win really: Swansea 0-3 Man City.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Carabao Cup with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Oct

2025

Preview: Chelsea visit Wolves for Carabao Cup clash

Vítor Pereira’s side have found some solace in the League Cup following a dismal start to their Premier League campaign, although Chelsea at Molineux on Wednesday will be their toughest test so far.

By Alex Roberts

Wolves’ two wins of the season so far have come in this tournament, beating fellow strugglers West Ham in the first round before going on to get the better of Everton in the previous.

As for Chelsea, their laboured 2-1 comeback win over League One side Lincoln City was one of several disappointing results from Enzo Maresca’s side so far. They’ll have to be much better if they want to progress this time around.

Is it time to worry about João Pedro?

Pedro stepped off a Brazilian beach and into the Chelsea first team in the summer, playing a key role in the side’s Club World Cup triumph. While he started the season well, his form has since dropped off a cliff.

The forward has now gone ten games for club and country without a goal, only providing a single assist, in Chelsea’s 2-2 draw with Brentford during that time. Pedro has only been at the club a few months, but he already looks bereft of confidence.

In the 2-1 defeat to Sunderland over the weekend, where he played in his preferred position as more of a number ten, behind Marc Guiu, he had just three touches in the opposition box, made two passes into the final third, and was dispossessed three times.

With his performances through the floor, perhaps a lower pressure cup game against Wolves is a good place to get back on it.

The start of something good?

Wolves were disappointing in their 3-2 defeat to Burnley, but the fans can take hope from the fact that main man Jørgen Strand Larsen was back amongst the goals, even if it was a penalty.

The Norwegian has impressed in this season’s League Cup, coming off the bench to score two goals in two minutes to send his side through against West Ham. He didn’t score in the win over Everton, but considering his recent fitness issues, he got some much-needed minutes in those legs.

It’s starting to feel like the writing is on the walls for Wolves, in the league at least, but stranger things have happened, and if Pereira wants to save their season, he will need to do everything he can to get the best out of Strand Larsen.

Team News

Chelsea’s injury crisis is slowly subsiding, but they’ll still be without Levi Colwill (knee), Dário Essugo (thigh), Liam Delap (thigh), Cole Palmer (groin) and Benoît Badiashile (muscle).

Maresca will likely make a few changes following their defeat to Sunderland, with Wesley Fofana, Andrey Santos, Romeo Lavia, Jorrel Hato, Jamie Gittens, and Tyrique George all available to return to Chelsea’s starting XI. Malo Gusto is also back from suspension.

As for Wolves, Pereira has a clean bill of health with no players expected to miss out through injury or suspension. Expect him to play a strong side, he knows better than anyone his side needs a win.

Prediction

We’re not expecting a particularly exciting game here. Chelsea should dominate proceedings and have most of the ball but considering their recent form, might be a little nervous if they don’t get an early goal. So we’re going with a 2-1 win for the visitors.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Carabao Cup with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Oct

2025

Preview: Arsenal face Brighton in the Carabao

Arsenal can extend their seven-game winning run in all competitions against Brighton in the Carabao Cup.

By Graham Ruthven

More momentum

The mood at the Emirates Stadium is optimistic right now. Arsenal are four points clear at the top of the Premier League and also have a perfect record in the early stages of this season’s Champions League.

Wednesday’s match against Brighton gives the Gunners the chance to build more momentum in the Carabao Cup with Mikel Arteta’s team playing for a spot in the quarter-finals.

Arsenal enter the game on the back of a 10-game unbeaten run in all competitions. Brighton, on the other hand, saw their five-game unbeaten streak end with Saturday’s 4-2 loss to Manchester United.

It’s been over 30 years since Arsenal last won the League Cup and while the competition might not be their biggest target this season, a trophy would be some vindication of Arteta’s process.

Key players

Viktor Gyökeres will lead the line for the Gunners and will press from the front to make Brighton’s job of playing out from the back more difficult. The Swede is leading the Premier League in pressures in the final third per 90 minutes.

