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You aren’t going to find two teams that battle it out fiercer than Chelsea FC and Liverpool. The two bitter rivals play in a match that is often referred to as the most intense rivalry in English soccer, and we are set to make our Premier League scores predictions for one of the toughest matches to handicap of the weekend.

As always, when these two teams meet, it is Fernando Torres who is on the biggest display. Torres made a name for himself with Liverpool in its fantastic Champions League run of a few years ago before making the switch to the Blues last January.

Chelsea vs. Sunderland Date/Time: Sunday, November 20th, 11:00 a.m. (ET)
Chelsea vs. Sunderland Television Coverage: FOX Soccer Channel

The Blues are fighting hard to keep their position near the top of the Premier League table, though we must admit that chances of catching table toppers, Manchester City are slim to none with the Citizens boasting a nine point edge on fourth place, Chelsea. Instead, the Blues are going to be focused on maintaining their spot in next year’s Champions League, something that isn’t nearly guaranteed with Liverpool just three points behind and Tottenham level on points with a game in hand.

Recent form is an issue for the Blues, though they did win their final game before the European break, a 1-0 win at Goodson Park against Blackburn Rovers. The last Premier League game here at Stamford Bridge came on October 29th, a 5-3 drubbing that Arsenal laid on the hosts.

However, if you’re looking for an eight-goal outburst this time around, don’t be all that sure. There have only been a grand total of nine goals scored in the last eight matches combined when these two teams have played against one another on the Premier League schedule.

Liverpool remains without captain, Steven Gerrard, but the team has been playing relatively well without him. A scoreless draw against Swansea at home on November 5th was a dud, but before that, the team logged two straight wins on the road. In fact, over the course of the last four road games, the Reds have been perfect, going 4-0-0, as opposed to their last three home games, where they are 0-3-0.

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A team that was once known as having a potentially leaky back four, Liverpool hasn’t allowed a strike in 210 minutes of football since Grant Holt equalized for Norwich three Premier League fixtures ago. If the defense can stay in form, it is going to have a real chance of stealing points at Stamford Bridge.

Though we do think that the Blues are going to be getting back in better form in the weeks to come, we don’t think that they are deserving of being odds on favorites. The Reds are +0.5 on the Asian Handicap line, and you can get +110 odds on them at that price. The outright victory would pay +345.

Normally speaking, when Chelsea FC and Arsenal FC get it on, there is a heck of a lot of hype surrounding the Premier League scores for the game. Though this is going to be a heated battle on Saturday at Stamford Bridge, there is a sense that, at best, these two are competing to be the best team in England outside of the city of Manchester, as both Manchester United and Manchester City are clearly head and shoulders above the pack.

For Chelsea, it is sitting in a comfortable third place on the Premier League table, and there is really no doubt that it is going to be competing in the Champions League again next season. That being said, the Blues are also only a point off of the pace of Manchester United for second, but they have already been smashed by the Red Devils once this season.

The Blues suffered a defeat that they probably won’t live down last week on the Premier League scores, as they were beaten 1-0 against Queens Park Rangers in a match that should have been relatively easy for a road fixture. For a team that is blowing through its first round of Champions League action and is already into the fifth round of the Carling Cup, the defeat was a shock, as it was just the first setback of the season not against Man U.

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There is no doubt that this team is good enough to knock off anyone and everyone in England, especially here at Stamford Bridge. Frank Lampard already has four goals this year, as does Daniel Sturridge. Petr Cech, now totally healthy after missing a few weeks with a training knock two months ago, is still one of the best goalies in the world, and in spite of all of the off the field questions revolving around John Terry, he is still a fantastic captain of this team and is one of the best defenders in the game today.

The Gunners were probably left for dead a few weeks ago, but they have almost eerily quietly rebounded to get back within just a few points of European contention for next season. Since a vicious 8-2 thrashing at Old Trafford, Arsenal has played tremendously better football, beating Swansea City, Bolton, Sunderland, and Stoke to reach 13 points on the campaign. There is no longer a fear of relegation, and there is even a renewed sense that perhaps a deep run in the Champions League could come as well.

