Manchester United stretched their lead at the top of the table to nine points last week, but is that enough to secure Premier League glory from their noisy neighbours?

With five matches remaining in the 2011/12 season, United led City by five points. It was, to many, an unassailable lead. Cue the greatest sporting comeback in living memory, and the closest Premier League finish in its long and celebrated history.

For the majority of this season, the battle for the title has been a two-horse race, with the two Manchester clubs putting clear breathing space between themselves and the likes of Londoners Chelsea, Tottenham and Arsenal.

United’s 1-0 win over Fulham and City’s 2-2 draw with Liverpool meant the Red Devils built up a nine-point buffer over the Sky Blues. Now, with just 13 games to go, the hunt for Premier League glory begins to come to a head, and it’s beginning to look eerily similar to last time around.

The beginning of Manchester United’s title capitulation last season began when they hosted Everton at Old Trafford. United led 4-2 as the match ticked into its final stages. Then, out of nowhere, Nikica Jelavic and Steven Pienaar struck twice in the space of 90 seconds to put the first seed of doubt into Alex Ferguson’s mind.

This weekend, Manchester United will once again host Everton in a match that could have big repercussions in terms of the title race. If the Red Devils don’t record a victory and City cut their lead, could we begin to see the start of something even more special than 2011/12?

With the Premier League decided over the course of a 38-game season, mental strength comes into the equation – often more than physical stamina and ability. Last season Roberto Mancini dismissed City’s title chances right up until the final game of the season, attempting to draw United into complacency. This time around, he’s doing the opposite, claiming that despite the gap between the two sides, the race for the Championship is ‘not over’. His Manchester City side travels to Southampton this weekend.

Newcastle is a side buoyed by some exciting January transfers that look to be paying off. Moussa Sissoko scored a double on debut as the Magpies defeated Chelsea 3-2 last weekend. It crucially took them six points clear of the relegation zone as their ascent up the table begins. They travel south to Tottenham this weekend, who has just learnt that top-scorer Jermaine Defoe will be out for three weeks with an ankle injury.

Chelsea once again relinquished a lead when they conceded a stoppage time goal to lose to Newcastle last weekend. The Blues, without some inconsistent and extremely poor performances, could have been in the title race this season. There’s no doubt Roman Abramovic will now be looking towards the summer to rebuild. They play Wigan this weekend.

Reading pulled themselves out of the relegation zone when they deservingly beat Sunderland last weekend. Jimmy Kebe scored a vital brace that helped continue their fine run of form. The Royals have now notched up 10 points out of a possible 12 since the turn of the New Year. They’ll travel to Stoke on Saturday.

Danny Graham will be in for an unusual reception when he makes his home debut for Sunderland against Arsenal this weekend. Graham, who made a £5 million move from Swansea in January, is likely to be booed by his own supporters following the reception he got from the Stadium of Light crowd when he played there for Swansea just a month ago. The reason behind the reaction is Graham’s long-standing and public affection for his boyhood side Newcastle, Sunderland’s archrivals.

Aston Villa could feel buoyed by a dramatic 3-3 draw away to Everton on the weekend, however in hindsight they should have taken all three points. They led 3-1 before conceding two late Marrouane Fellaini goals, meaning they stayed camped within the bottom three. They’ll face West Ham on Sunday.

Liverpool fans will begin saying their goodbyes to club legend Jamie Carragher when the Reds host West Brom on Monday night. The 35-year-old has made 723 appearances for Liverpool since joining as a schoolboy at the age of nine, and earlier in the week announced he would be retiring from football at the end of the season.

It’s sure to be a packed weekend of Premier League football. Is it one that could shape the title race? We’ll soon find out.

Predictions (AEST)

Saturday February 9 at 11.45pm

Tottenham 2-1 Newcastle

Sunday February 10 at 2.00am

Chelsea 2-0 Wigan

Norwich 1-1 Fulham

Stoke 1-0 Reading

Sunderland 1-2 Arsenal

Swansea 2-1 QPR

Sunday February 10 at 4.30am

Southampton 0-2 Manchester City

Sunday February 10 at 11.30pm

Aston Villa 0-0 West Ham

Monday February 11 at 3.00am

Manchester United 2-2 Everton

Tuesday February 12 at 7.00am

Liverpool 2-0 West Brom

Riley Beveridge is a second-year Bachelor of Sports Journalism student at La Trobe University. You can follow him and his footballing opinions at his Twitter account: @RileyBev.