The standout match from the latest set of Premier League fixtures comes from North London, as Tottenham Hotspur welcome Liverpool to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Liverpool will be bidding to cement their spot at the top of the Premier League table with a win, while wounded champions Manchester City will be aiming to bounce back from their Manchester derby defeat when they tackle Aston Villa.
Elsewhere, title hopefuls Arsenal head to Crystal Palace in a repeat of Wednesday's EFL Cup quarter-final, which the Gunners won 3-2, while Chelsea are in action away to Everton on Sunday afternoon.
Manchester United, meanwhile, will be aiming to make it successive wins in the Premier League when they welcome a talented Bournemouth outfit to Old Trafford for an intriguing contest.
Another Premier League gameweek means another Sports Mole prediction competition, and this week, we are facing off against Man United fan and season-ticket holder Shane Callaghan - lead vocals/guitar in Welsh indie garage rock band, The Now.
Read on to discover Shane's and our predictions for gameweek 17, as well as finding out the results of our head-to-head with Ben Hope - bass player for electro indie rock band Apollo Junction - from gameweek 16.
Aston Villa vs. Man City
Saturday, 12.30pm
© Imago
Shane: Aston Villa 1-2 Man City
Sports Mole: Aston Villa 1-1 Man City
While City have wobbled, Villa are still vulnerable, so both sides would probably settle for a draw - even if neither manager would admit it. The hosts are harder to beat on home turf and rarely fail to score, so they can extend the champions' long wait for an away win.
Ipswich vs. Newcastle
Saturday, 3pm
© Imago
Shane: Ipswich 1-3 Newcastle
Sports Mole: Ipswich 1-2 Newcastle
Buoyed by two handsome home victories over the past week, we are expecting Newcastle to arrive at Portman Road with a great deal of confidence on Saturday afternoon.
Ipswich have failed to win back-to-back matches in the Premier League so far, and we cannot envisage the Tractor Boys starting that habit against the talented Magpies.
Brentford vs. Nott'm Forest
Saturday, 3pm
© Imago
Shane: Brentford 2-0 Nott'm Forest
Sports Mole: Brentford 3-2 Nott'm Forest
No matter how dire Brentford's situation appears to be when they play away from home, Frank's men always respond with a spectacular attacking performance on their own patch, and Saturday's game should be no different.
A morale-boosted Forest side have our backing to wipe out the Bees' clean sheet, especially with the fresher legs in their ranks, but Santo's men are not at all watertight defensively away from home and should fall just short in a blow to their Champions League chances.
West Ham vs. Brighton
Saturday, 3pm
© Imago
Shane: West Ham 1-2 Brighton
Sports Mole: West Ham 2-2 Brighton
While West Ham have showed a slightly sturdier edge to them in recent home games, an injury-hit Brighton are lacking inspiration at the minute and cannot be relied on to bolt the back door shut either.
Hurzeler's men can often give as good as they get in the final third, though, and their hosts have not shown anywhere near the level of consistency for us to believe that they can finally beat the Seagulls in a Premier League home game; an entertaining stalemate seems the most likely outcome.
Crystal Palace vs. Arsenal
Saturday, 5.30pm
© Imago
Shane: Crystal Palace 0-2 Arsenal
Sports Mole: Crystal Palace 1-2 Arsenal
Both Crystal Palace and Arsenal should only be too familiar with how the other sets up after Wednesday's affair, but while the Eagles' first-teamers may be a little leggy, Arsenal's regular starters will not be battling similar levels of fatigue.
Glasner's men can still trouble a Gunners backline that has conceded in six straight Premier League away games, but Arteta's men still have our vote to make London derby lightning strike twice and ensure that the gap to Liverpool does not expand any more.
Everton vs. Chelsea
Sunday, 2pm
© Imago
Shane: Everton 2-2 Chelsea
Sports Mole: Everton 1-1 Chelsea
Everton are unbeaten in five home league games since capitulating in the final three minutes against Bournemouth, and proved to Arsenal last weekend how difficult they are to break down when they have a fully fit defence.