Thus far in three fixtures in the UCL, the Gunners have themselves seven points, including a tremendous road victory at Olympique Marseille last week.

Robin Van Persie has been in fine form as well in recent weeks. He netted a two bagger against Stoke City in a game in which he was used off of the bench in more of a gut shot call by Manager Arsene Wenger, which now gives him a tremendous seven goals in 10 fixtures in the Premier League schedule.

These two teams have understandably played each other quite a bit in recent years in cup matches and domestically. The home team won both meetings last year, with Arsenal winning 3-1 at the Emirates and Chelsea winning 2-0 here at Stamford Bridge. In 2009 though, the Blues swept this series, outscoring Arsenal 5-0 in the two games in the process. The last win for the Gunners on the road in this series came by the count of 2-1 in November 2008.

We’re fully prepared to make our Premier League tips on Arsenal in this one. It is catching a full goal on the Premier League odds, and we would even fancy in its form, that it has a decent chance of cashing the 5 to 1 odds that it can take all three points from this match.

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The top of the Premier League table will be determined on Sunday afternoon at Old Trafford, as arguably the two best teams in England duke it out when Manchester United takes on Manchester City in the biggest derby of the year.

Though Chelsea is just a single point behind United and three behind City, there is no doubt that the two sides from Manchester have been the most impressive of all this year. They are two of the three sides that have not been beaten on the campaign (joining the surprises of the Premier League season, Newcastle United), and they have combined to score 52 goals against 12 allowed in eight fixtures apiece.

Nigel De Jong, the heart and soul of this Man City side, claims that his team is traveling to Old Trafford as the table toppers and should be treated as such. And why not? The team has more goals away from home this year (14) than as the guests (13).

The Citizens do have some results that are worth being concerned about this year, though. They were beaten in the Champions League at Bayern Munich 2-0 in a game in which they were thoroughly dominated, and they also only drew 2-2 at Craveners Cottage against Fulham back on September 18th.

Even though Carlos Tevez looks like he will never suit up in the light blue again, this is still a team with some awesome firepower. Man City dropped a pair of goals, including a late winner on Villarreal on Tuesday night in the Champions League, and it has scored at least two goals in all of its Premier League fixtures this year.

Of course, the Red Devils have all of the pride, history, and tradition on their side in this one, and they are hoping to snare three points to get back to the top of the table where they feel they belong.

United was unlucky not to snare all three points at Anfield against Liverpool last weekend, as it was equalized late on in a match that could have been much, much worse. That being said, this isn’t a team that is in fine form right now. A 2-0 win at doormats, Otelul Galati in the Champions League on Tuesday only came courtesy of two penalty kicks by Wayne Rooney, and prior to that, the team only has one win (home against Norwich City) in its last five total matches.

These two teams have already met once this year, and it was a thrilling match to say the least. City took a 2-0 lead in the Community Shield, only to cough that lead up. Ultimately, Man U was able to steal the Cup at the death. Nani, who is emerging as a leader on this veteran side, netted the equalizer in the 58th minute and the winner in stoppage time for the Red Devils.

Probably more thanks to their names than anything else, United gets the slight nod from the oddsmakers in this one at even money to take all three points. We tend to fancy the Citizens though, as they truly might have the best side in England this season and could prove it in the biggest match of the year to date on Sunday.

On Sunday, there is a three pack of England Premier League matches scheduled, and the big time duel is going to be the encounter between Bolton Wanderers vs. Newcastle United. Check out our Bolton vs. Newcastle picks for this week!

Tottenham managed to snare a spot in the Europa League this year by finishing in fifth place in a nervy ending to the 2010-11 English Premier League season. This year, the Hotspur are in sixth with 12 points, but they have a game in hand on virtually everyone in the league after getting their opening weekend fixture against Everton scrapped due to violence in England.

