2021/22 Premier League Predictions: Matchday 34
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Pop, pop, bang. The relegation race is on with Burnley stuffing Southampton at home. Was the Dyche sacking the correct choice? Morally, of course, this remains a resounding no – Burnley’s grave sin shall never be forgotten nor forgiven. If it relegates Fat Frank and the Toffees, however, it would be yet another slice of delicious Premier League history.
Pintsized Football content from the week before:
🚀 Preview: Premier League Predictions: Matchday 33
⚽ PI’s Recommended Match: Manchester United vs Norwich City
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Bitesize Predictions
| Fixtures | Pintsized | Ryan | Steviano | Results |
| Saturday, 23 April | ||||
| Arsenal vs Man United | 2-0 | 2-0 | 2-0 | 3-1 |
| Leicester vs Aston Villa | 2-2 | 2-2 | 2-1 | 0-0 |
| Man City vs Watford | 3-0 | 6-0 | 3-0 | 5-1 |
| Norwich vs Newcastle | 1-2 | 1-2 | 0-2 | 0-3 |
| Brentford vs Spurs | 1-3 | 1-1 | 2-1 | 0-0 |
| Sunday, 24 April | ||||
| Burnley vs Wolves | 1-2 | 1-0 | 0-1 | 1-0 |
| Chelsea vs West Ham | 2-0 | 2-1 | 2-1 | 1-0 |
| Brighton vs Southampton | 1-1 | 2-0 | 1-0 | 2-2 |
| Liverpool vs Everton | 3-0 | 3-0 | 3-1 | 2-0 |
| Crystal Palace vs Leeds | 1-1 | 2-1 | 2-1 | 0-0 |
Premier League Predictions: Matchday 34
Saturday, 23 April
Arsenal (#5, 57pts) VS Manchester United (#6, 54pts)
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Of course, Arteta pulls a 4-2 away spanking of Chelsea out of his arse. Whenever the Spaniard finds himself on the ropes, his young team manage to dig up a gutsy performance. Fair play. Manchester United are utterly atrocious, but, I’m sure everybody and their dog knows this by now. Play the youth, Ralf.
Prediction: 2-0
Ryan
Talk about going from the clash of titans 20+ years ago to clash of the dossers now. Yes Arsenal beat Chelsea but overall have been pretty shoddy. However they’ll fancy their chances in this match although to be fair, that’s not difficult with their opponents. A 4-0 humiliation is just the tip of the iceberg for United who look demotivated, downed and destroyed waiting for the end of the season to come. Arsenal aren’t that great but United are worse so a home win will be on the cards.
Prediction: 2-0
Steviano
Victory for Arsenal will all but end United’s top 4 hopes and after the latter’s pitiful performance against Liverpool last time out compared to the Gunner’s stunning win at Chelsea it’s hard to see anything but a home win. Ten Hag may be grateful he doesn’t have to take over this team until the end of the season.
Prediction: 2-0
Leicester City (#9, 41pts) VS Aston Villa (#15, 36pts)
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Four losses in a row, most recently featuring a 4-0 hammering to Spurs, and the heat is starting to rise around Stevie G. On paper, Villa’s squad should be nowhere near the relegation zone – their midfield is dripping with talent. Thankfully, Leicester has a canny knack of letting any team back into the game this season.
Prediction: 2-2
Ryan
The Foxes may have underachieved this season but they still have a trophy to play for. Villa are all but safe and are looking ahead for next season where they can go again with Stevie G at the helm. With both teams distracted, a draw could be the most probable shout here.
Prediction: 2-2
Steviano
Leicester are finally getting through their horrendous injury list and sit comfortably in the top half of the table whilst Villa have lost four b2b and have slipped back down accordingly. Nothing riding on this one apart from Stevie G working out who he wants to keep for next season and who can go.
Prediction: 2-1
Manchester City (#1, 77pts) VS Watford (#19, 22pts)
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With the race at the top of the league not letting up pace towards the finish, Pep is far too experienced in England to let a team like Watford throw a spanner in the works. ‘Woy is managing to eek some sort of structure out of his bit-piece squad, but this has demolition job written all over it.
