A new era is about to begin at the Theatre of Dreams, but until Ruben Amorim is sworn in as Erik ten Hag's Manchester United successor, Ruud van Nistelrooy will be at the wheel for this weekend's Premier League main event.
The Red Devils - fresh from a 5-2 thumping of Leicester City in the EFL Cup - host Chelsea in Sunday afternoon's headline encounter, which comes a couple of hours after an equally tantalising battle between Champions League contenders Aston Villa and pretenders Tottenham Hotspur.
Before all of that, though, Manchester City and Liverpool jostle for position at the summit of the Premier League table; the champions have a date with Bournemouth while the Reds are at home to Brighton & Hove Albion, a few days on from defeating the Seagulls 2-1 in the EFL Cup.
Newcastle United's clash with Arsenal at St James' Park on Saturday lunchtime is a brilliant way to kick off gameweek 10, and a West London derby between Fulham and Brentford is on the menu for Monday night.
The next round of Premier League fixtures means the next Sports Mole prediction competition, and our opponent this weekend is Louisa Roach, the lead singer of She Drew The Gun and a die-hard Everton supporter.
Read on to find out our and Louisa's predictions for all 10 Premier League matches this weekend, as well as discovering who prevailed in last weekend's competition with Maddox Jones.
Newcastle vs. Arsenal
Saturday, 12.30pm
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Louisa: Newcastle 1-3 Arsenal
Sports Mole: Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal
Not since the days of Steve Bruce have Newcastle failed to score in successive Premier League home games, and the Magpies are squaring up to an Arsenal side that have lost their defensive steel over the past few weeks.
However, Arteta was able to rest more of his key names for the midweek EFL Cup triumph, and those fresh legs could make the world of difference for the Gunners, who have our vote to leave St James' Park with a narrow win under their belts.
Liverpool vs. Brighton
Saturday, 3pm
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Louisa: Liverpool 2-0 Brighton
Sports Mole: Liverpool 3-1 Brighton
Goals at both ends of the pitch are usually a guarantee whenever Hurzeler's Brighton are involved, but the Seagulls' attacking success in midweek should mean little against the meanest defence that the Premier League has to offer.
As Slot is likely to revert to his strongest possible XI - even with Bayer Leverkusen on the horizon - Liverpool should return to winning ways in the Premier League with relative ease.
Ipswich vs. Leicester
Saturday, 3pm
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Louisa: Ipswich 2-2 Leicester
Sports Mole: Ipswich 2-2 Leicester
Neither side could be separated in two tight Championship encounters last season and another closely-fought contest could be in store this weekend, although goals are to be expected as the two teams have already conceded a combined 37 league goals this term.
Ipswich are desperate to pick up their first Premier League win of the campaign and will view this fixture as a good opportunity to do just that in front of their own fans, but we are backing Leicester to claim at least a share of the spoils against the Tractor Boys, who have already dropped 10 points from winning positions this season.
Nott'm Forest vs. West Ham
Saturday, 3pm
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Louisa: Nott'm Forest 1-1 West Ham
Sports Mole: Nott'm Forest 2-1 West Ham
Nottingham Forest's hopes of success on Saturday could depend on whether top scorer Wood and star midfielder Gibbs-White are fit to feature. If they are, then that would significantly strengthen a Tricky Trees outfit currently in high spirits and one that may just do enough to claim maximum points against an inconsistent West Ham side.
Southampton vs. Everton
Saturday, 3pm
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Louisa: Southampton 0-1 Everton
Sports Mole: Southampton 1-2 Everton
Everton capitalised on a poor Ipswich performance to record their first win on the road since December in their last away outing, and facing another newly-promoted side struggling near the bottom should give them some confidence of moving further away from trouble.
Under Dyche, the Toffees have enjoyed playing against possession-based outfits, and Martin will certainly not change his philosophy at Southampton, and that could bite them again here if the visitors are able to take the chances which will undoubtedly come.
