The race for European qualification is anyone\u2019s guess, while Wolverhampton Wanderers, who are still yet to secure a win, are the only side who look nailed-on for relegation. <\/p>\n
As things heat up during the hectic festive period, here are Sports Illustrated\u2019s predictions for Gameweek 16 in the Premier League. <\/p>\n
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Enzo Maresca is under pressure after recent results. \/ Alex Livesey\/Danehouse\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
Every time Chelsea<\/a> enter the title picture, they implode. The Blues were briefly touted as potential Premier League winners, but an embarrassing defeat at Leeds United sandwiched in between draws against Arsenal and Bournemouth have seen them slide down the standings.<\/p>\n Chelsea are currently fifth and eight points behind league leaders Arsenal, with things getting even worse for Enzo Maresca midweek as he was beaten by Atalanta on a return to his homeland. <\/p>\n Pressure is rising and a positive result against Everton is essential to quieten the naysayers. Conquering David Moyes\u2019 tricky Toffees is no simple feat, however, with the Merseysiders only a point behind Chelsea after four wins from five in the Premier League. <\/p>\n Prediction: Chelsea 1\u20131 Everton<\/p>\n Liverpool secured a crucial midweek win at San Siro. \/ Stefano Rellandini\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Amid the Mohamed Salah saga<\/a> and string of underwhelming performances, Liverpool<\/a> received rare respite midweek. Travelling to San Siro for a Champions League encounter with Inter, the Reds produced a cohesive and disciplined display to scoop victory<\/a>\u2014with the aid of a controversial late penalty. <\/p>\n After back-to-back draws with Sunderland and Leeds United, an encouraging showing in Milan was of paramount importance, with victory boosting confidence levels ahead of Brighton\u2019s visit. <\/p>\n However, Liverpool are not magically fixed. Their misfiring defence will come under immense pressure against the Seagulls, who seldom fail to find the back of the net, and there\u2019s no guarantee Salah will be back in the side despite Arne Slot deciding to recall him<\/a> to the matchday party.<\/p>\n It could be a fourth straight home match without victory for the reigning champions. <\/p>\n Prediction: Liverpool 2\u20132 Brighton<\/p>\n Fulham are an inconsistent beast. \/ Justin Setterfield\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Fulham remain a hugely unpredictable force. After victories against Sunderland and Tottenham Hotspur, the Cottagers were then involved in a nine-goal thriller with Manchester City and suffered a late defeat to Crystal Palace last weekend. <\/p>\n It\u2019s always tough to know which iteration off Marco Silva\u2019s side we\u2019ll witness on any given day, but they have the pleasure of facing one of the Premier League\u2019s strugglers on Saturday. <\/p>\n Burnley have lost their last six games and their blushes are only being spared by the hopeless Wolves, who are the only side below Scott Parker\u2019s men in the table. They will be desperate to snap their losing streak but could come unstuck once more.<\/p>\n Prediction: Burnley 0\u20132 Fulham<\/p>\n Arsenal bounced back from defeat against Club Brugge. \/ David Price\/Arsenal FC via Getty Images<\/p>\n Top vs. bottom. This is only going to end one way. <\/p>\n Arsenal<\/a> suffered last-gasp heartbreak at Aston Villa last weekend as their lead at the summit was slashed, but they recovered in style with a confident 3\u20130 victory away at Club Brugge<\/a> on Wednesday night. <\/p>\n Noni Madueke starred for a much-changed Arsenal team, who will fancy their chances of repeating or bettering their midweek scoreline against last-placed Wolves. Victory is almost guaranteed, but anything can happen in the Premier League. <\/p>\n Rob Edwards will require a perfect performance from his team to avoid humiliation. Wolves are already 13 points from safety and could be cut further adrift this weekend as their nightmare appears set to continue. <\/p>\n Prediction: Arsenal 3\u20130 Wolves<\/p>\n Man City are flying. \/ James Gill\/Danehouse\/Getty Images<\/p>\n In a rare turn of events, there are more Sunday matches than Saturday games in the Premier League, with Manchester City<\/a>\u2019s trip to Crystal Palace among the 2 p.m. GMT kick-offs. <\/p>\n Fresh from a critical victory over Real Madrid<\/a>, Pep Guardiola\u2019s men will be desperate for victory knowing Arsenal will have most likely claimed three points the previous day, and the in-form Cityzens can take advantage of Palace\u2019s patchy home form. <\/p>\n Selhurst Park\u2019s raucous reputation has made little difference in the Premier League this term, with the Eagles having won just two of their seven home matches. By contrast, they have the best away record in the league, making City firm favourites this weekend. <\/p>\n Prediction: Crystal Palace 0\u20132 Man City<\/p>\n Spurs have won back-to-back games. \/ HENRY NICHOLLS\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Another London side with an excellent record on their travels are Tottenham Hotspur<\/a>. Thomas Frank\u2019s side have picked up 14 of their 22 points away from home this term and will be eager to escape the bottom half of the table with another victory on the road. <\/p>\n Spurs have won back-to-back matches to nil to ease pressure on Frank after a string of poor results and performances, but more is expected of the Lilywhites moving forward. A trip to the City Ground offers them the chance to lay down a marker. <\/p>\n Sean Dyche suffered