The busy run of the festive season continues, with games coming thick and fast. After games in midweek, another set of Premier League fixtures await us this weekend, with Bournemouth hosting the Gunners, Fulham welcoming Liverpool, and the Cityzens hosting the Blues at the Etihad, among others.
Here, we present our preview and predictions for all matches of Gameweek 20 of the 2025/26 Premier League season.
Villa was on an incredible 11-game unbeaten run going into the big game against Arsenal but ended up getting crushed 4-1 with Ollie Watkins bagging a late consolation. Their opponents Nottingham Forest extended their streak of losses to three straight defeats in the league with the midweek loss to Everton.
While Villa has injuries to Tyrone Mings, Amadou Onana, Pau Torres and Ross Barkley with Harvey Elliott out with illness. Forest also has a fair few missing with Ola Aina, Chris Wood, Ryan Yates and Dan Ndoye doubtful for the clash at Villa Park.
Even though Villa lost to Arsenal, they have shown a tremendous turnaround from the start of the season to their current form and they are difficult to play at home. Also, Forest has been abysmal and inconsistent this season and hence I believe Villa would end this game with the three points.
Score prediction: Villa 3–1 Forest
The Seagulls missed a great opportunity to get a win against the Hammers in midweek with the London club salvaging a draw at home. After three straight defeats, West Ham were able to get a point in a game that had goals conceded from three first half penalties. Brighton is currently without a win in their last five games with three draws and two losses. Burnley had shown slight improvement with two consecutive draws but lost at home to Newcastle United further reducing their chances of survival.
From an injury perspective, Brighton may miss the services of Adam Webster, Solly March, Stefanos Tzimas and Yankuba Minteh while the Clarets have a long list of injured personnel. Connor Roberts, Zeki Amdouni and Jordan Beyer are long-term absentees along with Josh Cullen, Joe Worrall and Maxime Estève out for a short duration.
Though Brighton’s form has been dismal this season, they are still a quality squad and with a few key players coming back to the first team fold, they have a great chance to bag their first win in their last five-six games as Burnley hasn’t shown much signs of improvement in their previous encounters.
Score prediction: Brighton 2–1 Burnley
Wolves ended their streak of 11 consecutive losses with a draw at United, a point which would give them great relief and a slight boost. West Ham also salvaged a draw against Brighton in a game that saw three penalties being conceded in the first half itself. However, the Hammers are still lying in the relegation zone four points adrift of 17th placed Nottingham Forest. This was West Ham’s first point after three consecutive losses.
Injuries to Leone Chiwome, Rodrigo Gomes, Daniel Bentley, Marshall Munetsi, Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, Toti Gomes and Santiago Bueno have added to Wolves’ woes while West Ham will only miss Jean-Clair Todibo due to injury.
Both the teams are struggling without a doubt but West Ham have a relatively better squad than Wolves who are looking down the barrel this season. Even though Wolves escaped Old Trafford with a draw, I think the threat of Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paquéta could cause them trouble, allowing West Ham to bag the three points in this one.
Score prediction: Wolves 1–2 West Ham
Andoni Iraola’s side is currently struggling without a win in their last 10 games. They last won in late October against Nottingham Forest at home though the away draws against Manchester United and Chelsea in recent weeks would have given them some confidence. The Gunners though would be flying as they delivered a crushing 4-1 defeat to the Villans, ending Aston Villa’s 11-game unbeaten streak. Though, Arsenal’s defence hasn’t been as solid as they have conceded in four of their last five league games.
Bournemouth will miss Ben Doak, Milosavljevi?, Matai Akinmboni and Tyler Adams for this game while Arsenal has Cristhian Mosquera, Max Dowman, Riccardo Calafiori and Declan Rice out injured.
Looking at the form and quality of the two teams, Arsenal is the overwhelming favourite for this game. While Bournemouth can’t be underestimated at home, they have defensive vulnerabilities that Arsenal can duly expose. The North London outfit should be able to secure the three points comfortably.
Score prediction: Bournemouth 0–2 Arsenal
Leeds United is on a six-game unbeaten run having won one and drawn four. In the same period, Man United has won two, drawn two and lost one. From languishing in the bottom three in the early part of the season to pulling off wins against Chelsea and Crystal Palace while earning respectable draws against Liverpool twice, Daniel Farke’s men have turned around their form big time. As for Man United, their problem of inconsistent performances continues.
Man United has a few players away for AFCON along with injuries to Harry Maguire, Matthijs de Ligt, Bruno Fernandes, Kobbie Mainoo and Mason Mount while Leeds will miss the services of Sean Longstaff, Daniel James and Joe Rodon for this game.
Looking at their recent home performances, Leeds United has played well at home and also come back from losing positions to draw games. It’s not going to be an easy game for the Red Devils as Leeds will try to keep their defensive structure intact with the intent to hurt the opponent through long balls and turnovers. Man United do have a potent attack but a vulnerable defence too and therefore, I believe this could end in a fighting draw.
