New Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim takes charge of his first game on Sunday, but how will his side line up against Ipswich?
“You hear everyone talking about this marked change in formation he is going to implement,” said BBC Sport’s football expert Chris Sutton. “Will he go with full-backs or wingers as wing-backs, and who will be the three at the back?
“I don’t think he’s got much choice there, but I have heard whispers that Marcus Rashford might be playing as a centre-forward. It will be fascinating to see who is in the starting XI, and where.”
Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against a variety of guests.
For week 12 he takes on The Farm singer and Liverpool fan Peter Hooton.
The Farm’s new single, Forever & Ever, is out now and their new album, Let The Music (Take Control), is released in May 2025.
Do you agree with their predictions? You can make your own below.
The most popular scoreline selected for each game is used in the scoreboards and tables at the bottom of this page.
Hooton has been going to watch Liverpool for more than 50 years and has had a season ticket in the Kop since 1994.
He is enjoying life under Arne Slot, but admits he did not expect the Reds to start so well following Jurgen Klopp’s departure.
“No-one really saw this coming,” Hooton told BBC Sport. “Klopp was obviously a very hard act to follow but Slot has been very impressive.
“What I like about him is that he is so understated. He’s not controversial, or kicking off about anything. Instead he seems to be a typical Dutch manager, and very cool and calm.
“Earlier in the season when we were finding out what he was like, I said we’d had another Bill Shankly with Klopp – this whirlwind of football, a force of nature.
“And now we’ve got someone who is very reminiscent of Bob Paisley – although you can understand Slot a lot better when he talks than you ever could Bob!”
Liverpool’s style of play has evolved too, despite largely being the same team that played under Klopp last season.
“It’s completely different to the way Klopp used to play, where we would have to be 3-0 up before we were were happy that we might win the game,” Hooton explained.
“Now, under Slot, there is more control about it and a lot of that comes from passing around at the back, very much like Manchester City do.
“Everything we do seems calmer, but we can still attack at lightning speed when we get the opportunity.”
Chris Sutton and Peter Hooton were speaking to BBC Sport’s Chris Bevan.
Saturday, 23 November
King Power Stadium, 12:30 GMT
Enzo Maresca is back at Leicester for the first time since he left to take charge of Chelsea in the summer, and I actually think his return will be quite straightforward for him and his side.
Leicester will be pretty happy with the way they have started the season, given they had to replace Maresca, but I still think Steve Cooper faces a hard job to keep them up.
Like a lot of promoted clubs, the Foxes concede too many goals and that is one of the reasons I am backing Chelsea here. The Blues have been in good form under Maresca and this is probably the easiest prediction of the week.
The only thing that makes me question whether Chelsea will win is because you never know quite where teams are after the international break, and also how many of their injured players will still be out.
Cole Palmer was one of them, but I am willing to bet he will start this game. If he is fit, they will have a little bit too much for Leicester.
Sutton’s prediction: 1-3
Peter’s prediction: Chelsea looked like a basket case in the summer but they impressed me at Anfield earlier this month – they had a gameplan and played really well. I texted the Chelsea fans I know, saying ‘crisis over’. Moises Caicedo is looking good and Nicolas Jackson has started scoring but it is Cole Palmer who makes them tick. He is a joy to watch, like a park footballer really – he appears lazy and nonchalant, but he is total class. 1-2
Vitality Stadium, 15:00 GMT
These two teams are the ‘City slayers’ who handed Manchester City back-to-back defeats before the international break.
This is going to be a really good game, and it is very hard to call.
Both sides like to entertain and attack, just with slightly different ways in how they go about it.
There will be goals, but I can’t split them so I am going for a draw.
Sutton’s prediction: 1-1
Peter’s prediction: Brighton really impressed me at Anfield with their one-touch football, but everyone knows Bournemouth are decent at home. I can see both teams scoring a couple of goals and I think both teams would be quite happy with a draw. 2-2
Emirates Stadium, 15:00 GMT
Arsenal cannot keep on dropping points and I would be a little worried about them if Declan Rice is not fit enough to feature here.
But at least Martin Odegaard is coming back to full fitness after his injury, and I feel like he will be the difference.
Gunners fans will be hoping that he can lift the team, and help them look more dangerous in open play.
Sometimes it is only when a player is missing that you realise how important they are to a side, and that has definitely been the case with Odegaard, because Arsenal have not been the same without him in the final third.
