Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace striker Jean-Philippe Mateta: "It is always good to score a goal and we win in the end. It was very good or me and the team and I was really happy.

"We keep working hard to come to our best level.

"Everyone is back now and we are very happy and that makes us win some games. We want to win at home in front of our fans."

Newcastle United

Newcastle defender Dan Burn speaking to BBC Sport: "They have not lost here this season and have been very strong here so we have had some good results in the past here. We know they are a threat.

"It is about just looking after our game really. We will be looking to counter and the weather is going to affect set-pieces a bit. It's about dealing with their threats and imposing ourseves.

"I think we have been pretty inconsistent this season. We want to put a full game together and hopefully it's today."

Image source, Getty Images

Leo: Sam at 13:15 was it the match between Burnley and Spurs in 2021? Meaning the 2 most recent involved Dyche?

Jack: Last PL game suspended... Burnley v Spurs in 2021 because of snow?

Brentford

Brentford manager Thomas Frank speaking to BBC Sport: "I am looking forward to playing at home. We have built a fortress here and we are looking to keep it that way. We will be aggressive and come out and we are looking forward to it.

"Newcastle are a very good team and very well coached. They have some fantastic payers. They know what they want. They have a lot of pace and physicality and they are extremely good. We look forward to the game. We trust ourselves. If we hit a high level we can win and it's about hitting that high level.

"Vitaly [Janelt] is out for this game. Thiago and Fabio Carvalho I decided to play today. They have looked good and are good. Kevin Schade and Mikkel Damsgaard have been good but it's three games in a week and we are building them to be more robust."

Manchester City have had their fair share of injury problems. This is how their treatment room currently looks:

• Nathan Ake - out for this weekend (thigh)
• Manuel Akanji - a doubt for this weekend (other)
• Phil Foden - out for this weekend (ill)
• Rodri - out for the season (knee)
• Oscar Bobb - out until at least January (calf)
• Mateo Kovacic - out until Christmas time (other)
• John Stones - out for this weekend (ankle)

Image source, Getty Images

Manchester City

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola: "We will do our best. All the seasons are like this and we have to adapt as quick as possible with a good mentality."

What do Savinho and Matheus Nunes bring to the team? "Energy. Fresh energy. Jack [Grealish] yesterday has some struggles. Jeremy [Doku] came back after three or four weeks with a muscular injury. Three days it was too much risk. Fresh legs, energy and let's go."

Does the midweek win help you? "It is the past. The same as when we lost, we forget it. It is not the end of the season and there are many games to play."

Nick Mashiter
BBC Sport football news reporter at Villa Park

Boss Unai Emery makes four changes to his Aston Villa side for the visit of Southampton.

Ollie Watkins, Tyrone Mings, Lucas Digne and Matty Cash benched after Wednesday's win over Brentford and replaced by Diego Carlos, Pau Torres, Ian Maatsen and Jhon Duran.

Aston Villa XI: Martinez, Konsa, Carlos, Torres, Maatsen, McGinn, Kamara, Rogers, Tielemans, Bailey, Duran

Substitutes: Cash, Mings, Digne, Onana, Barkley, Buendia, Philogene, Watkins, Olsen.

Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Flynn Downes, Tyler Dibling return following Southampton's 5-1 defeat to Chelsea in mid-week.

Defender Nathan Wood keeps his place after his Premier League debut on Wednesday with Jan Bednarek missing out with a knee injury.

Southampton XI: Lumley, Bree, Walker-Peters, Harwood-Bellis, Wood, Manning, Downes, Fernandes, Dibling, Armstrong, Archer.

Substitutes: Edwards, Taylor, Aribo, Fraser, Sugawara, Amo-Ameyaw, Kamaldeen, Brereton-Diaz, McCarthy

Christian Norgaard, who missed the midweek defeat by Aston Villa, returns to the starting XI for Brentford.

Brentford XI: Flekken; Lewis-Potter, Collins, Pinnock, Van den Berg; Norgaard, Yarmoliuk, Carvalho, Mbeumo, Thiago, Wissa

Subs: Valdimarrson, Schade, Mee, Ajer, Damsgaard, Konak, Trevitt, Roerslev, Maghoma

Newcastle make two changes for the game with Harvey Barnes and Sean Longstaff coming into the side. Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon drop to the bench.

Newcastle XI: Pope; Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall; Longstaff, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Murphy, Isak, Barnes.

Subs: Dubravka, Trippier, Kelly, Targett, Tonali, Almiron, Gordon, Wilson.

