Tuesday, August 9, 2022

Week 1 Results: Liverpool Drops Points; Haaland Flies Out of Gate; Spurs Impress; Manchester United A Mess

Liverpool were the victims of the biggest surprise result on opening weekend as the Reds were held to a 2-2 draw with Fulham. Fulham twice took the lead on goals by striker Aleksandar Mitrovic. Liverpool responded with goals from Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah. Nunez assisted Salah’s goal in a productive Premier League debut. Liverpool’s defensive stars failed them against the newly promoted side. Trent Alexander-Arnold was far too passive on Mitrovic’s opening header at the far post. Virgil van Dijk was later guilty of committing a penalty on Mitrovic, leading to the Serbian’s second goal from the ensuing kick. Liverpool immediately falls two points behind Manchester City which defeated West Ham 2-0. There are still 111 points available to be won this season, but Liverpool supporters can be excused for remembering that only a single point deprived them of the league title last season.

The titlists from last season received a fittingly sensational debut from their pricey offseason acquisition. Erling Haaland scored a brace and was critical of being substituted as he desired and expected to score a hat trick in his Premier League debut. Manchester City will only become more formidable as teammates become accustomed to Haaland’s play and vice versa.


Tottenham Hotspur put down a marker that it may be more than a two-team race as Antonio Conte’s club overwhelmed Southampton in a 4-1 victory in London. Spurs dominated the match despite none of their offseason transfers seeing action and neither Kane nor Son scoring.

Chelsea eked out an ugly win over Everton as a penalty kick by Jorginho delivered the only scoring in a drudge match at Goodison Park. The worries for Everton Manager Frank Lampard became even greater with a fractured leg suffered by center back Ben Godfrey. Chelsea Manager Thomas Tuchel will gladly accept the three points but saw his questionable attack sputter once again against one of the league’s worst teams.

Manchester United delivered a predictably mediocre performance in falling to Brighton 2-1 at Old Trafford. It has been a poor transfer window to date for the Red Devils who badly need more talent infusion to recover from last season’s worst ever Premier League finish. It’s far too early to draw anything from Eric ten Hag’s performance though Graham Potter’s Seagulls were the far more fluid and efficient club. Signs of desperation emerged with Manchester United reportedly bottom fishing for transfer targets such as Adrien Rabiot and Marko Arnautovic. Both players have discipline issues in their past which would present further potential trouble for an already toxic locker room.

Arsenal looks to have smoothy incorporated talent upgrades into the Gunner line-up. Striker Gabriel Jesus was active all match versus Crystal Palace and is working well with fellow Brazilian Gabriel Martinelli. Fellow newcomer Oleksandr Zinchenko’s headed the assist for Martinelli’s first goal of the match in a 2-0 win over the Eagles.

Arsenal defender William Saliba, a candidate for man of the match, looks to have been worth the wait for Arsenal after spending three seasons on loan in Ligue 1. Crystal Palace looks condemned to another season of underwhelming attack. Despite parting ways with miss master Christian Benteke this past week, the Eagles continue to miss the net with Eberechi Eze and Odsonne Edouard the guilty parties for egregious missed chances in their opening defeat.

Bournemouth was one of two promoted clubs to avoid defeat on opening weekend. The Cherries shocked Aston Villa in a 2-0 victory that amplified questions regarding Aston Villa Manager Steven Gerrard. Gerrard’s record at Aston Villa now reflects 13 losses against 10 wins and 5 draws for a club from which much more was expected. Gerrard’s former manager, Brendan Rodgers, could also be on the hot seat this season.

Leicester relinquished a two-goal lead at home to draw 2-2 with Brentford. Things could get even worse for the Foxes in coming weeks if transfer rumors regarding James Maddison and Wesley Fofana come to fruition. Brentford, meanwhile, received a big confidence boost from the comeback after the loss of Christian Eriksen this offseason raised concern for the new campaign.

Leeds grabbed all three points in 2-1 home victory over Wolverhampton which saw fiery Leeds Manager Jesse Marsch engage in a post-game shouting match with Wolves head man Bruno Lage after the hard played match. Four new players were in the lineup for Leeds, three of whom have played for Marsch in the past, as the American manger now has opportunity to imprint his ideas on the squad after last season’s necessarily pragmatic survival fight.

Newcastle rudely welcomed  newcomers Nottingham Forest as the Magpies eased to a 2-0 victory at St. James Park. Eddie Howe signed a new long-term deal with Newcastle entering the weekend, recognizing his excellent work since arriving last season and establishing himself as more than the short-term answer for the ambitious Newcastle project under their Saudi Arabian ownership.


