Monday, March 30, 2026

Premier League: Salah To Depart, Tudor Sacked

A relatively quiet international break has generated some newsworthy tidbits. First there was Mohamed Salah announcing he will be leaving Liverpool in the summer. This was less than shocking given his poor relationship with Manager Arne Slot and his decreased productivity in a poor season for the Egyptian ace. Liverpool clearly recognized the lessened contribution Salah can make at this stage and some of the diva qualities that helped make Salah great are now irritating enough that Liverpool supporters are accepting of his imminent departure.

Some are even questioning the club’s decision to make the 34-year-old Salah a free agent without compensation, cancelling the final 12 months of his current contract and thus sacrificing a potential return. The move is an act of gratitude for Salah’s service to the club over nine years where he scored more than 250 goals and helped the club to a Champions League and two Premier League titles after his arrival from Roma. Salah’s marked decline this season is a bit shocking given that it was just a year ago that the Liverpool star scored not only the most goals in the Premier League but also led the league in assists, racking up an eye popping 47 goal involvements and leading Liverpool to the Premier League title.

That production has fallen off a cliff this season with Salah accumulating just 11 Premier League goal involvements after playing in 22 of 31 league matches for Liverpool to date. Despite the finishing fizzle, Salah will finish his Liverpool career as the club’s third greatest goal scorer and only Alan Shearer, Harry Kane and Wayne Rooney have scored more Premier League goals than the Liverpool star. Uncertainty surrounds where the 34-year-old Salah will begin his next chapter, potential stops including both the Saudi League and the American MLS.

Meanwhile, a far less accomplished figure has left the Premier League more abruptly. Igor Tudor is out as Tottenham Hotspur manager after a dismal 44 day run which put the club on the brink of relegation. The club had hesitated to pull the trigger due to the passing of Tudor’s father concurrent with Spurs’ devastating loss to relegation rival Nottingham Forest. The die was cast, however, and after a brief period of bereavement, Tudor was advised of his fate.

Tudor lost five of seven matches during his six-week Tottenham career, garnering just one point from five Premier League matches. With no Premier League experience and relatively little to recommend him from 10 prior managerial postings, Tudor was always an odd choice to replace Thomas Frank in a season that was already rapidly deteriorating. The club has now moved to correct that mistake by releasing Tudor but, in typical Spurs fashion, the next move on the chessboard did not seem to be firmly planned.

Wild speculation has pointed to as many as eight possible candidates to helm the sinking ship. Things seem to be pointing to Roberto De Zerbi, the former Brighton manager who parted ways with Marseilles in February after some notably poor results. His departure from Brighton in 2024 was rancorous with the outspoken Italian going public over his differences with Brighton owner Tony Bloom.

It would seem an odd match to insert the combustible De Zerbi into the relegation tumult and pair him with Spurs CEO Vinai Venkatesham who is understandably under fire even before suffering the potshots that De Zerbi will inevitably launch. Spurs supporters, meanwhile, have already thrown up red flags concerning De Zerbi’s support at Marseilles of Mason Greenwood, the former Manchester United player exiled from the Premier League after allegations of domestic violence. Spurs, and whoever their next manager is, return to the fray on April 12th at Sunderland.

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Wednesday, March 25, 2026

Premier League Match Week 31 Results

The big dogs were off having their own party over the weekend as Manchester City claimed the EFL trophy in a 2-0 win over a stagnant Arsenal side. Nico O’Reilly headed home twice in the second half to keep Arsenal thirsting for a first trophy since 2020 while Manchester City claimed the EFL silverware for the fifth time in ten years.

With the Premier League title chase on hold, the top four race was in focus as Aston Villa defeated West Ham while Liverpool and Chelsea both lost. Manchester United drew 1-1 with Bournemouth to remain a point ahead of fourth place Villa. Liverpool is fifth, five points back of Aston Villa after the Reds were victimized by a Danny Welbeck brace in a 2-1 loss at Brighton. Welbeck has found the net 12 times in the Premier League this season, more than any English player, and is raising questions as to why he has not been chosen for the English national team. The rejuvenated Seagulls have won four of their last five league matches to revive their hopes of a possible European berth. Liverpool, which beat Galatasaray during the week, continues to struggle with the toll of its joint European and domestic schedule as the Reds have lost five of 10 league games following a midweek Champions League contest. Injuries are a contributor as Mohamed Salah and Alysson Becker were both out for the Brithon tussle, a contest which also saw Hugo Ekitike leave early with a “dead leg.”

Chelsea failed to take advantage of Liverpool’s stumble as the Blues lost for a third time in their last four Premier League matches. The bloom is most certainly off the rose of Manager Liam Rosenior’s honeymoon period after his side was thrashed 3-0 at Everton. Beto had two goals and an assist in the Toffees’ rout of a shambolic Chelsea side which appears increasingly dysfunctional under Rosenior.

Aston Villa was also spiraling entering the weekend. The Villans, however, put an end to a three-match losing run and tightened their hold on fourth position in the table with their 2-0 defeat of West Ham. After an early goal from John McGinn, Ollie Watkins ended a six-match goal drought with an insurance goal to send the Hammers home without a point and ensure they stay in the relegation zone at least until the end of the international break in two weeks. West Ham dearly missed the presence of injured forward Cryscencio Summerville as the Hammers have now failed to win any of the seven matches he has missed this season. Victorious Aston Villa moved to within a point of third place Manchester United which began the weekend schedule on Friday with a 2-2 draw at Bournemouth. A Junior Kroupi 81st minute penalty kick equalized for the Cherries after Manchester United’s Harry Maguire was red carded for taking down Evanilson in the box. It was a bittersweet day for Maguire who was named to the England squad earlier for the first time since 2024.

