It’s another packed weekend of sporting action, as we preview the televised Premier League games, the F1 Saudi Arabia Grand Prix and the heavyweight clash between Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou.
There’s lots to look forward over the course of the next three days, and you can find our full listings for this weekend on our Events Calendar to plan your viewing accordingly.
READ MORE: What the new £6.7bn TV deal means for Premier League on Sky, TNT
Man Utd face Everton in the early kick-off on Saturday before Arsenal host Brentford in the evening, and it’s a huge Sunday in the Premier League as Aston Villa take on Tottenham in the battle for Champions League qualification, while title rivals Liverpool and Man City meet at Anfield.
Add in the F1 and Joshua vs Ngannou clash from Saudi Arabia, and it promises to be a busy weekend of sport which gets underway on Friday night.
Friday
Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou – 22:00 approx – DAZN PPV, Sky Sports Box Office
Two Heavyweight giants collide this Friday night in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Anthony Joshua faces former UFC Heavyweight Champion, Francis Ngannou in a ten-round contest with the winner likely to face the winner of Fury vs Usyk, which takes place later this year.
Last time out Francis Ngannou stunned the boxing public with his display against the ‘Gypsy King’. He managed to score a knockdown and only lost narrowly on the judges scorecards. Questions remain as to how seriously Fury took his opponent, but Ngannou did prove that he is not to be taken lightly. He does possess scary power, so AJ will have to stay focused throughout the fight to avoid getting caught.
Despite the performance of Francis, Anthony Joshua will still be the heavy favorite going into the fight. After seeing what happened to Fury, he will definitely not be taking his opponent lightly. It is a must-win for Joshua who still has ambitions to win another world title, and a win on Friday would put him firmly in the driving seat as the next number-one contender. If he uses his boxing skills and his experience many believe he will win comfortably.
We are predicting a unanimous points decision victory for AJ.
Saturday
Man Utd vs Everton – 12:30 KO – TNT Sports 1
A big weekend of Premier League action is upon us, and we kick things off on Saturday afternoon at Old Trafford.
Both teams will be desperate to come away with all three points here as there is so much to gain and lose at this stage of the season. United are still pushing for a top-four spot and will know that Villa and Tottenham could both drop points when they face each other on Sunday.
The Toffees find themselves just outside the relegation zone and haven’t won a game in the league since December. They must be counting their blessings with the recent news that their ten-point reduction has been reduced to six.
The Red Devils are still hampered with injuries to several key players but will be hoping that in-form striker, Rasmus Hojlund, will be able to return to lead the line following his recent injury.
Sean Dyche will have to decide whether he keeps faith with striker, Beto, who scored last time out against West Ham, or recall Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who hasn’t scored in the league since October.
We are expecting Man United to get over the line in this one. Narrow 2-1 win to the home side.
Arsenal vs Brentford – 17:30 KO – Sky Sports Premier League, Sky Sports Main Event
Ahead of the showdown at Anfield on Sunday, Arsenal will hope to put the pressure on their title rivals and go top with a win over Brentford at the Emirates on Saturday evening.
The Gunners are in electric form having rattled off five consecutive league wins while scoring goals for fun, and so the expectation against Thomas Frank’s side is that they will be swept away too as they continue to struggle towards the wrong end of the table.
With the form, firepower and what’s at stake given Liverpool and City meet this weekend and could drop points, back Arsenal to get the job done with minimal fuss in north London to move back to the summit of the standings for 24 hours at least.
F1 Saudi Arabia Grand Prix – 17:00 – Sky Sports F1
Defending champion Max Verstappen picked up from where he left off last season in the first race of the current campaign in Bahrain last weekend, with teammate Sergio Perez making it a Red Bull 1-2.
That was despite the off-track distractions and controversy surrounding the team and its Principal Christian Horner, and they’ll look to do so again this weekend in Jeddah.
This all-too familiar theme is expected to continue this weekend as the chasing pack of Ferrari, Mercedes, McLaren and others try to close the gap on the reigning champions, but barring something unexpected, it’s likely that we’ll see Verstappen continue to lead the way in Saturday’s race.
Sunday
Aston Villa vs Tottenham – 13:00 KO – Sky Sports Premier League, Sky Sports Main Event
Super Sunday kicks off with a huge encounter at Villa Park, with fourth-place Aston Villa hosting fifth-place Tottenham in the battle for Champions League qualification.
Five points currently separate the two sides, albeit Spurs have a game in hand, but a win for Villa would certainly be a huge boost for their hopes of securing a seat at Europe’s top table next season as that gap would extend with just 10 games to go.
Both sides come into this encounter in good form with Villa winning three on the bounce, while Tottenham have two wins in their last three outings. It promises to be a tense and thrilling showdown, one that Villa may well edge with their home advantage having been so strong all season.
Injuries have been a major headache for both managers this season, but with Pau Torres expected to start and with a number of key individuals rested having not played the entire game at Ajax in midweek, Villa could get the better of their rivals.
Liverpool vs Man City – 15:45 KO – Sky Sports Premier League, Sky Sports Main Event
It’s a top-of-the-table clash from Anfield this Super Sunday. Liverpool has the home advantage on this occasion and will be looking to open up the gap on rivals, Manchester City.
Both teams are in fine form and are scoring goals for fun, so there isn’t much to separate the sides.
Liverpool will welcome back star man, Mo Salah for this fixture. He has recently been sidelined through injury but finally came back to the matchday squad on Thursday in the Europa League. One negative from Thursday is that key defender Ibrahim Konate came off at halftime with what looked to be a hamstring injury. It will be interesting to see if it was just a precautionary substitution.
Pep Guardiola chose to rest several first-team players on Wednesday, so he will have almost a full-strength squad to choose from. The only doubts are around wingers Jeremy Doku and Jack Grealish.
This is a game that neither can afford to lose with so much on the line. Klopp’s side has won the last two meetings at Anfield, however, City haven’t lost to Liverpool since 2022. It is too close to call.
We are going with a narrow away win for City this weekend. 1-2
