Premier League Predictions, Week 36
Welcome back to the weekly predictions, Premier League fans! This week, which saw the semifinal stages of all European competitions kick off, has flown by, much as the season itself has. Indeed, we are in May, which means, somehow, the end is near.
And I hate to say it, but I;m beginning to think the end can't come soon enough. It's bad enough that my favorites Liverpool are absolutely sputtering to the finish line, a rapid decline from a season that not so long ago held promise of sending their beloved manager out with four different trophies. Now my own personal performance is being affected. That's right, friends, after a season full of amazing prediction performances, in week 34, I laid a big fat goose egg. No zero correct predictions. Nada. My bold prediction of Nottingham Forest taking points off Manchester City was wrong, my slightly-less-bold prediction of my Reds losing at West Ham didn't pan out, as they settled for a draw, Arsenal blew the doors off Tottenham, and Chelsea took 1 point off Aston Villa and 3 off of Tottenham, unlike the 0 and 1 I predicted, respectively. My "oh-fer" week drops my season total to 86.5/135. Sigh.
But! We're nearing the end of the season, and the matches are less than 12 hours from kicking back off, so let's not waste any more time wallowing in our misery. Here are your 5 for Week 36!
Arsenal vs. Bournemouth
It's for all intents and purposes a two-horse title race for the league title now, and though Manchester City holds the edge, you can't say Arsenal aren't making them work for it. The Gunners were supposed to have had the toughest closing stretch of any of the three title contenders after the last international break, and yet, apart from Tottenham's late charge in the second half last weekend, they have absolutely been draxxing their opponents sklounst lately. They play first this weekend, and thus get a chance to technically be 4 points clear by the time Manchester City play. Given who Arsenal is playing, and the form they're in, I'm going to go ahead and guess they're able to get the job done with ease.
The Pick: Arsenal, 4-0
Manchester City vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers
It's actually somewhat amazing that Manchester City haven't salted away the title by now, given that the three-time reigning champs are now 31 games unbeaten. That's right, Aston Villa's upset of them on December 6th was Manchester City's last loss in any competition. The Cityzens are finally fully healthy, have won 5 straight matches, and host a bottom half of the table team this weekend. Yeah, I think it's safe money that they will win again.
The Pick: Man City, 3-1
Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Aston Villa
Speaking of the last team to beat Man City: Aston Villa is etching ever closer to securing a Top 4 finish. Blowing a 2-0 lead at home to Chelsea last weekend hurt, but given that their 4th place rivals Tottenham turned around and lost to that very Chelsea team 5 days later (and 4 days after losing at home to Arsenal), no harm done. Unai Emery's men will be disappointed by their midweek capitulation in the Europa Conference League yesterday at home, but truthfully, there are bigger fish to fry: with a win in this showdown and Tottenham dropping points a day later at Liverpool, they could officially clinch a spot in next year's Champions League. Who knows if it will all play out that way, but I do think Aston Villa will do their part, getting a perhaps tricky 3 points from a talented but currently downtrodden Brighton side.
The Pick: Aston Villa, 3-2
Liverpool vs. Tottenham Hotspur
When Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur faced off on the first day of October, the vibe could not be more different than it is for each team heading into this weekend. That match, farcical an officiating performance though it was, was an electric battle for first place between the two sides who were, at that time, the league's sole remaining unbeaten teams, and the result for both (a rare, huge win for Tottenham, and a brave competitive performance by a 9-man Liverpool side) sold both fanbases dreams of a perhaps magical season. Now, dreadful months by each side has seen the Reds' title dreams and Spurs' Top 4 hopes all but slip away. Form is bad, morale is low, and both Jürgen Klopp and Ange Postecoglou are sniping in press conferences, leaving admirers of the former to wonder aloud if he really does not to call it quits, and fans of the latter to wonder aloud whether he's up for this job. So, an interesting backdrop awaits this annually entertaining showdown: both teams absolutely need a win, and yet neither one lately has looked interested in getting one. One thing's for sure: there will almost surely be goals. Both sides play open and progressive, and while Liverpool's struggled to score them from open play recently, Tottenham can't stop conceding them. I would love to imagine the Reds will get the big win in Klopp's penultimate match at Anfield, but I just can't predict it until I see it happening again, and it feels like it's been ages.
The Pick: Draw, 2-2
Crystal Palace vs. Manchester United
Manchester United, against all odds, despite the season they have had still have a chance to end the year with a trophy and a berth in European football next year. The odds for them are slim, sure, as they would need to topple Man City in the FA Cup Final and get major help from Tottenham to nudge their way into the Europa League, but it would be an impressive way to close out a subpar season. Unfortunately, even if Tottenham Hotspur continue their slide to close the season. United's chances at jumping them for a 5th place finish also relies on them winning matches themselves, and they haven't consistently done that at any time this season. Crystal Palace have been a revelation under new manager Oliver Glasner; the Eagles are unbeaten in their last 5, including a win at Anfield that basically put the bullet in Liverpool's title dreams. They're clearly a force to be reckoned with. I realized as I was typing my pick below that I don't think I ever, in my near 6 years of doing this piece, have typed "Crystal Palace" as my winner prediction. This feels like a good time to start.
The Pick: Crystal Palace, 2-1
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