Friday, October 21, 2022

Match Week 12 (Midweek) Results: Manchester United Wins, Ronaldo Pouts; Alisson Saves Liverpool; Villa Sacks Gerrard After Loss To Fulham; Bournemouth Streak Ends; Brighton Futility Continues; Almiron Leads Newcastle; Foxes Exit Basement; Eagles Overtake Wolves

Manchester United posted one of its best efforts of the season in defeating Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 on Wednesday. Headlines for the victory, however, needed to be shared with the petulant actions of club legend Cristiano Ronaldo. Once ascertaining he would not be entering the contest as a substitute, the Portuguese striker headed for the tunnel before match end. Ronaldo’s childish display detracted from the Red Devil performance which saw goals by Bruno Fernandes and Fred ensure the second loss of the season for Spurs. United moved to within one point of the Champions League qualification places with the win. Ronaldo, meanwhile, will not be part of the squad facing Chelsea this weekend and will likely face a hefty fine as well. The situation is becoming untenable for club and player but there are few options until the next transfer window and potentially few options even then.

Steven Gerrard also made a noteworthy exit this week as the Aston Villa manager was sacked after a crushing 3-0 loss to Fulham, a tenth consecutive league match in which Gerrard’s club failed to score more than a goal. Aston Villa has scored but seven goals in its eleven matches, an unacceptable tally for a club with proven scorers and creative talents on its roster. No Villa player has more than one league goal for the 17th place Villans this season. Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic scored a penalty on Thursday to give him one more goal for the season than the entire Villa team.

Liverpool needed just a single goal for a second consecutive league victory. The Reds survived 1-0 versus West Ham as Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson stopped a penalty kick by the Hammers’ Jarrod Bowen. Liverpool’s second consecutive clean sheet came despite a clumsy foul by center back Joe Gomez which provided Bowen the opportunity to equalize after Darwin Nunez had scored his first Anfield goal for Liverpool.

Newcastle was also a 1-0 winner as Miguel Almiron scored his fifth goal of the season to defeat a punch less Everton side. Almiron has scored in three of his last four matches, all victories for the Magpies. Everton, meanwhile, lost a third consecutive match and the Toffees are just a point above the relegation places. The Toffees have failed to register a shot on target in two consecutive matches as an anemic attack has betrayed a formidable defense.

Brighton and Hove Albion remain winless in four matches under Manager Roberto De Zerbi after a goalless draw with Nottingham Forest. The Seagulls have failed to score in three consecutive matches after a promising 3-3 draw in De Zerbi’s debut.

Forest fell into the league’s basement despite the point as Leicester won for only the second time this season. The Foxes defeated spiraling Leeds 2-0. Leeds Manager Jesse Marsch is under pressure after his side lost to the feeble Foxes for Leeds’s third consecutive loss and fifth in the club’s last seven matches.

The potential rewards of managerial change was demonstrated by Bournemouth’s six match unbeaten run under interim manager Gary O’Neil following the sacking of Scott Parker. That streak ended Wednesday when the Cherries lost 1-0 to Southampton. The victory moved the Saints to within two points of 12th place Bournemouth.

Graham Potter is still undefeated as Chelsea manager after a goalless draw at Brentford. Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizbalaga notched his fifth consecutive clean sheet across all competitions.

Crystal Palace won in comeback fashion for a third time at home this season as the Eagles scored twice in the second half to erase an early Wolves lead. Michael Olise crossed to Eberechi Eze for the equalizer and then Crystal Palace star Wilfried Zaha delivered the victory with his fifth goal of the season. Palace moved to 11th place in the table with their second consecutive win at Selhurst Park. Wolves are in the relegation zone after a fourth loss in five matches.

The originally scheduled match for midweek between Arsenal and Manchester City was postponed as Arsenal played a rescheduled Europa League match versus PSV Eindhoven. The Gunners prevailed in their European contest when Granit Xhaka scored the only goal of Thursday’s match between the sides. 


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Tuesday, October 18, 2022

Match Week 12 Preview

Match Week 12 of the Premier League season will play out Tuesday through Thursday of this week. An originally scheduled blockbuster match between Arsenal versus Manchester City is postponed but the third and fourth place clubs are in action as Chelsea engages in a London derby at Brentford and Tottenham Hotspur travels to Old Trafford to face fifth place Manchester United. Newcastle can move past Manchester United in the table if the Magpies enjoy a better result in their home match versus Everton than the Red Devils experience against Spurs.

Liverpool remains home after their big win at Anfield over City on the weekend. Wednesday the Reds will host West Ham.

Former Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard could find himself in dire job jeopardy if his Aston Villa side can’t produce a result at Fulham.

Gerrard’s former Liverpool Manger, Brendan Rodgers, has his own issues as Leicester will try to win for only a second time this season when the relegation bound Foxes host Leeds. Leeds is vulnerable after losing three of their past four matches.

Bournemouth face Southampton at the Cherries’ Vitality Stadium in a south coast matchup which supporters of both clubs refuse to acknowledge as a derby. Tenth place Bournemouth are five points better than relegation bound Southampton.

Brighton is also in action on the south coast as the Seagulls host Nottingham Forest. Brighton Manger Roberto de Zerbi should have his best chance yet to secure his first Premier League victory as his club faces a Nottingham Forest side which has lost seven times in ten league tries this season with only Leicester having tasted failure so often.