A 2-1 win over Arsenal two weeks ago was just what the doctor ordered. Sure, the Gunners aren’t all that great, at least as of the start of the season, but if Tottenham wants to get into European competition again next year, it is going to have to take a team like Arsenal out, especially in fixtures at White Hart Lane.

Scoring goals hasn’t been all that much of a problem for the Toffies. They have only been held in two matches without a goal, and one of those came at Old Trafford against the table toppers from Manchester United, certainly nothing that is worth fretting over. That was the only bad result on the road for Tottenham this year, as it has two other victories to its credit as guests and actually is in the same form at home as on the road (2-0-1).

This is going to be a tough task against Newcastle. The Magpies were Premier League contenders for years, but they fell off the face of the earth in the past few seasons to the point that they actually spent a year in Coca-Cola Championship.

The news is even better for the Toon right now, as it is figuring out how to keep some of its stars happy. Fabricio Coloccini is expected to ink a new contract in the near future, while Jonas Gutierrez just signed on for four more years.

The end result has seen Newcastle take a rock solid 11 points from seven fixtures without a defeat. There are only four teams in the EPL that can claim that they are still unbeaten.

What we have to remember is that the big guns haven’t come up on the schedule yet. A scoreless draw against a shaky Arsenal side was probably the roughest fixture of the season, though the 1-1 draw at Villa Park against Aston Villa was not to be forgotten about either.

So far this year at St. James Park, the Magpies have wins over Fulham and Blackburn Rovers, and both games were never really affairs that were in much doubt.

Tottenham was able to get three points from two matches in this series last year, though the two fixtures were played in just four weeks’ time.

This year, the oddsmakers are expecting a relatively tight match, as the two teams are on level terms on the Asian handicap, with Tottenham getting the very slight +140 nod to take three points on the road.

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Jack is back with another great game on the English Premier League schedule. Sunday morning will provide us with another big time duel at Reebok Stadium, and we’re set to make our Bolton Wanderers vs. Chelsea FC picks!

Bolton knows that it has a big time problem in this fixture, going against one of the best teams on the English Premier League table. Stuart Holden is going to be out for the mass majority of the rest of the season with his knee injury, which takes one of the best players on this squad out of the lineup.

This is terrible news for the team that sits at the bottom of the table and legitimately faces the prospect of relegation. Bolton only has a 1-0-5 record this year and has played some absolutely pitiful defense on the campaign. The Wanderers have allowed 16 goals, easily the most in the league, and that’s saying something considering the fact that Arsenal allowed eight goals against Manchester United.

What’s rough is how well this season truly started. Bolton dropped the new boys in the EPL, Queens Park Rangers 4-0 at Loftus Road. After that though, it was all downhill from there. The brutal loss came against those pesky Red Devils at Reebok Stadium with a 5-0 loss.

What we do have to remember is that this schedule has been intense to say the least. Bolton has lost to Manchester City, Liverpool, Manchester United, and Arsenal. Of course, we aren’t so sure about that 2-1 home loss against Norwich City… but that’s a different story…

And then there are the Blues, who are truthfully probably a tad disappointed with just four wins in six matches this year. However, what we have to remember is that this team is head and shoulders above the mass majority of the rest of the EPL. Scoring 12 goals in six fixtures is outstanding.

The problems that Chelsea have right now though, are plentiful. We’ll start with the problems on the road. One of those road fixtures came during the middle of the week against Valencia in the Champions League. Now, the Blues have to come back from Spain and hit the road once again to Reebok Stadium in just a span of a few short days.

To make matters worse, the only road win came at Sunderland, and aside from that, there are bad results at Old Trafford against Manchester United and against Stoke City. The team only has three goals in its three road fixtures on the campaign.

