Prem's latest predictions

GM football fans. It’s Tuesday, Nov. 26, and we’re covering the latest Premier League title predictions, a new alternative football league and much more. First time reading? Sign up here.

Editor’s note: Starting this week, Route One’s Daily Brief will be sent from a different email address. If it doesn’t land in your inbox, make sure to check your junk or spam folders.

TONIGHT’S UCL STATS

Bayern Munich vs PSG (20:00 GMT / 15:00 ET). Bayern have won each of their last three games against PSG in the Champions League, and the French side haven’t scored in any of those meetings. Manchester City vs Feyenoord (20:00 GMT / 15:00 ET). Feyenoord have only won one of their 10 matches against English sides in European competitions, but City are on a five-game losing streak. Sporting Lisbon vs Arsenal (20:00 GMT / 15:00 ET). Sporting haven’t won in six previous attempts versus Arsenal. And if they fail to win this match, the London side will be the opponent they’ve faced the most in European competitions without ever winning. Full list of Champions League fixtures here.

Plus…

• EPL MW12: Newcastle United 0 - 2 West Ham (Full results here / Table)

• Latest Champions League predictions (More)

• FA apologises after Women’s third-round draw stream kept freezing (More)

• Ed Sheeran apologises to Ruben Amorim after interview gatecrash (More / incident here)

• Graham Potter and Ruud van Nistelrooy considered for Leicester manager role (More)

• Kevin De Bruyne unsure over Man City future (More)

EPL TITLE RACE

Liverpool now major favourites to win the title, Opta’s latest predictions reveal

Liverpool now have a 69.5% chance of winning the Premier League this season, according to Opta’s latest predictions. That’s up from 60.3% after the last round of fixtures, following the Reds’ 3-2 win over Southampton and Manchester City’s 4-0 loss to Tottenham.

While City started the season with an 82.8% chance of winning the title, Opta now gives them a 23.3% chance. Arsenal's chances of glory rose slightly after their 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest. The Gunners are now at 6.5%, up from 5%. Interestingly, though, the betting markets place Liverpool and Arsenal above City in their title predictions.

Arne Slot’s side have the toughest stretch of their season ahead. Until the end of the year, Liverpool face City, Newcastle, Everton, Fulham, Tottenham, Leicester and West Ham. They must also balance Champions League fixtures against Real Madrid (on Wednesday) and Girona, as well as a Carabao Cup tie away to Southampton.

POLL

HEAD START

> Salah says he’s “more out than in” at Liverpool. Mohamed Salah, who has scored 12 goals in all competitions this season, says he hasn’t received an offer from his club for next season. After claiming he was “more out than in” the club, he admitted he was “disappointed” that Liverpool hadn’t tabled a new contract. In September, the Egyptian said it was his last season at the club. But it’s thought this was part of Salah’s implicit negotiating tactic with his club. Insiders say that there’s a gap between what Salah is asking for and what Liverpool are willing to offer. The futures of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk, who are also out of contract this summer, are also uncertain.

> Charlton’s missing World Cup-winning shirt has been found. England captain Bobby Charlton’s missing 1966 World Cup-winning shirt was found in Wales. The red No 6 jersey, estimated to be worth more than £1mn, was last seen in his former wife Tina Moore’s home in Essex. It is now reportedly in possession of Britain’s biggest collector of football memorabilia, a tyre tycoon named Neville Evans.

> Madrid click as Mbappe and Vinicius swap positions. Kylian Mbappe scored his first goal in five games after switching positions with Vinicius Jr. The Frenchman scored the opener in Real Madrid’s 3-0 La Liga win at Leganes after starting on the left side of the attack. "I started in a different position than in recent games," Mbappé said afterwards. "But as I said the first day I arrived here, I can play in different positions.” Manager Carlo Ancelotti made the change because he felt Mbappe was comfortable playing on the left and was fresher than Vinicius Jr as he was left out of the France squad. Mbappe has scored seven goals in 12 league appearances for Madrid.

