Premier League Matchday 21: Arsenal face huge United clash

Expect drama at the top and bottom of the Premier League table on Matchday 21.

Title favourites Arsenal entertain Manchester United in a meeting of old foes and West Ham will look to distance themselves from Frank Lampard's Everton when they welcome the Toffees to the London Stadium.

Bournemouth host Nottingham Forest in another crucial fixture while Liverpool and Chelsea meet at Anfield both eager to kick-start their seasons.

Read on as we preview all 10 matches on the menu in the English top flight this weekend.

Liverpool vs Chelsea (Saturday, 12.30pm, BT Sport)

The Reds earned a 1-0 FA Cup win at Wolves on Tuesday and will aim to build on that result when they face Chelsea.

Jurgen Klopp's men shared the spoils with the Blues in both of last season's league fixtures but emerged victorious in the FA Cup and Carabao Cup finals against the West Londoners.

Klopp is set to take charge of his 1,000th game as manager and is likely to need to find a solution to keep new Chelsea arrival Mykhailo Mudryk quiet, with the Ukrainian winger in line to make his debut at Anfield.

The visitors are suffering a poor run of form but did manage to pick up a win against Crystal Palace last time out — they still remain 10 points off the top four in 10th place.

Bournemouth vs Nottingham Forest (Saturday, 3pm)

The fixture between Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest could have significant ramifications for the relegation scrap, with both sides sitting within five points of the drop zone.

The Cherries have beaten the East Midlanders in four of the last five meetings but are enduring a woeful run of form which has seen them lose six games on the bounce.

Forest, meanwhile, could win three Premier League matches in a row for the first time since May 1999.

Fans should not expect a thriller at the Vitality Stadium, however. The South Coast ground has seen fewer goals than any other in the top flight this term and only Wolves (six) have a worse goalscoring home record than Gary O'Neil's outfit (nine).

Leicester vs Brighton (Saturday, 3pm)

Brighton continue to thrive under Roberto De Zerbi and will hope to carry their recent momentum into the clash at Leicester.

The Seagulls have won three matches in a row, thumping Liverpool 3-0 last time out, but face a tough task at the King Power Stadium, where they have emerged victorious only once in their last 12 visits.

Brendan Rodgers' Foxes have lost three home league games on the spin while the visitors are looking to win four consecutive away league games for the first time since April 2016.

Pressure is building on Rodgers with his side only two points above the relegation zone in 15th place.

Southampton vs Aston Villa (Saturday, 3pm)

Reinvigorated Southampton have won three games in a row but they have lost their last two encounters with Aston Villa.

Saints have the worst home record in the division and could register four consecutive home league defeats should Unai Emery's men triumph at St Mary's.

Villa have picked up 13 points in six league matches under Emery, one more than they secured prior to the Basque coach's arrival.

The visitors will have to keep a watchful eye on Saints skipper James Ward-Prowse — the England international has scored five goals in his last six games.

West Ham vs Everton (Saturday, 3pm)

The final 3pm kick-off on Saturday will see 18th-place West Ham take on 19th-place Everton in a vital clash between two relegation-threatened teams.

The Hammers won this fixture last season but have not recorded consecutive home victories over the Toffees since November 1986.

Frank Lampard's side are winless in their last nine top-flight trips to London but their last victory did come at West Ham in May 2021.

Their upcoming meeting will be the first time both teams are in the relegation zone since February 1995 — both sides managed to go on to avoid the drop by five points that year.

Crystal Palace vs Newcastle (Saturday, 5.30pm, Sky Sports)

Crystal Palace have only won two of their last 13 home clashes with Newcastle but will be buoyed by a late draw earned against Manchester United on Wednesday night.

No side in the division have conceded fewer goals than the Magpies this season (11) and they match Arsenal in having lost only one Premier League game in 2022-23.

These teams have already met twice this season, with both fixtures ending goalless. Eddie Howe's men knocked Palace out of the Carabao Cup in a penalty shootout last November.

The visitors could go 15 Premier League matches unbeaten for the first time in their history and will hope to use Kieran Trippier as their attacking weapon. He has created more chances from set-pieces than any other player in the top flight this season.

Leeds vs Brentford (Sunday, 2pm, Sky Sports)

Brentford ran out 5-2 winners in September's reverse fixture against Leeds and head to Elland Road to face a side who won by the same scoreline in Wednesday's FA Cup victory against Cardiff.

Goals are never in short supply between these two teams with 14 scored in their last three meetings.

Bees boss Thomas Frank will be keen to pile more pressure on his opposite number Jesse Marsch, who has not masterminded a league win since early November's victory over Bournemouth.

Ivan Toney is likely to pose the visitors main goal threat — he has 14 strikes in 19 games this term and netted a hat-trick against the Whites at the Gtech Community Stadium.

Manchester City vs Wolves (Sunday, 2pm)

Manchester City have won five times in a row against Wolves but know they cannot afford to slip up on Sunday.

Their title challenge looked in tatters when two goals down to Tottenham on Thursday night but recovered to secure a 4-2 win to keep pace with leaders Arsenal.

Kevin De Bruyne loves facing the West Midlanders and has been directly involved in nine goals in his last six appearances against the Molineux outfit.

Julen Lopetegui has improved the visitors since replacing Bruno Lage in November but they remain the division's lowest scorers with 12 goals in 19 outings.

Arsenal vs Manchester United (Sunday, 4.30pm, Sky Sports)

Arsenal have won five of their last seven top-flight meetings with Manchester United at the Emirates yet did suffer their only league loss of the campaign against the Red Devils.

Erik ten Hag knows his side can thrust themselves into the title fight with a win that would close the gap to the league leaders to five points.

Mikel Arteta's side are yet to concede a goal in 2023 but will need to keep in-form Marcus Rashford quiet. 

The England forward has scored eight goals in his last eight outings and has produced more Premier League goal involvements against the North Londoners than any other side (eight).

Should Bukayo Saka find the net, he will equal Freddie Ljungberg and Thierry Henry in scoring in three consecutive Premier League games for the Gunners against United.

Fulham vs Tottenham (Monday, 8pm, Sky Sports)

Tottenham will be aiming to win seven straight matches at Craven Cottage as they seek to bounce back from the loss at Manchester City.

Fulham will pose a significant threat to that record on Monday despite seeing their five-game winning run end at Newcastle last weekend.

Aleksandar Mitrovic has scored in all four of the London derbies he has played in this season, whereas Harry Kane has scored more London derby goals than any other player in Premier League history (47).

The last time the Cottagers recorded a victory over Spurs was in March 2013, their only league win in 14 previous matches against the North Londoners.

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