Premier League Predictions for Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th January

Last Updated on 02/01/2026 by Andy Clark

Following the Christmas and New Year flurry of Premier League fixtures, there is no let-up, and we have another full schedule of Premier League matches across Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th January.

Arsenal extended their lead at the top of the table to four points with a 4-1 win over Aston Villa – Manchester City had to settle for a point at Sunderland on New Year’s Day. There were also dropped points for Aston Villa, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool in the race for the top four. In fact, Everton were the only other winners in the top 12 of the Premier League, amongst a gameweek full of draws.

Onto this weekend’s matches, and we kick off with Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest at 12.30pm on Saturday. There are only three matches following that, before six more games on Sunday, ahead of another round of midweek fixtures.

See our predictions and best betting tips for the Gameweek 20 matches below.

Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest Prediction

Arsenal halted Aston Villa’s run of 11 straight wins in emphatic fashion on Tuesday night, but they are expected to get back to winning ways here. They’ve won their last 10 home matches in all competitions (seven in the league), including wins over Manchester United, Arsenal and Manchester City. Morgan Rodgers has been their shining light this season, but Ollie Watkins is back amongst the goals, and that is ominous for opponents. Forest were beaten 2-0 at home to Everton last time out, leaving them four points ahead of the relegation zone, and it was a really poor performance from Sean Dyche’s side, who looked out of ideas except crossing the ball into the box. It’s three losses in a row for Forest now, and if West Ham start picking up wins, it will be a nervous last few months of the season for their fans.

SCORE PREDICTION – Aston Villa 2-0 Nottingham Forest (17/2 with bet365)

BEST BET – Ollie Watkins to score anytime (29/20 with BetMGM’s £40 sign-up offer)

Wolves vs West Ham Prediction

Wolves picked up a morale-boosting 1-1 draw at Old Trafford last time out, but that was only their third point of a dreadful season. They have lost 12 matches in a row before that, and this is a must-win for West Ham in the fight against relegation. The Hammers are four points from safety following their 2-2 draw with Brighton on Tuesday, stretching their winless run to eight matches. One positive for West Ham, though, is that they are scoring goals in at least some of their matches, and Jarrod Bowen is going to be key to whether they stay in the division or not. You can’t help thinking Nuno’s side are capable of putting a run of results together, and a win here could kick that off ahead of Tuesday’s massive home match with Nottingham Forest.

SCORE PREDICTION – Wolves 1-2 West Ham (11/1 with bet365)

BEST BET – Jarrod Bowen to have over 1.5 shots on target (2/1 with the Coral sign-up offer)

Brighton vs Burnley Prediction

Brighton are one of the sides in a cluster of teams around mid-table, and any run of wins can propel sides up the table. They are down in 14th on 25 points, but only three behind 8th-placed Everton, and a further two behind 5th-placed Chelsea. They will see this one as a must-win against a Burnley side who are six points from safety and need a run of wins themselves if they are to have any hope of survival. Burnley are winless in 10 matches now, but did snatch a last-gasp draw at Bournemouth in their last away game. Brighton haven’t won in six matches themselves, drawing three times, including at home to Sunderland and West Ham. Brighton can not afford anything but a win here.

SCORE PREDICTION – Brighton 2-0 Burnley (7/1 with bet365)

BEST BET – Kyle Walker over 1.5 fouls (23/10 with the SpreadEx £60 sign-up offer)

Bournemouth vs Arsenal Prediction

It is turning into a difficult season for Bournemouth, and with Antoine Semenyo seemingly leaving the club, it will be interesting to see how they replace their talisman. Things don’t get any easier this weekend when Arsenal visit on the back of a 4-1 demolition job of high-flying Aston Villa. Before that, people were saying Arsenal were stuttering, but even without Declan Rice (who could also miss this game), the Gunners ran out easy winners. Bournemouth are winless in 10 matches going into this one, and their home form is particularly poor, drawing with West Gan and Burnley and losing to Everton. If Arsenal are to win the title, these are exactly the type of matches where they cannot afford any slip-ups, and we are predicting another professional performance from Arteta’s men, based on a solid defensive display.

SCORE PREDICTION – Bournemouth 0-2 Arsenal (7/1 with bet365)

BEST BET – Arsenal to keep a clean sheet (11/8 with William Hill’s £40 sign-up offer)