Sports Mole takes on Feeder's Taka Hirose for a Premier League predictions challenge in gameweek 18 of the 2023-24 season.

The final Premier League gameweek before Christmas promises to be the gift that keeps on giving, kicking off with a derby and also including a top-of-the-table showdown.

M23 derby rivals Crystal Palace and Brighton & Hove Albion get things underway on Thursday night for a gameweek that spans four days, with Aston Villa hosting Sheffield United on Friday night knowing that a win would put them top.

Saturday contains the bulk of the action, most notably the top two going into the gameweek facing off as Liverpool welcome leaders Arsenal to Anfield, with the two sides having swapped positions in the table last weekend.

Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur also feature among the six games on that Saturday, before the pre-Christmas schedule comes to a close with a rare Christmas Eve game between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea at Molineux.

Each gameweek, Sports Mole is taking on a famous musician or band in a prediction competition, and this week it is the turn of Feeder's Taka Hirose.

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Crystal Palace vs. Brighton

Thursday, 8pm

Taka: Crystal Palace 1-2 Brighton

Sports Mole: Crystal Palace 1-1 Brighton

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Aston Villa vs. Sheff Utd

Friday, 8pm

Taka: Aston Villa 3-0 Sheff Utd

Sports Mole: Aston Villa 3-0 Sheff Utd

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West Ham vs. Man Utd

Saturday, 12.30pm

Taka: West Ham 1-1 Man Utd

Sports Mole: West Ham 2-2 Man Utd

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Fulham vs. Burnley

Saturday, 3pm

Taka: Fulham 2-1 Burnley

Sports Mole: Fulham 2-1 Burnley

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Luton vs. Newcastle

Saturday, 3pm

Taka: Luton 0-2 Newcastle

Sports Mole: Luton 2-1 Newcastle

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Nott'm Forest vs. Bournemouth

Saturday, 3pm

Taka: Nott'm Forest 1-2 Bournemouth

Sports Mole: Nott'm Forest 1-2 Bournemouth

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Spurs vs. Everton

Saturday, 3pm

Taka: Spurs 3-2 Everton

Sports Mole: Spurs 2-0 Everton

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Liverpool vs. Arsenal

Saturday, 5.30pm

Taka: Liverpool 1-1 Arsenal

Sports Mole: Liverpool 2-2 Arsenal

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Wolves vs. Chelsea

Sunday, 1pm

Taka: Wolves 1-3 Chelsea

Sports Mole: Wolves 1-2 Chelsea

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Taka Hirose Q&A

How did you come to support Chelsea and what are your favourite memories from your time as a fan?

After I came to London from Japan, I gradually started to follow the Premier League but didn't have any particular team to support. One day, our publishing company back then invited me and Grant for a Chelsea game at Stamford Bridge as they had the box there.

It was a Chelsea vs. Newcastle game and Gianfranco Zola was playing and he was fantastic. We were invited again one or two more times. By then I was following Zola and checking on how he was playing. So, eventually Chelsea has become my team.

We were on tour when Chelsea played against Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final second leg in 2012. I was watching it until our stage time and Barcelona were winning 2-0 comfortably.

I thought 'so typical against Barcelona, Chelsea are losing again'. But when I came back from the stage, lots of people were texting me like 'well done, Chelsea!' etc. I couldn't understand what they meant. Are they being cynical cos Chelsea lost!? And I checked the result and 'Wow! But How!???'

I was feeling a bit confused but so great. You can imagine how big a smile I had on my face when I went back to the stage for the encore after that! Ha ha, I didn't even watch the whole game but it was a great moment for me. And Chelsea won the final!

Who have been your favourite five players for Chelsea? (Historically or currently)

Gianfranco Zola, Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, Reece James, Thiago Silva

What's going on with the band at the moment?

We are preparing for our next double album "Black / Red" which will be released next spring and we have a tour in March 2024. Check out our new music and come to the show!

Check out 'The Knock', the latest release from Feeder, available on all digital streaming platforms now.

You can follow Feeder on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter).

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2023-24 SEASON LEADERBOARD (ARTISTS)

Scores are calculated as one point for a correct result and five points for a correct scoreline.

1. SPRINTS' Sam (19pts | Gameweek 9)
2. Flat Party's Nic (18pts | Gameweek 7)
3. SPRINTS' Jack (16pts | Gameweek 9)
4. SPRINTS' Karla (14pts | Gameweek 9)
5. Flat Party's Dylan (12pts | Gameweek 7)
6. Flat Party's Rory (10pts | Gameweek 7)
7. Tom Speight (9pts | Gameweek 2)
= Majestic & Beyond Chicago (9pts | Gameweek 3)
= Sea Girls' Andrew Dawson (9pts | Gameweek 8)
10. New Rules' Ryan Meaney (8pts | Gameweek 6)
= K.A.D (8pts | Gameweek 12)
12. Kid Kapichi's Jack Wilson (7pts | Gameweek 5)
13. Sainte (5pts | Gameweek 13)
14. Insincere (4pts | Gameweek 1)
= STONE (4pts | Gameweek 10)
= Slick Don (4pts | Gameweek 14)
= The Blinders' Charlie McGough (4pts | Gameweek 15)
= Alex Spencer (4pts | Gameweek 16)
18. Barry Can't Swim (3pts | Gameweek 4)
= Keen Roy (3pts | Gameweek 11)

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2023-24 COMPETITION HISTORY

Gameweek 1: Insincere 4-16 Sports Mole
Gameweek 2: Tom Speight 9-16 Sports Mole
Gameweek 3: Majestic & Beyond Chicago 9-9 Sports Mole
Gameweek 4: Barry Can't Swim 3-9 Sports Mole
Gameweek 5: Kid Kapichi's Jack Wilson 7-11 Sports Mole
Gameweek 6: New Rules' Ryan Meaney 8-10 Sports Mole
Gameweek 7: Flat Party's Rory, Nic & Dylan 10/18/12-3 Sports Mole
Gameweek 8: Sea Girls' Andrew Dawson 9-9 Sports Mole
Gameweek 9: SPRINTS' Jack, Same & Karla 16/19/14-16 Sports Mole
Gameweek 10: STONE 4-6 Sports Mole
Gameweek 11: Keen Roy 3-9 Sports Mole
Gameweek 12: K.A.D 8-8 Sports Mole
Gameweek 13: Sainte 5-2 Sports Mole
Gameweek 14: Slick Don 4-6 Sports Mole
Gameweek 15: The Blinders' Charlie McGough 4-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 16: Alex Spencer 4-3 Sports Mole

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