Premier League Results

FA Cup Storylines

Arsenal suffered an embarrassing 1-0 loss to Championship club Nottingham Forest in the third round of the FA Cup, highlighting some immediate needs to be pondered with the transfer window now open. The Gunners failed to put a single shot on target as a threadbare central midfield and a lack of finishing led to the Gunners exiting early from a tournament they have won more times than any club in English football. Arsenal departed in the third round of the competition for only the second time in the last quarter century with both losses curiously coming at the hands of Nottingham Forest in the last four years. Despite a recent run of good form, the FA Cup loss highlighted some current problems facing the north London side. Central midfield for Arsenal is threadbare in the near term due to Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny departing for the Africa Cup of Nations, Granit Xhaka testing positive for Covid and Ainsley Maitland-Niles departing on loan to Roma. The midfield versus Nottingham Forest featured 18-year-old Charlie Patino, forced into his first senior starting gig, starting alongside seldom used Sambi Lukonga. Eddie Nketiah was ineffective up front for the Gunners who are reportedly seeking a striker in the transfer window as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang remains in exile.

Newcastle United was another Premier League club which flubbed its lines in a 1-0 loss to Cambridge United, a club newly promoted to League One this season. More than 50,00 fans witnessed the embarrassment at St. James Park. Adding to Newcastle’s misery was Manager Eddie Howe’s announcement that striker Callum Wilson will be out for eight weeks with a calf injury.

Tottenham Hotspur experienced a scare in its match with League One side Morecambe but overcame a 1-0 halftime deficit to prevail 3-1 in north London. Manager Antonio Conte substituted Harry Kane and Lucas Moura late into the match and the two attackers delivered goals to secure the win after Harry Winks had equalized in the 74th minute.

Winks Kane and Moura with very late goals to save an humiliation at the Lane in the FA Cup pic.twitter.com/BHjFKtktB6

— Tottenham Hotspur (@1882_Tottenham) January 9, 2022

Substituted Spur Tanguy Ndombele exhibited less than professional behavior when he sauntered about before exiting the pitch, was booed off by supporters, refused to acknowledge his manager and stormed down the tunnel. Ndombele has been an unhappy camper dating to Jose Mourinho’s reign at Spurs and may be edging closer to the exit door.

Crystal Palace came from behind to defeat Championship division Millwall 2-1 in a hotly contested south London derby. Michael Olise scored the equalizer for the Eagles before assisting on the winner by Jean-Philippe Mateta. Millwall’s stadium, The Den, proved an inhospitable venue for the visiting Eagles. Olise was hit in the head by a bottle, Crystal Palace midfielder Conor Gallagher was subjected to homophobic taunts by Millwall supporters, and Palace players were booed while taking a knee in support of anti-racism efforts before the match.

A 2-1 Burnley loss to Championship side Huddersfield was not surprising as the Terriers are playing well this season and may well be promoted to replace the Clarets in the Premier League next season. Sean Dyche’s Burnley side have won but one Premier League match all season. Manchester United completed the third round on Monday with a less than inspiring 1-0 victory over Aston Villa. Scott McTominay scored early for the Red Devils who then held on as the Villans had two second half goals disallowed.

The FA Cup resumes in February with its fourth round.

Midweek Premier League Matches

A pair of rescheduled matches from Week 18 will be made up midweek when Brentford visits  Southampton and West Ham plays host to Norwich. The Saints have drawn six of nine home matches this season, losing just once at home. James Ward-Prowse will be looking to score in a fourth consecutive Premier League match for Southampton which trails Brentford by two points in the table as the two clubs meet in the topflight for the first time. West Ham can move past Arsenal into the top four with a Hammers’ win over Norwich. The relegation bound Canaries have failed to win in their last eight league visits to West Ham. 

Ten Takeaways To Date

As the Premier League schedule pauses following the holiday schedule, what are the key takeaways with most teams now having completed half their league schedule?

Unbeatable Manchester City

Manchester City has separated from its closest pursuers with 10 consecutive league victories. Pep Guardiola’s deep and talented roster has proven to be far better positioned to deal with schedule congestion, injuries and COVID than other Premier League clubs. Preseason concerns regarding the absence of a true striker have not been realized in league or European play to date. The defending Premier League champions currently have a 10-point advantage over second place Chelsea in the domestic table. Will this be the year that Pep captures his first Champions League title since his Barcelona days? 

