Premier League Predictions, Week 20

© Micah Veldkamp, 2025

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Welcome back to the weekly predictions, Premier League fans, and Happy New Year! That's right, me again. I know it feels like we just spoke, but actually, my last predictions piece was last year!!!!

Har-har. Yes, it's time for Premier League matches yet again, even though the last bunch just played yesterday. If the fixture pileup means more matches like the ones we got on New Year's Day, well then, yikes. Count me out, please. But hopefully the matches more closely resemble my prediction performances lately!

Yes, I once again came up just short of a perfect outing, and it was once again Chelsea's fault, the Blues this time settling for a draw at home rather than defeating Bournemouth. But I nailed the rest of the selection, which to be honest, was no small feat, considering that included the biggest match of the month (Arsenal-Aston Villa), and two shocking draws by Leeds and Sunderland against Liverpool and Manchester City, respectively. That's a 3.5/4 performance, bringing my season total at the midway point up to a 49.5/71 mark, good enough for just about 70%!

But, the matches are less than 24 hours from kicking back off, so let's not waste any more time greeting the new year by tooting my own horn. Here are your 5 for Week 20!

Aston Villa vs. Nottingham Forest

Aston Villa need to now do something they haven't had to do since Thanksgiving week: rebound from a loss. And, given the importance and nature of the loss to Arsenal, it's important Villa don't let that game beat them twice. On paper, Nottingham makes for an amenable 'bounceback' opponent, but Forest have been a tougher out under Sean Dyche, even as they've lost 4 out of their last 5 . I do think the home crowd and desire to right the ship will be the difference for the 3rd-place team tomorrow.

The Pick: Aston Villa, 3-2

Bournemouth vs. Arsenal

Any type of win would have done just fine, but Arsenal's blowout victory over Aston Villa was a statement, and their New Year's weekend just got better and better with Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea all dropping two points. The Gunners will hope 2026 is their year to finally scale the Premier League mountaintop, and their first fixture of the year comes on the South coast. Bournemouth's exciting draw at Chelsea showed that the fight isn't gone from Andoni Iraola's men, but still, that's now 10 matches without a win for the Cherries, and Tuesday's result could have had as much to do with Chelsea as it did with them. I think Arsenal is far too good at this point to predict anything but 3 points for the league leaders.

The Pick: Arsenal, 2-0

Leeds United vs. Manchester United

Leeds open up the year 2026 with some big-name fixtures, following up their trip to Anfield with a home outing against old rivals Manchester United. Leeds' lengthy stay out of the Premier League dropped this rivalry from the forefront of a lot of fans, but make no mistake, Elland Road will be rocking when United come to town. The Peacocks' stodgy draw at Liverpool yesterday extended a 5-match unbeaten streak and showed their ability to alter their style in order to confound their opponent. Manchester United will be motivated to show up for this one in the wake of their stunning draw with last-place Wolverhampton, but I think an in-form team backed by a surely raucous crowd is the last thing Ruben Amorim wants to see right now.

The Pick: Leeds, 2-1

Fulham vs. Liverpool

We're at the midway point of the season, and I think everyone (myself included) knows as little about this Liverpool team as we do at the start of the season. Their results are steadying somewhat, but their form remains miles off it, and it's not entirely clear what has improved since Matchday 1, apart from the individual performances of the new signings specifically. Technically the Reds are still in the midst of a now 8-match unbeaten streak, but a home draw with Leeds (their 3rd draw against a promoted side this season) feels like a loss, especially when that draw is a listless, toothless, 0-0 one. Fulham, meanwhile, look a long way off the side of last year that snagged 4 points from 6 against Liverpool, but this Liverpool side look wayyyy farther off their league champion selves from last season. Unlike Leeds, the Cottagers have enough attacking talent to confound a Liverpool side that are lacking in several players, lacking in structure, and perhaps lacking in motivation. I think that's bad news for my Reds.

The Pick: Fulham, 2-1

Manchester City vs. Chelsea

It's a matchup of the Premier League's two richest clubs, and arguably its two most successful clubs of the last 20 years, but right now, both sides would do anything for a win in this one. Chelsea entered this season fresh off trophies in the Conference League and the Club World Cup, and with hopes of adding to their haul, but the wheels have started to come loose: out of the Top 4 now, with just 1 win of their last 7, and now without a manager as they dismissed Enzo Maresca on New Year's Day. Depending on how amicable the split was, Maresca may just be interested in aiding his old boss Pep Guardiola for this fixture... Pep's club are in nowhere near as dire straits as the Blues are, still very much in the midst of a title race. But while City have shown signs of their brilliant selves we've come to expect under Guardiola, the consistent mentality isn't all the way back yet, evidenced by their New Year's Day goalless draw at Sunderland, which saw them slip to 4 points behind league leaders Arsenal. All that being said, they are much more fully realized as a unit at this point than their Sunday opponents are, and a match in Manchester means this is likely going only one way.

The Pick: Man City, 3-1