The highlight games for this next set of EPL games are LIVERPOOL versus WATFORD (reverse Game week- 8) and BURNLEY versus EVERTON (rearranged Game-week 19). Our feature columnist, John Newsome previews these as well as all game-week 31 matches with his unique and insightful commentary. You can view all previous analysis from John’s regular column here: English Premier League Predictions For Saturday.
Please note all prices quoted below were correct at the time of publication
Game Week-31
All of these Game Week-31 fixtures are the reverse of Game Week-8 which took place in mid-October 2021.
There is an added fixture at the end that is a rearranged Game Week-19 clash.
Saturday 02nd
LIVERPOOL v WATFORD
12.30 in England
BT Sport
The Premier League title race is well and truly on, following the recent set of results.
Over the space of 4-days, the 6-point gap between Man City and Liverpool has been reduced to 1.
Firstly, Jurgen’s Reds got a victory against Brighton, giving Liverpool 66-points, 3-adrift of Pep’s High Flying Blues.
Man City had the chance to increase the lead back to 6-points but could only manage a draw against Crystal Palace which meant the gap was just 4-points between the 2-clubs with Liverpool having a game in hand.
That game was against Arsenal and although Pep 2’s Young Guns are on a roll at the moment, Arsenal were no match for Liverpool, meaning Man City’s lead at the summit was reduced to 1-point following Jurgen’s Reds victory against Mikel’s Gunners by a 2-0 scoreline.
Pep 1, wearing an Arsenal shirt for the night, took it off in disgust and threw it at the cat.
After a goalless 1st-half at the Emirates, goals from Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino were enough to give Liverpool the victory, the 9th-Premier League win in succession.
Jurgen’s Reds now have 69-points from 29-fixtures played, Pep’s Blues have 70, from the same 29-completed.
The race is on but John Newsome is sticking with the original prediction that Man City will win the title.
Man City face Liverpool at the Etihad on April the 10th.
Added to that, the two meet at Wembley in the Semi-Final of the FA Cup, 6-days later.
Some folk say that Football is boring!
A little addition to that Semi-Final fixture between the 2-NorthWest heavyweights is both the clubs and the faithful have to embark on a 430-mile round trip that in itself is close to 8-hours, plus the 90, if not 120-minutes and the possibility of penalties, that could result in a 12-hour shift for the Liverpool and Man City girls and boys.
In September last year, the Premier League in association with Sky had the first Carbon-Zero football game that was documented in this EveryTip column.
John wrote this back on the 15th of September 2021.
Sunday 19th
TOTTENHAM v CHELSEA
Sky Sports 16.30 in England.
The ‘Zero-Carbon Effect Derby’ The World’s 1st Net-Zero Football Game, sees Tottenham, partner with Sky Sports in a debut at an elite level.
Supported by ‘COP26’ and the Premier League, this fixture between Tottenham and Chelsea, will see the Tottenham squad, travel to the match by coach to reduce the number of car movements and as the away team, Chelsea will also be asking all their staff to travel across London sustainably.
Both sets of players will head to the stadium on a coach that is running on Biofuel, which is a form of renewable diesel produced from food waste products and reduces carbon emissions significantly.
The players from both teams will also be drinking water on the day from cartons provided by Spurs, as opposed to plastic bottles.
The game is being played 6-weeks ahead of the United Nations ‘COP26‘ Climate Change Conference, hosted by the UK Government in Glasgow, which brings together world leaders to accelerate global action to fight climate change.
Tottenham have previously been named as the most sustainable Premier League football club, by The Sport Positive Summit.
What Makes a Net-Zero Football Game?
In the 2021/22 season-opening fixture against Manchester City, RSK, the carbon measurement specialists, used direct data, including a fan survey to measure regular match-day emissions, fan journeys, squad journeys, energy and waste at the stadium and match-day employee commutes, to create a baseline from which to reduce.
For the Chelsea match to be Net-Zero, the club and Sky Sports will work to minimise emissions from match-day activity such as energy used to power the game, travel to and from the stadium for both fans and clubs and dietary choices at the stadium.
Hundreds of individuals involved in the game, from Sky Sports producers to the stadium chefs, are working to make the Net-Zero game happen.
For those emissions which remain, Sky Sports is working with Natural Capital Partners to restore natural carbon sinks which remove emissions from the atmosphere, by supporting community reforestation in East Africa, and creating new UK native woodlands to support the UK’s net-zero objectives.
The club and Sky Sports will also plant trees locally to the Chas and Dave Memorial Stadium later this year.
Other sustainable measures include LED lighting (including floodlights) and high-efficiency building service systems in place to reduce energy use and water consumption minimised with waterless urinals and low flow fittings and fixtures.
The fans are also getting involved with those attending being encouraged to take sustainable actions on the day, that include but are not restricted to, walking, using public transport, with Tottenham giving significant investment to the local transport infrastructure having the new stadium, served by 4-train stations and a free match-day shuttle bus.
Recent analysis has shown that the club is close to achieving its target of no more than 23 per cent of supporters travelling by private car on matchdays.
If one wants to cycle to the match, the club has provision for up to 180-bikes to be parked at St Francis De Sales School and Tottenham Community Sports Centre, with a security policy allowing for equipment such as helmets, puncture kits and removable seats to be taken into the stadium.
