Football Analyst Chris Sutton Faces Off Against Artist Murs in Premier League Forecasts
Arsenal's ten-match victorious run came to an end by the Black Cats before the global hiatus, however can the English top division leaders recover against local foes Spurs this weekend?
"{I believe like Arsenal are miles ahead of Tottenham currently but Spurs boss Thomas Frank will have a plan for this match," stated football specialist Chris Sutton.
"Frank will try to nullify Arsenal, who have not always been at their scintillating best this season - but Mikel Arteta's team typically still find a way to win."
Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against artificial intelligence, readers and a range of special visitors.
For week 12, he takes on performer Olly Murs, who is a Manchester United supporter.
The singer's new album, the new release, is available on Friday.
Soccer and Family Experiences
Murs is a skilled footballer as well as a successful singer and has been a featured player of several charity football games down the years - but he is not planning a serious comeback as a footballer.
"{I recently played in a benefit match the other night for a mate of mine," he explained. "The side was losing 3-1 when I was substituted in the second half, and they went on to win 4-3, so you can read into that what you will!
"I continue to love football, but I hurt my knee a few years ago and it still isn't where I want it to be. I wish I could play more but the unpredictability of the sport means it's too dangerous for me in my career to do it properly again.
"Plus I am 41 now, and we are not everyone is Cristiano Ronaldo, are we!? No, I am very happy not playing football and I am gearing up for the time that my daughter or son decides to play instead."
Murs and his spouse Amelia Tank have a young family, Madison and Albert, and he is ready to follow in his father's footsteps by taking on the role of their manager.
"I will not force football on our kids but I've already told my wife that if they do get the bug for it then I will have to go and get my coaching badges - and I will likely be managing their weekend soccer side," he said.
"I watched my nephews play a lot, and I truly got into it, and I obviously owned a soccer team for a while too.
"My father did it with us when I was a child, which is probably where I inherited it. He coached our team for several seasons and had a wonderful time with it. That might be the next step for me as well, and I am excited to it!"
Top Division Forecasts
Weekend, 22 November
- Turf Moor, 12:30 GMT
Chelsea may have to wait a bit longer for Cole Palmer's return from fitness issues but their offense is now stronger with Pedro and Liam Delap both back fit.
In my opinion this fixture will be fairly tight, however. Burnley are disciplined and their sole at Turf Moor defeats so far have been against Liverpool and Arsenal.
This suggests a one-all tie to me, but I am in fact going to go with the London side to win narrowly for what would be their third league win in a row.
Sutton's prediction: 1-2
The singer's pick: The Blues will be superior. 1-3
AI's outlook: 0-2
- Vitality Stadium, 15:00 GMT
Bournemouth have lost their past two matches - although both of them were on the road - but they got thoroughly beaten by Aston Villa last time out which surprised me.
In contrast, West Ham won back-to-back victories before the hiatus and, although both of those games were at their stadium, they appear strong again.
West Ham's only away win this campaign came at Nottingham Forest in the summer, when their boss Nuno was still that team's manager.
Therefore, what on earth do I predict here - will it be the Hammers continuing their run under their manager, or Bournemouth responding?
I will go with Bournemouth, because I believe what occurred against Villa was a anomaly.
The pundit's prediction: 2-0
Olly's prediction: Bournemouth are performing strongly but the visitors have picked up under their boss. 2-2
The algorithm's pick: 1-1
- Amex Stadium, 15:00 GMT
Brentford were considered one of the favourites for relegation before the campaign started, but they have impressed a few people under Keith Andrews and are in good form with three in their past four matches.
A family member advised me to get Brentford striker Igor Thiago in my Fantasy Football team a few weeks back and, unfortunately, I ignored the advice.
The forward will probably find the net again on the weekend but I am still not going to pick him or back the away side at Brighton's ground.
The Bees have not had much success on the travel this term, and the Seagulls are always decent at their stadium. Brentford will attempt to attack on the counter-attack but I feel Fabian Hurzeler's team pose much more of a threat.
The analyst's prediction: 2-1
The singer's prediction: It could be one of those games where you think there is going to be a lot of goals but it actually proves to be rather close. 1-1
The computer's prediction: 2-1
- Craven Cottage, 15:00 GMT
It is a massive fixture for Fulham, who have lost five of their last six games.
They have have lots of quality in their squad but it still feels like they could be sucked into a relegation battle.
Regarding the Black Cats, indeed they are the unexpected success of the top flight season so far.
Their performance in the 2-2 draw with the Gunners last time out was superb. We've not seen any other team rough up the North London side like that this season, and Sunderland were fully competitive for them.
The logical choice to do to support the visitors here, because they are clearly capable of disrupting the hosts up too and, the last time they were in this part of London, they beat Chelsea at the end of October.
However I am not going to do that. Rather, I really need to continue opposing the away team with my forecasts. I am taking a lot of credit for their good results because they clearly love to prove me wrong.
Considering the home side's home record, the sole team they have lost to is the league leaders. Marco Silva's team will be extremely desperate for a positive result, so I am going to predict they will pick up three points.
The expert's forecast: 1-0
Olly's prediction: I'm aware the visitors are doing well and additionally that the hosts are on a poor run... but they have nonetheless been respectable at home this campaign. 2-0
The algorithm's prediction: 2-0
- Anfield, 15:00 GMT
This is a hard fixture to call. Liverpool have suffered seven of their past 10 games in every tournament, but might they be one of the teams who benefit from the {international break|