by Ruairi Criscuolo
Liverpool vs Bournemouth – Saturday, 7 March 12:30 GMT
Liverpool come into this weekend in the middle of an unexpected blip after last weekend's dismal performance against an impressive Watford, Ismaila Sarr punishing them twice in a 3-0 win. This was then confounded by a 2-0 loss at Stamford Bridge, midweek in the FA Cup. Jurgen Klopp will be keen for his players to get back to their formidable selves as soon as possible, with a key tie at home with Atleti on the horizon. The Red's once formidable defence is now looking a lot less stable, and not only because Dejan Lovren has been back in the team, conceding eight goals in four games. The defence hasn't been the only problem though, as they have failed to score in three of their last four in all competitions. With Jordan Henderson still sidelined and Naby Keita doubtful, Klopp will be hoping for an improved performance from Fabinho in midfield.
For Bournemouth, they let a lead slip late on to a Marcos Alonso equaliser in a 2-2 draw, when it looked like the Cherries were set to get their first win since the start of February. They had come back from an Alonso opener with goals from Jefferson Lerma and Callum Wilson early in the second half. Ultimately it wasn't to be, but it was an improved performance from Eddie Howe's side. Basically, they need to find some consistency soon, as the other teams around them have picked up points as of late. Whilst they get positive results against the “bigger teams”, they've lost to the other four teams that make up the bottom five this season. Conceding eight goals across four games in February will also be a concern to Bournemouth, as their attack also struggles with 4 goals in that time. To pile on the misery, Eddie Howe's list of absentees isn't shortening and Harry Wilson is added this weekend, as he is ineligible to play against his parent club.
Wolves vs Brighton – Saturday, 7 March - 3pm GMT
The start of February started very slowly for Wolves with two 0-0 draws, but since then they have exploded into life scoring 12 in their last four games across all competitions, Jota has been in sensational form getting six of those twelve and assisting one. At the beginning of the season it seemed to be a worry that the added Europa League fixtures might cause Nuno Espirito Santos' men to falter come the end of the season, however they are proving that spectacularly wrong, whilst using the fewest amount of players, 20, in the Premier League this season. Whilst this is all fantastic, they have conceded five goals in their last two: they will want their defence of early February back.
Brighton are firmly entangled in the relegation dogfight now, finding themselves four points behind Newcastle directly above them and only one point above the drop-zone. The really bad news for Brighton fans is that this game comes at the start of a run that the teams around them will not be envious of. The Seagulls have four of the top five in their next six matches, with games against unpredictable Arsenal and relegation rivals Norwich sandwiched in between. Graham Potter has started to address the leaking defence, conceding one goal in each of the last three, compared to the seven in the previous three, but now his focus must shift to his blunt attack. Neil Maupay often finds himself in great positions, but lacks the clinical touch they need, however he is their top scorer this year and some help from his team-mates would do no harm.
Arsenal vs West Ham – Saturday, 7 March - 3pm GMT
Arsenal, who have scored seven in their last two Premier League matches, find themselves back in action after missing out last week due to the Carabao Cup Final. The Gunners are still unbeaten in the league in 2020, but this definitely does not tell the whole story. They increased their chances of making the Champions League look further than ever as Olympiakos dumped them out of the Europa League in the dying seconds of extra-time. This leaves them with no excuses but to fully focus on trying to get themselves back involved in the top five race. They have been improved in the league, Mikel Arteta's system is starting to have an imprint and give the team a visible style while his shuffling of attacking options is providing good competition within the squad. He experimented again in their last match, an FA Cup tie against a promotion-chasing Portsmouth, giving a chance to some of the Hale End graduates. Reiss Nelson took the headlines this time, setting up both goals, while Lucas Torreira, who was stretchered off at Fratton Park, is now unavailable for this weekend. However, the comfortable debut of Pablo Mari may provide Arteta with options.
David Moyes' decision to give Jarrod Bowen his debut paid off quickly, as he opened the scoring in a 3-1 win over Southampton at The London Stadium. A rearranged attack earned a lot of plaudits as Michail Antonio and Pablo Fornals also had stand out performances, combining for one goal and both assisting another. But West Ham fans may need to hold on tightly to that win as they come up against Wolves, Tottenham and Chelsea in their next three games. West Ham are now out of the relegation zone but only on goal difference. The Hammers took all points from Stamford Bridge earlier in the season, but still they may find themselves expecting the teams around them to drop points than them to collect any.
Southampton vs Newcastle – Saturday, 7 March - 3pm GMT
Is it beach season already? Well for these two teams it might be getting close, as both are almost comfortably out of the relegation fight, Newcastle by five points and The Saints by seven. Both teams only collected one win respectively throughout February though, and their fans will know better than resting on their laurels yet.