Eberechi Eze struck the winner against Crystal Palace and is expected to start as the number 10 once more with Martin Ødegaard still injured.

Arteta could rotate his options in midfield and defence with Cristhian Mosquera among those who could come into the lineup after making a cameo off the bench in the victory over Palace.

Diego Gómez sensationally scored four times to get Brighton through against Barnsley in the previous round and could keep his place in the team for the visit to North London.

Georginio Rutter will be an attacking threat for the away side with James Milner in line for a start in the centre of the pitch. His experience could be key for the Seagulls as they attempt to make the final eight.

Lewis Dunk and Maxim De Cuyper will come under pressure to keep things tight at the back against an Arsenal forward line that has failed to find the back of the net in just one game this season.

Team news

While Saturday’s win over Crystal Palace strengthened Arsenal’s position at the top of the Premier League, it came at a cost. Indeed, the Gunners’ injury list is now longer than it was before the weekend.

Declan Rice, William Saliba, Ricardo Califiori and Gabriel Martinelli all picked up knocks against the Eagles meaning they are doubts to take on Brighton in the Carabao Cup.

Kai Havertz, Ødegaard, Noni Madueke and Gabriel Jesus remain on the sidelines through long-term injury and will play no part in Wednesday’s match.

Kaoru Mitoma, Joel Veltman and Brajan Gruda missed the trip to Old Trafford for Brighton. The trio are closing in on a return to action, but Wednesday’s match could come too early.

Jack Hinshelwood, Solly March and Adam Webster are long-term absentees, limiting the Seagulls’ options to freshen up the side that lost to Manchester United.

Prediction

There may be a lot of changes in Mikel Arteta’s starting XI at the Emirates, but there should still be enough quality in defence to maintain their current resolve, especially with Brighton expected to change things up as well: Arsenal 2-0 Brighton.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Carabao Cup with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Oct

2025

Preview: Newcastle meet Spurs in the Carabao Cup

Both Newcastle and Spurs will have one eye on winning the Carabao Cup this season, so it’s bad news for one of them that they’ll be going out in the last sixteen.

By Ian King

Neither Spurs or Newcastle have built much momentum this season

Spurs’ 3-0 win at Everton at the weekend was a curate’s egg of a performance, a comfortable win in which they maximised their set-piece opportunities without looking that impressive. The performance at least counterbalanced their poor performance at home to Aston Villa a week earlier.

Newcastle, meanwhile, stuttered their way to a 2-1 win against Fulham at the weekend. They’ve been masters of inconsistency so far this season, having failed to win, lose or draw twice in a row in their opening nine League matches. The goalscoring issues with which they started the season have largely evaporated, but overall performances have remained mixed.

Newcastle have had a hold over Spurs in recent years

Newcastle have won five out of the club’s last six meetings, including a 6-1 win in April 2023 and a 4-0 win almost exactly a year later.

The two clubs met in the semi-finals of this competition in 1976, with Spurs winning the first leg 1-0 but Newcastle winning the return 3-1 to book a place at Wembley, where they lost to Manchester City. Spurs have won both of the clubs’ meetings in this competition since then, winning 2-1 in 2008 and 4-0 in 2014.

The Carabao Cup is an opportunity for players who haven’t yet caught light to prove themselves

The last few weeks at Newcastle have been all about Nick Woltemade, but he’s more likely than not to be rested for this one, so we have to turn our attention elsewhere. One player who may feature who could do with a kick-start is Anthony Elanga, who cost them £55 million during the summer from Nottingham Forest but has registered neither a goal nor an assist from 13 appearances for them so far.

Spurs will also be shuffling their pack, and this may mean a start for Wilson Odobert on the right wing. Odobert has made 11 appearances for Spurs this season and hasn’t registered a goal or an assist either. The Carabao Cup is a perfect opportunity for players who have been on the fringes of a regular first-team place to demonstrate their value. Odobert is another player with a point to prove to his manager.

