Potters pursuing further Gunners glory in Britannia battle
The Premier League continues with another weekend extravaganza of fantastic fixtures to keep you entertained during the Christmas period.
Stoke City will play host to an Arsenal side, 1/2 with Coral for a top four finish, which they have a brilliant record over, with Tottenham (8/1) facing Crystal Palace and Liverpool (3/1) hoping to make it four consecutive wins against Sunderland.
Stoke City v Arsenal
Stoke, 11/4 to gain a victory, have only lost one of their last eight home games against the Gunners in all competitions, with Arsenal’s only previous Premier League away victory at the Britannia coming back in February 2010.
Arsene Wenger’s are on a roll at the moment, winning three consecutive games in all competitions, thanks to a late Alexis Sanchez strike which downed Southampton in a 1-0 result at the Emirates last time out.
Peter Crouch has struck seven Premier League goals against Arsenal previously, and the former England target man is available at 9/4 to net again at any time.
Sensational Sanchez has been pivotal in Arsenal’s season so far, helping them stay within touching distance of the top four, with nine domestic league goals, and the compelling Chilean is 5/1 to bag a brace or better at any time at the Britannia.
Arsene Wenger’s side have narrowly emerged victorious in their last two games, winning by only a single goal, and are 6/1 to come away with another 1-0 result at the weekend.
Struggling Stoke, who are without a win in three Premier League contests, stumbled to a 3-1 defeat in last term’s reverse at the Emirates. Aaron Ramsey was among the goals that day, and the Welsh wizard is 10/3 to net any time in the upcoming showdown.
Tottenham v Crystal Palace
Spurs, odds-on 4/7 favourites, completed the double over the Eagles last season, and Mauricio Pochettino’s men look set to continue that fantastic head-to-head form over their London rivals, with Palace coming into the game on the back of a below-par performance in a 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa.
Rejuvenated Roberto Soldado struck the winner and only goal of the game at Selhurst Park last term, and the super-Spaniard is available at 4/1 to open the scoring at White Hart Lane this weekend.
Poor-form Palace failed to beat Hugo Lloris in the two clashes last campaign, and the fantastic French stopper is 27/20 to keep another clean sheet in the latest contest. Tottenham are a better 9/5 to win to nil.
Liverpool v Sunderland
The Black cats have not beaten Liverpool at Anfield since 1983, and have only won three of their last nine league games against the men from Merseyside, so they are 11/2 to shock their hosts with victory.
Brendan Rodgers’ team, odds-on 1/2 favourites, will be aiming to make it three domestic league victories in a row when they host Gus Poyet’s plucky Sunderland side on Saturday afternoon.
After a terrible run of games that saw them drop into the bottom half of the league, the Reds have picked up six points in successive games against Stoke City and Leicester City, and now find themselves in eighth place.
The Reds have a huge incentive ahead of the clash, with a victory meaning they could move above Swansea City and only two points off fourth spot.
Steven Gerrard has scored 13 goals in the league in 2014, more than any other English player, and the Anfield skipper is 7/4 to strike against Poyet’s men.