All of the match-day food served inside the stadium is locally and sustainably sourced, with plant-based options available across all outlets and in Premium areas.
Spurs have a zero to landfill waste management programme, with clear recycling instructions for fans on its bins, as well as a reusable beer-cup scheme.
Tottenham, Sky Sports and the UK Government want the game to raise awareness of the threat of climate change and inspire football fans to make simple changes that will help reduce their carbon footprint.
Daniel Levy said, ‘We are delighted to be the chosen partner of Sky Sports on this ground-breaking initiative that will demonstrate the role our game can play in addressing the urgent issue of climate change.’
‘As the Premier League’s greenest club, Tottenham is passionate about our planet, we look forward to showcasing our wide range of sustainable measures that are already in place and encouraging our fans to take simple actions that can make a huge difference.’
John Newsome will be attending Oakwell on Saturday as the Super Reds take on Blackburn.
The stadium is approximately 4-miles from home and instead of taking the car as normal, this EveryTip contributor will walk there and back. It’s time we all changed!’
Mr Newsome did just that on a beautiful Indian Summers day back in September 2021, less than 12-months after enduring a Quadruple Bypass operation, that included the insertion of a Mechanical Valve and a Pacemaker.
John now feels let down by the governing body of the Football Association that runs the FA Cup.
Why would the Premier League try and endorse such an exhilarating cause then allow two of its associates to travel down to London from the NorthWest of England on an Easter Weekend?
An Easter Weekend that has cancelled the trains so the Scousers and the Citizens have to make alternative transport arrangements down to the Big Smoke.
The price of fuel is escalating and currently, a litre of juice is approximately costing £1.70.
The phrase ‘Miles Per Gallon’ or ‘MPG’ is used regularly but for the youths out there, a gallon is approximately 5-litres.
Therefore a gallon of juice for a car is approximately worth £8.50.
£8.50!
Say a car does an average of 40-Miles Per Gallon, that, would cost the owner, close to £50 to get down to London from Liverpool or Manchester.
Plus another £50 to get home.
Then there is the price of the ticket for the Semi-Final and food and drink.
Maybe a total of £200 per person for a day out.
Say that’s a family?
Mum and Dad plus 2-kids.
That’s close to £600.
Six hundred pounds to watch a game of football.
On top of the 400miles and a 12-hour round trip.
Is this in sync with the philosophy of the Zero-Carbon football footprint?
No!
It’s time for the FA to change the Semi-Final protocol.
Old Trafford holds 75,000.
The Semi-Final of this year’s FA Cup between Liverpool and Man City should be played at Old Trafford.
Zero-Carbon Football!
Roy Hodgson heads to Anfield where the Old Boy had an unsuccessful spell as the Liverpool manager back in July 2010 that lasted 6-months.
Watford come into this fixture off the back of a surprise victory against Southampton at St Mary’s last time out.
In the previous 4-fixtures, the record was 3-losses and a draw.
To go to Southampton and inflict a defeat on Wreck-It Ralph Hasenhuttl’s Saints was a great result to give the Hornets a little bit of hope in the battle to stay in the Premier League.
Cucho scored both goals in the 1st-half with the Saints replying on the stroke of half-time.
With no further goals, the Hornets got the much-needed result.
Watford sit 18th, in the final relegation place, with 22-points from 29-fixtures played.
Everton are immediately above with 25-points but have only completed 27-games, so for Roy’s Boys to avoid dropping into the Championship, it will mean that the Toffees have to lose quite a few.
At Vicarage Rd back in October, Jurgen’s Reds demolished Claudio’s Hornets by a 5-0 away day scoreline.
It just happened to be Mr Ranieiri’s 1st-game in charge after the Watford hierarchy had got rid of Xisco the Disco.
Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino scored before the half-time cup of tea, with Roberto adding his 2nd and Liverpool’s 3rd, just after the restart.
The 3rd of the Fab Three Strikers, Mo Salah scored the 4th, with Bobby F, completing his hat-trick in the 91st-minute to give Jurgen the convincing victory over the Tinkerman who certainly found out the hard way, just how big the task at Vicarage Rd was.
Betfred offer Liverpool at Odds On 1/9, the draw at 8/1 and 20/1 for Watford to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 4/1 that Mo Salah Scores Two Plus Goals and slight Odds On 4/5 that Liverpool Win To Nil.
Home Win 3-0- Get 6/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
BRIGHTON v NORWICH
15.00 in England
Brighton come back after the International Break having suffered another defeat against Tottenham, this time at the Amex by a 2-0 score.
That is now 6-straight defeats for Graham Potter’s men, with a victory and 3-draws in the 4-games prior.
Those good at Math will no doubt know that the points tally from the last 10-fixtures comes in at 6.
Six points from a possible 30, yet Graham was bemoaning the fact that the Seagulls faithful were booing the team at the end of the game against Spurs.
If Harry and The Beard don’t turn things around soon, it will be more than Wizardry that Mr Potter will need.
Brighton sit 13th in the table with 33-points from 29-fixtures played.
