The busy Christmas period for football begins today with 8
games taking place in the top flight.
Wigan vs. Arsenal, 12.45pm
The early kick-off is between Wigan Athletic and Arsenal
which starts at 12.45pm. The Gunners cruised to victory against Reading on
Monday night winning 5-2 after going being 4-0 up at half-time. After a poor
run of form which included a 2-0 defeat at home to Swansea, this was a
significant victory for Arsene Wenger. So far it has been a good week with Carl
Jenkinson, Aaron Ramsey, Kieran Gibbs, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Jack
Wilshere all signing new deals with the club. Now Wenger awaits Theo Walcott to
sign, amid speculation of a January move elsewhere. Wigan go in to this match on
the back of a defeat to Norwich City and are now in the relegation zone for the
first time this season.
In terms of injuries, Wigan’s Adrian Lopez is out for up to
10 weeks with a hamstring problem and James McCarthy is also doubtful after
picking up a knock to the ankle in the defeat to Norwich. On the brighter side
for Wigan, Gary Caldwell, Antolin Alcaraz and Ivan Ramis are all close to
returning to action. For Arsenal, Abou Diaby and Andre Santos are still out for
the long-term.
The most anticipated decision for this game is whether
Wenger will play Walcott in a central attacking position where he impressed
against Reading.
Arsenal are only two points off fourth place so this is a
crucial game for them and with it being at lunch time they have a good chance
to apply some pressure on Tottenham and Chelsea.
Wigan have won only one Premier League game against Arsenal
so the odds are very much in favour of the Gunners to claim three points in
front of the Sky Sports cameras.
Manchester City vs. Reading, 3pm
Manchester City take on Reading at the Etihad stadium looking
to reduce the gap between them and neighbours Manchester United. They’ll be
expecting a victory against the side who are struggling at the bottom of the
league. Brian McDermott has remained defiant and insists that he is the right
man to help the Royals survive the drop showing a determined attitude. Roberto
Mancini has spoken about how a second title would be better than last season’s
remarkable achievement. The dispute between the club and Mario Balotelli
appears to have been sorted but it’s certainly becoming a farcical situation
which may do more bad for Man City than good. They go into this game after an
excellent 3-1 victory over Newcastle at St. James’ Park.
Samir Nasri is out of action after picking up a groin injury
and could be absent until the New Year. Captain Vincent Kompany is in a similar
situation with a groin problem and is unlikely to play against Reading. Mario
Balotelli has a virus and Aleksander Kolarov has a bad knee so both will be
unavailable for today’s match. James Milner and Gareth Barry are both ready to
play again. Reading’s Jason Roberts is out of contention with a hip issue but
Jem Karacan, Jimmy Kebe and Danny Guthrie should be back for the visitors.
Interestingly, Reading have beaten Man City in three of
their four Premier League battles. City can decrease the gap to 3 points behind
United with a win today as they play Swansea City tomorrow at the Liberty Stadium.
Reading will remain in the relegation zone at Christmas regardless of the
result but points will be extremely valuable to them.
Newcastle United vs.QPR, 3pm
After being last year’s surprise package finishing 5th
in the league and proving to be a very competitive team, Newcastle Untied have
started poorly in comparison and find themselves in 15th place. They
face Queen’s Park Rangers who are unbeaten under Harry Redknapp and picked up
their first victory last weekend at home to Fulham. The Magpies are looking for three points in
this fixture as they look to build a platform for them to continue as we head
in to the New Year. The Christmas period is a great opportunity to completely
change the season. With so many fixtures and the league being so tight, a set
of consistent results could really move a side up the table and transform their
fortunes.
James Perch is an uncertainty after sustaining a minor neck
injury and Hatem Ben Arfa, Steven Taylor and Yohan Cabaye are all out of this
one. Gabriel Obertan is fit after having toe surgery. QPR shot stopper Julio Cesar and former
Chelsea defender Jose Bosingwa are both out with back injuries. Kieron Dyer,
Park Ji-Sung, Andrew Johnson and Bobby Zamora are all sidelined.
Redknapp’s side want to progress from their first victory
last week but this is a hard place to come and get a result. However, West Ham
United and Swansea City have been victorious here this season so they can take
some confidence from that. Newcastle have shown a desire for stability by
agreeing an 8 year contract with Pardew but he will still feel under pressure
to deliver and this is a big match for the Toon to start climbing the league.
Southampton vs. Sunderland, 3pm
At the St. Mary’s Stadium Southampton are up against
Sunderland. Nigel Adkins’ side had last weekend off because their scheduled opponents
Chelsea were participating in the Club World Cup so they have a game in hand
which gives them a slight advantage over sides near them albeit being against
Chelsea. Southampton are in a precarious position as they hover just above the
relegation zone with a superior goal difference over Wigan. They have collected
some good results though and in their last match they defeated Reading 1-0 at
home. This was an important win with it being against a side that are likely to
be near them in the table come the end of the season. Sunderland aren’t
enjoying a great season and have had some poor results with speculation over
Martin O’Neill’s future becoming rather intense. The Black Cats are one place
above their opponents and only a point separates the teams so this is a massive
game for them with the gap being so small.