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Friday, August 5, 2022

Opening Weekend

Another Premier League season is set to begin today when Crystal Palace hosts Arsenal at Selhurst Park in south London. Former Gunner Patrick Vieira enjoyed a successful first year as Eagle manager but now needs to puzzle how to replace the production and energy of Conor Gallagher who has returned to his Chelsea parent club. The Eagles will need more from a group of other young talents such as Eberechi Eze, Michael Olise, Jean-Philippe Mateta and Odsonne Edouard. Olise is highly skilled and attracted some interest from Chelsea this summer, but the 20-year-old is too often injured and will again be out for the opener. Veteran Wilfried Zaha, of course, remains central to any Crystal Palace success. An intriguing transfer purchase is Cheick Doucoure from Lens of Ligue 1. The  22-year-old midfielder should add defensive solidity while improving the linkage with Eagle attackers with his impressive passing skills.

Arsenal is counting on Gabriel Jesus to improve its own attacking capabilities. The former Manchester City forward has had a positive preseason and should dominate the stage for the Gunners after being often relegated to a spot role at talent heavy Manchester City. Jesus’ City teammate Oleksandr Zinchenko has also moved with him to north London. The versatile Zinchenko is expected to play as an attack-oriented fullback or in midfield for the Gunners. Arsenal missed out on Champions League last season in large part due to a late season power outage and are hoping Jesus and Zinchenko can enliven their scoring prowess. Friday’s opening match will provide a clue as to whether Arsenal has done enough to challenge the top four and whether Crystal Palace is poised to take the Veira project a step forward.

Bookending the weekend Premier League schedule is Erling Haaland’s regular season debut for Manchester City on Sunday as the Citizens embark on their title defense. Julian Alvarez is another forward added to Manager Pep Guardiola’s squad as the club moves on from former players Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus. Manchester City will be at West Ham where Manager David Moyes will happily showcase midfielder Declan Rice after the Hammers successfully fended off interested suitors for the England international this offseason. Striker Gianluca Scamacca, acquired by the Hammers from Italian side Sassuolo, is unfortunately out of the lineup due to injury.

Frank Lampard anxiously begins a second season of survival roulette at Goodison Park where the Toffees will host Chelsea. Everton boasts a worse squad on paper than the rag tag group which barely survived relegation last season. Richarlison has moved on to Tottenham Hotspur without being replaced in Merseyside. Further complicating matters is the loss of striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin to injury for at least the first six weeks of this season. Lampard is thus unsurprisingly on the hot seat according to English bookmakers evaluating the annual sack race among Premier League managers. Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel is probably secure for the moment but is working for a new ownership group and his preseason has been rocky on the pitch. Tuchel has been critical of his team’s effort level while also lamenting misses on several transfer targets. Raheem Sterling, however, is signed from Manchester City to replace the production of Italy bound Romelu Lukaku. Center back Kalidou Koulibaly joins Chelsea from Napoli to help replace Antonio Rudiger after the German departed for Real Madrid. Andreas Christensen moved to Barcelona, so Tuchel probably has legitimate concern regarding his inventory of center backs. Friday’s signing by the Blues of Brighton left back Marc Cucurella was quizzical given the center back need.

The Eric ten Hag era begins at Old Trafford when the Red Devils host Brighton. While Brighton has spent the summer selling its better players such as Cucurella  and Yves Bissouma, the preseason has been a remarkable soap opera for Manchester United. The Red Devils have endlessly chased seemingly reluctant Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong while Cristiano Ronaldo has indicated he would like to leave. An exit by Ronaldo would raise question how Manchester United will replace its leading goal scorer from last season. Anthony Martial has been one of the brighter performers in preseason but has been guilty in the past of flattering to deceive. A hamstring will sideline Martial for at least the opener. Mason Greenwood remains sidelined by legal troubles. Marcus Rashford has disappointed on his early career promise and former Borussia Dortmund winger Jadon Sancho is yet to ignite in the Premier League.

Wolverhampton, however, would welcome any of Manchester United’s attacking options. The league’s lowest scoring returning club has lost striker Raul Jimenez once again to injury. Wolves travel to Leeds on Saturday as Leeds Manager Jesse Marsch begins his first full (hopefully?) season in charge at the club and has brought in two fellow Americans, Brenden Aaronson and Tyler Adams, to assist his project. Aaronson will buffer the loss of the departed Raphinha (Barcelona). Adams will fill the role of the departed Kalvin Phillips after the English international was snatched up by Manchester City this offseason. The real key for Leeds this season, however, could be the health of striker Patrick Bamford who appears fit for the opener after missing much of last year’s campaign to injury.

