Paul Merson's predictions for Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool and other Premier League GW7 fixtures

Manchester City getting dumped out of the Carabao Cup by Newcastle United has been one of the shocks of the season so far as the Cityzens have dominated the domestic cups in recent years under Pep Guardiola.

On a lighter note, Chelsea finally won a game of football against Brighton, which is quite amusing, I must say! The Carabao Cup draw was interesting, to say the least, with a handful of Premier League clubs drawing each other.

Nevertheless, the Premier League is back for another potentially exciting weekend of action, with Tottenham Hotspur set to lock horns with Liverpool in a game that's expected to produce a lot of goals and drama. Which one of these two sides will come out on top? On that note, here are my predictions for game week seven of the Premier League.

Aston Villa vs Brighton & Hove Albion

Both Aston Villa and Brighton will be disappointed with their results in the Carabao Cup in midweek, but in terms of the Premier League, they've both started the 2023-24 campaign in fine form. I hear a lot of people saying Brighton are the bearest team to push the so-called Big Six, so it'll be interesting to see how this game turns out.

The pitch is massive at Villa Park and I think that'll suit the way Brighton play. I think this will be an entertaining, open game of football of football with a lot of goals, so I'm going for a 2-2 draw.

Ollie Watkins needed that goal against Chelsea. He goes through squirts of goals and blanks for a bit, but he's still a handful and will look to make an impression again at home.

Prediction: Aston Vila 2-2 Brighton

Manchester United vs Crystal Palace

This is a repeat of the Carabao Cup clash in midweek and surely Palace can't be as bad as they were? I don't see anything but a Manchester United win here and I think they'll win by the same scoreline.

Erik ten Hag and co have a bunch of winnable games coming up and are already on a run of successive wins across two competitions. I expect them to make it three wins from three, they are far too good for Palace regardless of their troubles in the early weeks of the season.

Alejandro Garnacho played well in the Carabao Cup game and got himself a goal. I've said earlier that he's better off coming off the bench, but after his goal in midweek, I think he'll start this game.

Prediction: Manchester United 3-0 Crystal Palace

Newcastle United vs Burnley

Newcastle United were outstanding against Sheffield United last weekend - the fact that they had eight different goalscorers in their 8-0 win was a phenomenal achievement. Eddie Howe and co followed it up by knocking Manchester City out of the Carabao Cup, indicating that they are showing signs of bouncing back after a rough start to the season.

If they get after Burnley like they can and play at the tempo that has seen them succeed in recent weeks, I think they'll blow the Clarets away quite comfortably.

Prediction: Newcastle United 3-0 Burnley

Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Manchester City

Wolves were outstanding against Liverpool in the first half but got blown away after the interval. They have the personnel to cause a handful of problems, but Manchester City should win this one.

Football is a funny old game, isn't it? The Cityzens had 75% possession against Newcastle in the Carabao Cup but lost 1-0, while they've managed to win six out of six in the Premier League despite not being at their destructive best. Man City are making it ridiculously hard for the likes of Arsenal and Liverpool to mount a Premier League title challenge as they hardly drop any points. I know it's so early in the season but if Arsenal lose to Manchester City next weekend, they are out of the Premier League title race!

Pedro Neto is starting the produce the end product that once eluded him - some of the biggest teams in world football are going to be queuing up for him next year. If he keeps playing like this, he might even get a few offers to leave Wolves in January - he's destined for big things.

Kalvin Phillips has a golden chance to make an impression as a Manchester City player, but the sad thing for him is that even if he plays two faultless games, Rodri automatically comes back into the team after serving his suspension.

Prediction: Wolves 1-3 Manchester City

Bournemouth vs Arsenal

This is a must-win game for Arsenal considering they face Manchester City next weekend and I think they will get all three points at the Vitality Stadium. Bournemouth simply haven't got going this season and are struggling to put points on the board, so I can't see them getting anything out of this game.

The Gunners rested a lot of players for the Carabao Cup clash against Brentford and still won 1-0, so their main players will be fit and raring to go this weekend. I know I was a bit bullish with my prediction ahead of the Tottenham Hotspur game last weekend, but the moment I saw the team sheet, I knew Spurs were in with a chance as Arsenal simply had too many injury issues.

