Premier League 2025/26 Gameweek 23: Previews and Predictions

After the European competitions in midweek, Premier League action returns for Gameweek 23 with some exciting fixtures coming our way. 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 in the big weekend fixtures. 

So, without further ado, let’s take a look at all the previews and predictions from Gameweek 23 – 

West Ham United vs Sunderland 

After two consecutive wins in their last two games, the Hammers will be up against the Black Cats at the London Stadium this weekend. 

While the Hammers are languishing in the bottom three, Sunderland have done amazingly well and are in a comfortable position right now. Their home form has been excellent as they are unbeaten at home this season but away from home the Wearside team still needs to find a way to win games. West Ham pulled off a surprise win away against Spurs last weekend and would have gained a huge shot of confidence with a crucial away win after having lost three games in their last five. Sunderland stretched their unbeaten run at home, coming back from a goal down to defeat Crystal Palace. Head coach Regis Le Bris must have breathed a sigh of relief as this was their first win in their last five league games. 

Not many injury issues for the two sides though West Ham will miss key first eleven players in Lucas Paquetá and Lukasz Fabia?ski. Arthur Masuaku and Bertrand Traoré will be unavailable for Sunderland. 

If we look at the overall form of the two teams, Sunderland is currently lying in ninth place while West Ham is in a relegation scrap and even if they did win their last game, West Ham have been quite underwhelming this season. As for Sunderland, they are a well drilled team and could possibly come away with a win from London, piling more pressure on West Ham. We believe this could be a scrappy affair with Sunderland more likely to bag the three points. 

Score Prediction: West Ham 1-2 Sunderland 

Fulham vs Brighton and Hove Albion 

The Cottagers would be desperate to return to winning ways after the defeat to Leeds at Elland Road last weekend. 

Fulham has had a tough run of games in their last five and even without three or four of their key players who were away at the AFCON, Fulham pulled off some great results, particularly against Liverpool and Chelsea. However, the loss to Leeds must have hurt as they were starting to gain momentum. As for the Seagulls, they would also be desperately searching for a win as they have only 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 in the form of 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 Brighton at home thrice in the last three seasons. The reverse fixture earlier this season resulted in a draw at the Amex Stadium. Taking the head-to-head record into consideration, Fulham definitely hold the edge and with the likes of Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi returning to the first team fold, the Cottagers will be much more difficult to beat. Our prediction for this game would be a close Fulham win.

Score Prediction: Fulham 2-1 Brighton and Hove Albion 

Burnley vs Tottenham Hotspur 

After grabbing a point at Anfield last weekend, Burnley will be keen to pick up points at home in their quest to survive this season. 

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 really positive result for Burnley and they will hope to build on the two results to grab the maximum points from this game. Spurs’ recent form has been having lost three games from their last five with their most recent loss coming at home to a struggling West Ham. In contrast, their Champions League form has been top class. They performed superbly midweek, dominated the game and defeated Borussia Dortmund comfortably. 

Both teams have also been decimated by injuries with unfortunate long-term injuries to several key players over the course of this season. Connor Roberts, Joe Worrall, Jordan Beyer, Josh Cullen, Mike Tresor, Zeki Amdouni and Zian Flemming are all out for Burnley. Spurs have their fair share of absentees with Pape Sarr, Dejan Kulusevski, Ben Davies, James Maddison, João Palhinha, Rodrigo Bentancur, Mohammed Kudus and Richarlison all on the sidelines for this fixture. 

With so many key players missing, getting an away result could be tough for Spurs as Burnley deploy a mean low-block and without the presence of Kudus or Bentancur, breaking through their defence could be a problem for Spurs. Therefore, this could be a tight affair which could end in a draw. 

Score Prediction: Burnley 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur 

Manchester City vs Wolverhampton Wanderers 

Smarting from two consecutive defeats in all competitions, City would be looking to unleash all their frustrations on the bottom of the table Wolves. 

After the defeat at Old Trafford last weekend, City continued the poor run against Norwegian club Bodø/Glimt in the Champions League midweek. City only have a solitary win from their last five in the league but injuries have also 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 stay up and are unbeaten in their last five with a massive win in the FA Cup fixture as well. 

