My EPL Predictions by Dan Smith

If you believe some people, Mikel Arteta’s job will be seriously in danger if Arsenal don’t win this weekend.

Elsewhere a certain Cristiano Ronaldo makes his second Man United debut…

Palace 0-1 Spurs

Spurs fans keep reminding us that for the first time ever they are top of the league at the same time Arsenal are bottom.

The fact that took 139 years to happen, it actually looks bad on them.

Banter aside, Spurs have developed the ideal habit of winning without playing well.

More of the same here.

Arsenal 3-0 Norwich

No need for our manager to over-complicate things, just get your team to go back to basics.

I’m interested in which senior players step up. Who demands the ball and takes responsibility?

Aubameyang said all the right things after the Man City drubbing, but this is where he needs to lead by example.

Like most teams who visit the Emirates, the Canaries will try and use the nervous  atmosphere against us. Anyone who comes to our ground will know it won’t take a lot for there to be trepidation from the stands.

The fact is though Norwich is a poor team who don’t have it in their DNA yet to be hard to break down.

Brentford 1-1 Brighton

We know more than most how intimidating Brentford’s stadium can be.

I think they will get early points on the scoreboard.

Long-term though do either side have a goal scorer who will reach double digits?

Leicester 2-2 Man City

Leicester have had success against City over the years with their counter attacking football.

Not the game Pep Guardiola would want with his squad travelling back from various parts of the world from international duty.

The Champions failure to sign a striker gives the rest a chance in the title race. There will be games where their tiki taka doesn’t work and they will miss not having a plan B.

Man United 4- 0 Newcastle

I expect one of the best atmospheres at Old Trafford than we have seen in years for the return of Ronaldo.

He couldn’t have picked a better team to play against then Newcastle with the Toon likely to do little more than park the bus.

It seems too romantic that he will score, but like he showed on international duty, he lives for these occasions.

His mere presence will improve everyone around him.

The Glazers couldn’t do more this window to make United title contenders.

No excuses for Ole. United at least have to challenge.

Watford 0- 1 Wolves

Wolves have lost all 3 League games so far but understandably their manager is not worried due to their level of performance.

Each fixture they have lost 1-0 despite making the majority of chances.

They can’t keep playing like that and failing to take their chances. They are due some luck.

Saints 2-2 West Ham

Be interesting to see how West Ham cope with the schedule of being in Europe.

Most Hammers are worried their squad is too small to cope with fixtures such as a trip to the South Coast, 4 days before a flight to the Ukraine.

Surely, they need to embrace the Europa League, and if that impacts on their domestic form then it’s worth it?

Chelsea 2-0 Villa

Arsenal went down to 10 men at the Etihad and surrendered

Compare that to Chelsea’s second half display later in the day at Anfield when they had a man sent off.

Defensively they have belief and Lukaku is the signing that makes them City’s biggest contenders.

No Martinez or Buendia ends Villa’s hopes of an upset.

Leeds 1-3 Liverpool

This will be another fixture where Leeds will be entertaining, but Bielsa will get questioned for not fixing them defensively.

If they play ‘you play, we play,’ Liverpool’s front three will eventually have too much quality.

Everton 3-1 Burnley

Monday night, floodlights on, expectant Evertonians who will want to see their team take the initiative against Burnley.

Long-term, I thought Benitez wasn’t the man to manger those expectations. So far though so good.

He’s playing a more positive brand of football then I imagined, and so far Grey looks like a bargain.

THIS WEEKS SCOREBOARD

Top 32 Qualify for the World Cup

Mambo 33

Samson 31

Angus 29

Stephanie 29

Kedar 27

OsloGunner 27

Turbo 26

Ernie Blaze 26

Toney 26

Rob49-26

Voyageur 26

Adiva 26

Dotash 25

Me 24

Goonersia 24

Sid 24

Sue 24

I 23

Admin 23

AdamJim 23

PJSA 23

Blue 17-23

Khadi 22

gotanidea 22

Terrah 22

BA THEA 22

Edu 22

Phenom 21

Ackshay 21

J Gunner 21

Onyango 21

Gunner Rey 21

Owei 21

Easyguys 21

Dhoni 21

Matthew 20

Uzil Ozil 19

Gogo 19

Kev 82-19

Declan 19

Prince 19

Hackiubee 19

Elvis 19

Third Man JW 18

Sue P 18

Shakir 18

Seroti 18

HH-17

Famochii 17

Drayton 16

Instrooments 16

Phil 16

Indian Gunner London 16

Illiteraite 16

Sagie 16

kobin 15

MTG 15

Okobino 15

Rusty 14

Guy 14

Abbas 14

SJ 14

Lucia 14

Dan Kit 13

Dunchiradho 13

Zeek 13

Splendid 13

Adeski 12

Kuz 11

Montana 11

Baron 11

Diddie 11

Goonersia 10

Kenya001-10

Timonthy 10

Davars 10

Abbas 9

Tom 9

Quincy Okebe 7

Labass 7

Geo 7

Yayo 6

Musa 6

Gooner 19-6

David 6

Toney 5

Charlie 5

Famochi 5

Btg 5

Lisg 5

Kelvin A-5

Kondwani Tyson 4

Collins 4

Leno Happy 4

blue 17 4

Girl 2

Varka 2

More must-reads:

TODAY'S BEST
Mass confusion surrounds Bucks guard's wrist injury
Hornets shut down star guard for remainder of the season
Panthers two-time Pro Bowler expands on defense of Bryce Young
Yankees place ace on 60-day injured list
Bills sign veteran defensive tackle
Did breakup with J-Lo cost Alex Rodriguez the Timberwolves?
Saquon Barkley: Eagles were 'no-brainer' pick despite interest from AFC South contender
Guardians trade for two pitchers to round out Opening Day roster
Timberwolves make major decision regarding ownership
MLB, MLBPA make decision on Rays' All-Star SS
Yankees reporter critiques team for 'crazy idea' regarding star slugger
Browns GM names player he wants to 'retain as long as possible'
Watch: Ref blows crucial foul call, costs 76ers chance to spoil James Harden's return
Elly De La Cruz surprises fans with latest interview
Shaquille O’Neal takes brutal shot at Nets’ Ben Simmons
NBA outlines reason behind Draymond Green's latest ejection
Watch: Rockets player trolls Warriors after 10th straight win
Sweet Carolina! Panthers bring home former No. 1 overall pick
Dodgers signing catcher to 10-year extension
Insider shares major update on return of 76ers' Joel Embiid

Want more FC news?

Join the hundreds of thousands of fans who start their day with Yardbarker's Morning Bark, the best newsletter in sports.