Problems Remain For Manchester United

Manchester United’s problems extended well beyond former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. New, and yet temporary, manager Ralf Rangnick has his hands full with a collection of difficult to manage individual stars whose performance as a group has not met expectations. The temporary nature of Rangnick’s managerial reign and his lack of personal accomplishment as a coach raises doubt as to how his ideas will be received by the players. The club is currently closer in the table to last place Norwich than first place Manchester City. Good luck Ralf…

Rough Patch For Chelsea

Sunday’s draw with Liverpool marked the fifth time in its last seven matches that Chelsea has failed to win. The dry patch has all but conceded the trophy to Manchester City and put pressure on Manager Thomas Tuchel for the first time in his highly successful Chelesa run. Chelsea’s defense is no longer impregnable and an inability to finish on the part of the club’s attacking players remains problematic. Romelu Lulaku has not been the answer expected and his recent interview comments and benching by Tuchel introduced player drama to what had been a positive Chelsea locker room. 

Arsenal’s Resurgence

After a concerning start to the season which saw the club held scoreless in three opening losses, Arsenal has now charged into the top four of the league. The resurgence has been led by young players such as Emile Smith Rowe, Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard, Goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, and unheralded defender Takehiro Tomiyasu. Manager Mikel Arteta has delivered both results and promise despite sidelining his captain and most expensive player in Pierre Emerick Aubameyang. A sense of optimism and excitement has returned to the Emirates. 

West Ham Proves Last Season Was No Fluke 

Following last season’s surprising fifth place finish, the Hammers have occupied the top four after 11 of their 20 matches this season and enter the break just a point behind fourth place Arsenal for a Champions League berth. David Moyes’ disciplined crew is not colorful but maximizes its talent and has turned around the difficult environment at London Stadium of just a few years ago. The Hammers show no sign of falling from the rarefied heights they are enjoying and enter the break on a two-win run. Kudos to Moyes on resuscitating a managerial reputation that had been on the wane. 

The Brilliance of Mohamed Salah

The brilliance of Mohamed Salah has him six goals ahead of teammate Diogo Jota in the Premier League goal scoring race. Across Europe, Salah’s goal total is surpassed only by Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski. As a winger, Salah is more reliant than Lewandowski in creating his own opportunities, often in magical style such as his hesitation move to freeze Marcos Alonso which led to Salah’s goal versus Chelsea last weekend. His big game performance further burnishes Salah’s reputation. Hopefully, agreement on a new contract is reached with Liverpool and Salah can continue to thrill Premier League fans for years to come.

Rafa’s Rough Ride 

Everton has dropped eight of its last eleven matches to fall ten places in the table. Manager Rafa Benitez is in his first season at the helm but was an unpopular choice with supporters based on his former employment by Toffees archrival Liverpool. Benitez’s preferred conservative style of play also does not excite supporters. Poor results for the now 15th place club has ratcheted fan criticism of the Spanish manager who won an internal power struggle when Technical Director Marcel Brands left the club in December. Benitez, however, could be next over the side if results do not improve.

Brentford Means To Stay

Promoted side Brentford has won two of its last four matches and has notched six victories on the season. Twelfth place Brentford are ten points better than Watford and 13 points better than Norwich, the other two promoted sides. Manager Thomas Frank has delivered an entertaining style of play while not conceding defensive integrity in the manner of certain other promoted clubs in the past (i.e., Leeds, Norwich) The Bees have rebounded from a concerning four match losing run in October and November and look to have staying power for a second season battling the big boys. 

Antonio Conte Stops The Bleeding

Despite his public professions of Tottenham Hotspur’s deficiencies, new manager Antonio Conte has poked and prodded his new club back into contention for European places in the table. Spurs lost half of their first 10 matches before Conte’s arrival but have not lost in the subsequent 8 matches under Conte to move to sixth in the table, just three points back of fourth place Arsenal. Conte has stopped the bleeding but his pessimism regarding the level of his team was validated in a poor Carabao Cup loss to Chelsea. Conte has stopped the regression but will need backing to  improve his roster to compete with the top clubs. 