ALTERNATIVE LEAGUE LAUNCHED

Ex-professionals and internet celebrities announce a new league, launch in 2025

A star-studded list of former players and internet personalities have announced a newly launched ‘Baller League’ for the US and UK. It’s set to begin in 2025. Those involved include Gary Lineker, John Terry, Ronaldinho, Luis Figo, Robert Pires, Micah Richards and many more.

The competition has been popular in Germany since Mats Hummels and Lukasz Podolski launched it earlier this year. It’s a competitive six-a-side tournament that combines the traditional game with new rules. The league will feature 12 teams consisting of 12 players with games played over two 15-minute halves. It will include a mix of ex-professionals and YouTube celebrities as players and managers. See a video of a final that took place last month here.

Some unique rules include: goals from the back two-thirds of the pitch count double, and 1v1s to settle games. Another unique aspect of the competition is that it will be live-streamed for free on Twitch.

AROUND THE FOOTBALL WORLD

Top Five European Leagues

> Real Madrid confirm that Vinicius Jr will be out with an injury for three weeks; to miss the Liverpool tie on Wednesday as Kylian Mbappe is to start left-wing again (More)

> Bayer Leverkusen CEO has denied reports that head coach Xabi Alonso and midfielder Florian Wirtz are set to leave the club in the near future (More)

Rest of the World

> LA Galaxy’s 6-2 win over Minnesota United means they will play fourth-seeded Seattle Sounders for the Western Conference title | Orlando City’s 1-0 win over Atalanta United means they will play seventh-seeded New York Red Bulls for the Eastern Conference title (More)

> Rangers have appointed Patrick Stewart as their new chief executive officer, the same role he held on an interim basis at Manchester United; his role begins on 16 December (More)

> Cristiano Ronaldo makes it 913 career goals after scoring a brace in Al-Nassr’s 3-1 win over Al-Gharafa in the AFC Champions League (More)

ROUTER’S VOICE

On Friday, we asked you: Are we seeing the end of Manchester City’s dominance?

🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 📉 Yes... (54%)

🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ 🙅 Nope... (46%)

Your punditry takes:

• 📉 P.M: “There is never a complete dominant force in English football for more than 5 years, it may come back around again.”

• 🙅 P.O: Simply put, we can't win them all. Any blue will tell you that 2nd, 3rd or even 4th is still a good season compared to where we've been! Pep's new contract signals he's here to overhaul the squad again and continue to dominate.”

• 🙅 L.M: “With another 2 years of Pep and a big January window, things will get back to normal. Even if that means they don’t win the league this year.”

EXTRA TIME

Porto fans wait in anger after Cup of Portugal knock-out. / via X

Ed Sheeran gatecrashes Amorim’s post-match interview.

Analysing Haaland’s poor finishing.

Jamie Carragher has his say on Salah’s comments and Amorim’s tactics. / via X

Biggest points gaps overturned in EPL title races.

David de Gea’s Fiorentiona renaissance.

Spurs’ Monogram logo could comeback to their kits.

Guradiola’s team talk after City’s 2-2 to Palace last season.

GAME FACE ON

Question: Who Am I…

• I began my career in 1995 with my hometown club Brescia, winning the Serie B in 1997.

• I’ve won two Champions Leagues, two Super Cups, a World Cup and a Coppa Italia.

• In 2015, I joined MLS side New York City FC and retired two years later. 

Scroll below for the answer.

ON TODAY

Champions League

• Slovan vs AC Milan (17:45)

• Sparta Prague vs Atletico Madrid (17:45)

• Barcelona vs Brest (20:00)

• Bayer Leverkusen vs RB Salzburg (20:00)

• Bayern Munich vs PSG (20:00)

• Inter Milan vs Leipzig (20:00)

• Man City vs Feyenoord (20:00)

• Sporting Lisbon vs Arsenal (20:00)

• Young Boys vs Atalanta (20:00)

Scottish Premiership

• Hibernian vs Aberdeen (19:45)

EFL Championship

• Full list of fixtures here.

*All time in UK. ET -5. CST -6. PST -8. MST -7. CET +1.

Answer

Andrea Pirlo.