After the European action in midweek, Premier League action returns with some exciting fixtures.
This weekend, the Cherries will host the Merseyside Reds, the Eagles will face the Blues, the Magpies will take on the Villans, and the Gunners will clash with the Red Devils, among other fixtures.
Here, we present our previews and predictions for all matches of Gameweek 23 of the 2025/26 Premier League season.
While the Hammers are languishing in the drop zone, Sunderland have done amazingly well and are in a comfortable position. They have been excellent at home and unbeaten thus far, but on the road they need to find a way to win games.
West Ham pulled off a surprise win away against Spurs last weekend, which would have given them a huge confidence boost after losing three games in their previous five. Sunderland, meanwhile, stretched their unbeaten run at home and came back from a goal down to defeat Crystal Palace last time out. Head coach Régis Le Bris must have breathed a sigh of relief, as this was his side’s first win in their last five league games.
There are not many injury issues for the two sides coming into this game, though West Ham will miss key first XI players in Lucas Paquetá and Lukasz Fabianski, while Arthur Masuaku and Bertrand Traoré will be unavailable for Sunderland.
If we look at the overall form of the two teams, Sunderland are currently ninth in the league table, while West Ham are seventeenth. Despite winning last time out, the Hammers have been quite underwhelming this season. As for the Black Cats, they are a well-drilled team and could very well come away with a win from London, which would pile more pressure on Nuno Espírito Santo and Co.
Score Prediction: West Ham 1–2 Sunderland
Fulham have had a tough run of games in their last five outings. However, despite missing some key players due to AFCON, they’ve pulled off some great results, particularly against Liverpool and Chelsea. The loss to Leeds United must have hurt, as they were starting to gain momentum.
As for Brighton, they are desperately searching for a victory and have just one win from their last five games. Their most recent game was a tepid home draw against Bournemouth.
As for injuries, Fulham will have two players out here in Rodrigo Muniz and Kenny Tete, while Brighton will miss the services of Adam Webster, Mats Wieffer, Solly March, and Stefanos Tzimas.
Fulham have the upper hand when it comes to playing Brighton at home, as they have beaten them at the Cottage thrice in the last three seasons. The reverse fixture earlier this season resulted in a draw at the Amex. Taking their head-to-head record into consideration, Fulham definitely hold the edge here, and with the likes of Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi returning to the fold, the Cottagers will be much more difficult to beat. We back Marco Silva and Co to grab a close win here.
Score Prediction: Fulham 2–1 Brighton
The Clarets were outplayed for most of the game last weekend but defended bravely and took their chance superbly to return home with a point from Anfield. After their big win in the FA Cup, this was the second positive result for Burnley, and they will hope to build on these two results to grab the maximum points from this game.
Meanwhile, Spurs’ recent form has seen them lose three games in their last five outings, with their most recent defeat arriving at home to a struggling West Ham. In contrast, their Champions League form has been top class. They performed superbly this midweek, dominating and defeating Borussia Dortmund comfortably.
Both teams have also been decimated by injuries, with several key players out for the long term. Connor Roberts, Joe Worrall, Jordan Beyer, Josh Cullen, Mike Tresor, Zeki Amdouni, and Zian Flemming are all out for Burnley, while Spurs are without Pape Sarr, Dejan Kulusevski, Ben Davies, James Maddison, João Palhinha, Rodrigo Bentancur, Mohammed Kudus, and Richarlison.
Given Burnley deploy a mean low block, getting an away result could be tough for Spurs here, especially given their list of absentees, in particular Kudus and Bentancur. This could be a tight affair that’s likely to end in a draw.
Score Prediction: Burnley 1–1 Spurs
After losing at Old Trafford last weekend, Man City continued their poor run against Norwegian outfit Bodø/Glimt in the Champions League earlier this week. City have only one win from their last five games in the league, and injuries have played a massive part in their recent poor results.
As for Wolves, they have shown in the past few weeks that they are willing to fight for their Premier League survival. They are unbeaten in their last five games across all competitions, including a massive win in the FA Cup as well.
