eBusiness Weekly
Somehow, after what feels like the longest season in existence, we are closing on the end of the 2022-23 Premier League.
Some teams have 10 games left, others have 11, or 12. Brighton even have 13.
The international break has provided the perfect moment to reset.
It’s also provided the opportunity for predictions and to consider, just for a second, the boldest things that could happen before we see the trophy lifted aloft.
Arsenal to Go Unbeaten for the Remainder of the Season
I apologise to anybody who believes in football jinxes for writing the above.
Even thinking it could make a lot of Arsenal supporters nervous.
The big goal is to win the Premier League, obviously. But with the way Arsenal are playing… is it out of the realm of possibility to suggest they could do so without losing another game?
Mikel Arteta has 10 games left to navigate, with an eight-point lead over Manchester City, who can cut it to five if they win their game in hand.
As harsh as it may sound, anything other than a title win now would be a huge disappointment for a brilliant young squad who have played the most thrilling and cutting football in the division this season.
You’d expect Arsenal to walk through home fixtures against Leeds, Southampton and Wolves.
You’d also expect them to top Brighton and Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium.
Away trips to West Ham and Nottingham Forest? They’re huge favourites.
The big three tests that remain are journeys to Newcastle, Manchester City and Liverpool.
This Arsenal team are resilient. They work harder than we’ve seen any Arsenal side do in recent years, digging in when matches are tough to get a result.
Arteta has built a togetherness and understanding that means even if an important player is missing, Arsenal still manage to largely play the same way.
It’s a bold prediction, but Arsenal getting the job done in the dullest way possible by not suffering defeat feels like the climax their season deserves.
Liverpool to Make the Top 4
Liverpool’s exit from the Champions League actually frees them up to concentrate on the most important aspect of their season: qualifying for next season’s Champions League.
Yes, Reds fans would have wanted to remain in Europe’s elite competition, but after a terrible season, the outside shot Jurgen Klopp’s side have at finishing in the top four is the most vital thing to latch on to.
Liverpool’s results continue to be all over the place. After the 7-0 destruction of Manchester United, you’d have put your house on them to push on and clinch fourth.
They followed this with defeat to Bournemouth, though, then a second loss in as many matches to Real Madrid.
Klopp faces a defining run to the end of the campaign with his team in sixth, seven points behind Spurs, who have played two games more and will be expecting a new lease of life now that Antonio Conte has gone.
Newcastle could prove to be the real danger, though, and currently sit five points ahead of Liverpool on equal games played. The biggest hurdle is immediately on the horizon.
In the next three games, Liverpool face Man City and Chelsea away before inviting league-leaders Arsenal to Anfield.
Spurs travel to Merseyside on April 30th for a match that is likely to highlight or scribble out whether or not this prediction is still on.
Perhaps it’s just the club’s incredible consistency and competitiveness in recent years, or perhaps it’s naivety. I just expect leadership figures like Mohamed Salah, Virgil Van Dijk and Andrew Robertson to drag this club through to the end.
Liverpool look great when things click. They are thrust forwards with the exuberance of Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nuñez, two players who will elevate the team’s overall output if they can find consistency.
It’s still an experienced squad, one that is used to achieving great things, hunting down teams that do not have that level of experience.
It’s going to be tight, but it’s not over yet for the Reds. Erling Haaland to Score 40 Goals Honestly, you could probably make this section “Erling Haaland to Score 50 Goals” and you’d still have people arguing it’s not that bold.
The Man City striker has 28 goals with 27 games played, meaning he needs a measly 12 in the remaining 11. It’s ridiculous this even seems possible.
At this point, the difficulty of City’s fixtures don’t really seem to matter for Haaland. He is a constant threat against anyone when his teammates open up their passing range and look for his runs, rather than constantly recycling for the perfect opportunity.
City need to maintain pace with Arsenal for this to come to fruition. If the Gunners wrap things up early and City are still in the Champions League, Pep Guardiola’s attention is likely to turn to winning the trophy that still eludes him away from Barcelona.
Haaland’s game time may suffer as a result.
Haaland faces Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium on April 26th.
Should City come through that within touching distance, the Norwegian phenom should be in place to become the first man in history to hit 40 Premier League goals in one season.
The fact it just seems inevitable he will break the current record of 34 is hilarious and an indictment of a man whose stunning debut season won’t be topped for a long, long time.
West Ham to Escape Relegation on Goal Difference After meticulously going through each of the relegation candidates’ remaining fixtures, I have come up with a bold prediction that feels like it would win you a tidy sum if you bet on it right now:
West Ham to remain in the Premier League by goal difference, the finest of margins.
My extremely scientific method of “doing predictions on gut feeling” has Southampton accumulating seven more points, leaving them bottom on 30 points.
I predict Bournemouth and West Ham will get nine more points each, moving them both to 33. The magic ball also says Leicester City will pull themselves clear with 15 more points, while Nottingham Forest only get seven more, putting them on the same total as Bournemouth and the Hammers.
This is where it gets dramatic.
West Ham may currently reside below Forest, but they are 17 goals clear on minus 10.
While I don’t expect them to do well by any means, Forest are in trouble of doing slightly worse, putting them down to the Championship in the process.
Points to be equal, but GD to be heavily lopsided in favour of David Moyes’ men, leaving them clutching onto their place in the top flight.
Expect the relegation battle to go right down to the final match, and indeed, the final goal. — bleacherreport.com
