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 The 2014-2015 English Premier League season recommences this weekend having taken a short break for international fixtures. We still find Chelsea at the top of the standings, four points clear of Southampton and a further four points ahead of defending champions Manchester City. Chelsea looks to extend their unbeaten start to the campaign against West Brom on Saturday, while Southampton visits Aston Villa on Monday and Manchester City entertains Swansea in a 10 AM ET Saturday kickoff. At th foot of the table, Burnley hopes to build on their first win of the season when they face Stoke, while QPR goes to Newcastle and Leicester takes on Sunderland. Week 12's marquee matchup sees Manchester United travel to the capital to clash with Arsenal. Remember to make your Premier League Pickem predictions before the deadline of each game. Week 12's schedule begins with six Saturday 10 AM ET kickoffs, followed by a 12:30 PM ET game. The two matches on Sunday begin at 8:30 AM ET and 11 AM ET, while the week concludes with a Monday fixture, starting at 3 PM ET. Note that the Yahoo! Fantasy Premier League game's deadline is on Saturday at 9 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. West Bromwich Albion (13th) at Chelsea (1st) (Sat, 10 AM ET) A difficult start for West Brom in their opening four matches of the campaign was followed by back-to-back victories over Spurs and Burnley. However, the Baggies have failed to build on those wins, with their week 10 1-0 success at lowly Leicester their only victory in their last five encounters. Last time out, West Brom lost 2-0 against Newcastle. Premier League leaders Chelsea haven't always looked at their best throughout the first 11 weeks of the season but they're finding the knack to grind out results. The Blues have already notched nine wins to date, but whereas their first six victories were by at least two goals, their last three were all 2-1 wins. Chelsea has won their last two games. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: West Brom 2-2 Chelsea Chelsea 1-2 West Brom (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Tied 2-2-2. Last 3 at Chelsea (all competitions): Chelsea lead 2-0-1. All-time (all competitions): Chelsea lead 54-42-35. Team News West Brom (from): Daniels, Foster, Myhill, Baird, Davidson, Dawson, Gamboa, Lescott, McAuley, Pocognoli, Wisdom, Blanco, Brunt, Dorrans, Gardner, Morrison, Mulumbu, Sessegnon, Roofe, Varela, Yacob, Anichebe, Berahino, Ideye, Nabi, Samaras. Doubts: Pocognoli (hamstring, late fitness test). Out (reason, expected return date): Olsson (Achilles, Nov 29). Chelsea (from): Cech, Courtois, Schwarzer, Ake, Azpilicueta, Cahill, Christensen, Filipe, Ivanovic, Terry, Zouma, Fabregas, Hazard, Matic, Mikel, Oscar, Ramires, Salah, Willian, Costa, Drogba, Remy, Schurrle, Solanke. Doubts: Fabregas (hamstring). West Ham United (4th) at Everton (10th) (Sat, 10 AM ET) West Ham's fine opening to this term has stalled a little in their last two outings but they still head into this week 12 clash looking to extend a five-game unbeaten stretch. The Hammers had an inauspicious start, winning just one out of four. However, since then they've won four out of seven. West Ham has shared the spoils in their last two games. Everton was lingering just above the bottom three seven weeks into this season but they've risen up into mid-table having pieced together a four-game unbeaten streak. In those opening seven matches, the Toffees recorded just one win, losing three along the way. They then won two on the trot and like their visitors Everton has tied their last two. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: West Ham 0-1 Everton Everton 3-2 West Ham (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Everton lead 4-0-2. Last 3 at Everton (all competitions): Everton lead 2-0-1. All-time (all competitions): Everton lead 65-36-27. Team News West Ham (from): Adrian, Jaaskelainen, Spiegel, Collins, Cresswell, Demel, Jenkinson, O'Brien, Potts, Reid, Tomkins, Amalfitano, Downing, Jarvis, Kouyate, Lletget, Noble, Nolan, Song, Carroll, Cole, Sakho, Valencia, Vaz Te, Zarate. Doubts: Downing (knee), Sakho (back). Everton (from): Howard, Joel, Stanek, Baines, Browning, Coleman, Distin, Garbutt, Hibbert, Jagielka, Atsu, Barkley, Barry, Besic, Gibson, McCarthy, McGeady, Osman, Pienaar, Eto'o, Long, Lukaku, McAleny, Mirallas, Naismith. Doubts: Baines (hamstring, late fitness test), Gibson (knee, late fitness test), Pienaar (knee, late fitness test), Mirallas (hamstring, late fitness test), Coleman (Achilles, late fitness test). Out (reason, expected return date): Oviedo (leg, Nov 30), Koné (knee, Nov 30), Alcaraz (dislocated shoulder, no date), Stones (ankle, no date). Sunderland (14th) at Leicester City (18th) (Sat, 10 AM ET) A fixture against one of the promoted clubs will be seen as an opportunity for Sunderland to improve their success rate, which has been poor so far this season. No team has more than the Black Cats' six ties in the first 11 games of the term and it took them seven attempts to record their first win. Sunderland is unbeaten in their last two fixtures. Leicester has now joined their fellow promoted clubs in the bottom three having suffered a complete loss of form. In week 5, the Foxes posted their second successive victory but in the subsequent six games they've only found the net during the 2-2 tie with Burnley. Leicester is hoping to end a four-game losing streak and a six-match winless stretch. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Last met in 2007 Last 6 (all competitions): Sunderland lead 4-1-1. Last 3 at Leicester (all competitions): Sunderland lead 2-1-0. All-time (all competitions): Leicester lead 32-30-20. Team News Sunderland (from): Mannone, Pantilimon, Brown, Coates, O'Shea, Reveillere, Vergini, Alvarez, Bridcutt, Buckley, Cabral, Cattermole, Gomez, Johnson, Larsson, Mavrias, Rodwell, Altidore, Fletcher, Wickham. Out (reason, expected return date): Giaccherini (ankle, Nov 29), Jones (hamstring, Nov 29), Van Aanholt (dislocated shoulder, no date). Leicester (from): Hamer, Schmeichel, Smith, De Laet, Konchesky, Moore, Morgan, Simpson, Wasilewski, Albrighton, Cambiasso, Drinkwater, James, King, Knockaert, Mahrez, Powell, Hopper, Lawrence, Nugent, Schlupp, Ulloa, Vardy, Wood. Out (reason, expected return date): Hammond (calf, no date), Upson (foot, no date). Swansea City (5th) at Manchester City (3rd) (Sat, 10 AM ET) It looked as if Swansea would completely squander their strong start to the season but they've managed to produce some positive results once more. The Swans' perfect first three games were followed by a dip where they went five outings without victory. They're currently unbeaten in three, though, and they beat Arsenal 2-1 in their last fixture. Questions are being raised about Manchester City's title defense as they gradually slip further behind Chelsea, who's setting the pace. City won their first two matches of the term and they notched three wins in a row in weeks 6-8, but they've otherwise struggled with inconsistency. City has won once in their last three, tying 2-2 with QPR in week 11. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Swansea 0-3 Manchester City Manchester City 3-2 Swansea (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Manchester City lead 4-1-1. Last 3 at Manchester City (all competitions): Manchester City lead 3-0-0. All-time (all competitions): Manchester City lead 16-7-3. Team News Swansea (from): Cornell, Fabianski, Tremmel, Amat, Bartley, Kingsley, 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): Fernandez (calf, Dec 6). Manchester City (from): Caballero, Hart, Wright, Boyata, Clichy, Demichelis, Kompany, Mangala, Nastasic, Sagna, Zabaleta, Fernandinho, Fernando, Lampard, Milner, Nasri, Navas, Sinclair, Toure, Aguero, Jovetic. Out (reason, expected return date): Kolarov (calf, Dec 6), Dzeko (calf, Nov 30), Silva (knee, Nov 30). Queens Park Rangers (19th) at Newcastle United (8th) (Sat, 10 AM ET) Queens Park Rangers has now scored two goals in three of their last four matches but their leaky defense is costing them points. The Hoops currently have the worst defense in the division, conceding 22 goals in the first 11 fixtures. They've only won twice so far, with one of those victories coming in the last eight. QPR has already lost seven times. Newcastle's terrible start to the campaign is becoming a distant memory as a fine run of form has seen them rise up into the top half of the standings. The Magpies went winless for the first seven weeks of the season but they now go into this clash on the back of a four-game winning streak. Newcastle has three cleansheets in their last four outings. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Last met in 2013 Last 6 (all competitions): Newcastle lead 4-0-2. Last 3 at Newcastle (all competitions): Newcastle lead 2-0-1. All-time (all competitions): Southampton lead 22-16-8. Team News QPR (from): Green, McCarthy, Murphy, Caulker, Dunne, Ehmer, Hill, Isla, Onuoha, Traore, Yun, Barton, Fer, Henry, Hoilett, Kranjcar, Mutch, Phillips, Sandro, Wright-Phillips, Austin, Vargas, Zamora. Out (reason, expected return date): Faurlin (ACL, Jul), Taraabt (groin, no date). Suspended: Ferdinand (final game of three-match ban). Newcastle (from): Alnwick, Elliot, Krul, Dummett, Haidara, Janmaat, R. Taylor, S. Taylor, Williamson, Anita, Bigirimana, Cabella, Colback, Sissoko, Tiote, Vuckic, Ameobi, Armstrong, Cisse, Ferreyra, Gouffran, Perez, Riviere. Out (reason, expected return date): De Jong (thigh, Jan 1), Coloccini (calf, Dec 13), Aarons (hamstring, Dec 13), Abied (ankle, Dec 2), Tioté (calf, Nov 29), Obertan (thigh, no date), Santon (knee, no date), Good (groin, no date). Burnley (20th) at Stoke City (9th) (Sat, 10 AM ET) Burnley still props up the standings but they head into this week 12 encounter having just recorded their first victory of the season. The Clarets beat Hull 1-0 last time out, bringing to an end a ten-match winless stretch. During that winless streak, Burnley lost six times and before week 11 they had conceded three goals in three consecutive games. Stoke has yet to get a winning streak going so far this season but having won last time out they get the opportunity to string together victories. The Potters' first win of the season came in week 3 but they had to wait until week 6 for their second. They beat Swansea in week 8 and in their last fixture Stoke went to Tottenham and defeated them 2-1. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Last met in 2010 Last 6 (all competitions): Stoke lead 2-1-3. Last 3 at Stoke (all competitions): Tied 1-1-1. All-time (all competitions): Stoke lead 45-36-23. Team News Burnley (from): Gilks, Heaton, Duff, Keane, Lafferty, Long, Mee, Reid, Shackell, Trippier, Ward, Arfield, Boyd, Chalobah, Howieson, Jones, Kightly, Marney, Wallace, Barnes, Ings, Jutkiewicz, Sordell. Doubts: Arfield (knock, late fitness test), Chalobah (knock, late fitness test). Out (reason, expected return date): Taylor (calf, no date), Vokes (ACL, no date). Stoke (from): Begovic, Sorensen, Bardsley, Cameron, Muniesa, Pieters, Shawcross, Wilson, Adam, Assaidi, Ireland, N'Zonzi, Palacios, Sidwell, Whelan, Arnautovic, Bojan, Crouch, Diouf, Moses, Walters. Doubts: Wilson (hamstring, major doubt), Pieters (Achilles, late fitness test), Bardsley (groin, late fitness test). Out (reason, expected return date): Odemwingie (ACL, Jun), Huth (calf, no date), Teixeira (broken foot, no date). Manchester United (7th) at Arsenal (6th) (Sat, 12:30 PM ET) Manchester United's 2013-2014 campaign was their worst during the EPL era, but they actually have fewer points now than at the same stage last season. Like last term after 11 fixtures, United has already racked up three defeats but they've only notched four victories to date. The last came last time out, though, a 1-0 win against Crystal Palace. Just like their week 12 opponents, Arsenal has recorded just four wins so far. A big problem has been finishing the job off, with the Gunners tying five of their 11 games, four of those coming in the first six. Arsenal headed into their last contest on the back of consecutive victories but they traveled to Swansea and left having suffered a 2-1 defeat. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Manchester United 0-0 Arsenal Arsenal 0-1 Manchester United (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Manchester United lead 4-0-2. Last 3 at Arsenal (all competitions): Manchester United lead 1-0-2. All-time (all competitions): Manchester United lead 92-79-48. Team News Manchester United (from): Amos, De Gea, Johnstone, Lindegaard, Blackett, McNair, Rafael, Shaw, Smalling, Vermijl, Anderson, Carrick, Di Maria, Fellaini, Fletcher, Herrera, James, Januzaj, Lingard, Mata, Valencia, Young, W. Keane, Rooney, Van Persie, Wilson. Doubts: Shaw (groin), Rafael (muscle problem). Out (reason, expected return date): Rojo (dislocated shoulder, Dec 14), Falcao (calf, Dec 8), Jones (shin, Dec 8), Blind (MCL, no date), Evans (ankle, no date). Arsenal (from): Martinez, Ospina, Szczesny, Chambers, Gibbs, Mertesacker, Monreal, Arteta, Cazorla, Diaby, Flamini, Gnabry, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ramsey, Rosicky, Wilshere, Alexis, Campbell, Giroud, Podolski, Sanogo, Walcott, Welbeck. Out (reason, expected return date): Özil (LCL, Jan 1), Debuchy (ankle, Dec 21), Koscielny (calf, Dec 13). Liverpool (11th) at Crystal Palace (17th) (Sun, 8:30 AM ET) A combination of a lack of goals and defensive errors is costing Liverpool badly right now. They'll have to continue without Daniel Sturridge for now as he's suffered a further setback. Liverpool has already been inflicted with five defeats this season, with losses coming in their last two matches. They're also looking for their first victory in three. Crystal Palace's climb up the standings is a distant memory as they've plummeted back down after a terrible run of results. The Eagles' two wins of the term came in back-to-back weeks against Everton and Leicester, but since then they've gone on a five-game winless stretch. That run includes four defeats and they're on a two-game losing streak. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Liverpool 3-3 Crystal Palace Crystal Palace 1-3 Liverpool (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Crystal Palace lead 3-2-1 (includes 1 FA Cup game and 1 League Cup game). Last 3 at Crystal Palace (all competitions): Crystal Palace lead 2-0-1 (includes 1 League Cup game). All-time (all competitions): Liverpool lead 21-10-11. Team News Liverpool (from): Jones, Mignolet, Johnson, Jose Enrique, Lovren, Manquillo, Moreno, Sakho, Skrtel, Toure, Allen, Can, Coutinho, Gerrard, Henderson, Lallana, Lucas, Markovic, Suso, Balotelli, Borini, Lambert, Sterling. Doubts: Balotelli (hamstring). Out (reason, expected return date): Sturridge (thigh, Jan 1), Flanagan (knee, Dec 21), Saez (groin, Dec 6). Crystal Palace (from): Hennessey, Kettings, Speroni, Dann, Delaney, Fryers, Hangeland, Kelly, Mariappa, Ward, Bannan, Bolasie, Guedioura, Jedinak, Ledley, McArthur, O'Keefe, Puncheon, Thomas, Williams, Campbell, Chamakh, Gayle, Johnson, Murray, Zaha. Out (reason, expected return date): Doyle (groin, no date). Tottenham Hotspur (12th) at Hull City (15th) (Sun, 11 AM ET) Tottenham became an early league leader when they won their opening two games of the season, but highs have been few and far between since then. Spurs have won twice more since week 2, with those victories coming in weeks 7 and 10. They've already lost five games this term, with three of those defeats coming in their last four encounters. Hull's positive start to the season, where they defeated QPR 1-0 on the opening day, hasn't led to a good run of form at any stage so far. In the subsequent ten games, the Tigers have only notched one more victory, a 2-0 win against Crystal Palace in week 7. Hull is currently looking to halt a four-game winless stretch and a two-match losing streak. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Tottenham 1-1 Hull Hull 0-1 Tottenham (reverse fixture) Hull 2-2 Tottenham (League Cup; Tottenham won on penalties) Last 6 (all competitions): Tottenham lead 4-0-2 (includes 1 League Cup game). Last 3 at Hull (all competitions): Tottenham lead 2-0-1. All-time (all competitions): Tottenham lead 11-6-10. Team News Tottenham (from): Friedel, Lloris, Vorm, Chiriches, Davies, Dier, Fazio, Kaboul, Naughton, Vertonghen, Walker, Capoue, Ceballos, Chadli, Dembele, Eriksen, Lamela, Lennon, Mason, Paulinho, Stambouli, Townsend, Adebayor, Kane, Soldado. Doubts: Townsend (ankle), Rose (chest). Out (reason, expected return date): Bentaleb (ankle, Dec 6). Suspended: Naughton (first game of two-match ban). Hull (from): Harper, Jakupovic, McGregor, Bruce, Chester, Davies, Dawson, Maguire, McShane, Robertson, Rosenior, Brady, Ben Arfa, Diame, Elmohamady, Huddlestone, Livermore, Meyler, Quinn, Ramirez, Aluko, Hernandez, Jelavic. Out (reason, expected return date): Snodgrass (knee, May). Southampton (2nd) at Aston Villa (16th) (Mon, 3 PM ET) Southampton's combination of a strong defense and efficient attack has helped them remain as Chelsea's closest challenger through 11 weeks. The Saints have only conceded five goals and have kept seven cleansheets to date, easily the best marks in the division. They enter this encounter seeking to extend their four-match winning stretch. While Southampton has only conceded five goals, Aston Villa has netted a league-worst five times. Four of those goals came during Villa's four-game unbeaten run at the very start of the campaign. Since then, they've hit a run of seven games without victory. However, a span of six defeats ended last time out when they tied 0-0 with West Ham. Head-to-Head Stats Last season: Southampton 0-0 Aston Villa Aston Villa 3-2 Southampton (reverse fixture) Last 6 (all competitions): Aston Villa lead 3-2-1. Last 3 at Aston Villa (all competitions): Tied 1-1-1. All-time (all competitions): Aston Villa lead 28-22-21. Team News Southampton (from): K. Davis, Forster, Gazzaniga, Alderweireld, Bertrand, Clyne, Fonte, Gardos, Stephens, Targett, Yoshida, Cork, S. Davis, Isgrove, Mane, McQueen, Reed, Schneiderlin, Tadic, Wanyama, Long, Mayuka, Pelle. Doubts: Schneiderlin (groin), S. Davis (hamstring). Out (reason, expected return date): Rodriguez (ACL, Dec 21), Ward-Prowse (ankle, Dec 21), Gallagher (knee, no date). Aston Villa (from): Guzan, Given, Hutton, Lowton, Okore, Clark, Herd, Cissokho, Westwood, Richardson, Sanchez, N'Zogbia, Cleverley, Grealish, Cole, Bacuna, Weimann, Agbonlahor, Bent. Out (reason, expected return date): Delph (dislocated shoulder, Dec 26), Senderos (calf, no date), Vlaar (calf, no date), Baker (knee, no date), Kozák (broken, leg, no date). Suspended: Benteke (second game of three-match ban). |
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