While the weekend saw some minor jostling in the race for Champions League slots, the greater drama unfolded at the bottom of the table. The most impactful match of the weekend might well have taken place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium where the home side once again disappointed an increasingly worried supporter base. Nottingham Forest emerged as 3-0 victors in a crucial “six pointer” in the race for Premier League survival. The victory moved the Tricky Trees past Spurs who now sit one point above the drop line with West Ham the threat to yet crawl out of the relegation zone, potentially sending Tottenham Hotspur to its first ever Premier League relegation. These were not heavyweights who played in north London on Sunday. Spurs has yet to win a league match this calendar year and has the worst home record in the Premier League. Nottingham Forest had not won a league game in two months before Sunday’s statement win. And yet the Tricky Trees were clearly the superior side, defeating the home side by the same 3-0 scoreline as in the reverse fixture between the clubs. Spurs are safe for the international break only due to the West Ham loss at Aston Villa.

Leeds, meanwhile, edged ever more lightly ahead of the primary relegation contenders. The Whites moved to four points above the drop line with their goalless draw versus Brentford. Though winless in six matches, Leeds is doing just enough to steer clear so far of the morass of flawed clubs below them. Things can change quickly when one of the downtrodden clubs scores an actual win, however, with Nottingham Forest now just a point below Leeds.

Seventh place Brentford drew for a third consecutive match and is level on points with Everton after the Toffees’ win over Chelsea. Fulham is just two points behind the Bees and Toffees after the Cottagers’ straightforward 3-1 win over dismal Burnley.

The middle of the table saw the latest iteration of the Tyne-Wear derby, the heated rivalry between Newcastle and Sunderland that has been dominated by the Black Cats in recent times. Bryan Robbey’s dramatic 90th minute goal delivered a 2-1 Sunderland win and extended Newcastle’s frustration, and even embarrassment, in the regional rivalry. The Magpies are winless in their last 11 Premier League battles with the Black Cats. Sunderland leapfrogged Newcastle into 11th in the table with the victory at St. James’s Park.

The Premier League now pauses for an international break before resuming on Friday April 10th when West Ham hosts Wolverhampton with a chance for the Hammers to escape the relegation zone.

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Tuesday, March 17, 2026

Premier League Match Week 31 Preview

Arsenal and Manchester City are going head-to-head this weekend. The setting is the EFL Cup Final, however, so their Premier League title battle is on hold. Last weekend saw the Gunners increase their lead to an imposing nine points over Manchester City in the battle at the top of the Premier League table. Manchester City holds a game in hand, and the two clubs will meet again on April 19th at the Etihad. Victories by Manchester City in both those matches, the makeup versus Crystal Palace and the clash at the Etihad, would leave the theoretical gap between the teams at three points with six other matches left to determine the season.

For this weekend, the Premier League focus is on the other Champions League qualification contenders and the relegation rumble at the bottom of the table. The action near the drop line is perhaps the most impactful where Tottenham Hotspur will host Nottingham Forest on Sunday. Spurs may have caught a spark from an unexpected draw at Liverpool last week which ended a club record run of six losses across all competitions. The struggling club has wilted all season under the eyes of its home supporters, however. Tottenham Hotspur’s 10 points from its 15 home matches are the least of any Premier League team while Spurs’ nine home losses are exceeded only by cellar dwelling Wolverhampton.

Manager Igor Tudor needs to build on the Anfield performance and deliver a hammer blow to fellow relegation battler Nottingham Forest. Spurs is currently one point north of the Tricky Tees who are deadlocked on 29 points with West Ham. Only Wolverhampton and Burnley dwell in the depths below the Trees and Hammers, so it is a game of musical chairs right now between Spurs, Forest and West Ham (with marginally safer Leeds still not totally comfortable as it hosts Brentford this weekend) to determine who will be the third team to go down.

West Ham travels to Aston Villa on Sunday for a match which will be played concurrently with the Spurs and Trees skirmish. Fourth place Villa is still clinging to a Champions League place but has lost three consecutive league matches. Liverpool is tenuously clinging to the fifth and presumably final Champions League place as the Reds try to recover from their shock draw with Spurs.

The defending league champs will travel to a surging Brighton club for a tricky match on Saturday. The Seagulls have won three of their last four matches and have lost on just three occasions in their 15 matches to date at American Express Stadium.

Chelsea is currently on the outside looking in at Champions League qualification, trailing Liverpool by a point in the table as the Blues prepare to visit Everton on Saturday. The Blues’ swoon in performance and their comical team huddle routine have riddled Manager Liam Rosenior’s credibility. Even a strong run-in may not be enough to save the manager’s job for next season.

Manchester United, meanwhile, holds the strongest hand for a Champions League spot beyond the top two clubs in the table. The third place Red Devils are six points above currently sixth place Chelsea in the table. Manchester United kicks off the weekend slate with a match at Bournemouth on Friday.

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