Crystal Palace has struggled to convert chances this season, but host even more offensively challenged Wolverhampton on Tuesday at Selhurst Park.

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Match Week 11 Results: Liverpool Topples Manchester City; Arsenal Extends Lead By Beating Leeds; Spurs and Chelsea Win; Goalless At Old Trafford; Wolves Score !

Liverpool announced its season is far from done as the Reds toppled Manchester City in a tense 1-0 contest at Anfield. The much-maligned Liverpool defense played its best match of the season in shutting down the league’s leading scorer Erling Haaland. Virgil van Dijk was once again a force in the heart of the Reds’ defense, fellow center back Joe Gomez improved on his recent poor performances, and 36-year-old James Milner, filling in for Trent Alexander-Arnold, worked tirelessly at right back to thwart the City attack. Mohamed Salah, his confidence boosted by a midweek Champions League hat trick, scored the winner for Liverpool in the 76th minute.

Salah’s goal came off a long ball assist from goalkeeper Allyson in a reminder of the difference in style between the two clubs as Manchester City much prefers to work from the back via short passes. Erling Haaland’s record breaking goal scoring exploits were temporarily put on pause and the striker was also guilty of a foul which negated a goal by teammate Phil Foden. The debatable infraction by Haaland seemed inconsistent with referee Anthony Taylor’s willingness to allow other marginal fouls to go uncalled in the hotly contested match. Emotions flared on the pitch and in the stands throughout the match with Liverpool Manager Jurgen Klopp being sent off late for his protestations of an uncalled foul against Salah. Counterpart Pep Guardiola, meanwhile, was vocal after the match regarding the Haaland foul which deprived his club of a point.

Arsenal extended its lead in the table to four points over Manchester City with a 1-0 win at Leeds. Leeds striker Patrick Bamford missed a first half penalty which would have put his club in front. The match was then temporarily halted for an extended period due to a power outage at Elland Road. Bukayo Saka scored for the Gunners when the clubs returned to the pitch and Arsenal survived a late scare when a potential penalty committed by Arsenal defender Gabriel, which would have provided Bamford with a chance to make amends, was overruled by VAR in stoppage time. Arsenal won a fourth consecutive match and for a ninth time in ten matches this season.

Tottenham Hotspur remained four points behind the Gunners and are now level on points with Manchester City after a 2-0 defeat of Everton. A scoreless first half was followed by a Harry Kane second half penalty, his fifth goal in his last five matches, and a clinching 89th minute goal by Spurs’ Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

Spurs’ 23 points after 10 matches represents the highest point total at this stage in the club’s Premier League history. Everton will rue missing two first half scoring opportunities before a second half in which the Toffees were unable to put a shot on target.

Graham Potter remains undefeated as Chelsea manager after a 2-0 win at Aston Villa. Mason Mount scored a goal in each half to provide the margin in Chelsea’s fifth consecutive win across all competitions under Potter. Aston Villa failed to score for a fourth time this season and have the joint second lowest goal total in the league as the pressure increased on Manager Steven Gerrard. Mauricio Pochettino has recently emerged as a rumored replacement possibility for the embattled Gerrard.

A goalless draw between the clubs at Old Trafford kept fifth place Manchester United one point ahead of visiting Newcastle. A frustrated Cristiano Ronaldo put two balls in the net, but both were disallowed, the first for a conventional offside infraction but the second disallowance occurring in a much more unusual manner. Ronaldo snatched up a ball residing at the feet of Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope and fired into the net as everyone else on the pitch looked on in confusion. Ronaldo’s contention that another Newcastle player had put the ball in play before Pope prepared to take an awarded free kick was rejected by the referee who rendered a yellow card on Ronaldo for his ambitious, but time-wasting action. Newcastle earned a point at Old Trafford for the first time in seven years.

Brighton lost a second consecutive match to remain winless under Manager Roberto de Zerbi as the Seagulls fell 2-0 at Brentford. Ivan Toney scored twice for the Bees to further make the case that he should be included in England Manager Gareth Southgate’s World Cup plans. Brentford ended a three-match winless run to move back into the top half of the table, just a point below Brighton.

Fulham came form behind twice to secure a 2-2 draw at Craven Cottage versus Bournemouth. Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic labored throughout the match with an injured foot before securing the point with his second half penalty kick. Fulham remained a point behind 10th place Bournemouth as the Cottagers ended a two-match losing run. The Cherries, meanwhile, remain undefeated in six matches under interim manager Gary O’Neil.

Declan Rice saved a point for West Ham when his second half goal equalizer delivered a 1-1 draw at Southampton. Complaints regarding referee decisions voiced by West Ham Manager David Moyes could not mask what was a poor performance by the Hammers who would have hoped for more from their visit to the coast. Southampton snapped a string of four consecutive defeats as left back Romain Perraud scored his first Premier League goal.

Wolves increased their season’s goal total by a third in a 1-0 victory over Nottingham Forest. Wolverhampton’s fourth goal of the season came on a second half Ruben Neves penalty kick which lifted his club from the relegation places.

Forest dropped to the league basement, trailing Leicester on goal differential after the Foxes grabbed a point in a lackluster goalless home draw with Crystal Palace. Supporters at King Power expressed their frustration both vocally and with banners asking for action from the Leicester Board as the job security of Manager Brendan Rodgers seems to hang by a thread. Crystal Palace was poor as well despite earning an away point. The Eagles generated just a solitary shot on target.

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