a bruising 3\u20130 defeat at former club Everton last weekend and could suffer a third loss in four Premier League games on Sunday. <\/p>\n Prediction: Nottingham Forest 1\u20133 Tottenham<\/p>\n Sunderland host the much-anticipated Tyne-Wear derby on Sunday. \/ Alex Livesey\/Getty Images<\/p>\n The Tyne-Wear derby makes its long-awaited return to the Premier League schedule this weekend. <\/p>\n March 2016 was the last time Sunderland and bitter rivals Newcastle United locked horns in England\u2019s top flight and Sunday\u2019s battle in front of the vociferous Stadium of Light crowd is likely to be a ferocious affair. <\/p>\n Sunderland enter the fixture ahead of Newcastle in the standings following their excellent start to the season, but things have slowed down a little for R\u00e9gis Le Bris\u2019s side in recent weeks. The Magpies, meanwhile, are unbeaten in four, but their patchy away record leaves much to be desired. <\/p>\n Expect drama, leg-crunching tackles and plenty of goals. <\/p>\n Prediction: Sunderland 2\u20132 Newcastle<\/p>\n Aston Villa are in terrific form. \/ Dan Mullan\/Getty Images<\/p>\n A battle of claret and blue will be staged on Sunday when West Ham United welcome high-flying Aston Villa to London Stadium. <\/p>\n The Villans, who beat Arsenal in dramatic fashion last weekend, are only three points behind the table-topping Gunners and are the form team in the Premier League after five successive victories. Unai Emery continues to make the magic happen in the Midlands. <\/p>\n Villa will be favourites for the trip to the capital against an unpredictable West Ham side. Nuno Esp\u00edrito Santo has steadied the ship, but the Irons still lack the attacking invention required to climb the table swiftly. They start the weekend in the relegation zone. <\/p>\n Prediction: West Ham 1\u20132 Aston Villa <\/p>\n Brentford will expect victory on Sunday. \/ Ryan Pierse\/Getty Images<\/p>\n What a week it was for Leeds to kick off December. They were within minutes of clinching a famous comeback draw at Man City, after which they secured a tremendous 3\u20131 win over Chelsea and spirited 3\u20133 draw with Liverpool. <\/p>\n Daniel Farke\u2019s decision to move to a 3-5-2 formation has paid dividends, but they are facing one of the Premier League\u2019s best sides on their own patch.<\/p>\n Brentford have won five and drawn one of seven home matches in the league, beating Manchester United and Liverpool while also taking points off Chelsea at the Gtech Community Stadium this season. They now expect victory on home turf. <\/p>\n Prediction: Brentford 3\u20132 Leeds <\/p>\n Man Utd thumped Wolves last time out. \/ James Gill\/Danehouse\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Like many in the Premier League this season, Manchester United <\/a>have been frustratingly inconsistent. Each \u2018turned corner\u2019 becomes a dead end, but Ruben Amorim will be hopeful that the thumping 4\u20131 win over Wolves<\/a> last Thursday can be the start of a stellar run. <\/p>\n The Red Devils have struggled in their recent battles with Bournemouth, losing 3\u20130 at Old Trafford during the last two seasons, but the Cherries are in uninspiring form heading to Manchester this term. <\/p>\n Andoni Iraola\u2019s men have failed to win any of their past six matches and have slumped to 13th in the standings as Antoine Semenyo\u2019s crucial early-season goals have dried up. They might struggle once again this Monday. <\/p>\n Prediction: Man Utd 2\u20131 Bournemouth<\/p>\n Date<\/p>\n Kick-Off Time<\/p>\n Fixture<\/p>\n Result<\/p>\n Saturday, Dec 13<\/p>\n 3 p.m. GMT \/ 10 a.m. a.m. ET<\/p>\n Chelsea vs. Everton<\/p>\n 1\u20131<\/p>\n Saturday, Dec. 13<\/p>\n 3 p.m. GMT \/ 10 a.m. ET<\/p>\n Liverpool vs. Brighton<\/p>\n 2\u20132<\/p>\n Saturday, Dec. 13<\/p>\n 5.30 p.m. GMT \/ 12.30 p.m. ET<\/p>\n Burnley vs. Fulham<\/p>\n 0\u20132<\/p>\n Saturday, Dec. 13<\/p>\n 8 p.m. GMT \/ 3 p.m. ET<\/p>\n Arsenal vs. Wolves<\/p>\n 3\u20130<\/p>\n Sunday, Dec. 14<\/p>\n 2 p.m. GMT \/ 9 a.m. ET<\/p>\n Crystal Palace vs. Man City<\/p>\n 1\u20132<\/p>\n Sunday, Dec. 14<\/p>\n 2 p.m. GMT \/ 9 a.m. ET<\/p>\n Nottingham Forest vs. Tottenham<\/p>\n 1\u20133<\/p>\n Sunday, Dec. 14<\/p>\n 2 p.m. GMT \/ 9 a.m. ET<\/p>\n Sunderland vs. Newcastle<\/p>\n 2\u20132<\/p>\n Sunday, Dec. 14<\/p>\n 2 p.m. GMT \/ 9 a.m. ET<\/p>\n West Ham vs. Aston Villa<\/p>\n 1\u20132<\/p>\n Sunday, Dec. 14<\/p>\n 4:30 p.m. GMT \/ 11:30 a.m. ET<\/p>\n Brentford vs. Leeds<\/p>\n 3\u20132<\/p>\n Monday, Dec. 15<\/p>\n 8 p.m. GMT \/ 3 p.m. ET<\/p>\n Man Utd vs. Bournemouth<\/p>\n 2\u20131<\/p>\n READ THE LATEST PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS, TRANSFER RUMOURS AND GOSSIP<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"We\u2019re nearly at the halfway point of the Premier League campaign and it\u2019s still all to play for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":345898,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[403,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-345897","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-soccer","8":"tag-soccer","9":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345897","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=345897"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345897\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/345898"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=345897"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=345897"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=345897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/p>\n
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