Schedule pressures and injury lists mean that there will be changes to both teams

Valentino Livramento, Lewis Hall, Yoane Wissa and Harrison Ashby will all be missing for Newcastle through injury, while Sven Botman is also a doubt. Both teams will probably swap out their goalkeepers, which will mean a rare sighting of the lesser-spotted Aaron Ramsdale for Newcastle, while Gugliemo Vicario – who’s earned a rest, given his recent performances for Spurs – will likely be replaced by Antonin Kinsky.

Cristian Romero, Ben Davies, Destiny Udogie, Yves Bissouma, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Dominic Solanke, Kota Takai and Radu Dragusin all remain injured for Spurs, which isn’t that far off a full team’s worth of players. For Mathys Tel, Wilson Odobert, Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray, there is an opportunity to shine.

Home advantage may be the key difference between two teams who’ve not found much consistency so far this season

Both teams go into this match having ended lengthy trophy droughts in 2025. Newcastle are the holders of this competition, while Spurs won the Europa League. Both of these wins were something of a surprise, and winning a trophy of some sort can often be a kick-start towards more sustained success, but neither have particularly looked like doing so yet this season.

Newcastle beat Fulham at the weekend but didn’t tear up any trees in doing so, and that’s been the story of their season so far, while Spurs’ have been getting the results without the performances quite being at the level which makes you believe that they’re not going to glitch out and perform in the way that they did against Aston Villa again at some point in the relatively near future.

When two teams who’ve both been somewhat inconsistent are meeting in a match for which both are expected to make changes, picking a winner feels particularly fiendish. But Newcastle have an excellent recent record in this fixture and it’s a long journey north for Spurs, and while winning a domestic trophy would be a perfect aperitif after their Europa League win, it does feel as though this trip might be a step too far. I’ll go for Newcastle to get home 2-1, but given the way these two teams have performed so far this season, anything could happen.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Carabao Cup with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Oct

2025

Preview: Liverpool and Crystal Palace meet again

Anfield plays host to an intriguing Carabao Cup match-up on Wednesday evening as an out of sorts Liverpool take on a Crystal Palace team with just one win in October.

By Sam McGuire

The story so far

If you ignore the Community Shield (loss to Palace), Liverpool started the season with seven wins from seven across all competitions. Since then though, the Reds have won just one of six and this run includes four consecutive losses in the Premier League.

Arne Slot’s side have one of the worst defensive records in the Premier League and only five teams have conceded more than the Reds after nine matches. The reigning champions are now seven points off of the pace, injuries are racking up to key players while a number of their title winning team are out of form.

The Carabao Cup is both a hindrance and an opportunity. It is a game they don’t need right now with the squad looking thin and so many big matches on the horizon, but it’s a chance for a bit of a confidence boost.

The same could be said for the visitors too.

For Palace, they kicked off Liverpool’s losing run with a 2-1 win at Selhurst Park. Olivier Glasner’s men had been on an 19-match unbeaten run until recently. They’re now four without a win across all competitions and find themselves 10th in the Premier League. They’ve blanked in their last two outings and are struggling for clean sheets.

Recent form

The 5-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt was a bit of a false dawn for Liverpool.

It was supposed to be a confidence boost for the Reds. Yet it was more of the same for Slot’s side in the loss to Brentford. Slot’s side conceded an early goal, couldn’t deal with the direct nature of their hosts and were wasteful in attack.

It was the same in losses against Palace, Chelsea and Manchester United too. The Premier League champions are in a rut.

The Eagles haven’t been as bad as Liverpool, but the wheels have fallen off a little bit over recent weeks. Glasner’s side conceded two late goals to Everton to bring their unbeaten run to an abrupt halt. They showed great resolve to claim a 3-3 draw with Bournemouth before back-to-back losses to AEK Larnaca and Arsenal. The game against the Cherries aside, Palace are finding goals hard to come by and that seems to be their problem.

