With the third round of the FA Cup taking centre stage last week, the Premier League returns with a depleted schedule this weekend as part one of the winter break commences.
Only half of the teams are in action from Friday to Sunday, with the other 10 sides given the week off to recuperate following an intense period of games over the festive period. Next week, the other half of the division will play and the teams featuring this weekend will have the same period of time to rest.
Despite a diluted fixture list, the games taking place certainly do not lack appeal. Friday evening kickstarts the agenda with a huge six-pointer, as Burnley and Luton do battle at Turf Moor.
Both sides are struggling near the foot of the table, with 19th-placed Burnley facing a monumental challenge to remain seated at England’s top table next term.
Vincent Kompany’s side have struggled to adapt to the rigours of Premier League football this season after storming the Championship last time out and already find themselves cut adrift of safety by five points – just two ahead of bottom club Sheffield United.
They welcome a Luton side who many wrote off at the beginning of the campaign. The Hatters’ first ever season in the Premier League was met with scepticism over their ability to compete at the highest level but so far they have given a brilliant account of themselves, putting in some tremendous performances which have at times fallen agonisingly short of a points-return.
Rob Edwards’ men sit just one space ahead of Burnley in 18th but do have a healthy four-point buffer and a game in hand over the Clarets, and are only one point behind 17th-placed Everton heading into Gameweek 21.
A win here would see them climb above the Toffees until Sunday at least – when Sean Dyche’s side are in action against Aston Villa – but a defeat would see Burnley close the gap to a single point and severely increase the swirling pressure levels around Kenilworth Road.
Saturday is kicked off with a west London derby, as Fulham make the extremely short trip to Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea. Whilst this is never the most raucous of derbies, there will be a huge amount of anticipation surrounding this clash due to the two clubs’ proximity in the league this season.
Only four points separate 13th-placed Fulham with 10th-placed Chelsea, meaning a victory for the Cottagers this weekend would see them close that gap to a single point.
The Blues – inconsistent as ever this term – enter this clash on the back of three wins out of four in all competitions, having defeated Luton and Crystal Palace in the Premier League before dismantling Preston 4-0 in the FA Cup at the weekend, but fell to a surprise 1-0 defeat away at Championship outfit Middlesbrough on Tuesday in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final.
Despite a far from impressive opening half to their campaign, Mauricio Pochettino’s side are only three points behind Brighton in 7th and could enter the fray for a European finish should they build on their recent consistency in the league during the rest of the season.
Saturday’s late kick-off sees Manchester City take on Newcastle in a mouthwatering tie on paper. City are beginning to demonstrate the sort of form which has seen them win the five of the last six top-flight titles, recovering from a mini-blip to reign victorious in their previous five appearances in all competitions.
Newcastle, by stark contrast, have struggled of late and the telling signs of competing at such a high level with a wafer-thin squad is becoming glaringly obvious, with three consecutive league defeats making up the recent pages in their form book heading into this one.
A degree of momentum will be taken from the 3-0 win away at bitter rivals Sunderland in the FA Cup on Saturday, however, although it remains to be seen if the euphoria of such a win can galvanise them to the point of beating a resurgent City side with the wind firmly in their sails.
There are then two games taking place on Sunday, with Aston Villa looking to continue their title-surge with another win away at Everton. Unai Emery’s side have been formidable this term and find themselves second in the table as things stand, just three points behind leaders Liverpool.
A victory here would see the Villans move to level on points with the Merseysiders, and they will perhaps feel confident in obtaining three points at Goodison Park considering Everton have won just one of their previous six games in all competitions – losing their last two on home soil.
The standout tie of the weekend comes courtesy of Old Trafford, though, where Manchester United clash with Tottenham (16.30). Spurs clinched the spoils when the pair met at the start of the campaign with an impressive 2-0 victory and are enjoying the better season out of the pair, sitting politely in fifth and only a point outside the top-four; five away from top-spot.
United are dwindling in eighth and will be downtrodden at their campaign to date. Out of Europe and the Carabao Cup, their only hope of attaining silverware is in the FA Cup, where they will play either Eastleigh or Newport County in the fourth round after beating Wigan 2-0 on Monday evening.
Victory here for Tottenham would see them leapfrog rivals Arsenal into fourth, with the Gunners not in action until next week. A win for United takes them to seventh as Brighton are in the same boat and do not feature until the following weekend.
As always, there’s plenty on the line, and this fixture has seen goals aplenty in recent times, with a total of 27 netted in the last seven meetings – an average of 3.85 per game. Here’s hoping for another blockbuster.
FRIDAY 12TH JANUARY
Burnley 19:45 Luton Town
SATURDAY 13TH JANUARY
Chelsea 12:30 Fulham
Newcastle United 17:30 Manchester City
SUNDAY 14TH JANUARY
Everton 14:00 Aston Villa
Manchester United 16:30 Tottenham Hotspur
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