Norwich might just be the right team at the right time for Brighton, with the Canary’s currently residing at the foot of the Premier League table with 17-points from the same 29-games completed.
Having won 2 and drawn 1, Dean Smith’s Norwich have the same record as of today’s opponents from the last 6-fixtures and that is 6-straight defeats.
In the last game before the Break, against Leeds United at Elland Rd, it looked for all purpose that the away team had salvaged a point late on.
Leeds scored early, to lead until the 91st-minute when Kenny McLean equalised.
Unfortunately for the travelling faithful, this wasn’t the end, with the home team scoring a winner 3-minutes later, to inflict the defeat on Norwich by a 2-1 scoreline.
The loss, as mentioned, the 6th in a row leaves Deano’s Yellow Canary’s at the bottom, with relegation looking inevitable.
Whilst the rotund lady isn’t warbling just yet, she is beginning to get her voice ready.
With 9-games remaining, it offers up a maximum of 27-points but whilst that is the possible total, it’s very unlikely that Norwich will win all 9-fixtures.
Back in October, the scoreboard employee at Carrow Rd wasn’t required, with the game finishing in a draw by a 0-0 score.
Enough said!
Betfred offer Brighton at Odds On 1/2, the draw at 3/1 and 13/2 for Norwich to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 8/1 for a 0-0 Scoreline and 12/5 that there are Under 1.5 Goals.
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BURNLEY v MAN CITY
15.00 in England
It looked at one point that Sean Dyche would once again work his magic and move Burnley up the table, however, following 3-defeats in a row, the Clarets are looking in deep trouble.
Before the International Break, Burnley looked to have had a relatively easy home fixture at Turf Moor against the new boys, Brentford.
Unfortunately for the home faithful, all wearing an extra coat, they witnessed their idols suffer a defeat against the Bees by a 2-0 scoreline, with both goals scored late on in proceedings.
Added to the loss was also the Red Card shown to Nathan Collins in the 90th-minute for a foul in the penalty area that resulted in the 2nd-goal.
There is supposed to be a Double Jeopardy rule where if a player concedes a penalty, then that is thought enough punishment and a sending off isn’t required.
However, that rule only applies if the incident which causes the award of a spot-kick is accidental.
If the foul is deemed intentional then the player can receive a Red Card for denying a goal-scoring opportunity.
So Big Nathan was off and cannot play against Man City today.
Burnley sit 19th in the table with 21-points but do have the slight advantage of only playing 27-times, not the 29 that others around them have.
That said, the form of the Clarets isn’t good and as of the opinion of this EveryTip column, it’s thought better to have the points on the board than games in hand.
There are fixtures against Everton who sit just outside of the relegation zone, Watford who are just above and Norwich who are the bottom club so Sean will feel confident that Burnley will eventually get out of trouble.
Man City’s 6-point lead at the top of the table over Liverpool has shrunk to just 1-point now, following the Game Week-29 set of results.
Jurgen’s Reds had played early on Saturday so had already reduced the gap to 3-points with Pep’s Blues not playing until Monday.
In that Monday Night Football fixture away against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, City couldn’t penetrate the Palace defence and could only manage a draw by a 0-0 score.
As is the rhetoric following such incidents some always say that it’s 2-points dropped by City but this is not the case as despite it not being a victory, it is still a point gained.
A team can’t drop or lose points that are not there in the first place.
Man City had 69-points, played against Crystal Palace and drew, therefore now have 70, meaning 1-point gained.
City didn’t go into the game against the Eagles with 72-points, drew so then lost 2.
Just a bugbear of John Newsome’s that!
Whilst it’s a slight setback for Pep’s boys, the goalless draw against Patrick’s Palace was more to do with the resilience of the Eagles denying chance after chance, which prevented City from scoring.
As mentioned earlier in the piece, John is sticking with Man City to prevail and retain the Premier League title.
April the 10th will be a pivotal day in determining the destination of the coveted trophy with Liverpool coming to the Etihad.
There’s also a meeting between the two great clubs, 6-days later at Wembley, in the Semi-Final of the FA Cup.
People say that football’s boring, however, Man City and Liverpool are always scoring (except against Crystal Palace!)
Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne scored either side of the break to give Pep’s High Flying Blues the victory over Sean’s Clarets at the Emirates.
Betfred offer Burnley at 12/1, the draw at 11/2 and Odds On 1/5 for Man City to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 4/1 that Raheem Sterling Scores First and slight Odds On 10/11 that Man City Win To Nil.
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CHELSEA v BRENTFORD
15.00 in England
Chelsea are on a roll, following the 5th-Premier League victory in succession last time out.
In a professional and dogged display against a resurgent Newcastle team, Kai Havertz scored a superb individual goal in the 89th-minute to give Thomas’s Blue Engines the victory over Eddie’s Magpies by a 1-0 score.
Chelsea are in the Quarter-Finals of the Champions League and Semi-Finals of the FA Cup so have plenty of upcoming fixtures, however, outside influences have added a few complications to events at Stamford Bridge.
The club is up for sale after Roman Abramovich has decided to walk away due to his Russian background and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
The 1st-leg of the Quarter-Final is 4-days after this fixture against Brentford, where Chelsea face Real Madrid.
