What the Fans Are Saying – Gameweek 12

This article tries to answer the question ‘What the fans are saying’ for the Gameweek ahead by delving into their forums and unearthing their predictions of how the games will be played.

Fans Predictions

There’s an atmosphere of optimism among Man United fans, who think their side will get the better of Arsenal.  They have a psychological edge over the Gunners and manager Jose Mourinho’s record against Arsene Wenger is offering further hope. Although Zlatan Ibrahimovic is banned it could be a blessing in disguise as United should prosper from using pacey forwards against Arsenal. Their only worry is their defence. It’s a bit of a shambles and they don’t trust most of their back four. 

Arsenal fans are a bit traumatised by their record at Old Trafford. It’s not good and they guess it could be a draw. They are happy with their team though but are worried how their defence will cope without right back Hector Bellerin. Some are suggesting a back three may be deployed, but that is extremely unlikely. The Gunners fans can’t make up their mind about what the scoreline will be. The referee is Andre Marriner, who is notorious for bookings, so there could be sending off in this game they think. Expect a derby style encounter.

Fans of Watford say both their side and Leicester will be looking for a win in this fixture. It just depends which team turns up on the day. They’d like Isaac Success to play; they rate him quite highly. Even though they were trounced 6-1  at Anfield in Gameweek 11 they weren’t happy with the international break, which they feel can mess up their side’s rhythm. They don’t even guess at the scoreline in this game, in contrast to their Foxes counterparts.

Leicester fans are pessimistic. They think they’ll lose, perhaps 2-0 or 3-0. They can’t agree what formation to use with some wanting to go back to 4-4-2 with others calling for 4-3-3. They are worried by Troy Deeley’s goal threat and believe the Hornets could be in aggressive mood, after their humbling last time out.

Confidence is purring out of Sunderland ahead of the Black Cats’ encounter at home to Hull. A win against Bournemouth last time out has buoyed spirits but there is one caveat, as Hull have been something of a bogey team for the north east side in the past. A loss here would back the early season sense of despondency but overall Sunderland fans are fully expecting to win.

Hull fans like this fixture and think they’ll get a result. Most are going for a score draw, with others hoping for a win. Very few think they will lose. 

Fans of Southampton fear Phillipe Coutinho and Daniel Sturridge, who often score against them. Liverpool’s pace frightens them and all the ex-saints players will probably do well, just to annoy them. They are mostly scared of Coutinho because the Saints don’t trust any of their right backs and they always give him a lot of space to shoot from outside the box. They do agree it will probably be a 3-0 loss but games don’t always go to plan. Injury doubts to Coutinho and former Saint Adam Lallana will offer them some hope.

Liverpool fans are impressed by Southampton forward Sofiane Boufal. Perhaps they can buy him next season to carry on their Scouts love affair with the Hampshire side. Reds supporters are a little worried by this fixture aslast season it started a downward spiral in form.  The Saints aren’t in good form and the match will be decided by whether their Brazilian maestros Roberto Firmino and Coutinho are available. They seem optimistic nevertheless.

Whatever their formation and line up Stoke fans have all decided they’ll beat Bournemouth. With Geoff Cameron confirmed as out and Glen Whelen a doubt they anticipate that Joe Allen will be pushed into a more defensive role. They still see a win on the cards with y 2-1 or 3-1 the most popular predictions.

Bournemouth fans feel their side was hard done by in this same fixture last season.  They didn’t play well and they deserved more so hopefully they can turn Stoke over this time around. It’s half and half though. There are still a lot who think it will just be a 2-0 loss. The Cherries fans are very happy with where they are in the Premier League table. For a mid table table team this could be the kiss of death though where they go on a bad run.

Optimism is tempered among Everton fans. Even though the believe Swansea to be truly awful they have a bad feeling about this game. The defensive midfield rock Gareth Barry is suspended and their team looks in need of  a shakeup. They aren’t finding a good, fast tempo in games of late, which has to change. They do think they’ll win though, albeit slightly or maybe a draw but it won’t be a hammering. It could be an ugly game. They are happy that Leighton Baines is back. Perhaps he can change their fortune? 

Swansea fans are on Everton’s side as they suggest they’ll lose. They don’t even believe they will score in this game. They have turned hugely on Bob Bradley and feel the side has got worse since he took charge. His tactics of focusing on defending while 3-1 down against Manchester United in Gameweek 11 have particularly annoyed them.

Fans of Crystal Palace have given their side not a single hope of beating visitors Manchester City. They think Alan Pardew should play a defensive midfielder but instead he will probably play an open game and get ripped apart. They are even talking of a 5-0 loss. If they defend the way they have been doing it will be a massacre. They just want to improve the defending in this game. 

Man City fans have noticed Crystal Palace’s home form isn’t good but City don’t think they’ll keep a cleansheet in this game. They have to put away their chances more and even though the fans want any win, they do see a lot of goals here. They want Nolito to start for that reason as he gives them good balance. There will be rotation over the coming weeks but it’s more to keep the players fresh. Kevin De Bruyne specifically will be used in many different positions throughout the season, they believe.

Fans of Spurs say their game against West Ham is too easy not to get three points from. They say West Ham are rubbish and are buoyed by the return from injury of  Harry Kane. Spurs are also ready to score big against someone and it could be this game, especially as the Hammer’s midfield schemer Dimitri Payet looks off form. A 3-0 or even 4-0 victory is being predicted by the Tottenham faithful.

West Ham say they might turn up for this game because it’s a big game. Ok, that is their only hope. They have lost a bit of faith with their players at the moment and can’t see anything other than a loss. They aren’t looking forward to it and fear it could be a drubbing.

A 4-3-3 formation is predicted by Middlesbrough fans against Chelsea. This does well against the big teams as it floods the centre with three holding midfielders and leaves Adama Traore and Alvaro Negredo as primary outlets. They say Chelsea are the best team in the league and that they’ll probably lose but they hope for another defensive masterclass. They predict a 2-0 loss though mainly.

Chelsea fans say ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ and expect to field the same team that has kept so many clean sheets and scored so many goals of late.  Middlesbrough are another defensive minded team that can’t score so they expect to win. They seem extremely content with their chances here and it should easily be 2-0 or 3-1.

Fans of  West Brom say Burnley will sit very deep and Tony Pulis will be too scared of the counter attack to commit many men forward. Therefore they can’t see anything other than a 0-0 bore draw. They’d love to push on after their great result against Leicester in Gameweek 11, but they can’t see it. They have seen many horror shows under Pulis where they were supposed to beat a lesser team so they aren’t expecting much. However, they do like their attack. If it’s on song they could get a couple of goals.

Burnley fans want to win away from home. They’d love to have a go at West Brom but they probably won’t. Burnley can counter attack with pace so it could be possible to change formation away from home and attack more. But they all decide that because their home form is so good they probably will continue in the same way away from home. In other words, it will probably be a sleep inducing draw with the Baggies.

Conclusion

According to the fans there will be a huge win for Manchester City because Pardew will try to go toe-to-toe with City. I think midfielders will do the best this Gameweek and a lot of draws are on the cards.

Who to captain? The fans would suggest Sergio Aguero or Harry Kane but I am punting on Kevin De Bruyne. He should get something. I believe Man City should do very well but I think the goals will come from the midfield.