Premier League Opening Weekend: Predicting All 10 Matches

It may only seem like yesterday that Manchester City snatched victory from the jaws of defeat and won the 2011/12 Premier League title.

However we are now just slightly over a month from the start of another season. Every team will want to get off to a good start but which teams will start off with three points and who will start with nothing?

Here are the predictions for every game of the opening weekend of the 2012/13 season. How do you think these games will pan out? Comment below.

Arsenal would have hoped for a quiet summer holiday but the speculation surrounding Robin Van Persie put pay to that.

Despite these headlines, Arsenal come into the 2012/13 season a far stronger team than they were last year. The additions of Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud give the squad quality depth up front. The return of Jack Wilshire could not happen until October so the midfield could do with some strengthening.

Sunderland won the last game between the two, taking their fifth round FA Cup tie 2-0. However the Gunners won both of the Premier League ties, winning both games 2-1.

Getting off to a strong start is key for Arsenal this year following the nightmare that they had at the start of last year's season.

Sunderland struggled heavily after an initial resurgent period under Martin O'Neill, only winning one of their last ten matches.

So far they have only added Carlos Cuellar to the squad but O'Neill told BBC Newcastle that he would be looking to bring in players sooner rather than later, he said "ideally it will be better if we had the players in place a little bit before the season starts."

Unless Sunderland invest seriously in their defence, expect Arsenal to have too much firepower for them.

Prediction: Arsenal 3-1 Sunderland

The first Monday game of the season sees Everton host last season's runners-up Manchester United.

The biggest addition to the Everton squad so far has been former Rangers striker Steven Naismith. The Scottish international bolsters a team that was excellent at home last season. Their last five games at Goodison Park saw them score 13 goals in four wins.

This could be a tricky opener for United, whose last game against Everton saw them squander a 4-2 lead to end up drawing 4-4.

Sir Alex could be fielding a very different looking midfield though, with Shinji Kagawa already signed and Brazilian Lucas Moura a definite target.

New signings can take a while to bed into a new league however and Everton will not give them an easy welcome.

Prediction: Everton 2-2 Manchester United

Fulham and Swansea were two of the surprise packages of last season and their opening game at Craven Cottage should prove to be a tight affair.

Martin Jol has been fairly busy in the transfer window already, bringing in former Wigan man Hugo Rodallega and Croatian striker Mladen Petric from his former club Hamburg.

He has also looked to Germany to bolster his defence, signing German international right-back Sascha Riether.

Rumours speculating on the futures of key players Clint Dempsey and Moussa Dembele have dogged the club this summer, but if they can keep them around, a solid season beckons for Martin Jol's side.

Norwich have also had to put up with rumours surrounding players like John Ruddy and Grant Holt. Losing manager Paul Lambert to Aston Villa was a blow but following Chris Hughton's appointment both Holt and Ruddy have signed new contracts and stability has been brought back to Carrow Road.

This game has the potential to be a nervy game with neither team wanting to make a mistake and start the season with a loss after they both lost their opening games last season.

Prediction: Fulham 0-0 Norwich City

On Sunday Southampton will be thrown into the deep end on their return to the top flight. The Saints will travel to reigning champions Manchester City.

Southampton have already make a number of signings including exciting Crystal Palace full-back Nathaniel Clyne and Northern Ireland captain Steven Davis.

Nigel Adkins' side played extremely good football last season in the Championship and look like a team that could repeat the success that newly-promoted teams Swansea and Norwich had last season. Yet it could be a harsh debut against a Manchester City side looking to defend their title.

City will be looking to exert their dominance early in the season to capitalise on any mistakes made by their rivals and this could be the biggest win of the weekend

Prediction: Manchester City 4-0 Southampton

In Saturday's late game, last season's biggest surprise Newcastle take on a Spurs team playing their first league game under André Villas-Boas.

Alan Pardew has been fairly quiet so far in the transfer window, but importantly has kept all of his key players at the club.

The Magpies will be looking for revenge after they were blown away by five goals when the clubs last met.