Four Clubs in Relegation Battle

Only three points separate four clubs residing at the bottom of the Premier League table. Only three of those clubs will return next year. Watford holds the last safe position in the table but has lost eight of its last nine matches and looks ripe to be overtaken by any of the current three relegation teams (Burnley, Newcastle, Norwich). Norwich looks done. Burnley and Newcastle have each won only one match all season. Newcastle manager Eddie Howe has lost four of eight matches after replacing much maligned manager Steve Bruce who lost six of eleven. The Magpies, backed by their new Saudi Arabian ownership, would seem best poised, however, for impactful January spending to escape the relegation trouble they find themselves in. 

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Carabao Cup

Romelu Lukaku was back on the pitch after a one match suspension as Chelsea defeated Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the first leg of the clubs’ Carabao Cup semifinal. Fences seem to have been mended between the Belgian and his current club after inflammatory statements regarding a return to his former Italian employer. Lukaku played well on Wednesday, but it was a fifth minute goal by Kai Havertz and an own goal by Spurs which provided the scoring in a match dominated by Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Spurs lost for only a second time in 12 matches across all competitions under Manager Antonio Conte. The other semifinal match between Arsenal and Liverpool needed to be postponed due to Covid issues afflicting the Liverpool squad.

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FA Cup

The popular David and Goliath competition which is the FA Cup plays its third round this weekend as clubs from disparate levels of English football face off. Some of the mismatches include fifth tier Chesterfield playing at Chelsea and Premier League leader Manchester City visiting League Two Swindon. Two south London clubs battle when the Premier League’s Crystal Palace visits Championship side Millwall. Perhaps the most interesting “all Premier League“ contest has Aston Villa paying a visit to Old Trafford for a match with Manchester United.

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Coutinho

Philippe Coutinho is returning to the Premier League on loan with Aston Villa. The Barcelona property has been a failure in La Liga after forcing a transfer to the Spanish club from Liverpool four years ago. Liverpool, amply compensated for his departure, won a Premier League and European title while Coutinho floundered in Spain. The Brazilian international now gets a chance to redeem his reputation playing for former Liverpool teammate Steven Gerrard.

Premier League Results Match Week 21(?): Manchester City Streaks to 10th Straight as Gunners Implode; Chelsea and Liverpool Thrill But Lose Ground; Hammers Survive Eagle Flurry; Spurs Strike Late; Manchester United Stumbles

An abbreviated Match Week 21 slate played out amid continuing COVID cancellations. Manchester City and currently second place Chelsea are the only two clubs to have completed 21 matches to date. At the other end of the spectrum is a Burnley side which has taken the pitch for only 16 league matches.

Manchester City notched its 17th victory, continuing its winning ways at the top of the table, with a 2-1 New Year’s Day win over Arsenal. The Gunners took an early lead on the defending champions when 19-year-old Bukayo Saka scored his sixth goal of the season to give the Gunners a halftime lead. Saka’s goal broke a streak of four scoreless home matches for Arsenal versus Manchester City and put Manchester City behind in a league match for the first time since October. A well-played match then disintegrated for Arsenal in the second half as Granit Xhaka incurred a penalty on an awkward interaction in the box with Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva. Riyad Mahrez converted the equalizing penalty try for City. Loud protestations, and a scuffing up of the penalty spot by Arsenal’s Gabriel resulted in a yellow card. Just minutes later, the young defender jostled a City attacker for a second yellow and accompanying ejection to put the Gunners a man down. Arsenal did well to hold off the relentless City attack until stoppage time when Rodri struck for the winner to provide Manchester City’s 10th consecutive victory.

