Premier League matchweek 9: Staff picks and predictions
By Staff
The FanSided soccer staff make their predictions for the weekend’s Premier League games, including Tottenham vs. Liverpool at Wembley.
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The marquee fixture of Premier League matchweek 8 proved to be something of a disappointment, as Manchester United played spoiler in a 0-0 draw with Liverpool at Anfield. But matchweek 9 includes an even more enticing contest between two of last season’s top six, with the Reds traveling to face Tottenham at Wembley on Sunday.
Spurs have had an excellent start to the season. They’re third in the table behind the two Manchester clubs, and come into the match on the back of an encouraging, if slightly lucky, draw against Real Madrid in the Champions League.
Liverpool will likewise take confidence from their midweek European match, a 7-0 thrashing of Slovenian side Maribor. Jurgen Klopp’s men have struggled to convert their superiority into goals at times this season, and will be hoping Tuesday’s win is a sign of things to come.
The other standout fixture of the week sees Arsenal travel to a struggling Everton side. Both teams had Thursday Europa League matches, but Arsene Wenger’s decision to rest almost his entire starting XI should leave his side fresh for the contest at Goodison on Sunday.
Elsewhere, Manchester City look to maintain their league lead when they host Burnley at home on Saturday; Manchester United travel to Huddersfield; and Chelsea try to bounce back from their shock loss to Crystal Palace against Watford, who are fresh off their own upset win against Arsenal.
FanSided’s soccer staff will be competing in a weekly picks league all season. The rules are simple: three points for a correct score, one for a correct result and none for an incorrect result. Here are the picks for matchweek 9:
Tottenham are slight favorites according to our staff, with five writers predicting a home win, and only three expecting a Liverpool victory, but they all expect a close match. City, meanwhile, are massive favorites to keep their hot streak going, with all 10 of our writers predicting a win for Pep Guardiola’s side by two or more goals. Here’s how the predictions table stands heading into the weekend’s matches:
