Premier League Sunday: March 17, 2013

Four matches are on deck today in the Premier League — two of them are London derbies, and the other two are relegation battles.

The early kick-off today is Sunderland against Norwich City. The Mackems sit just six points above the relegation danger zone, so a defeat today for Sunderland will keep them nervously close to the drop. Norwich City aren’t safe either — just nine points above Wigan Athletic. A win for either club is vital today. A draw won’t help either of them.

Sunderland starting XI: Mignolet, Gardner, Rose, O’Shea (c), Cuellar, Vaughan, Larsson, Johnson, Sessegnon, Fletcher, Graham.

Norwich City starting XI: Bunn, R Martin (c), Bassong, Turner, Garrido, Johnson, Howson, E Bennett, Snodgrass, Hoolahan, Kamara.

Following Sunderland and Norwich, Tottenham Hotspur play Fulham at White Hart Lane. After Tottenham’s colossal defeat on Thursday in the Europa League that ended up as an aggregate victory based on the away goal rule, Andre Villas-Boas’s side has to pick themselves back up again today. The big difference for Spurs is that Gareth Bale is back after his suspension. For Fulham, it’s a return to their old stomping grounds for Martin Jol and Dimitar Berbatov.

The third match of the day is Chelsea against West Ham United. Hammers boss Sam Allardyce believes that the Chelsea boo-boys will help give West Ham United the edge in this match. But a win for the Blues today, depending on what Tottenham does, could push Chelsea back into third place, so Rafa Benitez’s side will be desperate for a good victory.

Last but not least could end up being the most entertaining game of the day when Wigan Athletic plays Newcastle United. After Aston Villa’s 3-2 win against QPR yesterday, Wigan faces a massive test today. There’s already a six point gap between third-from-bottom Wigan and fourth-from-bottom Aston Villa, so it’s imperative that Wigan narrows the gap to three points. Otherwise, Wigan could be facing relegation.

Have a wonderful Sunday!