Announcement: Matchday 16, prediction included
On Premier League Analysis, you can find previews of the Matchday 16 Premier League fixtures to be played on Sunday, 14 December 2025. We will provide our commentary on these matches, as well as our predictions for the final results.
Crystal Palace – Manchester City
Crystal Palace have found their rhythm in Europe, completely dismantling Irish side Shelbourne in midweek with a convincing three-goal victory. The team is in perfect form ahead of Sunday afternoon’s clash with Manchester City. In addition to the dominant win over Shelbourne, Palace were also better than Fulham away from home and managed to beat Burnley on the road, taking advantage of that team’s poor form.
A lot has been said about Manchester City in recent weeks — they have been everywhere in the headlines — but the truth is that this club are playing fantastic football.
No team in the world would willingly engage in an open, attacking game against them. Real Madrid, Fulham, and Sunderland have all felt this first-hand, while defeats to Bayer Leverkusen and Newcastle now feel like a distant past.
To be clear and precise, Manchester City are the stronger side compared to Crystal Palace, and they need a win to close the gap at the top of the table. We believe City are superior and will manage to secure a victory against Crystal Palace in London.
Prediction: Manchester City will beat Crystal Palace.
Nottingham Forest – Tottenham
Nottingham Forest defeated Utrecht in their European match, which lifted team morale following last week’s setback against Everton and the heavy 3–0 defeat at Liverpool.
Forest is fighting for survival, and anything they gain in Europe is a bonus. Sean Dyche’s side were also helped by another defeat for Burnley, whose disastrous form continues. Dyche has been an important person in the Burnley football club’s history as a coach who has led the club for one decade.
Nottingham Forest sit two points above West Ham, currently the first team outside the relegation zone. However, a heavy defeat against Tottenham would be catastrophic. Tottenham arrive in Nottingham in good spirits and do not face the same pressure to win as Forest does. Spurs, who are now very solid after many problems with form, are unlikely to attack relentlessly for the full 90 minutes, and we believe a draw is the most realistic outcome.
Prediction: Nottingham Forest and Tottenham will draw. We are giving chances that both teams will score a goal in this match.
Sunderland – Newcastle
Sunderland and Newcastle are fierce rivals, but we have not seen this derby for a long time, as both teams have rarely shared the top tier in recent years. Their last meeting came in the FA Cup in 2024. Tyne–Wear derby will again be played in the Premier League on Sunday, in the 16th Gameweek of the Premier League.
Sunderland is the biggest surprise of the season in the Premier League. Promoted last year from the Championship, their mature and disciplined football has won many admirers, and they have become a team no one wants to face.
Their challenger is their great rival Newcastle, who have consistently delivered strong performances in the Premier League for several seasons.
We predict a Newcastle victory in this derby and believe that Sunderland can only take a point with an exceptional effort.
Prediction: Newcastle will take advantage of its stronger roster and team and will overcome Sunderland at the derby.
West Ham – Aston Villa
West Ham picked up valuable points away against Manchester United and Brighton. They remained unbeaten in those matches, lost at home to Liverpool, survived against Bournemouth, and managed to earn an important point dramatically.
Victories over Burnley and Newcastle have kept their survival hopes alive. In their last six matches, they have lost only once, with three draws and two wins.
This time, Aston Villa come to London, and points are essential for West Ham, who have spent weeks in the danger zone. Even with a potential win, they would still need Nottingham Forest to fail to beat Tottenham in order to escape the relegation zone.
West Ham are in relegation trouble and desperately need three points at home. However, they face an Aston Villa side that is anything but ordinary. Aston Villa have won their last eight matches in all competitions, defeated Basel in Switzerland during the week, overcame league leaders Arsenal, scored four goals away at Brighton, and have won every match since 1 November.
On paper, this is an extremely difficult task for the team led by Nuno Espírito Santo. We believe West Ham will lose this match and will need to look for points in upcoming fixtures.
Prediction: Aston Villa will beat West Ham United without so many difficulties and will gain all three points here.
Brentford – Leeds United
In the previous two rounds, Brentford were in a comfortable league position due to the large number of points they had collected, which made defeats to Arsenal and Tottenham easier to absorb. However, the table now separates them by only four points from today’s opponent.
A Leeds United victory would take them to 18 points and could drag Brentford into the relegation battle — something that would be far from ideal for the club managed by Keith Andrews. Last week, Brentford faced their former manager Thomas Frank, who knows them extremely well, and suffered a 2–0 defeat.
Leeds showed character against Chelsea and Liverpool, improving their overall impression after a poor run of results. The team now looks better than it did in many previous weeks. We trust Leeds’ compactness in the past few weeks, and give advantage to them. Leeds United is our favorites here for three points.
Prediction: Leeds United will use their good form and secure a win over Brentford.
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