In the FA Cup, it’s a game against Crystal Palace.
The Blues sit 3rd in the table, with 59-points from 28-fixtures completed.
That’s 10-points adrift of Liverpool in 2nd and 5 more than Arsenal in 4th.
Both Arsenal and Chelsea have only contested 28-fixtures.
When the Two Toms met at the Wellard Stadium in October, a single Ben Chilwell goal on the stroke of half-time was the difference between the West London clubs.
Betfred offer Chelsea at Odds On 1/3, the draw at 19/5 and 9/1 for Brentford to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 5/1 that Jorginho Scores Anytime and 3/1 that Ivan Toney Scores Anytime.
Home Win 2-1- Get 8/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
LEEDS UNITED v SOUTHAMPTON
15.00 in England
At half-time against Wolves at Molineux on Friday Night Football, the Joy Division tune was in full flow,
‘Leeds, Leeds are falling apart again, Leeds, Leeds are falling apart again.’
Wolves had scored 2, 1st-half goals to leave Jesse’s Whites trailing at the break.
Mr Marsch had seen Patrick Bamford, Diego Llorente and Mateusz Klich all leave the field injured before the half-time whistle.
The Marching On Together crew who had ventured down to Molineux were watching their White Idols capitulate.
As the Leeds boys and girls are not that bright, some had to ask if they needed their passports for Molineux.
One of the 1st-half substitutions, Charlie Cresswell, replacing Mateusz Klich, came under the new banner of ‘Concussion Substitute’ which allows a team to make a change if a head injury occurs without it being counted as a normal substitution, thus allowing Leeds United to have a further change in the 2nd-half.
Unfortunately, that 4th switch came as a result of another injury, this time on Illan Meslier, after being clattered by Raul Jimenez.
Although it was another injury, it turned out to be a big game-changer in the whole context of the match.
Raul had already received a Yellow Card and the referee deemed the challenge on Illan deserved another Yellow, ultimately producing a Red Card and an early bath for the Mexican.
The 11-men of Leeds took total control of the 10-man Wolves team who were immediately under the cosh.
Jack Harrison pulled a goal back in the 63rd-minute before Rodrigo equalised, 3-minutes later.
With 90-minutes up on the clock, Luke Ayling came up with a stunning winner to send the passport holding girls and boys faithful ecstatic.
The 2nd-victory in succession for Jesse Marsch gives Leeds United 29-points from the full 30-fixtures on offer.
That’s 7-points more than Watford who sit in the final relegation place.
The Hornets have played 1-game less than the Whites with the two teams meeting following this weekend’s set of fixtures.
Everton are 4-points adrift of Leeds but do have 3-extra games to play.
Burnley are 8-points behind, again with 3-extra games to complete.
It is touch and go at the moment, as to whether Leeds United can stay in the Premier League.
Marsching On Together!
To add to that, obviously ‘Marsching’ is a play on word’s using Jesse’s surname and the ‘Marching On Together’ tag.
John Newsome first did this on March the 8th.
On Saturday, March 19th, the presenter of the popular Sky show Soccer AM, the great ‘Fenners‘ plagiarised the play on words.
Cheeky Mr Fendley!
Marsching On Together.
Southampton come into this fixture at Elland Rd, surprisingly off the back of 3-straight Premier League defeats and the 4th loss in succession after being dumped out of the FA Cup.
In the Game Week-29 affair a couple of weeks ago, the Saints suffered a defeat against Watford at St Mary’s.
Mohamed Elyounoussi scored on the stroke of half-time after the Hornets had scored 2-earlier goals.
With no further goals in the 2nd-half, Wreck-It Ralph’s boys succumbed to the home defeat by a 2-1 scoreline.
Southampton sit 11th, with 35-points from 29-fixtures played.
When these two last met, after a goalless 1st-half, Armando Broja scored the solitary winning goal to give Wreck-It Saints the home victory over Marcelo’s Whites.
Betfred offer Leeds United at 11/8, the draw at 5/2 and 15/8 for Southampton to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 3/1 that James Ward-Prowse Scored Anytime and 5/4 that there are Under 2.5 Goals.
Draw 1-1- Get 6/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
***Premier League Team of the Week***
GOALKEEPER- Aaron Ramsdale- Arsenal
RIGHT-BACK- Luke Ayling- Leeds United
CENTRE-BACK- Virgil Van Dijk- Liverpool
CENTRE-BACK- Joel Matip- Liverpool
LEFT-BACK- Timothy Castagne- Leicester
MIDFIELDER- James Maddison- Leicester
MIDFIELDER- Jack Harrison- Leeds United
MIDFIELDER- Bukayo Saka- Arsenal
FORWARD- Diogo Jota- Liverpool
FORWARD- Roberto Firmino- Liverpool
FORWARD- Son Heung-Min- Tottenham
STAR MAN- Nice-One Son- Tottenham
WOLVES v ASTON VILLA
15.00 in England
At half-time, last Friday at Molineux, Wolves were in complete control against Leeds United, with goals from Jonny and Trincao, giving Bruno’s Gold and Blacks the lead at the break.
Just before the half-time whistle, Raul Jimenez received a Yellow Card for a challenge on a Leeds player that seemed innocuous at the time.