Just the one change for Crystal Palace after their victory over Ipswich last time out. Jefferson Lerma steps in for Abdoulaye Doucoure.

Crystal Palace XI: Henderson, Guehi, Lacroix, Chalobah, Mitchell, Lerma, Hughes, Munoz, Eze, Sarr, Mateta

Subs: Turner, Ward, Nketiah, Schlupp, Clyne, Kamada, Richards, Doucoure, Devenny

Pep Guardiola makes four changes to the Manchester City side that beat Nottingham Forest last time out.

Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji are both new additions to City's ever-growing injury list and are replaced by Kyle Walker and Rico Lewis.

Savinho and Matheus Nunes also step on for Jeremy Doku and Jack Grealish, who drop to the bench.

Man City XI: Ortega, Walker, Gvardiol, Dias, Gundogan, Lewis, De Bruyne, Silva, Savinho, Nunes, Haaland

Subs: Ederson, Carson, Grealish, Doku, Wright, Simpson-Pusey, O'Reilly, McAtee, Wilson-Esbrand

Team news for our 3pm matches about to drop, we'll have that for you as soon as possible...

Ruben Amorim arrived at Old Trafford four and a half hours early for his team's game this afternoon.

The new Manchester United head coach is keen!

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Dion Dublin
Former England striker on Football Focus

It's new to the football club. Villa are a very successful side, however Champions League and Premier League both at the same time, that's all new. Being in every single competition is new to Villa.

It hasn't happened for a long time, so they have to figure out how it works and make it right.

Martin Keown
Former England defender on Football Focus

When I first started playing Champions League football I could not believe the enormity of it, the clamour for it, what it takes out of you and Aston Villa's league form has been affected. They have beaten Bayern Munich and drawn with Juventus. They won their first three Champions League games and were off to a flyer, managing the season, then they started to dip a little bit.

I think it's a natural thing to happen but I think the manager will put it up now. Southampton at home today is one where they play their way back.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Victory over Brentford on Wednesday ended an eight-match winless run for Aston Villa.

However, boss Unai Emery accepts that he is likely going to have to change his line-up today with five games still to play in December.

"It has been impossible at the moment, because there are players playing a lot of matches, and they are coming with some injuries, some small pains, getting tired," he said.

"But, for me, it's not the most important thing to try to be consistent with the starting XI players.

"I want players knowing tactically and performing tactically and individually, with their quality, always getting the level we want. I have to use two players for each position, trying to compete and trying to be ready to play."

Theo Walcott
Former Everton and Arsenal winger on BBC Radio 5 Live

Pep has been saying about Kevin de Bruyne's fitness levels but when you see him smiling that his key.

Kevin de Bruyne for me is the best midfield player that has ever existed in the Premier League in my opinion.

To see him score and be playing again is really good. They look different when he plays. They were one dimensional at times and they didn't have that gamechanger.

City are still in it, of course.

Image source, Getty Images

Alan Shearer
Former England striker on BBC Radio 5 Live

I was 34 and signed a one-year deal. It all depends on what Kevin de Bruyne wants.

He is an unbelievable player and one of the best ever in the Premier League. I would have loved to play with him and I think my goal tally would have gone up.

He is a winner but it is what him and his family want.

Manchester City returned to winning ways on Wednesday with a 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest. Thanks, in large part, to Kevin de Bruyne's return to the starting line-up.

He's back in the fold again today and here Match of the Day discuss why he's so crucial to Pep Guardiola's side.

Jeremy Doku says Manchester City will stay in their "bubble" for the remainder of the 2024-25 season, following criticism of the team's performances and results in recent weeks.

Doku scored against Nottingham Forest in the 3-0 win at Etihad Stadium on Wednesday, as Pep Guardiola's side closed the gap on league leaders Liverpool to seven points.

"They can say whatever they want," said the 22-year-old winger of the criticism his team has received.

"We just stay in our bubble and we're still in December.

"If they think it's over, let them think it's over. We are going to look game by game, try to win as much as possible and we will see at the end."

The Belgium international says Guardiola's team block out external criticism and remain focused on themselves rather than what their competitors are doing.

He added: "At the end of the day, when everything goes well they're going to hype you up. When everything goes bad, you're the worst.

"We don't listen, we concentrate on ourselves in our bubble. We know together we'll be stronger."

Image source, Getty Images

Right, let's turn our attention to the games that are actually going ahead now...