Arsenal play their second away game of the week as they travel to West Ham. They haven’t lost away at West Ham since 2006 and a win is much needed following a couple of disappointing results. Failure to win in their last two games has seen Arsenal slip outside the top four, but they are only six points off 2nd. West Ham’s win over Chelsea on Saturday moved them to within a point of leaving the relegation zone, but they still remain in danger. After scoring just three goals in the last five games it is easy to see where their problems lie.
Manchester City travel to Swansea looking to pick up their 16th win of the season so far. The league leaders have been almost untouchable of late and extended their cushion at the top of the league to 11 points at the weekend. Swansea won at the weekend also and moved off the foot of the league. They are now just one point from safety but with a seemingly long battle ahead this season.
Manchester United fell further back in the title race at the weekend but will be keen to return to form against Bournemouth. The defeat to City ended a four-game winning run but since none of the other sides below were able to win they remain 2nd. Bournemouth took a point home from last seasons visit to Old Trafford but will have to be at their best to do the same this time. In their last four games, Bournemouth have drawn three and lost one, dropping to 14th.
Tonight Chelsea will be looking to put the weekends’ disappointing loss to West Ham behind them with a good performance at Huddersfield. A win would, temporarily at least, move them level on points with 2nd and help to keep the pressure on the sides above. Two away games without a win have cost Chelsea points and they cannot afford to drop any further back or risk losing their grip on a top-four spot. Huddersfield ended a run of four straight defeats at the weekend with their win over Brighton which helped to stop them tumbling down the table. They are now 12th but their most recent points have come against sides they would expect to be battling in the relegation fight.
Liverpool have not lost to West Brom since February 2013 but over that time there have been four draws between the two. Victory in Sunday’s Merseyside derby could have moved Liverpool into 3rd but instead, they were pegged back late on. They face a West Brom side who haven’t won since August and sit outside the bottom three on goal difference alone. They did pick up a creditable draw away to Spurs last month but have failed to kick on since then.
Spurs beat Stoke at the weekend to end a four-game winless run and they prepare to take on Brighton tomorrow. Brighton are in the middle of a poor run of their own and have gone five games since they last picked up three points. They now sit 13th in the table and if this run of form is allowed to continue then they could quickly be dragged into trouble. Spurs gained ground in those above and a win tomorrow could see them close further.
Burnley have won five of their last eight games in the league and are in 7th place. They have kept four clean sheets over those games but only once has there been more than one goal between them and their opponents. They host Stoke tonight who have picked up just five points on their travels so far this season. They have also been leaky at the back and have conceded 15 goals in their last six games.
Crystal Palace are beginning to give themselves a chance of surviving this season and have picked up points in each of their last five games. A victory tonight against an inconsistent Watford side may be enough to move them outside the bottom three for the first time. Watford lost 1-0 in this fixture in March and given that they haven’t won in their last three league games they’ll be hoping to improve. They are at risk of falling behind the top seven in the league as the gap to those above is beginning to grow.
Everton are up to 10th thanks to just the one defeat in their last six league games. Their good run has taken them away from any relegation danger and the task now will be to see if they can continue to climb the table. They travel to Newcastle tomorrow night to face a side who have only the one point to show from their last seven games. Everton have won six of the previous seven meetings.
Leicester go into their game away at Southampton on the back of a three-game winning run. They have moved into 8th place in the table and, along with Burnley and Watford, look a good outside bet to break the top six at the end of the season. They face a Southampton side who have drawn their last two games in the league. Southampton have a reputation as being defensively solid but have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last eight games.
Chelsea missed the chance to make up ground on second-placed United at the weekend and they cannot afford to slip up again. The game at Huddersfield is the start of a run of games against sides from the bottom half and the team need to pick up maximum points over the coming matches to keep the pressure on those above.