Prediction: 3-0
Ryan
The title race continues with no sign of let up from the Top 2 and a game against doomed Watford surely gives the home team another 3 points. It’s just a case of throwing a dart at the board to predict how many City will score here. 6 is probably an underestimation.
Prediction: 6-0
Steviano
City’s defensive injuries are unlikely to be exposed in this game and they should outscore Watford even if they are – can’t see Roy getting anything from this one.
Prediction: 3-0
Norwich City (#20, 21pts) VS Newcastle (#11, 40pts)
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If not for that pesky Cristiano Ronaldo, Norwich could have found themselves with 7pts in their last three matches. While it would only challenge for #19 rather than finishing dead last, you love to see relegation candidates spiting the big boys in the league. Howe has performed exactly as expected, sticking an underperforming squad back on an upward trajectory and instilling a less hostile atmosphere in the stadium for inevitable squad upgrades over the summer.
Prediction: 1-2
Ryan
This is arguably Norwich’s last realistic chance to avoid being the typical yo-yo team they’re known as. Even with a victory, it’s highly doubtful that they can stay up with their current position. One team that is safe is Newcastle with their 40 point target reached in their last game. They’ll look to improve on that and seal one of the final nails in the Norwich coffin.
Prediction: 1-2
Steviano
The Toon are now safely mid-table and dreaming of the summer transfer window – Eddie Howe has built a platform of a solid team whilst the Canaries woeful team investment see’s them rightly rooted to the bottom.
Prediction: 0-2
Brentford (#12, 39PTS) vs Tottenham (#4, 57PTS)
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Hahaha, classic Spursy bottling it to a ravaged Brighton squad. The final Champions League spot will be decided by whether Arsenal or Spurs bottle their respective chances less. Brentford has carved themselves a lovely three-win streak, but there remain defensive frailties that will be eviscerated by Spurs’ flying three.
Prediction: 1-3
Ryan
Despite being heavy favourites to return back to the Championship after their maiden PL season, Brentford are looking good to defy those odds and play in the top flight once again. Spurs continue to Spurs and bottle a brilliant chance to seal an undeserved 4th place finish. Proving that the gap between Top 3 and everyone else is very wide, Spurs will choke another 3 points here but won’t go home empty handed.
Prediction: 1-1
Steviano
Eriksen may well swap sides in the summer but I think he might enjoy turning it on against his old team today to convince them he’s worth the investment.
Prediction: 2-1
Premier League Predictions: Matchday 34
Sunday, 24 April
Burnley (#18, 25PTS) vs Wolves (#8, 49PTS)
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One second. Consumes one slice of humble pie. Okay, maybe I was too hasty to doom Burnley to relegation following the Dyche sacking. Their backs remain firmly against the wall while requiring a healthy dose of luck, but it is still a possibility that Burnley makes a mockery of Everton. Wolves are whimpering towards a mid-table finish this season, but they are still trying to find their identity under Bruno Lage. Don’t be surprised if Wolves threaten for Champions League spots next season.
Prediction: 1-2
Ryan
Time will tell if sacking Dyche was the right call after 10+ years especially with his familiar survival techniques proving successful. So far so good for the Clarets who are actually in good form. A team who haven’t been in as good form is Wolves who seem to be pestering out after a brave and impressive campaign where European football might be a step too far. This should be a low scorer but I’ll go for a home win to get Burnley out of the relegation zone.
Prediction: 1-0
Steviano
I still can’t process the decision to sack Dyche – the guy has worked miracles to keep that club anywhere near the premier league. Wolves to maintain their George Graham winning ways 1-0 to the Wanderers.
Prediction: 0-1
Chelsea (#3, 62PTS) vs West Ham (#7, 52PTS)
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It wouldn’t be a West Ham preview without a classic – WEST HAM ARE MASSIVE. With the Irons’ sights firmly set on Europe and #4 all but lost, Moyes will be looking for damage limitation at Stamford Bridge. Tuchel’s men haven’t exactly made the most of home advantage this season, but it’s a struggle seeing West Ham replicating Arsenal and Brentford’s recent heroics.
