Premier League 21/22: Matchday fifteen predictions

This season, the team's predictions will be available in weekly articles and they'll be in competition with a league too!

Read our pundits predictions below...

West Ham v Chelsea - Saturday, 4th December (12:30pm)

Joe Richardson

Quite simply no other team could have coped with the amount of injuries Chelsea have had in recent weeks, so it is quite remarkable and ominous that they continue to set the pace. However without both their first choice wing backs against Watford, they didn't look the same team and there could potentially be a chink in their armour. Reece James is now back along with Jorginho and I think they will get over the line against West Ham.

Prediction: 1-2

Ryan Kirk: 1-1

Chris Coughlin: 1-2

Chris Stott: 1-1

Harry Reynolds: 0-2

Newcastle v Burnley - Saturday, 4th December (3pm)

Joe Richardson

Quite simply Newcastle have to beat Burnley. Anything else and you would have to wonder how Eddie Howe keeps them up. The manager must have wondered why he took the job after 10 minutes of the match against Norwich after Ciaran Clark's inexplicable red card. They eventually battled well to get a point which they would have to have taken in the circumstances. On Saturday, they will need to be on their metal against a Burnley side who can score goals. It may well be the case that Newcastle have to outscore their opponents to pick up all three points.

Prediction: 2-1

Harry Reynolds

It’s now 14 games without a win for Newcastle, and this is a must-win game for the Magpies. If they were to lose to Burnley they would be even more marooned at the foot of the table, and Eddie Howe has not had the kind of impact the fans were hoping for. I think Burnley will just make this a difficult game for their opponents, and it won’t be a particularly exciting one.

Prediction: 0-0

Ryan Kirk: 2-1

Chris Coughlin: 1-0

Chris Stott: 1-0

Southampton v Brighton - Saturday, 4th December (3pm)

Joe Richardson

Southampton's pressing, commitment and quality in the first half against Leicester was terrific. They showed real resolve to deal with the set back of an against the run of play equaliser and regain the lead before half time. However, as has been the case in recent weeks, they have only been able to put in that kind of performance for one half. They lost control in the second half and the manager's in game tactics were again questionable. A point against the Foxes is no bad result, but only if they can back it up with three points against Brighton. A late point on the road against West Ham was big for the Seagulls, but they themselves have injury problems and Saints need to take advantage.

Prediction: 2-1

Ryan Kirk: 1-1

Chris Coughlin: 1-2

Chris Stott: 1-1

Harry Reynolds: 1-1

Wolves v Liverpool - Saturday, 4th December (3pm)

Chris Coughlin

Emphatic. That's the way to describe Liverpool's biggest win at Goodison Park since 1982 and it was easily the best performance from the Reds at Everton since Jurgen Klopp arrived in 2015. Wolves have had a weird time of it recently, getting an impressive 1-0 win over West Ham before failing to score against both Norwich and Burnley. The hosts play better football under Bruno Lage than they did towards the end of Nuno's reign but that might play into Liverpool's hands at Molineux.

Prediction: 1-2

Ryan Kirk: 0-2

Joe Richardson: 0-2

Chris Stott: 0-2

Harry Reynolds: 0-3

Watford v Man City - Saturday, 4th December (5:30pm)

Harry Reynolds

I think we’ve all seen enough of Man City giving Watford a hammering over the years. Claudio Ranieri has improved the Hornets but they’re still a pretty poor side, and without Ismailia Sarr they’re much less of a by threat. This could get ugly again and it should be a walk in the park for City.

Prediction: 0-3

Ryan Kirk

City have beaten Watford by at least two goals in eight of their last nine meetings and I'm expecting the same on Saturday evening. City survived a second half onslaught from Aston Villa and will want to push on from that. I can this being a very hard watch for Hornets fans.

Prediction: 0-4

Joe Richardson: 1-3

Chris Coughlin: 0-3

Chris Stott: 0-3

Leeds v Brentford - Sunday, 5th December (2pm)

Joe Richardson

Leeds may not be firing on all cylinders going forward but they have been much more defensively solid than last season, so great credit must go to the pragmatism and adaptation of Marcelo Bielsa. And then at the other end, they have a player in Raphinha that will be the difference maker in these games. Brentford are finding things a lot tougher now in the Premier League, which is understandable with the squad that they have. This is a nice game for Leeds before a difficult run.

Prediction: 2-0

Ryan Kirk: 2-1

Chris Coughlin: 2-1

Chris Stott: 2-1

Harry Reynolds: 2-1

Man Utd v Crystal Palace - Sunday, 5th December (2pm)

Ryan Kirk

Cometh the hour, cometh the man. It's incredible just how many people have been talking down Cristiano Ronaldo recently. He's one of the best to ever do it and, even at 36, can turn a game in an instant. I'm backing him to continue that form against Crystal Palace but I reckon the visitors will make it tough for new United interim boss Ralf Rangnick.

Prediction: 2-1

Joe Richardson: 2-0

Chris Coughlin: 3-0

Chris Stott: 2-0

Harry Reynolds: 2-0

Tottenham v Norwich - Sunday, 5th December (2pm)

Chris Coughlin

I wouldn't say Spurs were particularly outstanding against Brentford but it was a game I'm not sure they would've overcome if it Nuno was still in charge. There a renewed sense of dominance in parts of the game from Conte's men with the wingbacks Reguilon and Emerson causing particular damage to Brentford. Norwich have been much better under Dean Smith in recent weeks - they're four games unbeaten - but the failure to beat 10-man Newcastle on Tuesday will have felt like two points dropped. Ultimately, I think Spurs should see this through.

Prediction: 2-0

Ryan Kirk: 2-0

Joe Richardson: 3-1

Chris Coughlin: 2-0

Chris Stott: 1-0

Harry Reynolds: 2-0

Aston Villa v Leicester - Sunday, 5th December (4:30pm)

Joe Richardson

Villa matched City for parts of their game on Wednesday night and Steven Gerrard will overall be delighted with the level of performance across his three games in charge. This is another test against Leicester and a player of James Maddison's ability, who looks to have the bit between his teeth again. The question for me will be whether Villa can outscore their opponents.

Prediction: 2-1

Ryan Kirk: 2-2

Chris Coughlin: 3-1

Chris Stott: 1-1

Harry Reynolds: 1-2

Everton v Arsenal - Monday, 6th December (8pm)

Harry Reynolds The Merseyside derby was every bit as bad as I thought it would be for Everton. Rafa Benitez has had to deal with a lot of injuries, but his tactics on Wednesday were suicidal and you can basically question most of his decisions in every game. It wasn’t a popular appointment, and he’s doing nothing to endear himself to the fans. Arsenal once again showed that they struggle against the better teams, but they do generally beat the teams that are worse than them. Everton certainly fall into that category.

Prediction: 0-2

Ryan Kirk: 1-3

Joe Richardson: 1-2

Chris Coughlin: 1-2

Chris Stott: 0-2