Yet another fascinating English Premier League weekend comes stacked with local hostilities, as well as jeopardy at both ends of the EPL table, with the run-in to the climax of the campaign looming.
Manchester City versus Liverpool has been a dynamite fixture at the top of the Premier League in recent years.
But this season’s Etihad Stadium edition on Sunday afternoon could spell the end of City’s slender grip on their EPL crown.
The reigning champions are 17 points adrift of Arne Slot’s leaders, albeit with a game in hand, but collapsed to a Uefa Champions League exit at the play-off stage in midweek, while the Reds were picking up another point on the road in their odds-on title charge.
A quirk of the fixture list throws up a second M62 contest in the north west – and one with an altogether different sense of drama.
Everton welcome Manchester United to Goodison Park for the final time on Saturday lunchtime, ahead of their long-awaited stadium move to Bramley-Moore Dock in the summer.
And they do so a point and a place above their flailing visitors, thanks to a sterling resurgence in form since the reappointment of David Moyes as manager.
The wily old Scot won’t mind piling the misery on the Red Devils either, after his ill-fated Old Trafford spell from which he left Goodison for the first time nearly 12 years ago.
Current incumbent Ruben Amorim is cutting an increasingly desperate figure thanks to three losses in their last four, leaving them an unthinkable 15th in the EPL standings.
Arsenal are the nearest challengers to Liverpool at the top and can, at least temporarily, close the gap to five points on Saturday.
But they’ll have to safely negotiate a London derby to do so, with West Ham the visitors to the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners have won three on the spin and the Hammers will likely have to rely on the derby spirit, having lost three of their last winless four to leave a relegation scrap on the table.
Saturday evening’s Premier League kick off is another tasty one, with Chelsea going to Aston Villa.
The pair are locked in combat for continental qualification but are both mired in inconsistency in recent weeks, coming into the weekend sixth and ninth in the table.
Another pair of stuttering teams in the European mix are Newcastle and Nottingham Forest, who meet in Sunday’s other EPL game at St James’ Park.
Three defeats in four for the Toon Army and two-in-three for Forest, have seen the pair slip from the sharp end, although they both remain right in the mix going into a fascinating clash on Tyneside.
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou has managed to reduce the heat, for the time being at least, around his tenure in north London thanks to back-to-back victories.
Those six points have hoisted Spurs up to the dizzy heights of 12th in the table, with a trip east to Portman Road and relegation-threatened Ipswich their next task on Saturday.
One of the more genteel London derbies, meanwhile, could also have top six consequences as Fulham welcome Crystal Palace to Craven Cottage.
A run of nine points from a possible 12 has kept Marco Silva’s men right in the hunt for a return to European football, while the Eagles are contentedly bobbing along in midtable.
Brighton are only two points shy of the Cottagers and will be confident of capitalizing on any slip-ups above, as they head along the south coast to face rock-bottom Southampton.
The Seagulls recovered in style from their 7-0 drubbing at Nottingham Forest, by stuffing Chelsea 3-0 at the Amex Stadium at the start of last weekend.
While they did so, the Saints returned to losing ways at St Mary’s Stadium, leaving them on a miserable tally of nine points and with time very quickly running out.
Down the road at Bournemouth fans are pinching themselves at a campaign that has left them fifth in the table and a point behind Pep Guardiola’s City.
They will back themselves to maintain that run when they play Wolves at the Vitality Stadium, with the visitors just two points above the drop zone ahead of their visit to Dorset.
The weekend kicks off on Friday night in the East Midlands when Leicester play host to Brentford.
Ruud van Nistelrooy is desperate for points for his Foxes in their relegation scrap, while the Bees have won two of their last three to reignite their hopes of a top half finish in recent weeks.
Fixtures and results
Latest table
All latest EPL Predictions
All latest EPL Predictions
Leicester City v Brentford
| Result prediction | Brentford to win |
| Over/Under prediction | under 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / Brentford to win |
| Team to Score prediction | Brentford |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | n/a |
Everton v Manchester United
| Result prediction | Everton to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Everton / Everton to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | Beto(Everton) I. Ndiaye(Everton) A. Diallo(Manchester United) |
AFC Bournemouth v Wolverhampton Wanderers
| Result prediction | AFC Bournemouth to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | AFC Bournemouth / AFC Bournemouth to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | J. Kluivert(AFC Bournemouth) D. Ouattara(AFC Bournemouth) |
Arsenal v West Ham United
| Result prediction | Arsenal to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Arsenal / Arsenal to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | Mikel Merino(Arsenal) |
Fulham v Crystal Palace
| Result prediction | draw |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / draw |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | J. Mateta(Crystal Palace) |
Ipswich Town v Tottenham Hotspur
| Result prediction | Tottenham Hotspur to win |
| Over/Under prediction | under 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Tottenham Hotspur / Tottenham Hotspur to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | n/a |
Southampton v Brighton & Hove Albion
| Result prediction | draw |
| Over/Under prediction | under 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / draw |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | K. Mitoma(Brighton & Hove Albion) Y. Minteh(Brighton & Hove Albion) |
Aston Villa v Chelsea
| Result prediction | Chelsea to win |
| Over/Under prediction | under 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / Chelsea to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | O. Watkins(Aston Villa) |
Newcastle United v Nottingham Forest
| Result prediction | Nottingham Forest to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Nottingham Forest / Nottingham Forest to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | A. Isak(Newcastle United) C. Wood(Nottingham Forest) |
Manchester City v Liverpool
| Result prediction | Manchester City to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / Manchester City to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | E. Haaland(Manchester City) P. Foden(Manchester City) Omar Marmoush(Manchester City) Mohamed Salah(Liverpool) |
Brighton & Hove Albion v AFC Bournemouth
| Result prediction | AFC Bournemouth to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | AFC Bournemouth / AFC Bournemouth to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | K. Mitoma(Brighton & Hove Albion) Y. Minteh(Brighton & Hove Albion) J. Kluivert(AFC Bournemouth) D. Ouattara(AFC Bournemouth) |
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Fulham
| Result prediction | Fulham to win |
| Over/Under prediction | under 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Wolverhampton Wanderers / Fulham to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | n/a |
Crystal Palace v Aston Villa
| Result prediction | Crystal Palace to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Aston Villa / Crystal Palace to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | J. Mateta(Crystal Palace) O. Watkins(Aston Villa) |
Chelsea v Southampton
| Result prediction | Chelsea to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / Chelsea to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | n/a |