Premier League Matchday 18: Leaders Arsenal face tricky Brighton trip

The Premier League celebrates the turn of the year in style with a host of enticing fixtures on Matchday 18.

Leaders Arsenal face a difficult trip to Brighton, with champions Manchester City in hot pursuit as they host Everton.

Read on as we run the rule over all 10 games.

West Ham vs Brentford (Friday, 7.45pm)

Two London teams meet on Friday evening as West Ham entertain Brentford.

A 3-1 loss at Arsenal on Boxing Day means the Hammers are teetering dangerously close to trouble in 16th — with just a single point separating David Moyes' men from the relegation zone.

The Bees returned to action with a handy 2-2 draw with Tottenham and are up against a side they did the double over last season.

Said Benrahma faces his former club looking to build on his record of three goals in his last five league appearances and can score in consecutive top-flight outings for the first time since December 2021.

Liverpool vs Leicester (Friday, 8pm, Sky Sports)

Liverpool climbed back into the top six by beating Aston Villa in their first game back from the World Cup break with struggling Leicester up next.

The Foxes were soundly beaten 3-0 by Newcastle — conceding as many goals as they had in their previous eight Premier League games combined.

But they can take some encouragement from the fact they have beaten the Reds on two of the pair’s last three league meetings.

Mohamed Salah has managed seven strikes in as many games in all competitions but at the other end of the field, Jurgen Klopp's men have not kept a clean sheet in the Premier League since their 1-0 win over West Ham in mid-October.

Wolves vs Manchester United (Saturday, 12.30pm, BT Sport)

Manchester United can finish 2022 in fourth place if they can get the better of Julen Lopetegui’s Wolves at Molineux.

In the first Premier League match of his managerial career, the Spanish coach led the West Midlands outfit to a last-gasp 2-1 victory at Everton, which saw his side climb off the bottom of the table and within a point of safety.

Meanwhile, the Red Devils were in fine form as they dispatched Nottingham Forest 3-0 at Old Trafford last Tuesday and will now look to avoid defeat in their final game of the calendar year for the 11th successive time.

United have won on their last two trips to the Black Country, but Wolves were 1-0 victors at Old Trafford in January — the last time the sides met.

Bournemouth vs Crystal Palace (Saturday, 3pm)

Both Bournemouth and Crystal Palace will be desperate to bounce back from defeats as they go head-to-head on the South Coast.

The Cherries were no match for Chelsea at Stamford Bridge as they went down 2-0 in Gary O’Neil’s first league game as permanent boss, while a dismal Eagles side lost 3-0 at home to Fulham.

Palace will be therefore looking to avoid losing three top-flight matches in a row for only the second time under Patrick Vieira.

That said, they have lost only two of their last 10 Premier League games against Bournemouth, beating them in each of their last three meetings.

Fulham vs Southampton (Saturday, 3pm)

Fulham’s hopes of a surprise top-half finish are well and truly alive as they entertain struggling Southampton.

Nathan Jones has lost his first two top-flight games in charge of the Saints and the South Coast club now visit Craven Cottage, a ground where they have won only once in their last 16 league trips (seven draws, eight defeats).

A 3-1 home defeat to Brighton saw Jones' side slip to the bottom of the table and they will now focus on improving a desperate run of eight defeats in their last 10 away league clashes.

Aleksandar Mitrovic has scored 10 goals in 13 Premier League games this term, just one shy of his best return in the top flight (11 in 2018-19).

Manchester City vs Everton (Saturday, 3pm)

Manchester City remain five points behind leaders Arsenal as they host relegation-threatened Everton.

The last 10 meetings between these teams have gone City’s way, while the Toffees have not recorded an away win against Saturday's opponents since December 2010.

Frank Lampard will hope 2023 can be a more positive year than 2022 has been for the Merseysiders — no Premier League side has suffered more away defeats than their 12 this year.

Phil Foden could return to Pep Guardiola’s starting XI following the World Cup — the England starlet has scored three goals in his last four league games against Lampard's men.

Newcastle vs Leeds (Saturday, 3pm)

The good times keep rolling at Newcastle as the Premier League’s third-placed side come up against Leeds at St James’ Park.

Liverpool (45) and Manchester City (42) are the only Premier League sides to have picked up more home points than the Magpies (40) in 2022.

The 15th-placed visitors have not enjoyed the same success this year but are unbeaten in their last three trips to Tyneside.

Newcastle’s Miguel Almiron can become only the second Paraguayan to reach double figures in a single Premier League campaign after Roque Santa Cruz for Blackburn in 2007-08 (scored 19).

Brighton vs Arsenal (Saturday, 5.30pm, Sky Sports)

Arsenal impressively kicked their title charge back into gear following the World Cup break and will hope for more of the same at Brighton.

The seventh-placed Seagulls will be no easy opponent at the Amex, with the Gunners winning just once in their last five trips there. 

But a marker of Arsenal’s improvement this season is illustrated by their six clean sheets in eight Premier League away games this term — as many as they had in all 19 matches on the road last season.

Injury doubt Danny Welbeck has scored four times in his last five games against Arsenal, in a run that stretches back to Manchester United’s 8-2 win over the Gunners in 2011.

Tottenham vs Aston Villa (Sunday, 2pm, Sky Sports)

An intriguing clash kicks off 2023 as fourth-placed Tottenham host an Aston Villa side coached by former Arsenal boss Unai Emery.

The Basque coach is unbeaten in all three of his previous Premier League meetings with Spurs, winning 4-2 in his first North London derby in December 2018 before drawing twice.

Spurs have lost only two of their last 23 games against the Villans, though both of those defeats did come at home (April 2015 and May 2021).

No player has scored more Premier League goals on New Year’s Day than Harry Kane (five), while Ollie Watkins has netted in both of his previous trips to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea (Sunday, 4.30pm, Sky Sports)

Graham Potter will hope Chelsea can kick on after their 2-0 win over Bournemouth in their first match after the World Cup break.

They face a Nottingham Forest team mired in danger in 19th place, but the hosts are looking to record consecutive home Premier League wins in a single season for the first time since May 1999.

The Blues have won their last seven encounters with the Tricky Trees and have lost only one of their most recent 11 away league outings against promoted sides.

Steve Cooper will hope to become the first Welsh manager to beat the West Londoners since November 2015, a run of 11 top-flight games.

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