This weekend in the Premier League should be quite an interesting one. Chelsea and Manchester City are currently tied for first in the league. There is nothing separating the two sides, as they have the same record (14 wins 2 losses 4 draws) and are tied in Goals For (44) and Goals Against (19). This, of course, causes them to be tied in Goal Differential (25) and Points (46). Another thing to note this weekend is that many teams will be without key players due to their participation in either the Asia Cup or Africa Cup of Nations with their respective national teams. Here is a rundown of all 10 games we will see this weekend. (All times are in ET)
Liverpool @ Sunderland: Sat, Jan 10- 7:45 am
Both these teams are coming off of FA Cup wins against lower-tier sides. Sunderland beat second-tier Leeds United 1-0 on Saturday and Liverpool beat fourth-tier AFC Wimbledon 2-1 on Monday. Liverpool have had a substandard start to the season but have not lost in their last four games and currently sit in 8th place. Sunderland, on the other hand, only have three wins on the season and are currently in 14th place. Liverpool will be without key defender Kolo Touré, who is representing Ivory Coast at the Africa Cup of Nations. The last match between these two sides ended in a 0-0 draw.
Queens Park Rangers @ Burnley: Sat, Jan 10- 10:00 am
This is a battle at the bottom of the table. Burnley are fighting to escape relegation territory while QPR are in 16th and have not shown a lot to be proud of this season. QPR won the last meeting between these two 2-0.
Newcastle @ Chelsea: Sat, Jan 10- 10:00 am
This is a big game between the league leaders (tied with Manchester City) and 10th place Newcastle United. This may look like a mismatch at first glance, but Newcastle is one of only two teams to beat Chelsea this season. However, if they want to achieve this again, they will have to do it without manager Alan Pardew, who recently left the team to manage Crystal Palace, star striker Papiss Cissé, representing Senegal in the Africa Cup of Nations, and defensive midfielder Chieck Tioté, representing Ivory Coast. Newcastle is also recovering from a 1-0 FA Cup loss to last-place Leicester City. Chelsea are also 9-0-0 at home this season, so it will be a much tougher battle for Newcastle this time around.
Manchester City @ Everton: Sat, Jan 10- 10:00 am
Everton have looked very poor so far this season. They sit in 13th place and American goaltender Tim Howard is out with an injury. Everton's most recent game was a 1-1 draw against Weat Ham in the FA Cup, while Manchester City scored a stoppage-time winner to defeat second-tier Sheffield Wednesday in its FA Cup match. Manchester City will be playing without midfielder Yaya Touré, who has been crucial to the team, especially recently, with injuries to strikers such as Sergio Aguero. Touré has provided goal support as the team has gone the last eleven games without a loss.
Aston Villa @ Leicester City: Sat, Jan 10- 10:00 am
Leicester are in last place with three wins and Aston Villa are in 12th with 5 wins, which is understandable due to their tough schedule so far. Leicester are coming off an FA Cup win to Newcastle but will lose Jeff Schlupp and Riyad Mahrez to the Africa Cup of Nations and Aston Villa will lose Australian Chris Herd.
West Ham @ Swansea: Sat, Jan 10- 10:00 am
These are two teams who have performed unexpectedly well this season and are both in the top half of the table. Swansea will be without very important players Wilfried Bony and Ki Sung-yueng, playing for Ivory Coast and South Korea, respectively. West Ham will lose Cheikhou Kouyaté to Senegal, and his fellow countryman Diafra Sakho was expected to go alongside him, but is suffering an injury. West Ham are lucky to retain star Cameroonian midfielder Alex Song who will not be playing in the Africa Cup of Nations due to poor relations with the Cameroon manager.
Hull City @ West Bromwich Albion: Sat, Jan 10- 10:00 am
Hull City and West Brom are in 15th and 17th, respectively. Both teams need a result to avoid being sucked into the relegation zone. West Brom's last game was an 7-0 FA Cup win over fifth-tier Gateshead and Hull suffered a 2-0 defeat to Arsenal.
Tottenham @ Crystal Palace : Sat, Jan 10- 12:30 pm
This will most likely be the first chance for fans to see up-and-coming American defenseman DeAndre Yedlin play for Tottenham. Tottenham currently sits in fifth place and is favored to win against lowly Crystal Palace, who are in
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