Boxing Day is only a few days away and there will be plenty of Premier League action to analyze. Will Mikel Arteta get a win in his Arsenal debut? Will Liverpool remain unbeaten?
Week 18 of the Premier League is in the books and the only major shock was Watford’s victory over Manchester United. Liverpool and West Ham were the only two clubs that did not play over the weekend as a result of Liverpool playing against Flamengo in the Club World Cup Final in Qatar.
The game between Leicester City and Liverpool will steal the headlines heading into Boxing Day, but Week 19 will be comprised of many interesting games. Most neutral fans and pundits will pay special attention to Mikel Arteta and Carlo Ancelotti on their debuts with Arsenal and Everton.
Others will be tuning in to see if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer can avoid a negative result that could possibly see him join the long list of unemployed managers. Without further delay, let’s take a look at some bold predictions for each game that will be played on Thursday and Friday.
Mourinho’s men will bounce back against Brighton
Tottenham were defeated by Chelsea at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium yesterday and they were outplayed by the Blues from start to finish. To make matters worse for Tottenham, Son Heung-Min received a red card and will miss the next three games.
Brighton suffered the same fate as Tottenham over the weekend after losing 1-0 to Sheffield United. Graham Potter’s side has exceeded expectations so far this season, but they have only claimed five points from their last seven games.
Brighton defeated Tottenham with ease at the Amex Stadium (3-0) on October 5th, but Tottenham are not the same team under Jose Mourinho. Since his appointment as manager, Tottenham’s record consists of four victories and two defeats, with those two losses being against Manchester United at Old Trafford and Chelsea at home.
The Special One is not the type of manager who loses back-to-back games very often. So far, Mourinho’s side has gotten the job done against teams below them and I expect that trend to continue when Brighton head to London.
Prediction: Tottenham 2-0 Brighton