December 04, (THEWILL) –Â For the second matchday in a row, all three title contenders and the top three English Premier League sides, Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool, are in contention and all will be seeking to keep up their challenges for the title away from home yet again.
Action begins with a London derby as League leaders Chelsea are in the early afternoon kickoff at the West Ham London Stadium. David Moyes’s charges will be seeking to maintain their good run at home and in Europe against one of the League’s best defenses. Over at the Molineux, Wolves will seek to do the same to the rampaging Liverpool frontline.
The task of stopping Man City will be an onerous one for Claudio Ranieri’s side in the 6:30 pm fixture at Vicarage Road. It will be a good result if they do not get a hiding with all City players desirous to get on the scoresheet at every game. But, they gave Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s United some trouble and may be hoping for something similar with City.
THEWILL Preview of the weekend’s exciting games takes a look at these fixtures and others for a snapshot of what to look forward to in matchday 15 rounds of Saturday entertainment.
West Ham Versus Chelsea – 1:30 pm
When Chelsea visits fourth-placed West Ham United on Saturday afternoon, they will be hoping to extend their lead at the top of the Premier League table to four points. The Blues are coming off a 2-1 win against Watford in midweek, while West Ham were held to a 1-1 draw by Brighton & Hove Albion on the same evening.
A win over Chelsea would put the Hammers in a good position heading into back-to-back away games against Burnley and Arsenal, but a loss would leave them vulnerable to clubs attempting to climb above them.
Chelsea won against Watford at Vicarage Road on Wednesday after drawing with Manchester United in the game before. Thomas Tuchel’s team is seemingly in a three-way title race with Manchester City and Liverpool, and if they fail to beat the Hammers, they may easily fall to third place. Those are the stakes for these two sides going into their 1:30 pm kickoff.
Newcastle Versus Burnley – 4 pm
Newcastle United will host fellow strugglers Burnley at St James’ Park on Saturday afternoon in search of their first Premier League win of the season. In midweek, the Magpies were held to a 1-1 draw by Norwich City, while Sean Dyche’s side earned a point against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Brand-new moneybags Newcastle are still at the bottom of the table, with only seven points out of a possible 42, as Eddie Howe continues to try to have an impact. However, this squad has struggled defensively under three different managers, conceding a league-high 30 goals, 17 of which have come at St James’ Park.
The Clarets, on the other hand, have a five-game unbeaten run in the Premier League, with their last three games all finishing in draws, but they remain in 18th place and are not known for their attacking prowess away from home.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Versus Liverpool – 4 pm
Wolverhampton Wanderers welcome Liverpool to Molineux for a Premier League clash that will put their defensive prowess to the test. In midweek, Bruno Lage’s team were unable to defeat Burnley, while the Reds handily defeated Everton in the Merseyside derby.
Wolves have picked up 10 points from their past four games at Molineux, conceding just two goals in the process, but they will be up against a team that has been breaking records for fun this season. On Wednesday, Liverpool entered the history books for scoring at least two goals for the 18th game in a row in all competitions, breaking the record set by Sunderland in 1927.
Liverpool has won four games in a row since a 3-2 loss away to West Ham on November 7, and they have not failed to score two goals away from home since a 1-1 draw with Leeds United in April, which bodes ill even for a solid Wolves defence.
Watford Versus Manchester City – 6:30 pm
Manchester City travel to Watford in the evening in an attempt to keep the pressure on Premier League table-toppers Chelsea. In midweek, the hosts were defeated 2-1 by the Blues, while Pep Guardiola’s side defeated Aston Villa by the same scoreline.
Watford’s defensive shortcomings continue to plague them, as they have yet to keep a clean sheet in the 2021-22 Premier League season, and they welcome City to Vicarage Road having now shipped 14 goals at home, compared to City’s 11 away goals since the beginning of September. The Etihad team have now taken 16 of the past 18 points available on the road in the Premier League.
If City is at their ruthless best, it will not be good news for Claudio Ranieri. The Cityzens won both matches in the 2019/2020 season by an aggregate score of 12-0 and they go into Saturday’s game on a 13-match winning streak against the Hornets since a 1-1 draw in 2007.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
