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Bullet point previews of Premier League matches

ByReuters

Published 14/12/2017 at 14:02 GMT

Dec 14 (Reuters) - Match-by-match facts and statistics ahead of round 18 of the Premier League on Dec.

Eurosport

Image credit: Eurosport

16-Dec. 18 (games at 1500 GMT unless stated):
Saturday, Dec. 16
Leicester City v Crystal Palace (1230)
*Leicester have not lost to Palace in their last four Premier League games, winning three and drawing one.
*The Foxes are on a four-game winning run and have taken 17 points out of a possible 24 after Claude Puel was named manager.
*Palace striker Christian Benteke has had 24 shots at goal in 12 league games but is yet to open his account this season.
*Palace are unbeaten in six games and are 18th in the table while Leicester are eighth.
*Leicester top-scorer Jamie Vardy has two goals and an assist in his last three league starts against Palace.
Arsenal v Newcastle United
*Arsenal are without a league victory in three games and are seventh in the table.
*The Gunners, who were defeated 3-1 by Manchester United in their last home clash, have not lost back-to-back games in the same season at the Emirates Stadium since 2010.
*Newcastle manager Rafael Benitez has not tasted success at Arsenal in the league in six previous attempts, drawing four and losing twice.
*The Magpies have one point from their last eight league games and are 16th in the table.
*Arsenal's Chilean striker Alexis Sanchez has managed only four goals from 14 league games this season.
Brighton and Hove Albion v Burnley
*Brighton and Burnley will meet for the first time in the Premier League but have played each other 29 times previously.
*Burnley have won six of their last eight league matches and are sixth in the table behind Liverpool and ahead of Arsenal, while Brighton are 13th.
*Burnley have posted nine victories this season with six of those games ending 1-0.
*Brighton are unbeaten in six games against Burnley, winning three and drawing three since losing 1-0 in the Championship in 2012.
*Burnley have conceded 12 goals this season, behind leaders Manchester City and Manchester United who have both let in 11.
Chelsea v Southampton
*Chelsea have lost only once in the last nine league games and are third in the table.
*Southampton are 11th and a return of 18 points is their lowest in five years after 17 games. They had 15 points at this stage in the 2012-13 campaign.
*Chelsea and Southampton have played each other 36 times in the league, with the Londoners winning 20 games to Southampton's eight.
*The Saints have not kept a clean sheet in eight games since beating West Bromwich Albion 1-0 on Oct. 21.
*Southampton forward Charlie Austin has scored four goals in his last five league games.
Stoke City v West Ham United
*Stoke have lost four out of the last seven league games and are 15th in the table.
*Mark Hughes' Stoke have kept two clean sheets this season, the fewest alongside Crystal Palace, and have let in 36 goals.
*West Ham boss David Moyes is looking to go three games unbeaten in the league for the first time since 2014, after guiding them to a win over Chelsea and a draw with Arsenal.
*West Ham striker Javier Hernandez has scored five league goals against Stoke.
*The two teams have played each other on 16 occasions in the Premier League, with Stoke winning five games to West Ham's four.
Watford v Huddersfield Town
*Huddersfield have lost five out of their last six league games and are 12th in the table.
*Ninth-placed Watford are winless in four games and lost 2-1 to relegation-threatened Crystal Palace in their last outing.
*Marco Silva's Watford have dropped 13 points from leading positions in the league this season.
*Watford forward Richarlison has scored five goals and provided four assists this season.
*This is the first meeting between the two teams since 2015 when Huddersfield beat Watford 3-1 at home in the Championship.
Manchester City v Tottenham Hotspur (1730)
*Leaders City are on a record-breaking 15-game winning streak in the league and 18 points ahead of Tottenham.
*Tottenham are fourth in the league with 31 points after back-to-back wins against Stoke and Brighton.
*The two teams have played each other 40 times in the league with Spurs winning 23 games while City have 11 wins.
*Tottenham striker Harry Kane has scored 12 league goals this season, with seven coming away from home.
*City's all-time top-scorer Sergio Aguero has scored 99 goals at the Etihad Stadium in 133 appearances across all competitions.
Sunday, Dec. 17
West Bromwich Albion v Manchester United (1415)
*West Brom are winless in 15 games after starting the season with consecutive victories.
*The West Midlands club is 17th in the league with 14 points and drew 0-0 with Liverpool in their last outing.
*Second-placed United have beaten West Brom 14 times in 22 Premier League meetings.
*Striker Romelu Lukaku has scored nine goals this season and headed in United's winner against Bournemouth on Wednesday.
*United goalkeeper David de Gea has kept 10 clean sheets this season, the highest ahead of Arsenal's Petr Cech (8) and Chelsea's Thibaut Courtois (7).
Bournemouth v Liverpool (1630)
*Bournemouth have beaten Liverpool once in four previous league meetings, a thrilling 4-3 victory last season.
*Liverpool are unbeaten in eight league games, winning five and drawing three and are fifth in the table with 31 points.
*Striker Mohamed Salah leads the league's scoring charts with 13 goals.
*With 65 changes to his starting XI so far this season, Liverpool boss Juergen Klopp has tinkered with his squad more than any other manager.
*Bournemouth have not won in the league since their 4-0 victory over Huddersfield in November, collecting three points from the next five games to sit in 14th.
Monday, Dec. 18
Everton v Swansea City (2000)
*Tenth-placed Everton are on a four-game unbeaten run in the league and beat Newcastle United 1-0 in their last outing.
*Bottom side Swansea have lost seven of their last nine games and have collected 12 points this season.
*The Welsh side have scored nine goals in 17 matches, the lowest among all teams.
*In 14 previous visits to Goodison Park, Swansea have posted one victory in all competitions.
*In-form Everton striker Wayne Rooney has notched five goals and an assist in their last four league games. (Compiled by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
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