We’re forced to wait a gruelling 23 hours between the closure of Premier League Game Week 35 and the commencement of Game Week 36.
The race for the Top Four places continues to heat up with only one point separating Chelsea in 3rd and United in 5th.
At the other end of the table, the fight for survival is looking grim, with both Aston Villa and Bournemouth’s future in the top flight hanging on by a thread.
As always our Premier League Prophet has Previewed all Game Week 36 fixtures and dished up his best betting plays along the way!
Game Week 36 gets underway on Wednesday morning (AEST) when Norwich head to the capital to take on Chelsea.
Both sides come into this contest off the back of embarrassing defeats, Chelsea’s back four had a day to forget against the Blades, while Norwich were put to the sword by Michael Antonio!
The Canaries officially have nothing left to play for after their relegation back to the Championship was confirmed in Game Week 34.
The Blues will be desperate to secure all three points on offer here with five teams vying for the remaining two spots in the top four.
Lampard’s side were kept scoreless for the first time since GW26, while their defensive frailties were laid bare.
Chelsea’s first win of the season came against the Canaries back in GW3, Tammy Abraham scored a double on that occasion to help his side to a 3-2 victory.
With Norwich players already planning their holidays, I’m expecting another high scoring affair this time around.
Next up two of the inform sides take aim at one another, as the Wolves travel to Turf Moor to take on the Clarets.
Burnley continued to surprise the punters in Game Week 35, holding Liverpool to a 1-1 draw.
Sean Dyche’s side has only lost one match since GW22, which was against City, otherwise they have taken nine points away from the likes of Man U, Arsenal, Leicester, Tottenham and Liverpool!
Jay Rodríguez has had his hand in the Clarets last four goals, hitting the back of the net on three occasions while laying off an assist to James Tarkowski for the other.
The Wolves entered the Top Four conversation after claiming a convincing 3-0 win over the Toffees last time out.
Nuno’s side are still four points off the Foxes in fourth, but at the rate Brendan Rodgers side are dropping points they could be in for a sniff come GW38.
These two sides played out a 1-1 draw at Molineux earlier in the season, with both defensive units in impressive form the smart play here is to take on the Unders.
Spurs will be looking to push towards European football with a victory over the Toons at St James Park.
After going six games undefeated, Newcastle have now lost back-to-back fixtures against Man City and more worryingly Watford!
Alternatively, Jose and Spurs have strung together a three game unbeaten run, most recently seeing off their inform North London rivals, Arsenal.
Son Heung-min and Harry Kane have hit the ground running since returning from injury, with the pair having their hand in six of Tottenham’s seven goals post covid.
Based on recent form it’s hard to go past Spurs in this one.
The Cherries kept their slim survival hopes alive in GW35, stunning the Foxes with four unanswered goals.
Unfortunately for Eddie Howes side, they now have to go through a red hot Man City side.
One thing playing in Bournemouth’s favour is that the Citizens will be likely starting their second string side as they prepare for the FA Cup semi final clash against the Gunners.
Although, City’s B Team is more lethal than most other starting 11s in the league, with the likes of Phil Foden, Bernardo Silva and David Silva likely to be deployed.
The head-to-head history between these two clubs is a grim read for Cherrie’s supporters, from a total of nine premier league fixtures the Sky Blues are yet to drop a single point against the Southerners.
Match of the round comes to fruition on Thursday morning (AEST) when the Champions travel to the Emirates to take on the Gunners.
Both sides still have a lot of skin in the game here, Liverpool are looking to break City’s PL points record (100) with anything less than a win throwing their chances into the wind.
Arsenal will be desperate just to finish above their arch rivals Tottenham, who are currently sitting two points above them in 8th.
The FA Cup semis will likely impact this fixture as well, with the Gunners still in the hunt for a much needed trophy.
The Reds will be without club captain Henderson, who will miss the remainder of the season through injury, fortunately Naby Keita has been in sublime form through the middle of the park.
Klopp’s side are undefeated against the Gunners across their last five PL clashes, with Salah netting four goals across that trip.
Brendan Rodgers would have been breathing a sigh of relief today as United dropped points to the Saints.
The Foxes are now sitting inside the top four purely on Goal Difference after dropping 12 competition points since the resumption of play.
Leicester’s worst performance of the season came over the weekend, when they gifted the Cherries their fist win since Game Week 25.
Meanwhile, the Blades have been on a giant killing run, seeing off Chelsea 3-0 in GW34, following wins against Wolverhampton and Tottenham.
To make matters worse for the Foxes, they will be without three of their starting back four, with Soyuncu picking up a red card last time out, while Chilwell joins long term absentee Pereira on the injury table.
I’m expecting the Blades to slice through a wounded Foxes here, taking them one step closer to a Europa League birth.
Aston Villa will be attempting to channel their inner Houdini, when they take on the Toffees at Goodison Park.
The Villans kept their season alive with a win over the Eagles in GW35, although they are still four points below safety with only three games remaining.
Fortunately for Dean Smith’s side, they are coming up against a sub-par Everton outfit who are winless across their last three games.
The Toffees slump into this contest off the back of a 3-0 defeat to the Wolves, where Jordan Pickford continued his campaign to be dropped from the English national side with another diabolical performance.
The home team has been victorious in four of the past five outings between these two sides and although the Toffees have been a pile of steaming hot s*** this season, the Villains have been worse by tenfold.
The Saints are well and truly flying at the minute!
Ralph Hasenhüttl’s boys are now four games undefeated, having taken points away from Man City, Everton and United!
Alternatively, the Seagulls are just six points above the drop zone after getting blown out of the water by both Man City and Liverpool across the last two game weeks.
Southampton hold an impressive record against Brighton, remaining unbeaten against their rivals across all five of their Premier League meetings.
The Saints are currently playing with more confidence than Tom Cruise had on Oprah Winfrey’s show back in 2005 and should be jumping up and down after this clash.
Ole will be ruing a missed opportunity to break into the top four in GW35, with his side conceding a 96th minute equaliser against the Saints.
The United manager would’ve have been looking to rest a few of his star players in this contest, with one eye firmly on their FA Cup semi final clash against the Blues on the weekend.
Unfortunately, he no longer has that luxury, with City’s UCL ban overturn the Red Devils will need to throw everything at securing a top four league finish.
This of course is bad news for the Eagles, who are coming off a less than impressive performance themselves, going down 2-0 to the Villans, who were winless in their nine previous appearances.
United have won their last two matches at Selhurst Park, with both matches going over 3.5 goals.
With Gary Cahill absent through injury, the Eagles backline looks like absolute jelly and I’m sure the likes of Rashford, Martial and Greenwood will be eager to fill their bellies!
Game Week 36 comes to a close when West Ham and Watford look to kick clear of the drop zone.
Both sides are currently sitting on 34 competition points, three points above the Cherries in 18th.
Watford have won back-to-back fixtures against Norwich and Newcastle, while the Hammers claimed all three points against the Canaries with an emphatic 4-0 victory.
Although a win would be massive, even a draw would be hugely beneficial for both these sides, leaving the teams below them with all the work to do.
I believe the fear of losing this contest will outweigh the hunger to win for both the Hornets and the Hammers, as such I’m predicting a dull stalemate here.