The Manchester derby headlines gameweek 31 of the 2024-25 Premier League campaign, with Manchester United welcoming Manchester City to Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon for a blockbuster affair.
Man United are currently languishing down in 13th spot in the Premier League table, while Man City are fifth, with qualification for next season's Champions League far from secure at this stage of proceedings.
Liverpool, who are 12 points clear of second-placed Arsenal at the summit, will be bidding to take another huge step towards the title when they head to Fulham on Sunday afternoon, while Arsenal will open the weekend's action in the early kickoff at Everton.
Aston Villa against Nottingham Forest at Villa Park is another standout fixture, with that game taking place on Saturday evening, while a West London derby sees Brentford host Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.
The action in this round of matches will then conclude on Monday, with Leicester City hosting Newcastle United.
Another Premier League gameweek means another Sports Mole prediction competition, and this week, we are facing off against Paddy Boyd - lead singer/guitarist of Northern Irish alternative rock quartet The Florentinas, who is a Liverpool fan.
Read on to discover Paddy's and our predictions for gameweek 31, as well as finding out the results of our head-to-head with Chris Buck from electrifying Welsh-formed rock trio Cardinal Black from gameweek 30.
Everton vs. Arsenal
Saturday, 12.30pm
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Paddy: Everton 0-3 Arsenal
Sports Mole: Everton 1-1 Arsenal
While Everton are not exactly renowned for prolific displays in front of goal, the Toffees will sense an opportunity to go at Arsenal's ravaged backline, who will surely not come out of this one unscathed.
Arteta's men may understandably also have one eye on Real Madrid too, and avoiding more injuries before the clash with the European champions is of paramount importance, so the visitors may be content with a score draw in this one.
Crystal Palace vs. Brighton
Saturday, 3pm
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Paddy: Crystal Palace 1-3 Brighton
Sports Mole: Crystal Palace 1-1 Brighton
The last five meetings at Selhurst between these two have ended 1-1, and there is a real possibility that they could set a new intriguing top-flight record, with little to separate the two in recent months.
Brighton play earlier than Fulham below, and the four sides above them, so they have the opportunity to put the pressure on their European rivals, but this will be a tough assignment against an ever-improving Palace outfit.
Ipswich vs. Wolves
Saturday, 3pm
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Paddy: Ipswich 2-1 Wolves
Sports Mole: Ipswich 1-3 Wolves
Ipswich have struggled at Portman Road for some time and have shipped four or more goals in four home Premier League matches this season, more than they had in their first five seasons and 101 home games combined in the division between 1992-93 and 2001-02 (three), something which will give Wolves hope of success this weekend.
Both teams have had their spirits lifted by midweek victories and goals at both ends could be on the cards, but we are backing Wolves to claim another crucial win to all but secure their top-flight status for next season, even without the presence of Cunha in attack.
West Ham vs. Bournemouth
Saturday, 3pm
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Paddy: West Ham 0-1 Bournemouth
Sports Mole: West Ham 1-2 Bournemouth
Scoring the opening goal could be crucial in this fixture for West Ham as they have won all five of their Premier League games at the London Stadium when they have scored first, compared to eight defeats in nine matches when conceding the opener (D1 L8).
There has been little to separate these two teams in recent meetings and another tight contest could be in store, but considering that Bournemouth have more to play for heading down the home straight, we are backing the Cherries to come out on top by a slender margin.
Aston Villa vs. Nott'm Forest
Saturday, 5.30pm
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Paddy: Aston Villa 2-1 Nott'm Forest
Sports Mole: Aston Villa 2-1 Nott'm Forest
Premier League fixtures hardly come more fascinating than this; both Villa and Forest are enjoying exceptional winning sequences, and Saturday's evening battle may very well be a precursor to the FA Cup final.
On this occasion, however, we envisage Emery's men flexing their Villa Park muscles and capitalising on Forest's away-day defensive woes to come up trumps, thus putting a slight dent in their visitors' Champions League prospects.
Brentford vs. Chelsea
Sunday, 2pm
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Paddy: Brentford 1-1 Chelsea
Sports Mole: Brentford 2-2 Chelsea
Chelsea will be desperate to end their seven-game winless away league run this weekend, but having had to settle for draws on their last two trips to the Gtech Community Stadium, we think they could experience a familiar result in Sunday's fixture.