Captain Adam Lallana has knee ligament damage and is
expected to be replaced by Jay Rodriguez. Paulo Gazzaniga has recovered from a
shoulder injury whilst Richard Chaplow and Frazer Richardson should also
return. Sunderland are hopeful that Steven Fletcher, Adam Johnson, Danny Rose
and Phil Bardsley will feature after their respective injuries. David Meyler
will be recalled from his loan spell at Hull after their 2-1 win against Derby
last night to provide some cover for the squad.
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Stoke City, 3pm
At White Hart Lane, Tottenham Hotspur face Stoke City and
Spurs go into this after a 1-0 win against Swansea City last week thanks to a
neat finish from Jan Vertonghen which lifted Spurs to 4th and level
on points with Chelsea. Stoke are on a good run of form themselves unbeaten in
their last 7 games with four wins and three draws. They go in to this on the
back of a 1-1 draw at home to Everton. If they manage to avoid defeat at Spurs
it will be a record unbeaten run for them.
Stoke have won at White Hart Lane before and that came in 2009 when
Glenn Whelan scored in the 86th minute to snatch victory.
Unfortunately for Stoke Gareth Bale and Michael Dawson return
to the Tottenham side after hamstring injuries.
Emmanuel Adebayor will face a late fitness test and Scott Parker and Benoit
Assou-Ekotto may feature. After his father passed away earlier in the week,
Charlie Adam will not travel to London for this match after being granted
compassionate leave. Ryan Shotton is back for selection after serving a one
match ban for a controversial sending off against Aston Villa a couple of weeks
ago.
Spurs can go third in the table with victory but Chelsea
will then have two games in hand which will become one after their match with
Aston Villa tomorrow. Stoke can climb three places with a victory but that
depends on other results. If they could avoid defeat then they will be in a
good position ahead of two consecutive home matches against Liverpool and
Southampton.
West Bromwich Albion vs. Norwich City, 3pm
Steve Clarke’s West Brom host the in form Norwich at the
Hawthorns. The Baggies started the season in spectacular fashion and at one
point were third in the league but since a defeat to Swansea their form has
dipped with losses at home to Stoke and away at Arsenal which has seen them go
four matches without a win. Norwich are on a fantastic run of 10 games without
a loss which includes some impressive wins against Arsenal and Manchester United
but they have also defeated teams around them which are the most important
results.
Youssouf Mulumbu is suspended for the home side after
receiving a fifth booking in his last game. Claudio Yacob is unlikely to feature
due to a hamstring injury but Ben Foster is looking for a recall after coming
back to training. Grant Holt has a hamstring problem so is a doubt. Harry Kane
could be in the squad though. Andrew Surman and John Ruddy are still out of
action.
West Ham United vs. Everton, 3pm
West Ham welcome Everton to Upton Park after a 0-0 draw away
to West Brom. Sam Allardyce’s side have made the best start out of the promoted
teams and had been sitting nicely in the top half but they have slipped down to
11th after a defeat to Liverpool and that draw with Albion. Everton
have had a great season so far and are only two points off the Champions League
places. They drew 1-1 with Stoke last weekend which was a good result as many
know how difficult the Britannia Stadium is to go and get a result.
Jack Collison is in the Hammers’ squad for the first time
this season after a serious knee injury. Yossi Benayoun has a knee problem and
will not feature this afternoon.
Marouane Fellaini starts the first game of his three match ban which he
picked up after maliciously head butting Ryan Shawcross last weekend. Many feel
that Fellaini was lucky to escape severe punishment after he also appeared to
elbow and punch the Stoke captain in two other separate incidents. It’s
extremely peculiar that he was only punished for the head butt. Phil Neville
has recovered quickly from a knee injury but this game is too soon for him to
return.
Liverpool vs. Fulham, 3pm
Liverpool are at home to Fulham and are looking to avoid a
similar to last week where they lost 3-1 at home to Aston Villa thanks to a
brace from Christian Benteke. They performed well against West Ham but showed a
lack of consistency with the defeat to Paul Lambert’s side. Fulham became the
first team to lose to QPR last weekend and will be looking to bounce back at
Anfield. They’ll look to emulate Villa’s performance and try to capitalise on
Liverpool’s vulnerability at home.
Jose Enrique was back in training this week and may have some
part to play in this clash after recovering from a hamstring problem. Nuri
Sahin is fit to play after undergoing surgery on a broken nose but Oussama
Assaidi has been ruled out because of a knee injury. David Stockdale has been
recalled from his loan spell at Hull as back up for Mark Schwarzer after other
goalkeeper Neil Etheridge sustained a leg injury. Steve Sidwell is banned but
full-back Sascha Riether is back after a knee injury.
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