However, 8-minutes after the restart, Raul bungled into the Leeds United goalkeeper causing injury to the stopper and a 2nd-Yellow for the Mexican resulting in a Red Card and an early bath.
This indiscretion by Raul changed the whole context of the game with the 10-men of Wolves coming under increased pressure that resulted in 3-goals conceded and a defeat in front of the Lage Louts.
It just goes to prove how little incidents throughout a game can become pivotal in determining the outcome.
The defeat leaves Wolves in 8th-place with 46-points from 30-fixtures completed.
Aston Villa suffered a loss themselves last time out, succumbing to a defeat against Arsenal at Villa Park by a 1-0 scoreline.
That’s 2 in a row for Stevie G and his Villains.
Aston Villa’s last 7-fixtures have a pattern of Lost, Lost, Won, Won, Won, Lost, Lost.
That would suggest a victory today, however, as everyone knows, that’s not how football works.
Villa sit a place below Wolves, in 9th but although it’s just 1-place, the hosts are a massive 10-points ahead of Mr Gerrard’s Claret and Blues.
Aston Villa have 36-points from 29-games played.
At Villa Park last October, this reverse fixture was a 5-goal thriller with Bruno’s Lage Louts getting the away day victory over Dean Smith’s Villains by a 3-2 scoreline.
The strange thing about the game was that it was goalless at half-time with the punters not expecting the goal-fest after the break.
Danny Ings and John McGinn gave Aston Villa a 2-goal lead going into the final 10-minutes of the encounter.
Romain Saiss pulled a goal back for Wolves in the 80th-minute.
Romain’s Defensive partner Conor Coady equalised 5-minutes later before Ruben Neves got the winner in the 95th-minute to send the Gold and Black faithful home ecstatic with the win over their Claret and Blue Midland rivals.
Betfred offer Wolves at 15/8, the draw at 21/10 and 8/5 for Aston Villa to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 8/5 that Daniel Podence Scores Anytime and 6/5 that there are Over 2.5 Goals.
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MANCHESTER UNITED v LEICESTER
17.30 in England
Sky Sports
Manchester United last won a trophy in 2017, when Jose Mourinho’s Red Devil’s got a victory in the Europa League against Ajax, inflicting the defeat by a 2-0 score.
Paul Pogba and Henrikh Mkhitaryan with the goals.
That victory was off the back of an FA Cup Final win against Crystal Palace in 2015/16 under Luis Van Gaal, who was then sacked and replaced by Dracula, which allowed United to compete in the Europa League and secure the trophy.
Manchester United had finished 5th in the 2015/16 Premier League campaign, under Luis.
Following Mr Van Gaal’s departure and the arrival of the not so Special One, United finished 6th a year later, however, Jose Mourinho’s Red Devil’s did secure the Carabao Cup as well as the Europa League.
The Europa League victory then secured a place in the 2017/18 Champions League but United subsequently failed in that particular competition.
That trend continued in 2018/19, and 2020/21 plus the latest exit a fortnight ago in the 2021/22 Champions League campaign.
In the Coronavirus affected 2019/20 season, United were back in the Europa League, after finishing 5th in the Premier League, not lifting a trophy and once again failing.
As mentioned, it was in 2017 that the Old Trafford faithful last saw their idols win a gong.
Since May 2017, Manchester United have competed in 5-Premier League campaigns, 5-FA Cups, 5-League Cups, 3-Champions Leagues and 2-Europa League competitions.
In the Europa League Final against Ajax, the United starting eleven was,
Sergio Romero, Matteo Darmian, Daly Blind, Chris Smalling, Antonio Valencia, Ander Herrera, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Paul Pogba, Marouane Fellaini, Juan Mata and Marcus Rashford.
Jose introduced, Jesse Lingard, Anthony Martial and Wayne Rooney as 2nd-half substitutes.
Out of the 14-players that saw game time that night in May 2017, Jesse, Juan, Paul, and Marcus, are still at the club.
In the recent failure against Atletico Madrid where Manchester United lost the 2-legged, Last-16 tie by a 2-1 aggregate score, Juan Mata, Paul Pogba and Marcus Rashford came on in the 2nd-half of the tie at Old Trafford.
Jesse Lingard was on the bench also but never saw any game-time.
Jose Mourinho brought in the enigmatic Fred in the Summer of 2018 for a fee of around £52 Million.
Jose also gave Scott McTominay his first start in 2017.
Jose, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralph Rangnick have somehow thought that Fred and Scott are the go-to pairing in Midfield when there is simply no evidence to suggest the two enhance Manchester United.
In those 5-years since the last trophy win, John Newsome has stated in this EveryTip column, that United won’t win anything with Fred and Scott McTominay.
This EveryTip site has an archive going back over 4-years of this column so John decided to delve in and have a look just exactly when the comment about Fred and Scott was first mentioned.
In the early stages of the delayed 2020/21 Premier League season, the following was in an EveryTip column, published on September 16th 2020,
‘Manchester United got the opening weekend off due to their Europa League exploits where the Red Devil’s reached the Semi-Finals but ultimately lost against the eventual winners, Seville.