Southampton were handedly beaten 3-1 by West Ham last weekend, their defence being caught out time and again by a lively attack. At the other end they struggled to create chances only getting two shots on target in the 90 minutes. Michael Obafemi equalised after an early Jarrod Bowen goal, but they were unable to hold on as they conceded seconds before the break, and then again as they chased another equaliser in the second-half. They need their main man Danny Ings to start finding the back of the net again, as he has only scored three goals in 2020.
Newcastle have done it, they've made the quarter-finals of the F.A Cup for the first time since 2006! Whilst this may not sound like a big deal, it has been a bit of a sticking point for Magpies' fans as they often grew frustrated at the lack of ambition shown in Cup competitions from previous managers. Two goals from Miguel Almiron and one from on-loan Valentino Lazaro made it look comfortable for The Magpies. A late comeback made it nervy for the travelling fans, but they were robust and saw the game out. So can we finally talk about Steve Bruce doing a good job? One point better off than at this stage last season and still in the Cup, it might not be the most exciting football but it is proving effective... to an extent. They didn't score a single goal in the Premier league in February, in fact scoring a quarter of their total Premier League goals for the season in two F.A Cup matches (six).
Sheffield United vs Norwich City – Saturday, 7 March - 3pm GMT
Sheffield United had a break from Premier League action last weekend, but were in action midweek as they beat Reading at The Madejski Stadium after an extra-time goal from hometown boy Billy Sharp. The Blades are now in 8th, two points behind 5th placed Manchester United and five points off 4th placed Chelsea with a game in hand on both teams. They are unbeaten in three in the league and five in all competitions, and with a game against a team that hasn't beaten them since late 2017, their season is showing no sign of slowing down.
However, Norwich have been revitalised since their comprehensive defeat at Molineux, as they beat 3rdplaced Leicester City at home thanks to a 70th minute Jamaal Lewis pile driver. This was then followed up by a dramatic penalty shoot-out victory over Jose Mourinho's Spurs at The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where boyhood Arsenal fan Todd Cantwell had all the headlines as he hushed the home crowd after slotting home the winning penalty. Daniel Farke will be looking to keep this feel good atmosphere at the club, because even if survival is looking unlikely, six points adrift, it isn't impossible. This Norwich team could be the best team to finish bottom of the Premier League though, as they have proved they are capable of incredible performances and can beat anyone on their day.
Crystal Palace vs Watford – Saturday, 7 March - 3pm GMT
After a run of three defeats, Crystal Palace have now won back to back games featuring back to back clean sheets. Last time out they overcame bitter rivals Brighton at the Amex to win 1-0, thanks to a goal from Jordan Ayew. The Eagles are now nine points away from the relegation zone and can start looking upwards. Whilst they most likely aren't able to challenge for the European spots, they can push on and try to make steady progress on last year's 12th spot finish. The bad news for Palace fans, though, was Cenk Tosun having to return to parent club Everton due to injury, although to be honest most people had forgotten he was there. Christian Benteke has had encouraging performances in his build up play and work off the ball, but his finishing touch still evades him.
From a team who have put thoughts of struggling against behind them, to a team who have a renewed belief in surviving the drop. Last weekend has been talked about as the greatest result in Watford's history. While this may be a tad exaggerated for a club that has an accomplished history, it was a huge surprise and potentially an even bigger result. Running out 3-0 winners against previously unbeaten-in-44 Liverpool, they have put themselves on level points with West Ham and Bournemouth, as they all find themselves trying to scramble away from 18thplace. Nigel Pearson is capable of terrifying his team into performances against the bigger teams, but can he terrify them further to take points from the teams around them?
Burnley vs Tottenham – Saturday, 7 March - 5.30pm GMT
Tottenham will be desperate to end their awful run of form of four straight defeats as they head to Turf Moor. In fact, they have been knocked out of the FA Cup on penalties by basement boys Norwich, after defeats to Wolves and Chelsea in the league and RB Leipzig in the Champions League. Their season looks like it could be on the brink of disaster. Now five points off Champions League football, Jose Mourinho needs to incite a change, and quick. Their situation upfront continues as they have no recognisable striker, and despite the manager giving highly-rated youngster Troy Parrott a try against Norwich, he will most likely rely on Lucas Moura, Steven Bergwijn and Dele Alli to fill the gap. Added to all of this, Eric Dier now faces disciplinary action from the FA after marauding into the stands after the game. He was reported to be standing up to some moron abusing his brother in the crowd. While Mourinho most likely understands the sentiment, he won't be thankful for the further selection headaches.