Any team will suffer without their first-choice players and City has no experience in the backline currently with Joško Gvardiol (out for the season), Ruben Dias and John Stones all out injured with Savinho, Mateo Kovacic, Nico González, Oscar Bobb and Matheus Nunes unavailable as well. Wolves will have Toti Gomes and Jean-Ricner Bellegarde out of action for this fixture. 

City have also made January signings in the form of Antoine Semenyo and Marc Guehi to boost their squad and Semenyo has already hit the ground running. Marc Guehi will also add quality to their inexperienced backline. Even with a few poor results, City playing at home would still be the overwhelming favourites against a team sitting at the bottom of the table. We believe City has a massive opportunity to cut the deficit with Arsenal playing against United at the weekend and we believe this could be a comfortable victory for the Cityzens. 

Score Prediction: Manchester City 3-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers 

Bournemouth vs Liverpool 

Liverpool would be keen to bag the three points away against the Cherries after the big win in the Champions League midweek. 

Both Bournemouth and Liverpool have struggled this season without a doubt. However, Liverpool has now been unbeaten in their last 13 games in all competitions but they have dropped points at home against teams they should have beaten, especially the three promoted sides. As for Bournemouth, they are unbeaten in their last three, also having beaten Spurs at home and drawn away to Newcastle at St. James’ Park. 

Bournemouth has also suffered this season due to an injury pile-up with about seven players currently out. Will Dennis, Matai Akinmboni, Justin Kluivert, Tyler Adams, Ben Doak, David Brooks and Enes Ünal all are unavailable for this game. As for the Reds, 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 defensive low-block but against teams that play open free-flowing football, the Reds have done well and also taking into consideration that Liverpool has a superior head-to-head record against Bournemouth in recent seasons, this is a game they should win. With the return of Mohamed Salah, Liverpool’s front line also has a creative outlet they had been missing while he was away. For all these reasons, Liverpool do have the edge in this game though Bournemouth can’t be taken lightly as they have some really dangerous players that can definitely hurt the Liverpool defence. The visitors should win this encounter as Bournemouth have defensive vulnerabilities of their own. 

Score Prediction: Bournemouth 1-2 Liverpool 

Arsenal vs Manchester United 

The biggest fixture of this weekend will be played at the Emirates with the Gunners battling long-time rivals Manchester United. 

After a huge Champions League win at the San Siro midweek, Arsenal would be looking to maintain their lead at the top with a win that could further cement their title credentials. However, it won’t be an easy game as United would be brimming with confidence after grabbing the bragging rights in a 2-0 win against their bitter derby rivals last weekend. Arsenal is unbeaten in their last five but have two draws in their last two league games as they failed to capitalise on dropped points by their title rivals Manchester City. United are also without a loss in their last five with three draws and two wins. 

Injury-wise, both teams have a few injuries but nothing that could cause a big concern. For Arsenal, Piero Hincapié and Riccardo Calafiori are a doubt for this game with Max Dowman out injured while United might only miss Matthijs de Ligt for this game. 

No team in the league has 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 as they haven’t been able to score freely. Against a poor Nottingham Forest side, they couldn’t find goal-scoring opportunities and ended up playing a stalemate, so that is a minor concern for Mikel Arteta. As for United, they do have a vulnerable defence and like to play open, Arsenal could definitely create scoring chances but the United wingers could cause problems to the Arsenal defence as well – food for thought for both teams. We believe this could be another tight encounter which will end with both teams sharing the spoils.

Score Prediction: Arsenal 1-1 Manchester United 

Everton vs Leeds United 

After bagging three points at Villa Park, Everton would be looking to gain the maximum at home this weekend against the Whites. 

Leeds have been particularly impressive in the last month or so, only losing away to Newcastle after a six-game unbeaten run. However, they returned to winning ways at home in the league, defeating a tough Fulham side, courtesy of a solitary goal. Leeds has only lost one game in their last five, same as the Toffees. However, Everton were also knocked out by Sunderland in their FA Cup fixture, that too at home and their home form has been particularly ordinary this season. 

From an injury viewpoint, Everton has a fair few out with Jack Grealish 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. Additionally, Michael Keane is suspended. Leeds’ only doubt is Daniel 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 trying to play open, this could be another fixture going that way. Everton has a solid defensive structure and plays physical and disruptive football but with the return of Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gueye, the Merseyside Blues will also have the required creative presence and could continue their momentum with a win at home. 

Score Prediction: Everton 2-1 Leeds United