Whilst most may have forgotten that game now, it was annoying for a true United fan out there who saw the team sheet an hour before kick-off and got the dreaded news that Fred was in the starting eleven.
Not to dig out Fred too much but £52 Million?
Really?
As this is a prediction site, a prediction on offer is this, if Ole persists in choosing Fred, United won’t win anything.
In both the recent Semi-Final defeats against Chelsea in the FA Cup and then Seville, Ole chose Fred, United lost both games.
Fred is no doubt a decent fella and probably is good around the dressing room, however, would Jurgen or Pep or even Frank pick Fred in their teams?’
It then went on with the following published on January 15th 2021,
‘As mentioned, stats are just that and can be used as a positive or a negative and some, Ole included, will feel both Fred and Scott are integral to the success of Manchester United.
That feeling isn’t shared by this EveryTip contributor who will stick to the belief that Ole won’t win anything if he continues to pick Fred and Scott in his starting eleven, especially Fred.
The Zebra Devils are still in contention for 3-trophies, from the initial 5, at the start of the season.
The 5, is counting the Champions League and the Europa League as 2-competitions, even though United are only in the latter due to being rubbish in the fore.
In the Champions League, United were unceremoniously dumped out of that competition due to Ole choosing Fred and Scott.
In the Quarter-Final of the Carabao Cup, Fred and Scott were left on the bench against Everton, which Ole’s Wheels won.
In the Semi-Final, against Man City, with the advantage of the one-legged tie being at Old Trafford, OGS started Fred and Scott, resulting in Manchester United being dumped out of that particular competition.
On Sunday, in this fixture against Liverpool, if Ole starts Fred and Scott, which more than likely, he will, United won’t win and won’t win the Premier League.
In a couple of weeks, Manchester United face Liverpool in the FA Cup, again if Ole starts Fred and Scott, United will be dumped out of that competition too, leaving just the Europa League to contest, from the initial 5-competitions.
If then, Ole continues to choose Fred and Scott and doesn’t see what a lot do, United won’t win anything, which will be a damning indictment on Fred and Scott.
This is a betting site so if folk don’t agree with John Newsome, wait until the team sheet is handed in, in the United fixtures and bet against that prediction.
Ole won’t win anything if he continues to pick Fred and Scott!’
The above came to fruition!
It became a narrative of this EveryTip column and John Newsome has not changed the opinion in that time.
Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and now Ralph Rangnick have continued to choose Fred and Scott McTominay and United have continued to fail.
A friend of John Newsome asked before the Champions League 2nd-leg game what United’s chances were this evening.
The reply to the Serg before the team sheet was in,
‘With That Boy Ronaldo, fairly decent, Athletico are not the team they once were!’
Once the starting eleven was known, John quickly followed up with,
‘Fred and Scott? won’t win anything with them!’
Once again, the narrative played out.
In the BT Sport studio afterwards, Paul Scholes, Rio Ferdinand and Owen Hargreaves all discussed the Champions League exit.
Mr Scholes was on about ‘getting the right man in at Old Trafford’ and ‘won’t progress until they do.’
Luis Van Gaal was sacked, Jose Mourinho was sacked, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked, now Ralph Rangnick.
If Double R or Paul’s ‘Right Man!’ continue to think that Fred and Scott are the go-to Midfielders, like Jose, Ole and Ralph, without any evidence to suggest that they are, it doesn’t matter who the gaffer is.
United won’t win anything!
Fred had a decent game against Tottenham but there was no Scott.
Nemanja Matic looked after him, no Bruno, with Paul Pogba also looking after him and a poor Tottenham midfield that allowed Fred to have a 1 in 20 decent game.
At the end of the day, despite what Paul Scholes says, if the next manager comes in and continues with Fred and Scott, the same outcome will happen.
United won’t win anything with Fred and Scott!
Like the Meerkats say-Simples!
Manchester United didn’t play before the International Break and currently sit 6th in the table (sixth!) with 50-points from 29-fixtures played.
The starting eleven could be a big factor in the result of this fixture depending on whether Cristiano Ronaldo starts and Jamie Vardy is fit.
Leicester did play in Game Week-30, gaining a great victory over Brentford at the King Power by a 2-1 score.
Timothy Castagne and James Maddison with the 1st-half goals.
Brentford did pull a goal back after the break but the Foxes held on for the much-needed victory.
Leicester sit 10th in the Premier League table with 36-points from 27-fixtures and are a couple of games behind the teams around them so Brendan Rodgers will feel his Wonderful’s are in a false position.
Rod Stewart wasn’t happy and took off his new Bees shirt with ‘Toney’ and ‘17’ on the back and threw it in the direction of Lennon the Puppy’s bed.
The pooch was one step ahead of the crooner and had disappeared lively knowing the Scottish legend would not be happy that Brendan had got a victory.
Sir Roderick’s mood did improve over the weekend and midweek when his beloved Green and White Hoops got a victory against Ross County (who?) to remain at the top of the Scottish Pub League.
The fierce Glasgow rivals, Rangers also secured a victory over Dundee (who?) to sit 2nd in the table, 3-points adrift of Celtic.
Scotland were due to play against Ukraine in a World Cup eliminator, however, due to the ongoing situation, this has been postponed for a couple of months until a solution can be found.