In contrast, Tottenham have strengthened the squad with two big names in preparation for the new season. Jan Vertonghen and Gylfi Sigurdsson are both top quality signings and will look to make up for the potential loss of Luka Modric.

Both teams have realistic dreams of making the top four and this could make for an edgy first game of the season.

Prediction: Newcastle 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur

After losing Brendan Rodgers to Liverpool, Swansea made an excellent appointment in Danish legend Michael Laudrup.

Midfielder Jonathan de Guzman, who played under Laudrup at Mallorca is a quality loan signing and he will be joined by Spaniards Michu and Jose Manuel Flores.

Rangers will be confident against Swansea having taken four points against them in their two games last season.

They have made solid steps in the transfer market, adding good Premier League level players.

Rob Green is a definite upgrade between the sticks, while Ryan Nelsen, Andy Johnson and Park Ji-Sung add strength throughout the team.

QPR had a solid end to last season and that could translate into a good start to the new campaign.

Prediction: Queens Park Rangers 2-1 Swansea City

Reading make their return to top-flight football and host Stoke in their first game.

Pavel Pogrebnyak scored six goals in 12 games last season for Fulham and could be a key man for Reading if they are to stay in the division.

However the signings of Nicky Shorey and Adrian Mariappa are not as encouraging and Reading's squad looks a little short of quality. However the same charge was leveled at Norwich last season.

Stoke so far are looking much the same as they did last season. The addition of Jamie Ness from Rangers was a good move and they promise to be the same solid team that we have come to know.

However, Stoke are a far better team at the Britannia Stadium and this could mean a bright first outing for the Royals.

Prediction: Reading 2-1 Stoke City

Two new managers go head-to-head when Steve Clarke's West Bromwich Albion play Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool side.

West Brom have been flying high under Roy Hodgson recently but it will be tough for Clarke to keep the club at that level in his first season with the top job.

Signing Ben Foster permanently was a good move and he has also added Belgium international winger Yassine El Ghanassy.

In the other dugout, Rodgers will be looking to get his Liverpool squad playing his brand of football straight out of the blocks.

To achieve this he has signed Fabio Borini from Roma while Fulham's Clint Dempsey has been strongly linked to the club after they missed out on Gylfi Sigurdsson.

Last season both teams lost their home games against each other and I expect that trend to continue with Liverpool coming out on top at The Hawthorns.

Prediction: West Bromwich Albion 1-3 Liverpool

West Ham make a welcome return to the Premier League this season and their first opponents will be an Aston Villa side looking to bounce back under new manager Paul Lambert.

Lambert faces a tough task getting Villa out of the doldrums and Villa will be keen to start the season brightly.

The return of Darren Bent will be a huge boost to the team and Villa fans will be hoping that this goes some way to solving their scoring problems from last season.

West Ham had an up-and-down season under Sam Allardyce last year and their home form wasn't brilliant. Four defeats and eight draws last season suggest that they could be vulnerable in front of their own fans and Villa could take advantage.

West Ham will be looking to impress on their return to the league but these two teams could end up cancelling each other out. A draw should satisfy both sets of fans but Villa could just nick it.

Prediction: West Ham United 1-2 Aston Villa

Wigan and Chelsea will fight out the opening Sunday game of the season and somehow Dave Whelan has managed to keep Roberto Martinez at the helm for another season. The Spaniard faces his toughest season yet after the loss of Hugo Rodellega and this is not an easy start.

Mohamed Diame has also left the club and Chelsea have been eager to snap up winger Victor Moses. The club has added Aberdeen midfielder Fraser Fyvie but they are already looking like favourites for relegation.

Meanwhile Chelsea and new manager Roberto Di Matteo are fresh off of their stunning Champions League win and will be looking to improve on their fifth-place finish last year.

Chelsea struggled against Wigan last year, drawing on the road and snatching a victory in the final minutes at Stamford Bridge. In August the result should be far more cut-and-dried and Chelsea will be taking three points back to London.

Prediction: Wigan Athletic 0-2 Chelsea