And then of course, there is the Frank Lampard saga. There’s still a huge question as to whether Lampard truly stormed off of the bench or not on Manager Andre Villas-Boas. That being said, this is still a solid side with or without Lampard, and it is certainly the superior side in this match.

However, we’re really not all that sure that Chelsea is that much better than the Wanderers are, especially with this match being at Reebok Stadium. Bolton is at full goal underdog, and potentially a goal and a quarter underdog depending on the sportsbook. Don’t be surprised if the Blues end up conceding yet another two points on the road.

Over the course of the last two seasons, Carlos Tevez proved to be an absolutely invaluable player in the Premier League. He has helped developed Manchester City FC into one of the formidable sides in the EPL, and he has a whopping 43 goals to his name since coming over from cross town rivals, Manchester United. However, the Citizens are looking to suspend Tevez into January, potentially signaling the end of his time playing in Manchester once and for all.

Tevez has only played in two fixtures this entire season thanks to fact that there is just such a plethora of strikers up front for the Citizens. At any given time, Manager Roberto Mancini can call upon Sergio Aguero, Mario Balotelli, Edin Dzeko, or Tevez to play up front. Normally speaking, it has been Tevez that has found himself on the bench in these ties.

Needless to say, this was a situation in which the Argentine was not a happy camper. He made his displeasure known throughout England in the media, but the final act of disgrace finally came in a midweek tie against Bayern Munich.

With his team getting completely outplayed on German soil, Tevez reportedly refused to enter the game as a substitute even though Mancini requested that he get into the game. Tevez and his camp suggest that he refused to warm up a second time, as he was seen running up and down the sidelines off the pitch early in the second half.

As a result, Man City has suspended Tevez without pay for the next two weeks. Now, they are looking to see if they can impose that ban all the way into the January transfer season, where they would love to be able to get some sort of fee in exchange for his services instead of just cutting him loose and being without their striker or any money to show for it.

Things could be getting worse for the Citizens as well. The aforementioned Edin Dzeko was awfully unhappy about getting substituted against Bayern Munich as well. Nigel De Jong came on to replace Dzeko, who was noticeably upset and in a yelling match with his manager after the change.

The difference here between the spat with Dzeko and the one with Tevez (which ironically likely would have been what the substitution was had it gone through) was that Dzeko apologized both to his manager in private, and in the public light on Thursday, and all is considered water under the bridge.

Not that there is ever a good time to get into a dispute with star players like this one, but at least the good news for the Citizens is that after this week’s fixture, they are off for two full weeks. Saturday’s clash at Blackburn Rovers could be a feisty challenge though, especially with the team potentially coming in shorthanded and very aggravated with the way that it played against the German powerhouses on Tuesday night.

Liverpool FC definitely has its work cut out for it this week as it tries to get back at the top of the Premier League table. The Reds will hit the road to Goodison Park in a huge Merseyside Derby against Everton.

KopTalk.com, the best website for Liverpool news on the internet, knows that this is going to be a heck of a fixture. Manager Kenny Dalglish is primed and ready to go against the team that he helped destroy in the past in his first tenure with the Reds.

It could mark the return to the lineup for Steven Gerrard, the longtime Reds captain, who has missed the first several matches of the Premier League season due to injury. It would be a fantastic arrival for Liverpool, which badly needs to get back into some sort of form. Sure, it is 3-1-2 and in the fifth position on the table, but there is definitely improvement to be made, and there are two very poor away results already to its credit this season. Needless to say, another drop like that would be awful for the team, and a spot for the time being in European play wouldn’t be an issue.

The Reds only have a 0 goal differential this year, having allowed eight goals against scoring just eight as well. Considering the fact that many of the big boppers haven’t turned up on the slate as of yet, this is a scary proposition.