Bournemouth vs. Man City
Saturday, 3pm
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Louisa: Bournemouth 0-1 Man City
Sports Mole: Bournemouth 1-2 Man City
Bournemouth will view Saturday's contest as one of their best opportunities to claim their first-ever win against an injury-riddled Man City side, and they enter this fixture in high spirits after getting the better of Arsenal and drawing with Aston Villa last time out.
It is difficult to completely write off the Citizens, though, considering their exceptional record against the Cherries, and even though they are understrength, there is still quality at Guardiola's disposal and they may just do enough to come out on top in this one.
Wolves vs. Crystal Palace
Saturday, 5.30pm
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Louisa: Wolves 2-0 Crystal Palace
Sports Mole: Wolves 2-1 Crystal Palace
Saturday's clash pits a Palace side whose Premier League games have seen the least goals (17) against a Wolves team whose matches have seen the most (37), and the latter's penchant for finding the back of the net should finally propel them to a long-awaited win.
O'Neil's men will have had a full week's worth of recovery under their belts, and we cannot see how a fatigued Palace team ruing injuries to two key cogs in Wharton and Eze can obtain anything from their trip to Molineux.
Spurs vs. Aston Villa
Sunday, 2pm
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Louisa: Spurs 1-2 Aston Villa
Sports Mole: Spurs 2-2 Aston Villa
Spurs and Villa's EFL Cup exploits should not be taken at face value, as a strong Lilywhites team squared up to a weakened City side, while Villa made numerous changes to meet Crystal Palace's A-team.
With Postecoglou's men proving near-flawless at home in recent weeks and Villa finding the net for fun on the road, Sunday's game should be a terrific watch for the neutrals, and we think this one has a high-scoring draw written all over it.
Man Utd vs. Chelsea
Sunday, 4.30pm
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Louisa: Man Utd 0-0 Chelsea
Sports Mole: Man Utd 2-2 Chelsea
As pitiful as Chelsea were at St James' Park, Maresca's A-team will surely show more attacking bite than their B-team counterparts at Old Trafford, and Van Nistelrooy cannot fix Man United's defensive problems overnight.
However, if Wednesday is anything to go by, the hosts have been given a new lease of life in the attacking third, and we believe that Sunday's blockbuster will live up to the pre-match billing in a high-scoring stalemate.
Fulham vs. Brentford
Monday, 8pm
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Louisa: Fulham 2-2 Brentford
Sports Mole: TBC
Louisa Roach Q&A
How did you come to support Everton and what are your favourite memories from your time as a fan?
My grandad heard that me and my brother had been going to a few Tranmere games so thought he'd take us for our first trip to Goodison. It was the 94-95 season and as soon as the ground roared when Amokachi scored we were Evertonians. We won the cup that year which has to be up there as it's been a long time of not winning silverware since. I guess bringing my son to the games, winning survival battles, the community spirit. Playing an acoustic version of spirit of the blues at the Goodison Sleepout recently was fun.
Who have been your favourite five players for Everton?
Neville Southall. Leighton Baines. Kanchelskis. Duncan Ferguson. Seamus Coleman. Pretty decent five-a-side team there.
What's going on with the band at the moment?
We've got a new album out in two weeks and a UK tour in February so it's all about that right now, the new tune washed in blue has just come out, I keep telling people it's about the time I left an Everton sock in my white wash, see what you think.
She Drew The Gun's latest track 'Mirrors' is available to stream now.
You can follow She Drew The Gun on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter).
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. Everyone Says Hi's Nick Hodgson (13pts | Gameweek 1)
4. Blitz Vega's Kav Sandhu (10pts | Gameweek 5)
5. Trampolene's Jack Jones (9pts | Gameweek 4)
= Kneecap's Mo Chara (9pts | Gameweek 6)
7. Kids in Glass Houses' Iain Mahanty (6pts | Gameweek 7)
= proFESSional's Rob Hennebry (6pts | Gameweek 8)
9. Maddox Jones (4pts | Gameweek 9)
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