The winners of that particular game will face Wales in a one-off fixture with the prize of a place at Qatar 2022 at steak.
Wales got a victory in their elimination match against Austria by a 2-1 score, with Gareth Bale scoring both goals.
Wales, Golf, Madrid!
Instead of the game against Ukraine, Rod’s Scots boys took on Poland in a Friendly managing to draw.
A certain OzScot wasn’t bothered though, the lad was still over the moon about the draw, got dressed in the customary Braveheart gear and went dancing in the streets of Melbourne.
The Jocks don’t need much to enjoy themselves, there are some still recovering from the celebrations following the goalless draw against England last June in the Euros.
Rod settled down with Penny on Tuesday night, ready to watch Scotland take on Austria in another friendly, with a nice glass of 19 Crimes and a bag of Revels.
Penny loves the coffee ones.
Lennon knew it was safe to return and was hoping there were some doggy treats in the offering.
There was and whilst slavering there was a distinct noise that sounded like,
‘He’s Celtic, United but Brendan has decided that Leicester is the best place to be.’
Woof-Woof!
(Don’t worry, there’s not many more of this particular segment to go, there will be a new item next season.)
Leicester gained the victory over Manchester United at the King Power Stadium back in October.
Brendan’s Wonderful’s got the points following a win against Ole’s Trollies by a 4-2 score.
Mason Greenwood opened the scoring with Youri Tielemans equalising to take both teams in level at the break.
In the 2nd-half Caglar Soyuncu gave the Foxes a lead which was quickly cancelled out by Marcus Rashford.
However, whilst the United faithful were celebrating the equaliser, the Sheffield Superstar, Jamie Vardy nipped in and reinstated Leicester’s lead.
Patson Daka added a 4th in injury time to send the Foxes faithful home ecstatic and the Red Devil’s back up the road calling for a change.
Betfred offer Manchester United at Odds On 1/2, the draw at 10/3 and 5/1 for Leicester to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 4/1 that Cristiano Ronaldo Scores First and 11/8 that there are Over 3.5 Goals.
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Sunday 03rd
WEST HAM v EVERTON
14.00 in England
Sky Sports
West Ham suffered a loss last time out before the International Break, succumbing to a defeat against Tottenham by a 3-1 scoreline.
Kurt Zouma opened the scoring, however, turned the ball into his own net, gifting Tottenham the lead.
There was a certain Cat, sat in a safe zone, laughing his head off after that one.
Spurs then scored again but Said Benrahme did pull a goal back before the half-time cup of tea.
The hosts scored a 3rd late on in the game at the Chas and Dave Memorial Stadium, inflicting the defeat on the Hammers by a 3-1 score, as predicted in this EveryTip column.
West Ham did have the opportunity to leapfrog Manchester United, however, with the defeat occurring, David Moyes Boys drop to 7th in the table with 48-points from 30-fixtures played.
Frank Lampard’s Everton were knocked out of the FA Cup, whilst the Hammers took part in the split Game Week-30 set of fixtures.
There was a double blow for the Toffees with Leeds United, the team immediately above Everton gaining a victory at Wolves.
At half-time at Molineux, Frank would have been happy, thinking that Leeds would suffer a defeat but 45-minutes later, Jesse’s Whites got the valuable 3-points that puts a gap of 4-points between Everton with 25-points in 17th and Leeds with 29-points in 16th.
The positive for Frank Lampard is his Toffees have only completed 27-fixtures, whereas the Elland Rd outfit have played 30-times.
David Moyes nicked all 3-points from his return visit to Goodison Park when Angelo Ogbonna scored the only goal of the game, early in the 2nd-half.
The last 3-fixtures between these two great sides have finished in a 1-0 scoreline all in favour of the away team.
Two for West Ham at Goodison Park and 1 for Everton at the London Stadium.
That pattern could end today.
Betfred offer West Ham at slight Odds On 3/4, the draw at 11/4 and 7/2 for Everton to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 8/5 that Jarrod Bowen Scores Anytime and slight Odds On 10/11 that there are Over 2.5 Goals.
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TOTTENHAM v NEWCASTLE
16.30 in England
Sky Sports
Tottenham got a great win over West Ham before the International Break with Antonio Conte’s Spurs getting the victory by a 3-1 score.
After Kurt Zouma had scored an own-goal, Son Heung-Min added a 2nd to give Tottenham a lead at the break.
West Ham had reduced the gap, scoring just before half-time.
Nice-One Son added a 3rd, late on in proceedings to give Tottenham the 5th-Premier League victory from the last 7-games, the other 2, being defeats.
That lifts Tottenham above Manchester United into 5th-place in the table, with 51-points from 29-fixtures played.
The North London rivals, Arsenal sit 4th, with 54-points, however, have played a game less than Tottenham.
It will be a big ask to overhaul the Gunners but with the fixtures remaining, Antonio won’t give up on a Champions League place just yet.
Newcastle suffered a heartbreaking defeat at Goodison Park last time out, in the rearranged Game Week-20 affair against Everton.
Heartbreaking because the goal was conceded in the 99th-minute (yes 99!)
The defeat for Eddie and the Magpies was the 2nd in a row and the 2nd by the same 1-0 score.
