New Delhi: The final day of mid-week the Premier League clashes is here and Matchday 21 ends with two games in the late night. The title race has tightened over the course of this gameweek as Arsenal closed in on the top of the table with just a difference of four points between the Gunners and Liverpool, who played a draw with Nottingham Forest.
A win for Nottingham though would have kept them at the fourth but would have brought them equals to Arsenal, divided by points difference. Newcastle United have been on a nine-game winning streak across competitions and their win against Wanderhapton Wolves puts them in the final Champions Trophty qualifications spot, going ahead of Chelsea.
Ipswich Town vs Brighton and Hove Albion (1:00 AM IST)
Thursday night football.#IPSBHA | @Nustone_UK pic.twitter.com/UD74rreAsf
— IPSWICH TOWN (@IpswichTown) January 16, 2025
Ipswich Town will host Brighton and Hove Albion for the first time in four decades. Earlier in the season, they had played a goalless draw. The Tractor boys are on thin ice, just above the relegation place and are level with Wolves on points. Taking four points from their last two games, Ipswich’s last two games include a win against Chelsea and almost had taken all three points from Fulham. On the back of these four points, Ipswich are ahead of Leicester City and are threatening Everton now.
Brighton have drawn their last four games which is a feat last achieved by Fulham in the 2020-21 season. At the FA Cup against Norwich City, Brighton, though, managed to break the streak and hopefully be able to break the jinx of their inability to win against the bottom four-placed teams. A win would also ensure that they get back to the top ten. The Seagulls had moral victories in drawing against Aston Villa on their home soil and against Arsenal as well.
Predicted XI
Ipswich Town: Walton; Johnson, O’Shea, Woolfenden, Greaves, Davis; Morsy, Cajuste; Broadhead, Delap, J Clarke
Brighton & Hove Albion: Verbruggen; Veltman, Dunk, Van Hecke, Estupinan; Baleba, Ayari; Gruda, Enciso, Mitoma; Welbeck
Early predictions
Ipswich Town 1-2 Brighton and Hove Albion
Manchester United vs Southampton (1:30 PM IST)
Matchday at the Theatre of Dreams 🏟️✨#MUFC || #MUNSOU
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) January 16, 2025
At the Theatre of Dreams, Manchester United will come in with a new belief, having defeated Arsenal in the FA Cup third round and played a draw against Premier League leaders Liverpool earlier at Anfield in what can be seen as their revival this season. The draw put an end to the three-game losing streak that United were facing in the competition. A worrying statistic is that they have failed to win the last six of their games within 90 minutes, but Ruben Amorim will still feel confident with his side.
Southampton are still at the bottom of this table having won just one game this season. Their return to the top flight hasn’t gone in their favour, taking just six points, which is the lowest a team in the Premier League has ever taken after 20 games. After replacing Russell Martin in the middle of the season, Ivan Juric has seen three consecutive defeats in the top flight including a 5-0 loss to Brentford at home last time around.. The Saints though have a point to cheer as they managed to progress into the fourth round of the FA Cup after beating Swansea City.
Predicted XI
Manchester United: Onana; De Ligt, Maguire, Martinez; Mazraoui, Ugarte, Mainoo, Malacia; Diallo, Fernandes; Hojlund
Southampton: Ramsdale; Harwood-Bellis, Bednarek, Wood; Bree, Ugochukwu, Fernandes, Walker-Peters; Dibling, Archer, Sulemana
Early predictions
Manchester United 3-0 Southampton
Where to watch Premier League Matchday 21 fixtures?
As Premier League Matchday 21 gets underway, fans can enjoy all the action either on television or by streaming. The matches will be available on the Star Sports network and those who prefer to stream can catch the games live on Disney+ Hotstar.
Here’s a detailed preview and predicted lineups of Premier League Matchday 21 fixtures for Thursday, as the final two fixtures of the midweek matchday gets underway. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