Fulham vs. Liverpool
Sunday, 2pm
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Paddy: Fulham 1-2 Liverpool
Sports Mole: Fulham 1-2 Liverpool
No Liverpool fan should head south brimming with unbridled confidence; hosts Fulham still have plenty to play for, will be working with a day's extra rest and are not short of options for change up front.
However, there is no way of knowing which version of Silva's men will show up at home - the stingy or sloppy one - and we still expect the Reds to clear another obstacle on the title path, but not without a fight.
Spurs vs. Southampton
Sunday, 2pm
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Paddy: Spurs 3-2 Southampton
Sports Mole: Spurs 3-1 Southampton
Expect a slightly weakened Spurs side to take to the field this weekend as Postecoglou prioritises the Europa League, not that it should make much difference to the final scoreline.
As pitiful as Tottenham's performance was in midweek, a refreshed set of options should comfortably condemn Southampton to their 25th Premier League loss of the season, one that might officially punch their ticket to the 2025-26 Championship.
Man Utd vs. Man City
Sunday, 4.30pm
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Paddy: Man Utd 2-2 Man City
Sports Mole: Man Utd 0-2 Man City
A saying that has and will be repeated many times in football, form can sometimes go out of the window on Manchester derby day, but we are not expecting the unexpected in this Guardiola vs. Amorim head-to-head.
Even with Haaland watching on helplessly, the champions still boast significantly more firepower than their formerly noisy neighbours, whose defensive vulnerabilities at Old Trafford should be exposed again as City paint the city blue.
Leicester vs. Newcastle
Monday, 8pm
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Paddy: Leicester 0-4 Newcastle
Sports Mole: Leicester 0-2 Newcastle
Newcastle may not be able to deploy their most fearsome attack at the King Power Stadium, but the EFL Cup winners still have our vote to condemn Leicester to that familiar sinking feeling.
As lethal as Van Nistelrooy was in his playing days, his current side are anything but, and the Foxes will likely have made unwanted English football history by the full-time whistle.
Paddy Boyd Q&A
How did you come to support Liverpool and what are your favourite memories from your time as a fan?
Paddy: Like most people, I ended up following in my dad's footsteps. He's a massive Liverpool fan so naturally that's who I ended up supporting. Although the love I have for the club is definitely my own now. My favourite memories so far have to be that 2019 Champions League campaign, especially the 4-0 win over Barcelona and that [Divock] Origi winner in the final.
I can remember watching it unfold so clearly in the Empire in Belfast. The whole place erupted. I was also lucky enough to make a trip to Anfield this season to see us beat Bayer Leverkusen. We were sat in the away end however, so we had to keep our celebrations as muted as possible. It still didn't take away from a special night with my dad.
Who have been your favourite five players for Liverpool?
Paddy: My favourite five players have to be based on who I watched growing up, so no disrespect to any of the legends who came before! My list is as follows:
1. Steven Gerrard
2. Luis Suarez
3. Fernando Torres
4. Roberto Firmino
5. Alisson Becker
Torres would have been top of my list as a hopeful seven-year-old but after his move to Chelsea he lost a lot of brownie points for me.
What's going on with the band at the moment?
Paddy: We're just back from a European tour supporting Snow Patrol which was absolutely incredible. We never thought we'd be playing such massive venues so early on in our career. The whole trip was so surreal. We also just released our fifth single, 'For You' which has been doing really well.
Having spent all of 2024 writing and recording an album it feels brilliant to have the first of that batch out in the world. We're overwhelmed by the love it's received so far. The plan is to get the remainder of the songs mixed and mastered so that they're good to go.
We're so proud of how they all sound and we're itching to share them with everyone. We're also lining up some cool shows at the moment too and we plan to hit the U.K. later on this year. Things are very exciting right now.
'For You' by The Florentinas is available to stream now.
You can follow The Fiorentinas on Instagram and X.
2024-25 SEASON LEADERBOARD (ARTISTS)
Scores are calculated as one point for a correct result and five points for a correct scoreline.