Prediction: 2-0
Ryan
Chelsea will be disappointed to lose to an inconsistent Arsenal who seem to up their game against their rivals and should be out for revenge. With 3rd place all but sealed, they still have the FA Cup to play for. Speaking of teams looking for a trophy, West Ham are soaring in the Europa League perhaps at the expense of their league form. Top 4 is a step too far now for the Hammers but they’re still no pushover. They’ll give the home side a good game but ultimately come up short.
Prediction: 2-1
Steviano
Chelsea will want to forget the aberration of the Arsenal & Brentford home defeats although the continued ownership issues is clearly having an impact. I think the Hammers are just suffering from a lack of squad depth and may choose to focus on the Europa league.
Prediction: 2-1
Brighton (#10, 40PTS) vs Southampton (#13, 39PTS)
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Potter has stemmed the bleeding after a January transfer window massacre, but the Seagulls have little left to play for. European spots are as out of reach as relegation. Southampton is enjoying themselves at the season’s end as they hand out points for free. A nothing match.
Prediction: 1-1
Ryan
‘Yay, a South Coast derby’ said no-one ever. This has to rank as one of the more pointless games this season. The definition of mid-table here as both teams have nothing to play for but pride and an elevated league position. The home team are in good form whilst the away team are not and consequently, I’ll go for the home win.
Prediction: 2-0
Steviano
Brighton remain a well orgainsed team punching above their weight this season whilst Southampton’s form seems to yo-yo from week to week. Albion to win a snorefest of a game.
Prediction: 1-0
Liverpool (#2, 76PTS) vs Everton (#17, 29PTS)
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Most expect derbies to level the field, regardless of either sides’ form in the lead-up. In this case, it features a near-Championship team facing arguably the number one team in the world. Everton has barely scored more goals than Liverpool has conceded all season. With Burnley putting pressure on mid-week, we will see if a Toffees’ roster brimming with ego is capable of digging deep.
Prediction: 3-0
Ryan
Liverpool are the hottest team in the world right now. As a United fan, it pains me to say it but it’s true. Showing a rare bit of class with their tribute to Ronaldo, this is a club at the peak of their power. Normally form goes out of the window for the Merseyside derby but Everton are laughably bad to the point where relegation is a more than realistic prospect. Two things are guaranteed here: the first being a comfortable Liverpool win and the second being that Everton will put up more of a fight than the pathetic United showing earlier in the week.
Prediction: 3-0
Steviano
I would love to see an Everton team inspired to perform in this game and they should at least compete more than United did but their all round lack of quality will be found wanting by a Liverpool team on a roll.
Prediction: 3-1
Crystal Palace (#14, 37PTS) vs Leeds UNited (#16, 33PTS)
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Palace is another team that seems to be sadly crawling over the line of the 21/22 season, but it masks the success that Vieria has brought. I genuinely felt that Crystal Palace were relegation candidates at the season’s start. Albeit, I thought Bielsa’s Leeds would be floating around mid-table. Don’t listen to me, I guess! The Yank is currently doing bits at Leeds, yet how much is it down to just a training deload and allowing the players to recover.
Prediction: 1-1
Ryan
This looks like an entertaining game for the neutrals. Both of these teams seem to be safe for next season but it’s still within the realms for both teams to drop perilously close to the relegation zone. As such, a draw wouldn’t necessarily be the preferred result for either side. I can see an improved Palace performance give them 3 points with an electric crowd.
Prediction: 2-1
Steviano
Could be quite an interesting game to finish off the weekend as Leeds have found some form at last and Palace continue to defy early season expectations – home win – just.
Prediction: 2-1
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Pintsized Interests is just a baby finding its first steps in the big, bad world of sports journalism. If you enjoy the content that is regularly uploaded then please consider donating via the link below. Any amount is greatly appreciated, and will go towards ensuring the survival of Pintsized Interests in the long-term.