Score prediction: Leeds United 1–1 Man United
Liverpool played out a goalless draw against Leeds United themselves and didn’t offer much in front of goal. Fulham came back from an early setback to grab a draw but could also have won in the end if they had taken their chances. Liverpool has been unbeaten in their last five games, defensively looking better but from an attacking point of view, they haven’t looked impressive at all. Compared to last season, nothing much to write home about for Fulham as well, Marco Silva’s team has been highly inconsistent so far.
From an injury viewpoint, Liverpool has Stefan Bajcetic, Giovanni Leoni, Alexander Isak as long-term absentees with Joe Gomez and Wataru Endo out for a short duration while Fulham has Rodrigo Muniz and Ryan Sessegnon out with injury and a couple of players away for AFCON.
Though both teams have been inconsistent and well below their level from last season, both have shown improvement in the last month and hence this could be a feisty end-to-end encounter that may end in a draw.
Score prediction: Fulham 1–1 Liverpool
Both teams played out goalless draws in their respective fixtures midweek. While Spurs faced Brentford away, Sunderland earned a massive point against mighty Manchester City. Sunderland has lost only one game in their last five, an away defeat to City at the Etihad, won one and drawn three. However, they have only scored two goals in that period. As for Spurs, they have two losses, two wins and a draw from their last five, piling more pressure on head coach Thomas Frank. The Lilywhites are currently sitting in 12th place in the league – something the Spurs management and fans won’t appreciate.
Injury-wise, Spurs are still suffering with Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison, Lucas Bergvall, Destiny Udogie and Dominic Solanke out with Xavi Simons suspended while Sunderland will miss Daniel Ballard and Ajibola Alese for this fixture.
Though Spurs are quite dominant at home, Sunderland have shown that they can compete with the top teams by earning draws against Arsenal, Man City and Liverpool this season. However, two of these games were at home and their away form hasn’t been great. Hence, I think Spurs can grab a narrow win in this fixture.
Score prediction: Spurs 1–0 Sunderland
Everton’s recent form is a mixed one with two wins, two losses and a draw. The result away at Nottingham Forest would have given them a boost though. As for Brentford, their home record has been exceptional but their away record has been particularly woeful. In their last five, Brentford has two wins, two draws and one defeat that came against Manchester City at the Etihad. There was a lot of speculation and doubt around Keith Andrews but he has done a reasonably decent job with Brentford so far.
Everton has a few key players away for AFCON as well as a couple of injuries. Jarrad Branthwaite, Michael Keane, Seamus Coleman, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Carlos Alcaraz won’t feature in this game. As for Brentford, Joshua Dasilva and Fabio Carvalho are out injured.
While Goodison Park had been a fortress for the Merseyside Blues, they are still getting used to the new Hill Dickinson Stadium and therefore, their home record hasn’t been as good. Brentford’s away form though has been poor and I don’t see them getting anything more than a point from this game. For me, this could be another feisty affair, ending in a draw.
Score prediction: Everton 1–1 Brentford
Newcastle’s recent form consists of two wins, two losses and a draw while Palace has been struggling without a win in their last five. Palace has two losses and three draws. Especially away from home, their performances have been abysmal and St James’ Park is a really tough ground for a visiting team.
Both teams have a massive injury headache with numerous players injured. Newcastle will miss Emil Krafth, Jamal Lascelles, Keiran Trippier, Sven Botman, Tino Livramento, Anthony Elanga and William Osula for this game while Crystal Palace has Chadi Riad, Rio Cardines, Caleb Kporha, Cheick Doucouré, Daichi Kamada, Daniel Munõz and Edward Nketiah all doubtful for this encounter. A few players might also be missing due to AFCON.
Considering Palace’s recent struggles and lack of form, playing away at St. James’ Park just got tougher. The Geordies are a fairly dominant team at home and I do not see Palace getting a result from this game, Newcastle to win this comfortably.
Score prediction: Newcastle 2–0 Palace
With the news coming in about Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca leaving after the Bournemouth draw, this game becomes even more difficult for the Blues. Manchester City also dropped two points against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, giving Arsenal a four-point lead at the top now. Before this game, City had won their last four league games. As for Chelsea, their recent form has been poor according to their standards. Two wins, two draws and a loss against Villa at home may have led to the head coach’s departure.
From a personnel availability perspective, City will miss John Stones, Oscar Bobb and Mateo Kova?i? while Chelsea has a slew of players out with Jorrel Hato, Levi Colwill, Marc Cucurella, Darrio Essugo and Romeo Lavia all out injured. The good news for City will be the return of Rodri after a long recovery.
City would desperately want to win this fixture as they wouldn’t want Arsenal to extend the gap at the top further. As for Chelsea, this would be an important game as well if they want to remain in the shouts for Top four places. However, I believe City will have the upper hand in this fixture with the home advantage and superior form. I would predict a close battle which City will win.
Score prediction: Man City 2–1 Chelsea
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