Football Analyst Sutton Faces Off Against Singer Murs in Premier League Predictions
Arsenal's ten-match winning streak was ended by the Black Cats before the global break, but will the English top division leaders recover against north London rivals Spurs this Sunday?
"{I feel like Arsenal are light years ahead of Tottenham currently but Spurs boss Thomas Frank will have a strategy for this game," stated soccer expert Chris Sutton.
"The Spurs manager will attempt to nullify Arsenal, who have not always been at their sparkling finest this season - but Mikel Arteta's side usually still manage to win."
The analyst is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this term, against artificial intelligence, fans and a variety of special visitors.
In the twelfth round, he takes on singer Olly Murs, who is a United supporter.
Murs' latest record, Knees Up, is out on Friday.
Soccer and Parenting Experiences
Murs is a skilled footballer as well as a accomplished artist and has been a featured player of multiple charity football games over time - but he is not planning a serious return as a footballer.
"{I recently played in a charity game the other night for a friend of mine," he explained. "The side was losing 3-1 when I came off in the 60th minute, and they went on to win 4-3, so you can interpret that what you want!
"I still love football, but I hurt my joint a few years ago and it still hasn't fully recovered. I hope I could play more but the uncertainty of the sport means it's too dangerous for me in my profession to do it seriously again.
"Additionally I am forty-one now, and we are not all Cristiano Ronaldo, are we!? No, I am very happy not playing football and I am gearing up for the time that my daughter or son decides to play instead."
Murs and his spouse Amelia Tank have a young family, their daughter and Albert, and he is ready to emulate his dad by taking on the role of their manager.
"I will not force football on our children but I've already told my wife that if they do get the bug for it then I will have to go and get my manager qualifications - and I will likely be managing their weekend soccer team," he said.
"I watched my relatives play a lot, and I really got into it, and I obviously owned a football club for a period too.
"My father did it with us when I was a child, which is probably where I get it from. He managed our team for two or three years and had great fun with it. That might be the future for me as well, and I am looking forward to it!"
Top Division Predictions
Saturday, 22 November
- Turf Moor, 12:30 GMT
The Blues may have to wait a bit longer for Cole Palmer's comeback from injury but their offense is now stronger with Pedro and Delap both returned to fitness.
In my opinion this fixture will be fairly close, however. The Clarets are disciplined and their only at Turf Moor defeats so far have been against Liverpool and the Gunners.
It smells of a 1-1 draw to me, but I am in fact going to go with the London side to edge it for what would be their third consecutive Premier League win in a row.
Sutton's forecast: 1-2
The singer's prediction: The Blues will be too strong. 1-3
Artificial intelligence's outlook: 0-2
- Vitality Stadium, 15:00 GMT
Bournemouth have lost their previous couple matches - albeit both of them were on the road - but they got thoroughly beaten by Villa last time out which surprised me.
In contrast, West Ham won two in a row before the international break and, although both of those games were at home, they appear strong again.
West Ham's sole away win this season came at Nottingham Forest in August, when West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo was previously Forest coach.
Therefore, what exactly do I predict here - can West Ham continuing their run under Nuno, or the home side responding?
I will choose the Cherries, because I think what happened against Villa was a blip.
The pundit's forecast: 2-0
Olly's outlook: The home team are doing well but the visitors have improved under their boss. 2-2
The algorithm's prediction: 1-1
- Amex Stadium, 15:00 GMT
The Bees were seen as one of the favourites for the drop before the season started, but they have impressed a few observers under their manager and are in good form with three wins in their last four matches.
My son advised me to get Brentford forward Igor Thiago in my fantasy soccer squad a few weeks ago and, unfortunately, I ignored the advice.
Thiago will probably find the net again on Saturday but I am still not going to select him or support Brentford at Brighton's ground.
They have not had great fortune on the road this season, and Brighton are always decent at their stadium. The visitors will attempt to hit them on the counter-attack but I think Fabian Hurzeler's side carry much more of a threat.
The analyst's forecast: 2-1
Olly's view: This could be one of those games where you expect there is going to be a many scores but it actually turns out to be rather tight. 1-1
The computer's prediction: 2-1
- Craven Cottage, 15:00 GMT
This is a massive fixture for the Cottagers, who have lost five of their past six matches.
Fulham have got lots of quality in their squad but it nonetheless seems like they could be dragged into a relegation fight.
Regarding the Black Cats, well they are the unexpected success of the top flight campaign so far.
The away side's performance in the 2-2 tie with Arsenal last time out was excellent. We've not seen any other team disrupt the North London side like that this term, and Sunderland were fully competitive for them.
The sensible thing would be to support the visitors here, because they are obviously able of roughing the hosts up too and, the previous occasion they were in west London, they defeated Chelsea at the close of October.
However I am not choose that. Instead, I truly need to carry on opposing the away team with my predictions. I am claiming a lot of credit for their positive results because they clearly love to prove me wrong.
Looking at Fulham's home form, the only team they have been defeated by is Arsenal. Marco Silva's side will be extremely desperate for a positive outcome, so I am going to say they will secure three much-needed points.
Sutton's forecast: 1-0
The guest's prediction: I know Sunderland are doing well and additionally that Fulham are on a poor run... but they have nonetheless been respectable at home this campaign. 2-0
The algorithm's outlook: 2-0
- Anfield, 15:00 GMT
This is a hard one to call. The Reds have suffered seven of their last ten games in every tournament, but could they be one of the teams who profit from the {international break|