Any team will suffer without first-choice players, and City are no exception. They have virtually no experience in their backline currently, with Joško Gvardiol (out for the season), Ruben Dias, and John Stones all out injured, while Savinho, Mateo Kovacic, Nico González, Oscar Bobb, and Matheus Nunes are unavailable as well. Wolves, meanwhile, will have Toti Gomes and Jean-Ricner Bellegarde out of action for this fixture.
City have made some massive signings recently in the form of Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guéhi to boost their squad. Semenyo has already hit the ground running, while Guéhi will be looking to add quality to their inexperienced backline. Even with a few poor results, playing at home makes City overwhelming favourites against a team sitting at the bottom of the table.
With Arsenal hosting Man United this weekend, we believe this is a massive opportunity for Pep Guardiola and Co to cut some of that deficit to the league leaders with a comfortable win here.
Score Prediction: Man City 3-1 Wolves
Both Bournemouth and Liverpool have struggled this season, without a doubt. That said, the Reds are now unbeaten in their last 13 games across all competitions, albeit having dropped points at home against teams they should be beating, especially the three promoted sides. As for the hosts for this game, the Cherries are unbeaten in their last three, having beaten Spurs at home and drawn away at Newcastle.
Bournemouth have suffered this season in no small part due to a major injury pile-up, with about seven key players currently sidelined. Will Dennis, Matai Akinmboni, Justin Kluivert, Tyler Adams, Ben Doak, David Brooks, and Enes Ünal are all unavailable for this game. As for Liverpool, they have a few long-term absentees in Giovanni Leoni (out for the season), Alexander Isak, Conor Bradley (out for the season), and Stefan Bajcetic.
Liverpool’s struggles this season have mostly been against teams playing with a low block, but against teams that play open, free-flowing football, they have done well. After taking into consideration their superior head-to-head record against Bournemouth in recent seasons, this is a game they should win.
With the return of Mohamed Salah from AFCON, Liverpool’s front line is re-gaining a massive creative outlet. While Arne Slot and Co have the edge in this game, Bournemouth can’t be taken lightly as they have some really dangerous players that can hurt the Liverpool defence. The visitors should win this encounter, however, as Bournemouth have defensive vulnerabilities of their own.
Score Prediction: Bournemouth 1–2 Liverpool
After a huge Champions League win at San Siro this week, Arsenal will be looking to maintain their lead at the top of the Premier League table with a win that could further cement their title credentials. However, it won’t be an easy game, as Man United are brimming with confidence after grabbing the bragging rights with a 2–0 win against their bitter local rivals last weekend.
The Gunners are unbeaten in their last five games but have two draws in their last two league games, having failed to capitalise on dropped points by their title rivals. The Red Devils, meanwhile, are also without a loss in their last five, having managed three draws and two wins.
Injury-wise, both teams have a few absentees, though there’s little cause for too much concern. For Arsenal, Piero Hincapié and Riccardo Calafiori are doubtful for this game, with Max Dowman out injured for the long term, while United might only miss Matthijs de Ligt for this game.
No team in the league have gone away to the Emirates and beaten Arsenal this season, and even though United were brilliant against City, playing against one of the best defences in Europe is going to be a mighty challenge.
Arsenal have had trouble in recent league games, having struggled to score freely. Against a poor Nottingham Forest side, they couldn’t find goal-scoring opportunities and ended up playing out a stalemate, so this will be a minor concern for Mikel Arteta in the coming games.
As for United, they do have a vulnerable defence and like to play open, so Arsenal could definitely create more scoring chances, but the United wingers could cause problems to the Arsenal defence as well. We believe this could be another tight encounter that ends with both teams sharing the spoils.
Score Prediction: Arsenal 1-1 Man United
Leeds United have been particularly impressive in the last month or so, having only lost away to Newcastle after a six-game unbeaten run. They returned to winning ways at home in the league against a tough Fulham side courtesy of a solitary goal. Daniel Farke’s men have only lost one game in their last five, the same as Everton, who were knocked out by Sunderland in the FA Cup at home, where their form has been particularly ordinary this season.