The reason for the enormous amount of added time was because of an injury and someone tying themselves to the goalposts.
This is becoming a trend with similar incidents occurring at other grounds.
John Newsome just wants to say, ‘Please stop this, it’s not big and it’s not clever!’
Newcastle had been on a great run but the late goal conceded leaves the Magpies in 14th-place, with 31-points from 29-fixtures played.
It is still a great period considering the Toon Army had witnessed their Black and White idols languishing at the foot of the table a couple of months ago.
Newcastle have played 2-games more than Everton, who have 25-points, so in theory, could join the Magpies with 31, however, as is often mentioned in this column, it’s thought better to have the points on the board than games in hand.
Tottenham gained the away day victory against Newcastle at St James Park by a narrow 3-2 scoreline.
Both teams were under the guidance of previous managers that were Steve Bruce and Nuno Espírito Santo.
Four of the 5-goals were scored before the half-time whistle.
Callum Wilson opened the scoring for the Magpies before Tanguy Ndombele, Harry Kane and Son Heung-Min gave Spurs a comfortable lead at the break.
Jonjo Shelvey, who was a 2nd-half substitute, introduced by Big Brucey on the hour mark, received 2-Yellow Cards in the space of 5-mad minutes to ultimately see Red and beat his mates into the shower.
It’s rumoured that Jonjo had heard Mike Ashley had turned the heating off in another cost-cutting exercise so wanted to get the hot water before it turned cold.
Eric Dier was credited with a late own-goal to give the Toon Army hopes of a comeback, however, time ran out and Nuno gained a rare victory in his limited reign at Tottenham.
Betfred offer Tottenham at Odds On 1/2, the draw at 16/5 and 11/2 for Newcastle to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer Evens 1/1 that Harry Kane Scores Anytime and 15/8 that there are Over 3.5 Goals.
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Monday 04th
CRYSTAL PALACE v ARSENAL
20.00 in England
Sky Sports
The Patrick Vieira Derby.
Crystal Palace didn’t play in the Game Week-30 split shift because Mr Vieira’s Eagles were in the Quarter-Final of the FA Cup.
Palace got the victory over Everton by a 4-0 scoreline, progressing to the Semi-Final at Wembley, where Patrick will go head to head with Thomas Tuchel and Chelsea.
Crystal Palace sit in 12th-place with 34-points from 29-fixtures completed.
Over the same weekend, as the Eagles were smashing the Toffees, Arsenal got a professional victory away at Villa Park, inflicting a defeat on Aston Villa by a 1-0 score.
Bukayo Saka scored the only goal on the half-hour mark to give Mikel’s Young Guns their 6th-win in 7-games, with just a loss against Liverpool in those 7.
Arsenal remain 4th in the Premier League table, with 54-points from 28-fixtures played.
The rivals Tottenham are on the coattails, 3-points adrift, so the Gunners will do all they can to stave off a challenge for a Champions League place next season.
When Patrick returned to the Emirates back in October, his Eagles gained a point from a draw by a 2-2 score.
A certain Archbishop was looking down with a nod of approval.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored first to give Arsenal the lead at the break.
Christian Benteke and Odsonne Edouard scored in the 2nd-half and when it looked like Mr Vieira would get the win over Mr Arteta, Alexandre Lacazette scored the equaliser in the 95th-minute to give both London clubs a share of the points.
Betfred offer Crystal Palace at 3/1, the draw at 12/5 and slight Odds On 19/20 for Arsenal to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 5/4 that Wilfried Zaha Scores Anytime and 6/4 that Bukayo Saka Scores Anytime.
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Game Week-19
Wednesday 06th
BURNLEY v EVERTON
19.30 in England
This is the reverse fixture of the Game Week-4 affair that took place at Goodison Park back in mid-September.
Burnley come into this fixture following a game against Man City, so whilst not knowing the result of that particular affair, with a defeat expected, Sean’s Clarets will more than likely still be 19th in the table, with 21-points.
That said, if a miracle occurred against Pep’s High Flying Blues, Burnley could be just a point adrift of tonight’s opponents.
Could, would or should are the last words of a fool.
Everton will have played against West Ham at the London Stadium before this rearranged game.
The Game Week-31 set of results will decide whether Everton are either 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7-points ahead of Burnley coming into this midweek fixture.
Believe John, that was difficult to work out, with all the possible combinations on offer.
The only certainty is both will have played 29-times after this affair at Turf Moor.
Rafa Benitez’s Toffees got the victory over Sean Dyche’s Clarets by a 3-1 scoreline.
After a goalless 1st-half, Ben Mee did give Burnley a lead, however, that just kicked the home team into life, with Michael Keane, Andros Townsend and Demarai Gray scoring for Everton to gain the comfortable win.
The Toffee Rafas feelings at the time were still lukewarm regarding Mr Benitez but the temperature quickly dropped after a few bad results.
Betfred offer Burnley at 13/8, the draw at 11/5 and 7/4 for Everton to come away with all 3-points.
Betfred offer 5/1 that Richarlison Scores First and 5/2 that there are Under 1.5 Goals.
Away Win 0-1 Get 7/1 on Betfred & Claim your new account welcome offer!
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