Watch Norwich vs Arsenal and Leicester vs Everton live on Sky Sports Premier League on Renault Super Sunday
Sunday 1 December 2019 11:36, UK
With another weekend of Premier League fixtures on the horizon, Charlie Nicholas makes his predictions, including Norwich vs Arsenal and Leicester vs Everton.
It was a cracking win for Norwich at Everton. When I watched it, I had to applaud them. Teemu Pukki had half chances but he did not look too sharp. It seems, strangely, that his confidence was off, but Norwich got about the pitch and they were not really upset defensively.
I hate the sacking game, I am never one that wanted to play it too often, but Unai Emery had to go. There was no way of rescuing the situation. It has been complete meltdown since the captaincy situation and they never handled it correctly. The results and style have been poor - there has not been a style. This is from a guy, who every club I have seen him at has had a DNA and style, particularly with Valencia and Sevilla. He didn't control who he brought in at PSG but he let them play.
I have, although it doesn't give him any merit, some sympathy. Emery inherited a very bad defence and a lack of structure. The lack of backing and leadership from upstairs is terrifying and I couldn't see him being demanding or going against them. It says it all how he spent £72m on Nicolas Pepe, which hasn't worked.
I go back to 15 months ago when I spoke to him and his target was to be like Liverpool of now in three years time to some extent, playing and chasing with high energy, squeezing football and rock and roll football. He said the defence was the issue which needed to be resolved, but it has got worse.
The forwards are thinking they could be a good side but they don't know what to do any more, what do they do in a week? It is not all his fault but he didn't fix the defence, which in my opinion, it is the easiest thing to fix. The hardest thing to do is to be creative and be a goalscoring team - this is something you have to work on.
There is no togetherness and spirit in the Arsenal side, so the fact he has left should sharpen a lot of them up. I am sticking with a 3-2 Arsenal win at Norwich win at the weekend.
CHARLIE PREDICTS: 2-3 (16/1 with Sky Bet)
I think Marco Silva is already out, and they are thinking about who they are giving the job to. I think they have already gone out and spoken to David Moyes, as he is a free agent, and they need to approach Eddie Howe and do it professionally. They have probably put the feelers out there for some European managers too, so I think the gig is already dead.
Everton have a hard shift coming up as well, while Leicester are hot to trot. I thought they would struggle against Brighton but they got there. They are getting the combination right and I like it. Silva is gone I think, and this is the goodbye game. It will not be a pleasant one to walk away from and if Silva gets on the team bus after this drubbing, it would surprise me as I think he is away before it will leave.
CHARLIE'S PREDICTS: 3-0 (11/1 with Sky Bet)
Both teams are in amazing form and this is a belter of a match. Wolves struggle to break down teams that are well drilled and organised, but Sheffield United are more than that. They can counter and they do have pace - Enda Stevens will be down the left and whipping the ball in for David McGoldrick or John Fleck.
Against Manchester United, we all thought Sheffield United would win. They rescued a point but they were cruising for so long. It is great to see how advanced those players are - Wolves won't like that and could be exploited as they play in a similar way.
Sheffield United will not wait for anybody. When they get the ball they knock it up front and although they do not have a striker with height or loads of pace, they do have energy throughout the whole team. Wolves are slightly more technically skilled with the likes of Raul Jimenez, Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho, so for that reason, I think they will have the edge.
CHARLIE PREDICTS: 2-1 (8/1 with Sky Bet)
Aston Villa did not disappoint on Monday Night Football. I thought they were very controlled, but also clinical in a certain way when they had to be. It was a good sign that when they went in front, they did not go all-out attack and get all their players up. It was as if Dean Smith had said 'job done and shut up shop'. This wasn't to be boring, it is simply a cleverness to tuck in and protect when needed, and then hit on the counter. There were a couple of little dangerous signs that Newcastle could have got back into it, but it was a promising performance for them.
Man Utd are shocking defensively. David de Gea is not mentioned anymore - he is not making mistakes but he is not saving shots, which is what he came synonymous for. He has won the Player of the Year award many times for them, and some of that was under Mourinho and even Louis van Gaal. Nobody mentions him as a top-level player any more.
Ashley Young has been found out that he was never a left-back or right-back, so why give him a contract? Seriously, Man Utd where are you going? Brandon Williams and Mason Greenwood have been decent, but can they carry them along? Can Marcus Rashford do it? You cannot survive on 10 minutes of football.
They don't want change, they want to build. They understand the youth, it will not be the Class of '92 because you will never get that again, but for now, the younger ones are good and helping. I do not know the philosophy for Man Utd but I think they will get over the line in this one. It is a needs-must kind of game.
If Man Utd do not see off Villa, and with games against Tottenham and Manchester City coming up, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could be in trouble and I think they should go for Brendan Rodgers too, along with Arsenal.
Mauricio Pochettino is floating everyone's boat, but if you look at the real situation of how it has developed, then Rodgers is a better fit for both of those teams than Pochettino is, because he knows how to win trophies. He won nine domestic titles at Celtic and it might be a lot easier there but he knows how to do it. It is not a case of being insecure, Rodgers has his beliefs and strengths and goes and does it. I would be amazed if Manchester United were not interested in him.
CHARLIE PREDICTS: 1-0 (13/2 with Sky Bet)
