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 Chelsea remains at the top of the English Premier League standings but they missed an opportunity to stamp their authority and lay down a serious marker last week. The Blues had to settle for a 1-1 ties at champions Manchester City, despite having a man advantage for nearly half an hour and going a goal up with 20 minutes left on the clock. This week Chelsea takes on third-placed Aston Villa. There are two marquee matchups in week 6, both of which are historical local derbies. The weekend begins with the Merseyside derby, where Liverpool will entertain Everton. Saturday's late kickoff sees Tottenham make the short trip across north London to clash with Arsenal. At the wrong end of the table, Newcastle continues to search for their first win of the season and hope it'll come on Monday night at Stoke. Burnley and Sunderland remain winless, too, and they'll look for their maiden victory against West Brom and Swansea respectively. Remember to make your Premier League Pickem predictions before the deadline of each game. Week 6's schedule begins on Saturday at 7:45 AM ET, a game which is followed by six 10 AM ET kickoffs. The final contest of the day is at 12:30 PM ET. There's one Sunday match, beginning at 11 AM ET, and the week concludes with a Monday fixture, starting at 3 PM ET. Note that the Yahoo! Fantasy Premier League game's deadline is on Sunday at 6:45 AM ET. Here we preview the ten games in the upcoming week of the English Premier League. The title of each game section is a link to pick the result of that game. Everton (14th) at Liverpool (11th) (Sat, 7:45 AM ET) Everton was the most difficult team to beat in the division during the first half of last season but they've already lost more times in this campaign than in the first 17 games of last term. The Toffees earned their first win in week 4 at West Brom but they went down 3-2 to Crystal Palace last week. Everton also lost 3-0 to Swansea in the League Cup. Through five weeks of the season, Liverpool continues to produce inconsistent results. They've now won just two out of five, while losing the other three. Their victories were in week's 1 and 3, against Southampton and Tottenham and they're hoping to snap a two-game losing streak. Liverpool sneaked through in the League Cup against Middlesbrough. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Everton 0-4 Liverpool Liverpool 3-3 Everton (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Liverpool lead 3-0-3 (includes 1 FA Cup game). Last 3 at Liverpool (all competitions): Liverpool lead 2-0-1 (includes 1 FA Cup game). All-time (all competitions): Liverpool lead 88-66-68. Team News Everton (from): Howard, Joel, Stanek, Alcaraz, Baines, Browning, Coleman, Distin, Garbutt, Hibbert, Jagielka, Stones, Atsu, Barry, Besic, Gibson, Junior, McCarthy, McGeady, Osman, Oviedo, Pienaar, Eto'o, Kone, Long, Lukaku, McAleny, Mirallas, Naismith. Doubts: Pienaar (groin), Coleman (head injury). Out (reason, expected return date): Barkley (MCL, Oct 18). Liverpool (from): Jones, Mignolet, Johnson, Jose Enrique, Lovren, Manquillo, Moreno, Sakho, Skrtel, Toure, Allen, Coutinho, Gerrard, Henderson, Lallana, Lucas, Markovic, Suso, Balotelli, Borini, Lambert, Sterling, Sturridge. Doubts: Sturridge (hamstring), Allen (knee), Johnson (knee), Henderson (hip), Coutinho (groin). Out (reason, expected return date): Can (ankle, Oct 25), Flanagan (knee, Dec). Aston Villa (3rd) at Chelsea (1st) (Sat, 10 AM ET) Despite the obvious setback last week, Aston Villa will probably be pleased with their return of ten points from five games. However, a tough fixture in week 6 could truly halt their momentum. Villa earned narrow wins over Stoke, Hull and Liverpool, while tying 0-0 with Newcastle. Last time out, though, they suffered a 3-0 defeat against Arsenal. Since their last league championship in 2009-10, Chelsea has had a few strong starts to the campaign and so they'll be cautiously optimistic over their current position. The Blues' perfect start was halted last week by Manchester City in a 1-1 tie, but they've put up 13 points on the board out of a possible 15. Chelsea beat Bolton in the League Cup. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Aston Villa 1-2 Chelsea Chelsea 0-1 Aston Villa (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Chelsea lead 4-2-0. Last 3 at Chelsea (all competitions): Chelsea lead 2-1-0. All-time (all competitions): Tied 57-57-34. Team News Aston Villa (from): Given, Guzan, Bacuna, Baker, Clark, Herd, Hutton, Lowton, Okore, Senderos, Vlaar, Cleverley, Cole, Delph, Grealish, N'Zogbia, Richardson, Sanchez, Westwood, Agbonlahor, Bent, Burke, Weimann. Doubts: Vlaar (calf). Out (reason, expected return date): Kozák (broken leg, Nov 2), Benteke (Achilles, Oct 4). Chelsea (from): Cech, Courtois, Schwarzer, Ake, Azpilicueta, Cahill, Christensen, Filipe, Ivanovic, Terry, Zouma, Fabregas, Hazard, Matic, Mikel, Oscar, Salah, Willian, Costa, Drogba, Remy, Schurrle. Out (reason, expected return date): Ramires (groin, Oct 18). Leicester City (7th) at Crystal Palace (15th) (Sat, 10 AM ET) Leicester had one of the toughest openings to the season. Despite that, they're the leading promoted club and head into this week looking for three wins in a row. The Foxes opened with ties against Everton and Arsenal, while losing to Chelsea. In their last two contests, Leicester beat Stoke 1-0 and they fought back to stun Manchester United 5-3. After an inauspicious start to their campaign, Crystal Palace will hope victory in week 5 is a sign of better things to come. Palace opened up with defeats against Arsenal and West Ham but steadied things with ties with Newcastle and Burnley. They went on to beat Everton last week. In the League Cup, however, Newcastle eventually defeated them. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Last met in 2013 Last 6 (all competitions): Tied 2-2-2. Last 3 at Crystal Palace (all competitions): Tied 1-1-1. All-time (all competitions): Leicester lead 23-21-17. Team News Leicester (from): Hamer, Schmeichel, Smith, De Laet, Konchesky, Moore, Morgan, Simpson, Wasilewski, Albrighton, Cambiasso, Drinkwater, Hammond, James, King, Knockaert, Mahrez, Powell, Hopper, Lawrence, Nugent, Schlupp, Taylor-Fletcher, Ulloa, Vardy, Wood. Out (reason, expected return date): Upson (foot, no date). Crystal Palace (from): Hennessey, Kettings, Speroni, Dann, Delaney, Fryers, Hangeland, Kelly, Mariappa, McCarthy, Ward, Bannan, Bolasie, Guedioura, Jedinak, Ledley, McArthur, O'Keefe, Puncheon, Thomas, Williams, Campbell, Chamakh, Doyle, Gayle, Johnson, Zaha. Out (reason, expected return date): Chamakh (hamstring, Sep 21). Manchester City (6th) at Hull City (10th) (Sat, 10 AM ET) Manchester City won last season's crown despite failing to win three of their first six games and they could end up with a similar record after half a dozen fixtures this time around. The Citizens won their first two but since then they've lost to Stoke and tied with Arsenal and Chelsea. They beat Sheffield Wednesday in the League Cup, though. League Cup duties are off the agenda for Hull after they lost to West Brom 3-2. That might be a good thing for now as the Tigers head into this week 6 encounter searching for their first league win since the opening day of the term. Hull beat QPR 1-0 in week 1, but since then they've tied with Stoke, West Ham and Newcastle and lost to Aston Villa. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Manchester City 2-0 Hull Hull 0-2 Manchester City (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Manchester City lead 3-1-2. Last 3 at Hull (all competitions): Tied 1-1-1. All-time (all competitions): Manchester City lead 12-6-7. Team News Manchester City (from): Caballero, Hart, Wright, Boyata, Clichy, Demichelis, Kolarov, Kompany, Mangala, Nastasic, Sagna, Zabaleta, Fernandinho, Lampard, Milner, Navas, Silva, Sinclair, Toure, Aguero, Dzeko. Out (reason, expected return date): Jovetic (hamstring, Oct 4), Nasri (groin, Oct 4), Fernando (groin, Oct 4). Hull (from): Harper, Jakupovic, McGregor, Bruce, Chester, Davies, Dawson, Figueroa, Lenihan, Maguire, McShane, Robertson, Rosenior, Brady, Ben Arfa, Diame, Elmohamady, Huddlestone, Ince, Livermore, Meyler, Quinn, Ramirez, Snodgrass, Aluko, Hernandez, Jelavic, Sagbo. Doubts: Meyler (back). Out (reason, expected return date): Snodgrass (knee, May '15). West Ham United (8th) at Manchester United (12th) (Sat, 10 AM ET) During much of last season, West Ham struggled for goals as their squad was light of strikers but this term they've already hit three goals in a game twice. The Hammers drew a blank when they lost to Spurs in week 1 and they also lost to Southampton. However, 3-1 wins over Crystal Palace and Liverpool should help boost West Ham's confidence. Manchester United might well be low on confidence right now after they were overturned by Leicester last time out despite holding a 3-1 lead at one point. The 5-3 defeat against the promoted club was their second loss of the season after they lost to Swansea on the opening day. Manchester United has one win from five having beaten QPR in week 4. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: West Ham 1-3 Manchester United Manchester United 2-0 West Ham (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Manchester United lead 4-0-2 (includes 2 FA Cup games). Last 3 at Manchester United (all competitions): Manchester United lead 3-0-0 (includes 1 FA Cup game). All-time (all competitions): Manchester United lead 60-42-26. Team News West Ham (from): Adrian, Jaaskelainen, Spiegel, Collins, Cresswell, Demel, Jenkinson, Potts, Reid, Tomkins, Amalfitano, Downing, Lletget, Noble, Poyet, Song, Cole, Sakho, Valencia, Vaz Te, Zarate. Out (reason, expected return date): Kouyate (groin, Oct 8), Nolan (shoulder, Oct 5), Jarvis (thigh, Oct 5). Manchester United (from): Amos, De Gea, Johnstone, Lindegaard, Blind, Rafael, Rojo, Shaw, Vermijl, Anderson, Di Maria, Fletcher, Herrera, James, Januzaj, Mata, Valencia, Falcao, W. Keane, Rooney, Van Persie, Wilson. Out (reason, expected return date): Evans (foot, Oct 20), Smalling (thigh, Oct 5), Jones (hamstring, Oct 5), Fellaini (ankle, Oct 5), Carrick (ankle, Oct 5), Young (groin, no date), Lndgard (knee, no date). Suspended: Blackett (one-match ban). Queens Park Rangers (18th) at Southampton (2nd) (Sat, 10 AM ET) When QPR was last in the Premier League two seasons ago they spent much of the campaign down the wrong end of the table. After five games of this term, there's little to suggest things will be much different this time around. QPR's one win so far came in week 3 over Sunderland but they've already notched three defeats where they failed to score. Southampton's pre-season concerns appear to be a distant memory as the side has settled nicely despite multiple changes. The disappointing start, where they lost 2-1 to Liverpool and tied 0-0 with West Brom, is behind them and they're now looking for a fourth successive league victory. Southampton also defeated Arsenal 2-1 in the League Cup. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Last met in 2013 Last 6 (all competitions): QPR lead 3-2-1. Last 3 at Southampton (all competitions): QPR lead 2-0-1. All-time (all competitions): Southampton lead 28-27-21. Team News QPR (from): Green, McCarthy, Murphy, Caulker, Dunne, Ehmer, Ferdinand, Hill, Isla, Onuoha, Traore, Yun, Fer, Henry, Hoilett, Kranjcar, Phillips, Sandro, Wright-Phillips, Austin, Taarabt, Vargas, Zamora. Doubts: Sandro (knee), Taarabt (ankle). Out (reason, expected return date): Faurlin (ACL, Jul '15), Barton (hamstring, no date), Mutch (hamstring, no date). Southampton (from): K. Davis, Forster, Gazzaniga, Alderweireld, Bertrand, Clyne, Fonte, Gardos, Targett, Yoshida, Cork, S. Davis, Isgrove, Mane, McQueen, Reed, Schneiderlin, Tadic, Wanyama, Gallagher, Long, Mayuka, Pelle. Out (reason, expected return date): Ward-Prowse (ankle, Dec), Rodriguez (ACL, Dec). Swansea City (5th) at Sunderland (17th) (Sat, 10 AM ET) After getting off to a great start to the season, Swansea goes into this week 6 matchup looking to rebuild. The Swans were one of only two teams to win their first three games this term, defeating Manchester United, Burnley and West Brom. However, they've since lost to Chelsea and Southampton. Swansea beat Everton in the League Cup, though. Sunderland kicked off last season by not registering a win in any of their first eight fixtures and they're in danger of beginning this campaign in a similar manner. Despite proving difficult to beat, the Black Cats are currently winless after tying four out of their five matches and losing 1-0 to QPR. Sunderland also lost 2-1 to Stoke in the League Cup. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Swansea 3-1 Sunderland Sunderland 0-4 Swansea (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Swansea lead 2-1-3. Last 3 at Sunderland (all competitions): Tied 1-1-1. All-time (all competitions): Sunderland lead 12-8-8. Team News Swansea (from): Cornell, Fabianski, Tremmel, Bartley, Fernandez, Kingsley, Obeng, Rangel, Taylor, Tiendalli, Williams, Britton, Carroll, Dyer, Fulton, Ki, Montero, Richards, Routledge, Sigurdsson, Sheehan, Shelvey, Barrow, Bony, Donnelly, Emnes, Gomis. Out (reason, expected return date): Amat (knee, Nov 1), Donnelly (ankle, Nov 1), Britton (knee, Oct 19). Sunderland (from): Mannone, Pantilimon, Brown, Coates, Jones, O'Shea, Van Aanholt, Vergini, Alvarez, Bridcutt, Buckley, Cabral, Cattermole, Giaccherini, Gomez, Johnson, Larsson, Mavrias, Rodwell, Altidore, Fletcher, Graham, Wickham. Out (reason, expected return date): Coates (knock, no date). Tottenham Hotspur (9th) at Arsenal (4th) (Sat, 12:30 PM ET) Things were going well for Tottenham when they topped the table after two wins from two. However, the pressure of this clash increases by the fact they're looking to end a three-game winless run. In the last three games, Spurs have lost to Liverpool and West Brom and tied with Sunderland. In the League Cup, though, they beat Nottingham Forest. Arsenal continues to be one of two unbeaten sides in the division and they go into week 6 having just recorded their first win since the opening day of the term. The Gunners beat Crystal Palace in week 1 and sandwiched between that and their win over Aston Villa were three ties. Arsenal was knocked out of the League Cup by Southampton, though. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Tottenham 0-1 Arsenal Arsenal 1-0 Tottenham (reverse fixture) Tottenham 0-2 Arsenal (FA Cup) Last 6 (all competitions): Arsenal lead 5-1-0 (includes 1 FA Cup game). Last 3 at Arsenal (all competitions): Arsenal lead 3-0-0 (includes 1 FA Cup game). All-time (all competitions): Arsenal lead 74-54-45. Team News Tottenham (from): Friedel, Lloris, Vorm, Chiriches, Davies, Dier, Fazio, Kaboul, Naughton, Rose, Veljkovic, Vertonghen, Bentaleb, Capoue, Ceballos, Chadli, Dembele, Eriksen, Lamela, Lennon, Mason, Paulinho, Stambouli, Townsend, Adebayor, Kane, Soldado. Out (reason, expected return date): Walker (pelvis, no date). Arsenal (from): Martinez, Ospina, Szczesny, Chambers, Debuchy, Gibbs, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Arteta, Cazorla, Coquelin, Diaby, Flamini, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ozil, Ramsey, Rosicky, Wilshere, Alexis, Campbell, Podolski, Welbeck. Out (reason, expected return date): Debuchy (ankle, Dec), Giroud (ankle, Dec), Walcott (ACL, Oct 25), Gnabry (knee, Oct 25), Sanogo (hamstring, Oct 18), Monreal (back, no date). Burnley (19th) at West Bromwich Albion (16th) (Sun, 11 AM ET) Burnley has become a tough team to unlock over the past three games but a lack of goals could scupper their hopes of remaining in the division. The Clarets took the lead against Chelsea in week 1, but they went on to lose 3-1 and haven't scored since. Burnley lost 1-0 to Swansea and they enter this week on the back of three successive 0-0 ties. West Brom has had a difficult start to the campaign but a win last time out in the league and a comeback victory in the League Cup might get their season going. The Baggies tied their opening two games but defeats against Swansea and Everton followed. They defeated Tottenham last week, though, and they beat Hull in the League Cup in midweek. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Last met in 2009 Last 6 (all competitions): Burnley lead 3-2-1 (includes 2 FA Cup games). Last 3 at West Brom (all competitions): West Brom lead 2-0-1 (includes 1 FA Cup game). All-time (all competitions): West Brom lead 53-45-27. Team News Burnley (from): Cisak, Gilks, Heaton, Duff, Keane, Lafferty, Long, Mee, Reid, Shackell, Trippier, Ward, Arfield, Boyd, Chalobah, Howieson, Jones, Kightly, Marney, Wallace, Barnes, Jutkiewicz, Sordell. Doubts: Trippier (groin), Jones (thigh), Marney (hamstring). Out (reason, expected return date): Vokes (ACL, Nov 22), Ings (hamstring, Oct 18), Taylor (Achilles, Oct 4). West Brom (from): Daniels, Foster, Myhill, Baird, Davidson, Dawson, Gamboa, Lescott, McAuley, O’Neil, Olsson, Pocognoli, Wisdom, Blanco, Brunt, Dorrans, Gardner, Morrison, Mulumbu, Sessegnon, Roofe, Varela, Yacob, Anichebe, Berahino, Ideye, Nabi, Samaras. Doubts: Ideye (ankle), Anichebe (groin), Baird (illness). Newcastle United (20th) at Stoke City (13th) (Mon, 3 PM ET) Alan Pardew continues as Newcastle manager but the club's woeful form during the calendar year has yet to end. A glimmer of hope might have been sparked last week, though, with a fight back from two goals down saw the Magpies tie 2-2 with Hull and they beat Crystal Palace in the League Cup. However, Newcastle remains winless in the league. Stoke has struggled to find any consistency so far this season and unusually their best form has been saved for their travels. The Potters have lost both of their home league games to date, 1-0 defeats against Aston Villa and Leicester, and on the road they're undefeated with a victory and two ties. They also won away to Sunderland in the League Cup. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Newcastle 0-1 Stoke Stoke 1-5 Newcastle (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Newcastle lead 4-2-2. Last 3 at Stoke (all competitions): Stoke lead 2-1-0. All-time (all competitions): Newcastle lead 43-25-19. Team News Newcastle (from): Krul, Elliot, Janmaat, Dummett, Haidara, Coloccini, Williamson, S. Taylor, Tiote, Anita, Sissoko, Colback, Cabella, Gouffran, Obertan, Ameobi, Riviere, Cisse, Perez, Armstrong. Doubts: Janmaat (muscular, late fitness test). Out (reason, expected return date): De Jong (thigh, Dec), Santon (knee, Nov 22), Aarons (hamstring, Nov 1), Good (groin, no date), R. Taylor (ACL, no date). Suspended: Abeid (one-match ban). Stoke (from): Begovic, Bardsley, Wilson, Shawcross, Pieters, Whelan, Walters, Krkic, Moses, Nzonzi, Crouch, Sorensen, Huth, Adam, Arnautovic, Assaidi, Biram Diouf, Muniesa, Ireland. Doubts: Walters (calf, late fitness test). Out (reason, expected return date): Odemwingie (ACL, Jun '15), Cameron (hernia, Oct 4). |
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