Odegaard is their one player who is on a different level when he is on the ball, and almost plays a different game. He has that incredible awareness and understanding that allows him to knit everything together, and Arsenal will need that against Forest.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side will be stubborn and difficult to break down, we know that. They have already beaten Liverpool at Anfield this season, but I think Arsenal will find a way to win.
Sutton’s prediction: 2-0
Peter’s prediction: This is a must-win for Arsenal because they are already off the pace. Mikel Arteta went from everyone wanting him gone a few years ago, to being one of the greatest things since sliced bread, but now the pressure is back on him. Arsenal have got to win but they are at home and they are a different proposition there so I think they will do it, as long as the crowd don’t get too anxious if Forest frustrate them at first.
There is a bit of complacency when teams play Forest because they think they are a bottom-of the-table side, but they are fifth at the moment for a reason, because they have surprised a lot of people this season – including us. 2-1
Villa Park, 15:00 GMT
Aston Villa have lost four in a row in all competitions but Crystal Palace have even more cause for concern.
Logic tells me that Villa will come good, because Unai Emery is a superb organiser of teams and we have already seen long spells of them at their best.
Palace, however, need a drastic improvement on their performances this season because they have been pretty flat so far.
Villa need to click again, but they are at home which will help. Palace’s form is getting pretty desperate under Oliver Glasner, and I don’t see that changing this week.
Sutton’s prediction: 2-1
Peter’s prediction: Villa will be too strong. 3-1
Goodison Park, 15:00 GMT
Brentford are like Jekyll and Hyde, depending on where you play them.
They have the best home record in the Premier League this season, but the second-worst away – they have lost five out of five on the road.
Mind you, Everton’s home form is hardly impressive either. This may be their final season at Goodison Park but they have only won one league game there so far.
So, looking at form does not really help me much here and I am finding Sean Dyche’s side very difficult to predict anyway.
I am going to play it safe and go for a draw, mainly because I think Brentford duo Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo are really talented players who always look like scoring, and the Bees always concede a few too.
Brentford have scored 22 and conceded 22 in their 11 league games and I think they will add two more to both totals on Saturday.
Sutton’s prediction: 2-2
Peter’s prediction: This is a difficult one, really. Three of the past five Everton games have been draws so I think Dyche had decided ‘we are going to be hard to beat’ after they had such a disastrous start to the season, and he has tightened them up a lot.
Brentford are dangerous, but Everton’s last two draws were against Newcastle and Fulham, two decent teams. I was going to go for another draw but I have changed my mind from 1-1 because Everton will probably edge this one. 2-1
Craven Cottage, 15:00 GMT
Wolves got their first win of the season when they beat Southampton before the international break. Matheus Cunha has started scoring and, when I look at their squad, I do think they are good enough to stay up.
I am not backing them here, however. Fulham are flying and regular readers will know I am a big fan of them when they play at home.
Emile Smith Rowe has looked really bright since joining Marco Silva’s side and I am expecting more of the same from him, plus I would not be surprised if Fulham striker Raul Jimenez had a say against his former club.
Sutton’s prediction: 2-1
Peter’s prediction: Wolves have got Cunha scoring again and Jimenez is doing the same for Fulham. If they both play then it is going to be very close but with Fulham being the home team, I am going with them to edge it. 2-1
Etihad Stadium, 17:30 GMT
It’s safe to say Pep Guardiola has severely irritated the rest of the footballing public by agreeing his contract extension with Manchester City.
You can just imagine the groans from Liverpool, north London and the red half of Manchester, because they know how dominant City have been under him.
City are not playing well at the moment, which is why they are on this run of four straight defeats in all competitions. People have been looking at them as if the wheels are coming off, but they are still second and only five points off the top.
I do think Pep’s new deal will give them a boost, and I am expecting them to bounce back.
Tottenham have also been described as a ‘crisis club’ this season but they are still only three points off third place.
The table is so congested that anyone in mid-table who wins a couple of games in a row is going to be right up there, but I don’t see Spurs getting anything at the Etihad Stadium.
There will be goals in this game, because Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou will not change his approach. He has already beaten City once this season, in the Carabao Cup, but I think Pep will come out on top this time.
Sutton’s prediction: 3-1
Peter’s prediction: Spurs can be absolutely fantastic under Ange Postecoglou, and play such swashbuckling stuff. I love watching them, but you just don’t know what you are going to get from them.