When Declan Rice went off injured at halftime, James Maddison gradually grew into the game and produced a fantastic display in the second half. Arsenal need Rice back as soon as possible, although I don't know how long it's going to take for him to return to full fitness.

Prediction: Bournemouth 0-2 Arsenal

West Ham United vs Sheffield United

Sheffield United are all over the place and are coming on the back of a damaging 8-0 home defeat to Newcastle. West Ham got nothing against Manchester City and Liverpool in recent weeks, but they put up a good show and have enjoyed a good start to the 2023-24 Premier League campaign.

I see nothing but a West Ham win here, especially with players like Jarrod Bowen in fine form. I'm a big fan of him and he has shown over the past 12 months that he can step up to the plate in big games, while he works his socks off for his team and is an absolute manager's dream. The only issue for Bowen is that England have too many players in his position, so he might find it hard to break into the side ahead of Euro 2024.

Prediction: West Ham 3-0 Sheffield United

Everton vs Luton Town

How quickly does football change, eh? Everton struggled to do anything meaningful in the opening weeks of the new season, but they beat Brentford in the Premier League last weekend and topped it off with an impressive win away from home against Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup.

They have Bournemouth coming up after Luton, so Sean Dyche and co have a big chance to rack up some points on the board with a run of wins. They need to kick on and I think they'll do just that, so I'm going for a 3-0 Everton win.

If Everton keep Dominic Calvert-Lewin fit and firing, there's absolutely no chance they will be in and around the relegation zone.

Prediction: Everton 3-0 Luton Town

Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool

Liverpool need to stop going behind, it's happened too many times already this season. Don't get me wrong, they've been fantastic so far this season and have produced some impressive comebacks to win games from losing positions, but I don't know if they can keep doing that, especially against the top teams.

Jurgen Klopp's side are playing well, but they are also riding their luck on some level. They have enough firepower to overwhelm teams, but they are letting in too many goals for my liking.

I've been impressed with Tottenham, especially after their performance against Arsenal last weekend. They showed a lot of composure and maturity to level the scoreline twice in a tricky away game and have a lot of pace and guile on the counterattack.

This is a good game where anyone could win, but I'm going for a 2-2 draw. If I had to pick a winner, I'd pick Spurs. Dominik Szoboszlai has been absolutely outstanding, how has everybody else missed out on him? Similarly, James Maddison has done bits for Tottenham since signing for the club, the manager has done really well to get him going immediately.

Prediction: Tottenham 2-2 Liverpool

Nottingham Forest vs Brentford

Neither of these two sides has been particularly impressive in recent weeks, indicating that we could see an evenly-matched contest. Brentford look like they are there for the taking, so Forest will look to make home advantage count to secure a positive result.

The Bees could get dragged into a relegation battle in the coming weeks as they've just won one game so far in the Premier League. In Ivan Toney's absence, Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo have shown flashes of brilliance, but they need an out-and-out striker to regularly put the ball into the back of the net.

Prediction: Nottingham Forest 1-1 Brentford

Fulham vs Chelsea

Chelsea got a good result in the Carabao Cup against Brighton - they really needed it. However, they have a bit of an issue against Fulham as Nicolas Jackson is suspended. I think Armando Broja will be given an opportunity to lead the line and I hope he takes his chance as he was doing well before getting injured.

The Blues have opened up teams but haven't been scoring freely. On some level, watching Chelsea reminds me of Manchester United because they don't have a fixed pattern of play or a clear philosophy like Arsenal, Manchester City, or even Liverpool.

I wouldn't be shocked if Chelsea dropped points because it's been that kind of a season for them, but they're my team and my heart says they'll win 1-0. Mauricio Pochettino still hasn't found his best team and I feel bad for him as they've just gone out and bought player after player with no real plan.

They also have a handful of injury issues to deal with, so I think we have to wait before passing judgment on Pochettino's time at the club.

Prediction: Fulham 0-1 Chelsea