This Premier League Preview sees the first two matches of the 2017 Premier League played out.
The first match of 2017 sees Watford take on Tottenham at Vicarage Road.
Watford vs Tottenham – Sunday 1st January 2017 – 13:30 - Sky Sports 1
Watford welcome Tottenham to Vicarage Road on New Years Day, continuing a full festive period of Premier League action.
Walter Mazzarri's men come into the match on the back of a 1-1 draw at home against Crystal Palace last weekend.
Yohan Cabaye (26) opened the scoring for the visitors, seemingly getting the Sam Allardyce era off to the perfect start.
However, Palace's defensive frailties came back to haunt them, with experienced defender Damien Delaney giving away a stupid foul for a penalty.
Troy Deeney converted from the penalty spot (71), with honours even and both sides needing to do a lot of work to move forward.
He Said
Watford boss Walter Mazzarri expects forward Troy Deeney to kick on, after scoring his 100th goal for the club on Boxing Day.
"I think he will have the weight he has been carrying out of his head and that helps him a lot. I hope he will be different, I congratulated him on his achievement."
Hornets Looking To Move On
The Hornets now find themselves in 10th place on 22 points, level with West Ham United who have been in excellent recent form.
Defeats against Sunderland, Manchester City, West Brom and Stoke have been damaging in recent weeks.
Watford have conceded 10 goals in their last six matches, scoring just five goals during that period.
Hornets Underdogs
Watford come into this match as the underdogs, with the visitors Tottenham looking in great form.
The Hornets will be looking to better their recent record against Spurs, they have lost the last four successive meetings.
Danger Man
Troy Deeney is the danger man for Watford. The skipper was dropped for his goal drought but expect him to rediscover his form after finally hitting the 100 goal milestone.
He has also assisted his team mates three times, making him an invaluable cog in this Hornets side.
Watford are 17/4 with Troy Deeney at 7/1 to score first.
Spurs Festive Surge
Spurs come into this match in great form, having secured three successive wins, the last a 4-1 win coming away at Southampton.
Virgil Van Dijk (2), got his side off to the perfect start, with the dutchman linked with several clubs in the top four.
Dele Alli (19), equalised for Spurs seventeen minutes later, with Harry Kane giving Spurs the lead in the 52nd minute.
Southampton then lost Nathan Redmond to a straight red card in the 57th minute, after bringing Dele Alli down in the penalty box, with Kane hitting well over the bar.
Heung Min Son scored another goal late on for Spurs, with Dele Alli returning to complete a double in the 87th minute.
He Said
Victor Wanyama returned to St.Mary's for the first time since his summer move, he scored for his new side as well.
"It was a bit emotional for me today, it was a little bit difficult but as the game went on I was confident. I am focused on the players on the pitch and on doing my job, today I think we played well as a team. I'm really glad that we came here to a tough place and took maximum points."
Tottenham Looking For Run
Pochettino will be wanting his side to build on that winning form in the Premier League, they have won five of their last six.
Tottenham have had an excellent festive period so far, the next 7 days will be highly demanding with three games.
Spurs Favourites
Tottenham come into this match as favourites, with just the two defeats this season they have been very hard to beat.
Spurs have an excellent recent record against Watford, in 20 meetings they have won 12, drawn 3 and lost 5.
Danger Man
The danger man for Tottenham is Harry Kane. The England international has recovered fully from his early season injury and looks in fine form again.
He has scored 8 goals, despite missing two months with injury.
Tottenham are 4/6 with Harry Kane at 7/2 to open the scoring.
The second match of 2017 sees Arsenal take on Crystal Palace at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal vs Crystal Palace – Sunday 1st January 2017 – 16:00 - Sky Sports 1
Arsenal welcome Crystal Palace to the Emirates on New Years Day, continuing a full festive period of Premier League action.
The Gunners come into this match still in mixed form, despite a hard fought 1-0 win against West Brom on Boxing Day.
Olivier Giroud (86) scored a late goal for the Gunners, with the Frenchman breaking the resolute Baggies defence very late on.
Arsene Wenger will be delighted, it was a largely frustrating match for the Gunners, so to secure the result late on is an excellent three points.
He Said
Wenger was naturally delighted with Arsenal's win, especially as victory was far from assured going into the last 10 minutes.
"It could have been 0-0 and sometimes you have to accept that. But I believe we were relentless, we were composed, we didn't panic and we didn't make a mistake at the back. For us it was mentally vital to win the game."
Gunners Struggling
It was an excellent response to successive defeats against Everton and Manchester City, albeit both were away.
The Gunners have struggled in the second half of both the Everton and City matches, with Arsene Wenger suggesting it could be a lack of fitness.
Super Sub Olivier Giroud came to the Gunners rescue again, the desire and fitness issues have seemingly been put to bed with that result.
Gunners Favourites
Arsenal come into this match as favourites, with their excellent record this season informing those odds.
Arsenal will be looking to continue their excellent recent record against Crystal Palace, they are unbeaten in their last 11 meetings.
Danger Man
The danger man for Arsenal is Alexis Sanchez. The Chilean international is yet to agree a contract extension at Arsenal, he is absolutely vital and more than worth the reported £200k a week needed.
He is the joint second top scorer in the Premier League with 12 goals, he has also got 6 assists.
Arsenal are 1/3 with Alexis Sanchez at 11/4 to score first.
Allardyce Looking For Win
Palace come into this fixture on the back of a hard fought 1-1 draw against Watford on Boxing Day.
Yohan Cabaye (26) opened the scoring for the visitors, seemingly getting the Sam Allardyce era off to the perfect start.
However, Palace's defensive frailties came back to haunt them, with experienced defender Damien Delaney giving away a stupid foul for a penalty.
Troy Deeney converted from the penalty spot (71), with honours even and both sides needing to do a lot of work to move forward.
He Said
Martin Kelly has hailed the impact that manager Allardyce has already made, convincing the squad that avoiding relegation is not the limit of their ambitions.
"Sam brings his experience and we're all on board with his philosophy. It's exciting to have him as our manager and we just hope we can all come together to give him the results that he and the fans want moving forward as a club."
Palace Look To Allardyce
Crystal Palace come into this match in dismal form, having lost three, drawn two and won just one of their last six matches.
Sam Allardyce is the man the Eagles have appointed to take them forward, with the former England boss replacing Pardew.
His first job will be to sure up the Palace defence, with the Eagles leaking 32 goals in 17 matches this season.
Palace have taken just 27 points from 37 Premier League games this year, with the dismal run of form ultimately ending his time at the club.
Eagles Underdogs
This will be a tough fixture for Allardyce's Eagles, with Palace looking for their first win under their new manager.
Their overall record against Arsenal is poor, with the Eagles winning just 2 of their 32 meetings.
Danger Man
Christian Benteke is the danger man for Palace. He produced a poor penalty against Watford but he has already scored 8 goals this season in the Premier League.
With Big Sam's style of football and the excellent deliveries provided by the in from Zaha, Benteke will benefit enormously.
Crystal Palace are 8/1 with Christian Benteke at 9/1 to open the scoring.
Betting Tips
Tip 1 – Kane to score first @ 7/2 and Tottenham to win 3-1 @ 12/1
Tip 2 – Sanchez to score first @ 11/4 and Arsenal to win 3-1 @ 9/1