Up north in Burnley things seem to be in much better shape. Unbeaten in four with only one goal conceded in that time, they are now sat in 9th place and Sean Dyche once again can look back on a season to be proud of. Having beaten Manchester United and Leicester this season, they have shown they can go toe to toe with the big boys. Matej Vydra seemed to be comfortable replacing the injured Chris Woods, but he may return to the team after a substitute appearance against Newcastle last weekend. The old rock-solid defence seems to be back for The Clarets, as the partnership of James Tarkowski and Bern Mee has sured up again.
Chelsea vs Everton – Sunday, 8 March - 2pm GMT
A massive win for Chelsea midweek as they extended Liverpool's poor run of form, knocking them out of the FA Cup in a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge. Goals from Willian and Charles Barkley fired them into the quarter-finals, though the Brazilian was later stretchered off adding to Frank Lampard's growing list of unavailable players. Mateo Kovacic was also injured, leaving the Blues short of midfield options. N'Golo Kante is still not ready to return and Jorginho is serving the first of a two-game ban, so maybe this is time for youth product Billy Gilmour to get his first Premier League minutes after an eye-catching performance midweek. Chelsea still find themselves in 4th spot with a three-point cushion over Manchester United, despite dropping points away to Bournemouth after a double from Marcos Alonso spared their blushes and rescued a 2-2 draw at the Vitality Stadium.
Everton have slowed down a bit since their tough run of fixtures started at the Emirates. They lost an end-to-end shoot out 3-2, then drew at home to Manchester United, and this week they face another of “the top six” teams. The Toffees won the reverse fixture with a convincing 3-1 win, with goals from Richarlison and a double from currently in-form Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Carlo Ancelotti will be standing on the side-line, since he avoided a ban despite being sent off by Christopher Kavanaugh in the aftermath of the draw with Manchester United. Carletto, who seemed to disagree rather passionately with the last minute VAR disallowed goal for Sigurdsson being sat in an offside position, will be looking to get revenge over his previous employers and put his team in contention for European football next year.
Manchester United vs Manchester City – Sunday, 8 March 4.30 pm GMT
Manchester United are now unbeaten in nine, with a 1-0 win over Manchester City included in that run. The Red Devils find themselves in terrific form, they have only conceded one goal in the last four and are fresh from a midweek 3-0 win against Wayne Rooney and Derby County. Since the arrival of Bruno Fernandes they have looked a transformed team offensively, with Odion Ighalo scoring three in his last two appearances. A move that many doubted at the time has made a promising start. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could be further boosted by the return of Daniel James and Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who missed out on the midweek cup tie.
Manchester City are fresh from winning their third consecutive Carabao Cup, a game that looked to be comfortable early through goals from Sergio Agüero and Rodri in the first half. Aston Villa rallied before halftime and pulled one back through Mbwana Samata, but the second-half was well controlled by Pep Guardiola's me; it made for a nervy final 20 or so minutes, but they were able to hold on and lift their 8th trophy in four years under Guardiola. That's if you include Community Shields, which Jose Mourinho most definitely would. The Citizen's followed the Cup win with a midweek 1-0 win over play-off chasing Sheffield Wednesday, Sergio Agüero once again proving the difference in a game that City dominated. Manchester City are now on a five-game winning-streak since their defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in February, and will be looking to secure second place as soon as possible in order to fully focus on the Cup they really want.
Leicester City vs Aston Villa – Sunday, 8 March - 8pm GMT
A Midlands Derby that could be the springboard for either team to break their way out of poor league form. Both teams have found the Cups a welcome distraction of late, but for The Villains the distractions are over. In a brave second-half performance, Dean Smith's men pushed Manchester City after Mbwana Samata's first half header helped by a comical fall by John Stones got them back in game. They were only a late missed header away from taking the game to extra-time, but ultimately experience told. In the league, though, they are without a win in three, losing to fellow strugglers Bournemouth in that run. Dean Smith could be boosted by the return of key-man John McGinn and Pepe Reina in goal. The Villains will be hoping that they can take advantage of Leicester's league slump and overcome the two-point gap between them and survival.
A late Ricardo Pereira goal would have given Brendan Rodgers a huge sigh of relief as his 82nd minute strike gave The Foxes a 1-0 win over Championship side Birmingham City. It ended a run of five games without a win in all competitions, including a loss to Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup. In the last round of Premier League fixtures Leicester were the victims of the first surprise result of the weekend, as they lost to bottom-side Norwich City. Scoring goals has been the problem to Rodger's side as they have no goals in their last three Premier League games, so the return of Jamie Vardy will provide an attacking boost.