RODRI WITH THE GO AHEAD GOAL IN STOPPAGE TIME! #MCIARS #MyPLMorning pic.twitter.com/q14IIlGRGI

— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) January 1, 2022

City’s title run was further bolstered a day later when Chelsea and Liverpool shared points. The contest between the league’s second and third place clubs thrilled fans with a dramatic opening half. Liverpool sprinted to a two-goal lead on goals by linemates Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane. Just as things appeared darkest for the home Blues, Mateo Kovacic halved the deficit with a “worldie” struck on a half volley from well outside the box. Minutes later, Christian Pulisic scored his third league goal of the season to tie the contest in first half stoppage time. The two sides then settled down to a scoreless second half which saw both clubs ultimately lose ground in the title race. A reportedly unhappy Romelu Lukaku was held out of the critical match by Manager Tomas Tuchel after the Belgian striker voiced his unhappiness at Chelsea in an interview. The strong stance by the manager was a debatable position after the club dropped points in the high-profile match against a key rival. Post-match, Tuchel was vocal in asserting Liverpool’s Sadio Mane should not have been in the game to score the match’s first goal. A Mane elbow to Caesar Azpilicueta’s facial area six seconds into the contest was adjudged no more than a yellow card by the referee to Tuchel’s displeasure. Chelsea’s comeback was a bitter pill for Liverpool which was unable to control the game with a lead despite a solid effort from stand in goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher. Liverpool’s regular goalkeeper Alisson and Manager Jurgen Klopp were both sidelined by Covid for the match.

As Manchester City stretched its advantage over Chelsea and Liverpool at the top of the table to 10 and 11 points, respectively, West Ham closed the gap on fourth place Arsenal with a 3-2 victory at Crystal Palace. Michail Antonio opened the scoring and Manuel Lanzini had a first half brace in a London derby which seemed over at the break. The Eagles, however, sprang to life in the match’s late stages to provide some nervy moments for West Ham. Goals in the 83rd and 90th minutes preceded a stoppage time bicycle kick attempt by Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta which sailed wide to leave the Eagles just short of salvaging a point versus their London rivals. The narrow win pulled West Ham to within a point of the final Champions League slot.

Antonio Conte remained unbeaten as manager of Tottenham Hotspur following a 1-0 New Year’s Day win over Watford. Davinson Sanchez scored the winner in the sixth minute of stoppage time to extend Spurs’ unbeaten league run to eight matches.

Davinson Sanchez goal celebrations are magic. Striding off like he’s a veteran 30 goal per season striker. #COYS pic.twitter.com/uDIdmHrWXl

— Ben Haines (@benhainess) January 1, 2022

The London club now trail fourth place Arsenal by only two points with two matches in hand versus their north London rival. Watford, just moments away from recording their first clean sheet of the season, lost for a sixth consecutive time.

Falling behind Spurs after the week’s results was a Manchester United squad struggling to find an identity under new manager Ralf Rangnick. A desultory performance left the Red Devils 22 points behind table leader Manchester City. Wolves were again tenacious in defense as goalkeeper Jose Sa registered an eighth clean sheet. Manager Bruno Lage’s charges have conceded only 14 goals all season, just one more than Manchester City. Joao Moutinho’s winner was also the club’s 14th goal scored, 16 goals less than a Manchester United team which Wolves now trail by only three points in the table.

Burnley experienced a less satisfying experience at Old Trafford just days earlier when the Clarets fell 3-1 to Manchester United. Burnley squandered the opportunity to escape the relegation zone by dropping Thursday and Sunday matches by an identical 3-1 score. While a loss to Manchester United was perhaps understandable, a resounding defeat by the same score line Sunday at the hands of Leeds was devastating for the Clarets. Leeds put further distance between the Whites and relegation with its first win since November.

Among the clubs enjoying the holidays was a Brighton and Hove Albion side which followed a Boxing Day win by grabbing a point at Chelsea before traveling north to Everton Sunday for a 3-2 win at Goodison Park. Alexis Mac Allister scored twice in the win over Everton as Brighton notched its second win in three matches. The Seagulls’ only defeat in their past seven matches has been a 1-0 mid-December decision to in-form Wolves. Everton, meanwhile, has lost eight of its last eleven matches under Manager Rafa Benitez.

Aston Villa lost for a second time since Christmas in a 2-1 Sunday loss to Brentford which marked the first back-to-back defeats for Villa under new manager Steven Gerrard. Brentford, meanwhile, was ecstatic to leapfrog Villa into 12th in the table as the newly promoted side continues to surprise league watchers with unexpected success.

The Premier League schedule now takes a break, returning with a pair of matches on Tuesday, January 11th. Filling the void will be domestic cup action with the first leg of the Carabao Cup semifinals scheduled for midweek to be followed by the third round of the FA Cup this upcoming weekend.