Premier League Predictor: Round 8 Picks

Like many other Superbru players, I quite enjoyed Round 7 of the Premier League. Bournemouth's draw with West Ham was the only result I had wrong and United's 1-1 draw with Arsenal in the final game handed me a much needed Exact for the round.

Round 8 is of course unlikely to be quite as straightforward and I have found myself predicting a couple of upsets! Here are my thoughts on each Round 8 game.

Brighton vs. Tottenham

Tottenham look really low on form, confidence and quality at the moment so this is definitely an opportunity for Brighton to pick up a point or three. The Seagulls haven't wont since the opening day but they'll definitely have the confidence to keep the ball and try and hurt this Spurs side and I can see them getting something from the game. Tottenham's problems appear to be at least partially linked to the contract situations of certain key players such as Eriksen, Vertonghen and Alderweireld and when that's the case, there often isn't a quick fix. Prediction: Brighton 1-1 Tottenham

Burnley vs. Everton

Burnley are back to looking hard to beat this season and Everton are one loss away from Marco Silva being on the brink in my opinion. You never quite know what you're going to get from the Toffees and there's a chance they turn up at Turf Moor and dominate as they did last season, but the safer pick is for them to struggle again. If Burnley get the first goal in this match I can see Everton heads dropping and it could become a comfortable afternoon for the hosts if so. Prediction: Burnley 2-0 Everton

Liverpool vs. Leicester

This one should be very interesting. Leicester managed a 1-1 draw at Anfield last season and I think they could be the first team to take some points off the Reds this season as well. The Foxes look very organised as well as threatening in attack under Rodgers and Liverpool may be even weaker defensively than they've appeared already at times this season with Matip expected to be ruled out of the game. I'm going for a repeat of last year's scoreline. Prediction: Liverpool 1-1 Leicester

Norwich vs. Aston Villa

With home advantage, Norwich will fancy their chances here. Daniel Farke's side have been very dangerous at home and certainly look as though they'll score goals. Aston Villa have also got goals in them but have lost all three of their away games so far this season - this one is arguably more winnable than most but if Norwich can beat City at Carrow Road, they've a very strong chance against Villa too! Prediction: Norwich 2-1 Aston Villa

Watford vs. Sheffield United

I'm a little torn on this one. Watford pretty much have to win just to get three points on the board and finally end what has been an awful start to the campaign but on the other hand, Sheffield United look impressive on the road! With an international break coming up after this round, Watford really will be feeling low if they fail to win this game as they'll have a long time to think about the dropped points ahead of some tricky fixtures when domestic football returns. I'm backing the Hornets simply because they're due a victory but I'm certainly not confident on this one. Prediction: Watford 2-1 Sheffield United

West Ham vs. Crystal Palace

Aside from that win at Old Trafford, Palace haven't looked too threatening away from home so far this season (a big contrast to their last campaign!) so I feel fairly comfortable picking West Ham. Fabianski's injury is a worry for the Hammers and they'll certainly concede more goals as a result in my opinion but they should be OK here, especially with Milivojevic suspended for Palace. In Anderson, Haller and Yarmolenko you have three very dangerous attacking players, capable of hurting any Premier League team. Prediction: West Ham 3-1 Crystal Palace

Arsenal vs. Bournemouth

This is a fixture that Arsenal have found quite easy in recent years and I think they'll win again this time. I thought Emery was a little too negative at Old Trafford on Monday night as you're never going to get a better chance to beat Manchester United away. The Gunners have the players to seriously hurt teams but they didn't seem too disappointed with a point and you can now expect Ceballos and his creativity to start this game instead and there's also the potential for Bellerin and Tierney to finally get some PL minutes. Prediction: Arsenal 2-0 Bournemouth

Manchester City vs. Wolves

Well done to Wolves who followed up an important Premier League win last week with an impressive 1-0 victory away at Besiktas on Thursday. However, this isn't really the fixture you want waiting for you after the long flight back! City have had much more time to prepare for this game and are obviously the far stronger side. I expect them to get the job done. Prediction: Manchester City 3-0 Wolves

Southampton vs. Chelsea

Southampton will be frustrated by their last two results as they weren't good enough at home to Bournemouth and then perhaps should have got something against 10 men at Tottenham last time out. They now face a Chelsea side who are looking increasingly sharp and who are likely to score goals in this match. I think the Saints may be able to find a goal themselves but unless it's the first one, they're unlikely to trouble Chelsea here. Prediction: Southampton 1-3 Chelsea

Newcastle vs. Manchester United

This final game is a lot harder to pick than it should be! Both teams are in a real mess and I suspect neither side's fans will be feeling particularly confident as they head to St James' Park. United will perhaps feel this is the perfect fixture to get back on track but is it unreasonable to suggest Newcastle may feel the same way? Man Utd have looked so unimaginative in possession and both Martial and Pogba remain doubts for this match. I can't bring myself to pick Newcastle or even a draw after their sorry showing at Leicester last week but I do feel a little uncomfortable picking United to win even this game at the moment. Prediction: Newcastle 0-1 Manchester United

Best of luck in Round Eight!