Liverpool begins its quest to overtake Manchester City when the Reds visit newly promoted Fulham in London. Darwin Nunez is the newest attacker in Manager Jurgen Klopp’s arsenal while Sadio Mane has left to ply his trade in Germany. Diogo Jota is injured for the opener, but Mo Salah and friends will provide more than enough attacking threat this weekend at Craven Cottage. Fulham, meanwhile, will hope for goals from striker Aleksandar Mitrovic who scored a record 43 goals in the English Championship division last season.

Bournemouth marks its return to the Premier League when Manager Scott Parker and his charges play host to Aston Villa. Diego Carlos joins the Villans from Sevilla to provide some competition at center back where Tyrone Mings is coming off an unimpressive season. Boubacar Kamara, a defensive midfielder acquired from Marseilles, can also play center back in the Villa defense. Bournemouth is not expected to enjoy an extended stay in the top division.

More hope presently exists for Nottingham Forest who open at Newcastle on Saturday. Jesse Lingard returns to the field for Forest after having had a good rest on Manchester United’s bench last season. Forest may need time to find their stride, however, as they incorporate 12 new signings into the squad. Newcastle further bolstered a defense which played well at the end of last season with the signing of center back Sven Botman from Lille. Reinforcement at the other end of the pitch, however, is likely necessary for the Magpies to make any appreciable move up the table this season.

Tottenham Hotspur, on the other hand, have a glittering array of attackers now supplemented with transfer signings Richarlison and Inter Milan’s Ivan Perisic. Spurs also added Yves Bissouma to provide them with further creativity in midfield. While Bissouma and Perisic will not be available for the opener, Spurs should have more than enough for the Saints who will probably need a miracle to win in London this weekend. The south coast club was busy this summer but invested in largely unrecognizable youngsters with hoped for upside.

Leicester approached the transfer window like no other club in Europe by signing no players. The Foxes host Brentford Saturday at King Power Stadium. Brentford, Everton, Leeds, and Southampton are most mentioned among the returning clubs as candidates for relegation. The Bees had their wings clipped a bit when Christen Eriksen left for Manchester United this summer.

Today marks the earliest start of a Premier League season this century due to the mid-season break which will be required for the Qatar World Cup.


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Tuesday, August 2, 2022

Has The Sun Set on Leicester?

After two consecutive fifth place finishes, Leicester’s descent to eighth in the table and a fall from the European places caught many followers by surprise last season. The Foxes stumble in the league was accompanied by a 4-1 fourth-round loss in the FA Cup to now promoted Nottingham Forest and a group stage elimination from the Europa Conference League. Advancing to the semi-final in the European Conference League before losing to eventual champion Roma provided little solace to supporters and Leicester Manager Brendan Rodgers who claimed he had never heard of the third-tier tournament before his team entered the fray.

There will be no European distraction this year for the Foxes. Unfortunately, that might become a multi-year reality based on the current trajectory of the club. Often considered among the elite of British (World?) managers, Rogers has come under criticism for the fall of the Foxes. In fairness, Leicester was handicapped with injuries, particularly on the back line, from the very beginning of last season. The club’s actions this offseason, however, have ratcheted up concern. The news this week that long time captain Kasper Schmeichel is finalizing a move to Nice raises question as to whether the sun has set on Leicester’s time in in the sun. Young talents such as James Maddison, Youri Tielemans and Wesley Fofana are rumored to be targets of interest by other Premier League teams. Center back Jannik Vestergaard, signed just last year, is already in the shop window. Meanwhile, the Foxes entered this week as the only club in the five major leagues of Europe to not yet make a summer signing. Tielemans, the talented Belgian international, has declined an offered extension to stay with the Foxes beyond this season and is one of ten Leicester players entering the final year of their contract. Even should some of the possible departures not materialize, there is far more talk of players leaving Leicester than seeking it as a career destination.

One player not approaching the door is club legend Jamie Vardy. Remarkably for a player dependent on speed, the 35-year-old Vardy remains an elite player but is missing more time with injury each passing year.

Six seasons have passed since Leicester won its miracle Premier League title. Just two years ago the club captured its first FA Cup title. Those heady days seem to be fading quickly as Rodgers has now managed the Foxes for three more matches than he helmed Liverpool before the manager entered exile in the Scottish league. Rodgers, with the help of striker Luis Suarez in his prime, had lifted Liverpool to great heights before falling short and leaving ultimate success for the Reds to a German named Jurgen Klopp. Rodgers could once again be nearing a disappointing end to a good run. 

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