From an injury viewpoint, the Toffees have a fair few absentees in Jack Grealish, who is unfortunately out with a broken foot, along with Jarrad Branthwaite, Carlos Alcaraz, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, and Tim Iroegbunam, who are all doubtful for this fixture, with Michael Keane suspended. In the other camp, Leeds’ only doubt is Dan James, who has been out with a hamstring issue.
Most of such games this season have ended in draws, with teams playing safe football and relying on set pieces instead of open play. This could be another fixture that goes the same way. Everton have a solid defensive structure and play physical and disruptive football, but with the return of Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gueye, the Merseyside Blues will also get some much-needed creative boost and could continue their momentum with a win at home.
Score Prediction: Everton 2–1 Leeds
After a brilliant start to the season, Crystal Palace’s campaign is going from bad to worse. Having been knocked out of the FA Cup by non-League side Macclesfield in their very first game, Palace then lost to Sunderland last weekend. In the UEFA Conference League, a competition they’re touted as one of the contenders to win, they failed to beat ten-man Finnish side Kuopion Palloseura and will have to go through the play-off tie next month.
Palace are without a win in their last five games, with three defeats and two draws. On top of that, they now face Chelsea in the Premier League at the weekend. Though the Blues beat Brentford at home last weekend and narrowly defeated Pafos in the Champions League, their recent league form has been underwhelming, with only one win in their last five outings (two defeats and two draws).
Injury-wise, the Eagles have a fair few out in Cheick Doucouré, Daichi Kamada, Daniel Muñoz, and Eddie Nketiah, while Chelsea will miss Levi Colwill, Tosin Adarabioyo, Roméo Lavia, and Filip Jörgensen for this game.
Palace’s recent form doesn’t boast much confidence, though Chelsea haven’t been up to the mark either. Quality-wise, the Blues are definitely the superior side on paper, but their away form this season has left a lot to be desired. So, we believe this is another game that could end with honours even.
Score Prediction: Palace 1–1 Chelsea
The Magpies have struggled in the league in recent weeks with injuries and inconsistency. In the Champions League, though, they have done well. They once again displayed their quality earlier this week by thrashing PSV. They had a close win in the FA Cup, beating Bournemouth on penalties. Their away form has been a major cause for concern, however, as they couldn’t score against bottom-of-the-table Wolves last weekend and ended up playing out a stalemate.
As for Aston Villa, their form has taken a slight downward turn. They were beaten by Everton at home last weekend, though in the Europa League this week they returned to winning ways with an important away win against Fenerbahçe. That said, Villa boss Unai Emery will be concerned because of the two defeats his side has suffered in their last five league encounters.
As for personnel availability, Newcastle have been struggling with injuries to key players this entire season. Their current injury list comprises Fabian Schär, Tino Livramento, William Osula, Jacob Murphy, Jamal Lascelles, Emil Krafth, and Dan Burn. Aston Villa, meanwhile, will be without John McGinn, Emi Martínez, Boubacar Kamara, and Ross Barkley for this game.
Going to St James’ Park and getting three points is a huge challenge for any visiting team, but with Newcastle’s injury issues, especially in their back line, this could be a thrilling end-to-end affair. However, backed by the home crowd, Newcastle should still be able to build on their midweek win with another victory here.
Score Prediction: Newcastle 3–2 Villa
Chelsea ended Brentford’s six-game unbeaten run last weekend. Apart from that, Brentford’s recent form has been excellent. They have three wins from their last five games and have also progressed to the fourth round of the FA Cup.
As for Nottingham Forest, they earned a huge point at home by holding leaders Arsenal to a goalless draw, but they are still struggling. Having been knocked out of the FA Cup by Wrexham, and having also lost midweek in the Europa League to Braga, their dismal run of form continues to haunt them.
From an injury viewpoint, the Bees will miss Jordan Henderson, Fábio Carvalho (out for the season), and Joshua Dasilva, while Forest will be without Chris Wood and John Victor.
The Gtech Community Stadium has been a fortress for Brentford this season and witnessed several big results; the West London side has not lost here since a narrow defeat to Man City in October. Therefore, given that the Tricky Trees are struggling and on a poor run of form, it’s going to be a difficult ask for them to get anything from this game.
Score Prediction: Brentford 2–0 Forest
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