As for City, well just like Arsenal against Forest, this is a must-win game for them, before we play them at Anfield next week. I think Pep will make that clear to them, and they will get back to winning ways. 2-1
Sunday, 24 November
St Mary’s Stadium, 14:00 GMT
Liverpool could not have wished for a better start under Arne Slot, whose side are five points clear at the top.
This is a game where everyone is expecting them to easily beat bottom side Southampton, and understandably so.
I am expecting Liverpool to win too, but I don’t think it will be an absolute walloping.
Saints are scrapping and they proved they can be resilient when they lost narrowly to Manchester City at the end of last month, so they can make it hard for Slot’s side too.
Sutton’s prediction: 0-2
Peter’s prediction: I was looking at the Premier League website and not many teams at the bottom have ever beaten a team at the top. There have been 39 games between top and bottom, with bottom only winning four of them and I can’t see this being any different.
My only worry is that a lot of our players will have been in South America but it definitely helps that we are playing on Sunday and have 24 hours more rest. We have got two massive games coming up next week, against Real Madrid then Manchester City, so I think we might be rotating our squad a bit here anyway. Hopefully Slot carries on his pragmatic way of winning games. 0-2
Peter on Liverpool’s lead at the top of the table: Our fans think five points is nothing, it’s got to be 15 before we start thinking about the title. We know how City always come back in the second half of the season because we have had these clashes before. Next weekend’s game [when City go to Anfield] is a big test for us and it is going to be crucial. I think both teams would be quite happy with a draw.
Portman Road, 16:30 GMT
I am guessing this is Amorim’s first visit to Ipswich and he will probably be a bit underwhelmed, because there are much nicer cities in East Anglia to visit.
It’s not the ideal place for him to get started with Manchester United either.
Ipswich’s win at Tottenham will give them real belief and they have had three draws already at home, so they will be competitive, especially if United are adapting to a new system – a lot of their players are coming back from international duty and haven’t had time to work with Amorim.
United will have some defending to do because Sammie Szmodics is lively up front and Liam Delap is a handful too – his stats for goal involvements, including assists, is really impressive. Ipswich just need to stop being so careless defensively. If they do that, they could get something from this game.
Everyone else is probably going to put Amorim to start with a win, but I am going for a draw.
After all the excitement and the hype about the apparent upgrade, then it is unthinkable for United to lose to the Tractor Boys, but imagine if they do drop points?
Sutton’s prediction: 1-1
Peter’s prediction: Ipswich got a great result against Spurs but with this being Amorim’s first game, his players are going to be trying to impress him, so I can only see a United win.
Obviously I hope they don’t get back to what they were under Sir Alex Ferguson but wouldn’t it be great to have four or five clubs challenging for the title? That would be unbelievable. I am quite happy that United have fallen off a cliff since Ferguson left but in a way you want them back, so you can win the league ahead of a strong United side. 1-2
Monday, 25 November
St James’ Park, 20:00 GMT
It feels to me like Southampton’s Russell Martin is the manager who is closest to the edge at the moment but West Ham boss Julen Lopetegui is probably not too far behind him.
I was at this game last season, when Newcastle won 4-3 after being 3-1 down, and it was probably one of the results that meant Lopetegui’s predecessor, David Moyes, was not offered a new deal.
I think Hammers fans have been underwhelmed by what they’ve seen since Lopetegui arrived, because it is not working out under him. As I’ve said before, I don’t quite know what kind of team they are trying to be.
I don’t see them getting any joy at St James’ Park this time, either. Alexander Isak looked back to his best when Newcastle beat Forest last time out, and they should be too strong for West Ham too.
Sutton’s prediction: 2-1
Peter’s prediction: I have got relatives who are West Ham fans so I want them to do well but I can’t see them getting anything here. I know what Lopetegui is trying to do, and I think they have got to stick with him. Chopping and changing is not going to get them anywhere but unfortunately I think if they lose a couple more games then he will be out. 2-1
How did Sutton do last week?
It took Chris until week eight to get off the mark this season, but he has not stopped winning since.
Chris got four correct results from the 10 games in week 11, with two exact scores, giving him a total of 100 points.
That was enough to beat his guests, Mylee and Tate from CBBC football drama Jamie Johnson FC, and also the BBC Sport readers.
Tate got three correct results but with no exact scores, for a total of 30 points, while Mylee got one correct result which was also an exact score, giving her 40 points (her score is used in the guest total below).
You also got three correct results with no exact scores, for a tally of 30 points.
While you have scored more points than Chris in total this season, he has now racked up more weekly wins and moves to the top of the predictions league table.
