England Premier League

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

Buoyed by a 2-1 victory over Chelsea in Matchday Five, Manchester United will look to try and finally build a run of victories under Ruben Amorim, starting with Saturday lunchtime’s trip to Brentford. The Bees have struggled under new coach, Keith Andrews, to this point, and there is every chance they could be facing United at the wrong time.

United’s front line of Sesko, Cunha and Mbeumo looked dangerous against Chelsea and will cause Brentford a lot of problems. Brentford’s efficiency from set-pieces could be a huge factor in the game, given how weak United and Altay Bayindir have looked defending them this term.

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

Manchester City were widely criticised for their approach to Sunday’s drab 1-1 draw at the Emirates Stadium, and they are clearly missing Omar Marmoush’s spark in attack, but Saturday’s home game against Burnley should be a big afternoon for the Blues. Haaland simply can’t stop scoring, and Burnley lacks the defenders to make life difficult for the Norwegian.

Manchester City have been slack in defence, conceding five goals this term, so both teams to score might be a wildcard bet in this fixture. An Erling Haaland hat-trick is another way to go. Either way, it will be a home win.

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

Leeds United found their goalscoring touch against an abject Wolves side last weekend, but that will prove to be nothing more than a brief respite in a tough run of fixtures. Bournemouth are flying this season and sit in fourth place, and have too much quality and balance for the hosts to deal with.

The Elland Road crowd can be a factor, but it’s just too hard to see anything other than an away victory here. Antoine Semenyo will not be at Bournemouth beyond this term… he’s too good and it might be worth a gamble to have him to score at any time, given his form in front of goal. He already has three goals and two assists in five PL matches.

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

Liverpool’s march to a second successive Premier League title has yet to hit a roadblock, but they are set to face their bogey side at Selhurst Park on Saturday. Crystal Palace proved just how versatile they can be with a dogged win at West Ham in Matchday Five, and they are the only team to beat Liverpool this season, albeit on penalties.

Onlookers have been waiting for Arne Slot’s charges to be punished for their openness in defence, and the Eagles could be the perfect team to do just that. Jean-Philippe Mateta is in good form and can cause any defence problems. This might well be a game to look at for over 2.5 goals.

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

Enzo Maresca is under renewed scrutiny after a disastrous week for Chelsea. His substitutions against Manchester United have been questioned, and he really needs to bounce back with a home victory against Brighton on Saturday afternoon.

Brighton have been disappointing this season, despite flashes of good football, but fans will be encouraged by Fabian Hurzeler’s record against Maresca’s Chelsea. He has won two of the three meetings between the two coaches, including an impressive 3-0 win at the Amex last February. Chelsea also has mounting fitness problems with Cole Palmer aggravating a groin injury at Old Trafford, and Wesley Fofana being set for a spell on the sidelines.

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

Nottingham Forest welcome Sunderland to the City Ground on Saturday evening in the first of two late kick-offs. Both teams played out 1-1 draws in their last outings and are looking to get back to winning ways immediately. Ange Postecoglou’s system often succeeds against promoted teams, but Sunderland actually boasts one of the best defensive records in the division, behind just Arsenal, Spurs, Palace and Newcastle in goals conceded through five fixtures.

Forest, on the other hand, has shipped nine goals thus far and needs to rediscover the defensive solidity that qualified them for European football. Sunderland may well be disrupted by the suspension of Reinildo Mandava at left-back, following his red card against Aston Villa.

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

A sensational Saturday of Premier League action draws to a close at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with Thomas Frank’s team looking to take full advantage of a Wolverhampton Wanderers team that is staring relegation dead in the face. There is, of course, time for Wolves to turn things around, but the manner in which they capitulated against fellow strugglers Leeds set serious alarm bells ringing.

Goals could be coming with Randal Kolo Muani set to return from a dead leg for the hosts, whilst Dominik Solanke is also timetabled to return in time for Saturday. Wolves’ defensive structure is all over the place, and this could lead to another dreadful evening. Expect goals. Over 1.5 is a certainty.

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

Sunday’s lunchtime offering takes place at Villa Park, and Unai Emery’s team is in dire need of a home win against Fulham. Champions League quarter-finalists less than six months ago, now Aston Villa are one of just two winless teams in England’s top-flight and are stuck in the relegation zone.

Monchi’s midweek departure has done little to halt suspicion that all isn’t well in the camp, and Fulham will try to take advantage of this and get their own European aspirations back on course.

Unfortunately, as so often happens in these matches, neither team takes the necessary risk to try and snatch all three points, with the price of defeat so high. This feels like one such occasion, and a scoreless draw shouldn’t be discounted.

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

For all their critics, Arsenal’s defence is fantastic, and with Alexander Isak the only true X-Factor that Newcastle had in attack, there is very little on paper to suggest Newcastle could take a win from Mikel Arteta’s side in Sunday afternoon’s encounter.

The Gunners weren’t at their best in the 1-1 draw at home to Manchester City, but they didn’t really get threatened either. It’s difficult to see this Newcastle team overpowering them, and you would expect Arsenal’s set-piece prowess to eventually come good over the course of the 90 minutes. If you want to be brave, you could go with over 1.5 goals, but it’s a tough call.

Chris Winterburn's Analysis

David Moyes has a perfect chance for revenge when his former team, West Ham, visit the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Monday evening. The Hammers have struggled ever since Moyes departed the club, whilst he has set solid foundations in place for a positive tenure back on Merseyside. There is talk coming out of East London that Graham Potter’s future is being looked at on a game-by-game basis and that uncertainty inevitably filters through to the players. Everton have been bright this term and could have taken something from the Merseyside Derby. Jack Grealish and Iliman Ndiaye are already forming a brilliant partnership, and they pose a real danger to the Hammers.