Chelsea have lost on five of their last six visits here, and even though they have made remarkable progress this season, there is something about Goodison that seems to get the better of them.
Leicester vs. Wolves
Sunday, 2pm
© Imago
Shane: Leicester 2-0 Wolves
Sports Mole: Leicester 2-3 Wolves
On paper, Wolves have the superior squad, especially with the attacking talent in their ranks, and the visitors will hope a new manager bounce can guide them to victory, while Cunha is still available to them.
Just seven goals have been scored in the six PL meetings between the sides at the King Power, but that will almost certainly not be repeated here, given the respective defensive records of the two so far this season.
Fulham vs. Southampton
Sunday, 2pm
© Imago
Shane: Fulham 1-0 Southampton
Sports Mole: Fulham 2-0 Southampton
Both teams have scored in each of Fulham's eight Premier League home matches this season, but that trend will surely be bucked here, even if Southampton do arrive with a new manager bounce.
While the Saints have struggled for offensive inspiration all season, Fulham have not failed to score since the opening day and should make light work of their opponents, whose five-point total if they lose would be the joint second-lowest in Premier League history at Christmas.
Man Utd vs. Bournemouth
Sunday, 2pm
© Imago
Shane: Man Utd 3-0 Bournemouth
Sports Mole: Man Utd 2-1 Bournemouth
Bournemouth had a whopping 29 shots in their stalemate with West Ham, which was not the first time this season that Iraola's men have failed to convert their attacking dominance count into a glut of goals, and such wastefulness could prove fatal at Old Trafford.
As shaky as Amorim's men can be at the back, they have a knack for scoring at the other end and will welcome a handful of refreshed troops back to the XI, so we have faith in Man United to spread some festive cheer around the Theatre of Dreams with a hard-fought three points.
Spurs vs. Liverpool
Sunday, 4.30pm
© Imago
Shane: Spurs 2-1 Liverpool
Sports Mole: Spurs 1-3 Liverpool
Each of Tottenham's last seven contests at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has seen both teams score, and that trend should not cease in Sunday's mouthwatering clash, as Liverpool are looking more defensively frail on the road than they previously were.
However, the Reds are working with an extra day's rest, were able to leave out some of their star names in midweek and face a Tottenham side still missing some of their key defensive cogs. In short, the Slot machine should continue to whirr as Liverpool spend Christmas Day at the summit.
Shane Callaghan Q&A
How did you come to support Man United and what are your favourite memories from your time as a fan?
Shane: I got brought up watching Man United by my father. It was something we would all look forward to on a Wednesday evening, watching United on TV in the Champions League.
Who have been your favourite five players for your club?
Shane: This is such a hard question with there being so many to choose from... [Cristiano] Ronaldo is my number one. Being 28 years of age, I grew up watching him. [Nemanja] Vidic, Ryan Giggs as he's Welsh, Paul Scholes and [Ruud] van Nistelrooy too.
What's going on with the band at the moment?
Shane: We have recently been to Abbey Road Studios to do a live session where we covered a Chappell Roan track called Pink Pony Club. We are gonna now have some time with our families for Christmas and then hit back in 2025 with some new music and a lot of dates.
'Friendly Fire' by The Now is available to stream now.
You can follow The Now 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. 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. Feet's Harry Southerton (7pts | Gameweek 13)
= IN PARALLEL's Harrison Baker (7pts | Gameweek 15)
9. Kids in Glass Houses' Iain Mahanty (6pts | Gameweek 7)
= proFESSional's Rob Hennebry (6pts | Gameweek 8)
11. Maddox Jones (4pts | Gameweek 9)
12. She Drew The Gun's Louisa Roach (3pts | Gameweek 10)
= Chilli Jesson (3pts | Gameweek 11)
14. 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
Matt Law
