Jacobs O. Seaman Saturday Liverpool 3-1 Everton 1:45pm The first Merseyside derby of the season comes at such a hard time for both sides. Liverpool, who will be at home to their bitter rivals, are in eleventh place, with Everton two places further back. Three wins in ten games in total is all the two sides have to show for. However, the Kop has always had the edge against the Toffees. The last time Everton enjoyed victory at Anfield was in 1999, winning 1-0, while is four years since the Toffees last beat the Kop. Even during their hardest moments, Liverpool chalk up impressive performance in this derby. Daniel Sturridge is fighting to be fit for this game and it looks like Brendan Rodgers will risk him just to add some fear factor. Everton come with Samuel Eto’o and the striker will be in for a hostile reception for his remark when signing for Everton. Eto’o had declared that he opted for Everton because Liverpool do not win anything. Can Everton stop conceding recklessly at Anfield today or will it be Liverpool that finds their shooting boots? Saturday Chelsea 2-0 Aston Villa 4pm Table leaders Chelsea are enjoying a season of their own. However, the gem in their arsenal, Diego Costa, has been playing through injuries to the ankle and hamstring. Jose Mourinho has been risking the Brazilian-born Spanish striker all through and if the injuries finally give way, Chelsea could end up paying a heavy prize by missing the poaching instincts and finishing prowess of the league top scorer for a long spell. Andre Schurrle is back from injury and found the net in the 1-1 draw against City last week, so the attacking edge at Stamford Bridge could be too searing for Paul Lambert’s stooges to bear. Aston Villa saw their good run brought back to earth last week when Arsenal overran them for three. They would have fancied an ‘easier’ opponent than Chelsea so soon after their home defeat to Arsenal. Saturday Man Utd 2-2 West Ham 4pm Sam Allardyce feels the Red Devils are wounded animals whose most painful body parts were badly scratched by Leicester City last weekend. For this, the gum-chomping manager thinks even the high spirit that should come with the way his boys outplayed Liverpool is nothing on the table when they step into Old Trafford at 4pm today. He is taking his side for a draw. Yes, Big Sam is banking on a draw. But Louis van Gaal will have nothing short of a comprehensive win to take away some of the pressure building up on his side. But to do this, he will have to do with an attacking side that is too full to the brim and the defence that is missing Blackett, Jones and probably Smalling, never mind that these are just pedestrian defenders on any day. The question of this game will be answered by whether United can score more than they will concede to a physical side like the Hammers. Saturday Southampton 5-1 QPR 4pm Southampton Saints are in high spirits, sitting second on the table, three points off leaders Chelsea. Did you say they are the selling club that could be relegated? For now, the Saints are the surprise package and the confidence they have garnered since the defeat to Liverpool on the opening day should be the mojo to the defeat of Queens Park Rangers today. Harry Rednapp brings his side that is always fetching sea-saw results; one good result followed with a serious beating. And the Saints, aware of this kind of form, will want to take the scalps to their visitors. Saturday Sunderland 2-3 Swansea 4pm Garry Monk must be wondering what is going wrong with his side since the defeat at Stamford Bridge. Until then, Swansea had not lost a game and were already earning lots of praises. Then Chelsea came. The Swans have since been finding difficulties winning a game even though they can count to Capital One Cup win in midweek and say they did get something. Sunderland, on the other hand, are yet to win a single game. They have drawn four times and lost just once but that is not the kind of result to keep the team in top flight. Gus Poyet knows the sooner they pick their first win of the season, the better for the Black Cats. But Swansea is not that kind of opponent he could have been counting on though. Saturday Palace 1-1 Leicester 4pm Leicester City have showed from the start they mean business among the big boys. Even when they go down, like against Chelsea, it is due to hard luck more than just meeting a tougher side. With Leonardo Ulloa showing that he more than fits the bill in top flight football, City will fancy just such a display against Man United when they visit Selhurst Park, once a fortress that even table leaders dared not dream of emerging with victory. But that fortress is no more since the departure of Tony Pullis. Crystal Palace do best on the move, like they did at Goodison Park when they condemned Everton to defeat. Saturday Hull City 1-2 Man City 4pm Hull City are well organized this season and they have bought quite a balanced squad they should give champions City a run for their Arab money. City’s Sergio Aguero is yet to discover the form of last season that went missing during the World Cup. This is the kind of boost that any opponent needs, especially when Edin Dzeko is equally misfiring and Stevan Jovetic is not fit. This is a tiger’s time to frustrate the big gun. But frustrate as they might, can they last the 90 minutes? Saturday Arsenal 2-1 Spurs 6.30pm To Arsenal fans, cross-town rivals Tottenham Hotspur are just nothing but their ‘wives’. Indeed, Arsenal have ‘wifed’ Spurs as much as Liverpool Everton during these derbies and tonight will be just another on the cards for the Gunners who need the cutting edge ahead of the Champions League. Arsenal went down flat on their faces at home to Saints in League Cup but should rediscover their winning magic when Spurs come knocking. Sunday West Brom 0-0 Burnley 5pm West Bromwich Albion are another side who are as difficult to predict as Liverpool. When you think they will be pumped for dead, they pull out shock results. When you fancy them to win, they go down pathetically. Just what is in this side that is so difficult to see? Perhaps Burnley will see through them. Monday Stoke 3-1 Newcastle 9pm Allan Pardew is still the manager of Newcastle United. Only the board knows why but the fans at St James Park are not about to hear of it. Tonight the travelling Toon army will be charged up should Newcastle wither under the physical game of Stoke City. Here is a bottom side that can find themselves six places above the relegation zone just with a win, yet it is this thing called win that has been most elusive to Newcastle. Stoke City, meanwhile, are still sucking tamarind fruits as they struggle to get their edge in games they should bury. The two points they dropped late on against QPR in Mark Hughes first return to the stadium where he was sacked three seasons ago should be a reminder that complacency has a heavy price. He will fancy his chances against Pardew’s misfiring outfits.
