Premier League Predictions, Week 3

Welcome back to the weekly predictions, Premier League fans! Other than some final qualifying matches for the group stages of the Europa League and Champions League, we have had almost no football played since last weekend, and yet, football excitement is at a fever pitch right now. With the Champions League draw yesterday, a significant slate of World Cup qualifiers next weekend, and rumors swirling about Cristiano Ronaldo's imminent departure from Juventus, there's been hardly a minute to spare for the Premier League! With the matches we have on tap this weekend, though, that very well could change.

Much like Liverpool's season in 2020-21, my first week of Premier League Predictions started in very promising fashion, then quickly crashed and burned. I take a good amount of pride in having my very first match prediction of the year being absolutely bang-on (Liverpool's tough 2-0 win over Burnley), and I was just one less Manchester City goal away from getting my first two absolutely perfect! But alas, I got my wires crossed on which Sunday match would feature an upset, with Southampton surprisingly taking a point off Manchester United while Tottenham fought off Wolverhampton. And as for my tragically misplaced optimism in Arsenal? Well....tragic. All in all, my Liverpool and Manchester City predictions get me 3 points on the weekend, which technically, is all any football club wants from any matchweek!

Now, the matches are less than 24 hours from kicking off, so let's not waste any more time with intentional misrepresentation. Here are your 5 for Week 3!

Manchester City vs. Arsenal

What's been a nightmarish start to the season for Arsenal is likely about to get a whole lot worse. Manchester City may have started the season off with a surprise loss, but the defending champions looked a whole lot more like themselves in a 5-0 thrashing of Norwich City. Obviously, conventional thinking would put Arsenal much closer to Tottenham than to Norwich in terms of quality...but is that really the case? The Gunners have had only minor snippets of quality in their first two matches, and for the better part of 180 minutes have been completely dominated. Mikel Arteta was hired away from Manchester City's staff in hopes that he could fashion the club he played for into a model of the league's dominant team, but barring something stunning, Pep Guardiola very well might put the nail in his protegé's coffin barely 3 weeks into this season.

The Pick: Manchester City, 3-0

Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Everton

The funniest part about the early weeks of the season is seeing which odd names are hovering around the top of the table. Raise your hand if you predicted Brighton in the Champions League! Premature celebrations aside, two matches in, the Gulls already look a much-improved side from their entertaining, but consistently underachieving outfit last season. Everton, meanwhile, have been fairly inconsistent through two matches, looking brilliant in spurts and lackadaisical in others. That probably comes with the territory of being in a new manager's early days. Everton have the superior talent, but Brighton have the cohesion and the home support in this one.

The Pick: Brighton, 2-1

Liverpool vs. Chelsea

Every season seems to hold an early clash of title contenders before even the first international break, and for the second year running, that early clash is Liverpool-Chelsea. To be clear, we're talking about a two-match sample size, but still, both these sides have looked the part of Premier League title contender, winning their first two matches in a combined 5-0 scoreline thanks to two balanced performances. Coming into this clash, Liverpool haven't lost a Premier League match at Anfield with fans present in over 4 years, and haven't lost a BIG match with fans at Anfield in an even longer time. Chelsea, meanwhile, still are yet to lose to a Big Six opponent under Thomas Tuchel. Something's gotta give here. Or does it? It's just hard for me to see Liverpool losing this; can you think of a massive Premier League clash they've lost at Anfield under Jürgen Klopp? But at the same time, the proof is in the pudding when it comes to Chelsea's performances in big matches under Tuchel. So I'll split the difference and go with a draw.

The Pick: Draw, 1-1

Tottenham Hotspur vs. Watford

Tottenham's performances thus far under Nuno Espirito Santo are surprisingly closer in style to Jose Mourinho's stout defensive approach than to Mauricio Pochettino's swashbuckling attack. Much unlike the high-octane performances his Wolves sides would put on, the pair of 1-0 wins Spurs have garnered would make Santo's Portuguese compatriot proud. But you know what? Style points or not, they're getting the job done, and that's sure to continue against the recently promoted Watford.

The Pick: Tottenham, 3-1

Wolverhampton Wanderers vs. Manchester United

I don't know if I'm more surprised that Wolverhampton is yet to pick up any points this season, or that Manchester United have already dropped points. But in Wolves' defense at least, the FA did them absolutely no favors having them open with Leicester, Tottenham and United. Manchester United may have laid a bit of an egg at St. Mary's Stadium, but they showed their immense potential in Week 1 vs. Leeds, and coped with their disappointment by, oh yeah, signing ONE OF THE GREATEST FORWARDS TO EVER PLAY THE GAME!

Needless to say, expect Wolves' tough start to the season to continue.

The Pick: Manchester United, 2-0