1. Kyle Starkey (16pts | Gameweek 3)
2. Make Friends' Max Lewin (15pts | Gameweek 2)
3. Kids Return's Clement (14pts | Gameweek 27)
=. Mychelle (14pts | Gameweek 28)
5. Everyone Says Hi's Nick Hodgson (13pts | Gameweek 1)
6. Blitz Vega's Kav Sandhu (10pts | Gameweek 5)
7. Trampolene's Jack Jones (9pts | Gameweek 4)
= Kneecap's Mo Chara (9pts | Gameweek 6)
= The Slow Readers Club's James Ryan (9pts | Gameweek 20)
= Alex Spencer (9pts | Gameweek 21)
= Better Joy's Bria Keely (9pts | Gameweek 22)
12. Feet's Harry Southerton (7pts | Gameweek 13)
= IN PARALLEL's Harrison Baker (7pts | Gameweek 15)
= HIMALAYAS' Joe Williams (7pts | Gameweek 25)
15. Kids in Glass Houses' Iain Mahanty (6pts | Gameweek 7)
= proFESSional's Rob Hennebry (6pts | Gameweek 8)
= Solar Eyes' Glenn Smyth (6pts | Gameweek 24)
18. Cardinal Black's Chris Buck (5pts | Gameweek 30)
19. Maddox Jones (4pts | Gameweek 9)
= The Farm's Peter Hooton (4pts | Gameweek 18)
= Danko's Lewis White (4pts | Gameweek 23)
= The Pale White (4pts | Gameweek 26)
23. She Drew The Gun's Louisa Roach (3pts | Gameweek 10)
= The Now's Shane Callaghan (3pts | Gameweek 17)
= Chilli Jesson (3pts | Gameweek 11)
= PG Ciarletta (3pts | Gameweek 29)
27. Soft Launch's Josh McClory (2pts | Gameweek 12)
= My First Time's James Mellen (2pts | Gameweek 14)
= Apollo Junction's Ben Hope (2pts | Gameweek 16)
2024-25 COMPETITION HISTORY
Gameweek 1: Everyone Says Hi's Nick Hodgson 13-14 Sports Mole
Gameweek 2: Make Friends' Max Lewin 15-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 3: Kyle Starkey 16-13 Sports Mole
Gameweek 4: Trampolene's Jack Jones 9-9 Sports Mole
Gameweek 5: Blitz Vega's Kav Sandhu 10-11 Sports Mole
Gameweek 6: Kneecap's Mo Chara 9-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 7: Kids in Glass Houses' Iain Mahanty 6-3 Sports Mole
Gameweek 8: proFESSional's Rob Hennebry 6-7 Sports Mole
Gameweek 9: Maddox Jones 4-10 Sports Mole
Gameweek 10: She Drew The Gun's Louisa Roach 3-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 11: Chilli Jesson 3-8 Sports Mole
Gameweek 12: Soft Launch's Josh McClorey 2-3 Sports Mole
Gameweek 13: Feet's Harry Southerton 7-10 Sports Mole
Gameweek 14: My First Time's James Mellen 2-8 Sports Mole
Gameweek 15: IN PARALLEL's Harrison Baker 7-2 Sports Mole
Gameweek 16: Apollo Junction's Ben Hope 2-3 Sports Mole
Gameweek 17: The Now's Shane Callaghan 3-6 Sports Mole
Gameweek 18: The Farm's Peter Hooton 4-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 19: N/A
Gameweek 20: The Slow Readers Club's James Ryan 9-14 Sports Mole
Gameweek 21: Alex Spencer 9-7 Sports Mole
Gameweek 22: Better Joy's Bria Keely 9-6 Sports Mole
Gameweek 23: Danko's Lewis White 4-3 Sports Mole
Gameweek 24: Solar Eyes' Glenn Smyth 6-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 25: HIMALAYAS' Joe Williams 7-8 Sports Mole
Gameweek 26: The Pale White 4-8 Sports Mole
Gameweek 27: Kids Return's Clement 14-22 Sports Mole
Gameweek 28: Mychelle 14-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 29: PG Ciarletta 3-12 Sports Mole
Gameweek 30: Chris Buck 5-7 Sports Mole
Matt Law