The Blues aren’t going to be easy fodder even though they have a mediocre 1-1-1 mark here at Goodison Park this year. The team has had a hard time stringing successful results together, as an opening week loss at home against surprising newcomers, Queens Park Rangers was followed by a road win against Blackburn Rovers. From there, it was a costly home draw against Aston Villa, a solid 3-1 victory over Wigan Athletic in what amounted to be the best fixture of the year, promptly followed by the worst 45 minutes of the year in a 2-0 loss on the road against Manchester City.

This match carries some special meaning for both of these sides, and you can bet that neither team is going to give an inch in doing so. Tim Cahill has yet to find the back of the net this year in the EPL, and he hopes that that will change, especially after a rough fixture against the Citizens in which he was knocked around quite a bit and often just was not able to get into the flow of the match.

Everton took four points from two matches against its cross town rivals last year, most notably taking the maximum against the ‘Pool in stunning 2-0 fashion here at Goodison Park.

The visitors are the slight favorites on Saturday morning though, a line that we just don’t agree with. You can find Everton at pk +115 on the Premier League betting odds this week at Bet365 Sportsbook, a line which we most certainly suggest backing.

Dab smack in the middle of the Premier League table, Aston Villa and Queens Park Rangers are trying to make some headway. The two will meet up in English Premiership betting action on Sunday morning at Loftus Road.

QPR had been blanked in back to back matches before taking on the Wolverhampton Wanderers on the road. It was a fixture in which the Rangers were big underdogs, but they came out and absolutely dominated, winning 3-0 in a match that turned out to never be in much doubt. Joey Barton started off the scoring in the eighth minute, and the floodgates only opened up from there. Barton is the man that is really expected to be getting this team off to a good start in EPL action on a regular basis, and if he isn’t creating anything up front, this offense is in a heck of a lot of trouble.

Carlos Cuellar still isn’t ready to come back into the lineup for the Villains, but Aston Villa still knows that it has some potential, even possibly for a European season this year. It is clear that Arsenal is down, and if that’s the case and things really don’t get any better for teams like Tottenham Hotspur, the opportunity really could be there for something special to happen this season at Villa Park.

Picking up four draws and a win in five matches leaves Aston Villa in some unusual company. There are only four teams that enter this weekend with a goose egg in the loss column, and though Villa is ranked the lowest of the four teams, it is still something to be proud of.

Gabriel Agbonlahor has been the hero of this club this year, accounting for three goals of the six that the team has on the campaign. He also has a helper to boot.

Still, Manager Kevin McLeish knows that he has some big time expectations that he has to fill in this job, and picking up three points in a road fixture like this would be incredibly important.

The last time that these two teams met on the pitch was at Villa Park in the 2008 Carling Cup. QPR took out an unimpressive side of backup Villains 1-0 for a huge road ‘W’.

QPR is a narrow favorite on the Premier League odds, as they are +130 favorites to claim the three points at home. However, the Villains are +210, while the draw is set at +225. The ‘total’ is set at a flat 2.5.

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Two of the storied sides in the EPL are going to be squaring off on Sunday in the biggest game on the Premier League schedule this week, as Manchester United faces the Chelsea Football Club!

Right now, it doesn’t look like there is anything out there that can stop any of the Manchester sides. Both Manchester United and Manchester City ended up drawing 1-1 in their first Champions League matches on Wednesday, so perhaps both are there for the taking, but you know that Manager Sir Alex Fergusson was more concerned about this week’s match against the Blues.

The Red Devils are 4-0-0 on the campaign and are a whopping +15 already in goal differential. Rio Ferdinand should be back in the fold this week after missing the UCL affair with Benfica on Wednesday, and he should help out a defense which has been fantastic. The only questionable part of this unit is the play of keeper David De Gea. De Gea was replaced for the first round Champions League duel by Anders Lindegaard, but he will be back in the saddle for this one.

Wayne Rooney already has eight goals scored this year, and he has been so good that his skipper has compared him to the legendary Pele. To put all of that in comparison, Chelsea has seven goals in total in the same four games.