Key Players

Both sides might rotate heavily with the focus being on other competitions. Both teams might go with strong starting XIs as they look to return to winning ways. It’s difficult to really know what either manager will do and, as a result, it’s difficult to know who might be the key players for this game.

Fede Chiesa will likely get the nod for Liverpool though, regardless of how strong Slot goes against the Eagles. He’s had an influential season for the Reds and will look to, once again, make the most of his opportunity in the team.

For Palace, Glasner isn’t going to resist the urge to play Ismaïla Sarr against Liverpool, is he? The Senegal forward has a good record against the Merseyside club and is one of the few players in Europe who seems to have the better of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté on a regular basis.

Team News

Alisson Becker, Jeremie Frimpong and Giovanni Leoni all miss out for Liverpool while the expectation is that Ryan Gravenberch, Curtis Jones and Alexander Isak won’t be risked in this clash with so many big games coming up for Liverpool. Having played so much football recently it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Van Dijk and Dominik Szoboszlai rested for this clash either.

For Palace, Cheick Doucouré is still out but, other than that, Glasner appears to have a full squad to pick from.

Prediction

Under Slot, Liverpool don’t have the best record against Palace. They picked up a 1-0 win at Selhurst Park early last season but have failed to win any of the last three matches between the two teams. They could only manage a draw in the final game of the 2024/25 season, the two sides played out a 2-2 draw at Wembley in the Community Shield before Palace claimed a 2-1 win in their last meeting.

Without knowing how strong either team will go, it’s hard to predict what might happen. Liverpool have home advantage but with the way they’ve been playing recently, will it matter? We’re going to say 1-1 with the match going to penalties.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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Oct

2025

Preview: Everton host Thomas Frank’s Spurs

Everton host Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League, as the Toffees attempt to continue their unbeaten start to life at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

By Matt Smith

Spurs have won just once in their previous five games in all competitions, and they travel to Merseyside where they haven’t had much luck in recent years.

Everton are unbeaten in their last seven home fixtures against Tottenham, albeit at a different stadium.

Team news

Everton will be without Jarrad Branthwaite and Nathan Patterson for this game. Branthwaite recently underwent surgery on a hamstring issue and is likely to be on the treatment table for an extended period, while Patterson picked up a problem playing for the U21s.

Thomas Frank confirmed that Cristian Romero, Dominic Solanke, and Destiny Udogie were unlikely to be fit enough to feature. Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison also remain on the sidelines.

The Toffees need to tighten up

Everton have been known for their defensive solidity in recent years, but they have perhaps been slightly fortunate to have conceded as few goals as they have this season. The Toffees have given up 12.2 xG, but have only conceded nine goals so far.

A win this weekend could take Everton into the European places if results go their way, so it’s been far from a disastrous start to the campaign. David Moyes’ side welcome back Jack Grealish this week, which is a huge boost for the Merseyside club.

Tottenham dropping after a strong start

Spurs enjoyed an impressive start to the campaign under new manager Frank, but they’ve started to shown signs of inconsistency in recent weeks. They’ve won just once in their previous four games, but they have accumulated more points away from home than any other side.

Tottenham have created just 8.3 xG, despite scoring 14 goals this season. That could be a concern for Frank and his side, as the data suggest they might have a few more points than they possibly deserve so far this campaign.

Jack Grealish the danger man

Only Bruno Fernandes has created more chances than Grealish this season, and that’s with the Man City loanee missing their previous game and only coming off the bench in their opening match.

The England international has been a breath of fresh air for the Toffees in the final third, who have been missing a creative spark for many years now. You feel that there’s still more to come from Grealish, who has only found the back of the net on one occasion, and the motivation of getting into the England squad for the World Cup next year will only benefit Everton.

Prediction

Tottenham’s struggles to build from the back this season could play into Everton’s hands, and they have a strong record against Spurs in recent years. With the Toffees having a better squad than they’ve had in previous meetings with the north London outfit, we’re going for a 2-1 victory to Moyes’ men.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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