Premier League Saturday 3pm kick-offs | Match predictions and free tips

Free Premier League football tips for Saturday's 3pm matches: Aston Villa v Southampton, Bournemouth v Burnley, Brighton v Sheffield United, Newcastle United v Crystal Palace & Norwich City v Wolves.

Best bets

Aston Villa v Southampton draw
1pt 13-5 general
Under 2.5 goals in Bournemouth v Burnley
1pt 10-11 bet365, Betfred, BoyleSports
Back this tip with bet365
Brighton
2pts 5-4 Betfred
Back this tip with William Hill
Newcastle v Crystal Palace draw
1pt 11-5 Betfred, BoyleSports
Back this tip with William Hill
Norwich or draw double chance
1pt 5-6 Sky Bet
Back this tip with William Hill

Aston Villa v Southampton

Team news

Aston Villa
No fresh injuries are reported but Tyrone Mings and Keinan Davis remain sidelined.

Southampton
Moussa Djenepo (hamstring), Sofiane Boufal (toe), Yan Valery and Kevin Danso (both illness) are out.

Verdict

Aston Villa have lost three successive Premier League games for the first time this season but they can stop the rot by holding Southampton to a draw.

A tight encounter is in store at Villa Park with both sides desperate to avoid defeat.

Villa are heading into a crucial period with matches at home to Norwich and away to Watford to follow.

Their confidence has taken a few knocks but they can match Southampton, who haven't won on the road since September.

Key stat

Southampton have not won any of their last six away fixtures.

Bournemouth v Burnley

Team news

Bournemouth
Joshua King (ankle) and Andrew Surman (calf) are doubts and Junior Stanislas (personal) may miss out.

Burnley
Chris Wood (Achilles) and Ashley Westwood (groin) are doubts but Charlie Taylor and Kevin Long could be back in contention.

Verdict

Injury-ravaged Bournemouth delivered a backs-to-the-wall performance to win 1-0 at home to Chelsea last Saturday but it is hard to fancy them as favourites to beat Burnley.

Burnley usually focus on being difficult to beat in away matches and their cautious style could make like difficult for the Cherries, who are without some of their best attacking players.

Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe is having to sacrifice style for substance and that means a stronger chance of a low-scoring outcome.

Key stat

Six of Bournemouth's last ten games have featured fewer than two goals.

Brighton v Sheffield United

Team news

Brighton
Dale Stephens returns from a ban but Solly March (groin) and Jose Izquierdo (knee) are out.

Sheffield United
John Fleck is suspended but Callum Robinson is available after illness.

Verdict

Brighton felt hard done by after drawing 1-1 at Crystal Palace on Monday but they are going the right way and can finish the week by defeating Sheffield United at the Amex.

Albion's points total (20) is one fewer than they had at the same stage last season but their recent performances are a credit to manager Graham Potter, who has turned them into a slick outfit.

Potters' side are probably better than their league position of 13th suggests and they can edge past the Blades, who are missing key midfielder John Fleck.

Key stat

Brighton have scored in nine of their last ten matches.

Newcastle v Crystal Palace

Team news

Newcastle
Jonjo Shelvey and Miguel Almiron could return from minor injuries but Allan Saint-Maximin, Ciaran Clark, Jamaal Lascelles, Matt Ritchie and Sung-Yeung Ki remain sidelined.

Crystal Palace
Mamadou Sakho completes a three-game ban and Andros Townsend, Jeffrey Schlupp, Gary Cahill, Patrick van Aanholt and Joel Ward are injured.

Verdict

Roy Hodgson has described Crystal Palace's injury crisis as the worst in his time as their manager, yet it may not be enough to stop them securing a point at St James' Park.

With Hodgson at the helm, Palace are always well-organised and difficult to beat and they can often rely on Wilfried Zaha to provide a match-defining moment.

Newcastle will have to work hard to keep tabs on Zaha and they may struggle to offer much of a threat at the other end without injured winger Allan Saint-Maximin.

Key stat

Newcastle have drawn five of their last eight home fixtures.

Norwich v Wolves

Team news

Norwich
Ben Godfrey (knee) is ruled out until February but Grant Hanley (hernia) and Teemu Pukki (toe) could feature.

Wolves
Morgan Gibbs-White (back) is a doubt and Willy Boly (knee) remains sidelined.

Verdict

Wolves received a lot of plaudits and no points after losing 2-1 at home to Tottenham last Sunday and they are far from guaranteed to bounce back against improving Norwich at Carrow Road.

The loss to Spurs was the consequence of some poor defending and it is something Nuno will need to address if his team are to achieve European qualification for a second successive season.

Wolves have kept just one clean sheet in nine matches and that will encourage the Canaries, who fully deserved their 1-1 draw at Leicester.

Key stat

Wolves have not kept a clean sheet in their last seven away matches.

Today's top sports betting stories

Follow us on Twitter @racingpostsport

Like us on Facebook RacingPostSport