It’s not like the Blues have been slacking, though. They are 3-1-1, and their one draw came at a game Stoke City side trying to prove that it truly belongs in the EPL on the opening day of the season. Since that point, Chelsea FC has won four straight fixtures, including a Champions League tie with Bayer Leverkusen at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.

On this fantastic run of four matches, the Blues have scored nine goals by nine different players. Names like John Terry, Frank Lampard, and Nicolas Anelka have had their share of duels here at Old Trafford, and the hope is that experience against the Red Devils will pay dividends this weekend.

Petr Cech spent two weeks out of action with a knee injury, but he came back last week. Though he couldn’t keep a clean sheet in a 2-1 win against Sunderland, he did leave the donut on the board against Bayer on Tuesday. This is a challenge like he hasn’t seen this season though, and this could be incredibly difficult to keep United off of the scoreboard.

Last year, there were five meetings between these two teams. Man U took down the Community Shield at the outset of the season, and then won three of the four clashes during the season, including both in the Champions League quarterfinals. Chelsea’s lone win was at Stamford Bridge in March, a 2-1 decision. The Blues did beat United in all three 2009 meetings.

Don’t be shocked if this is a close run tie for the entire way. The Red Devils are slender -120 favorites on the three-way soccer lines at Bet365. The ‘total’ has been set at 2.5, over -105.

On Saturday morning, ESPN2 will have another great Premier League live event, as Blackburn and Arsenal streaming is available. We’re set to make our Premier League predictions on this pivotal clash at Ewood Park, as two teams that are really struggling at this point are going to try to turn things in the right direction.

There is still a question as to whether or not Manager Steve Kean is going to be on the sidelines or not. Rovers fans have planned a protest this week to try to get Kean removed as the man in charge here at Ewood Park after an 0-1-3 start to the season. Blackburn currently sits at the foot of the table with just that one point, and it is becoming clear that this is going to be a struggle this year just to stay in the top flight.

There has been a real problem producing goals this year, as the team hasn’t scored more than one goal in a match this year, and it only has three total goals in four matches. Its first point only came on Sunday against Fulham at Craven Cottage. However, an opening match day loss to Wolverhampton here at Ewood Park is still something that this Kean hasn’t lived down, and with a loss in this match (if he even makes it that far), is going to probably be the last straw before he is sacked.

The Gunners surprisingly only have three goals and a -7 differential thus far in four matches on the Premier League table, and they are just in 12th position in a year in which many thought they would at least potentially challenge for the EPL crown.

Manager Arsene Wenger warned last week that a win over Swansea was just what the doctor ordered to get this team back on track. Perhaps he was right. On Wednesday, Borussia Dortmund was heavily favored in the Champions League group stage fixture on German soil, and if not for a late strike by Ivan Perisic, Arsenal would have swiped three points on the road and potentially been well on its way to the knockout round of the UCL.

Still, with Aaron Ramsey likely out of the fold along with a number of defenders, Wenger has his work cut out for him. Robin Van Persie has really stepped up as the leader of this team offensively, scoring a pair of goals, one in the English Premiership, and one on Wednesday in the UCL against Dortmund.

Arsenal definitely has to be careful with this game, as these next three fixtures have the potential to be very, very dangerous. A home date with Bolton Wanderers is coming next weekend, followed by a trip to White Hart Lane against Tottenham Hotspur.

Last year, the Gunners took the trip to Ewood Park 2-1, while the teams played to a lifeless scoreless draw in April at the Emirates. The Rovers do have a win here just two years ago against Arsenal though, winning 2-1 on the second to last match day of the season.

This tea time event at Ewood Park is going to be an interesting one. We aren’t so sure that the Gunners are deserving 0.5 goal favorites at Bet365 Sportsbook, but they have the odds on favorites’ status by the oddsmakers. Blackburn is even money to get at least a point from this fixture. The ‘total’ has been set at 2.5 with only a slight shade towards the ‘under’.