Friday, September 29, 2023

Premier League Week 7 Preview

Liverpool visits Tottenham Hotspur for a clash of undefeated top four sides on Saturday as  second place Liverpool begins play two points above a rejuvenated Spurs side. Tottenham Hotspur Manager Ange Postecoglou has brought a sense of excitement to long suffering Spurs supporters despite the club saying goodbye to Harry Kane this last transfer window. The Australian manager’s high pressing philosophy will be put to the test, however, against the deadly forward line of Liverpool. The Reds are also vulnerable in defense so an entertaining shootout could well unfold. Mohamed Salah and James Maddison have orchestrated the attacks for their clubs, each registering a joint Premier League high four assists this season. Spurs’ Son Heung-min is second in the league with five goals, two more than the Reds’ Salah. Only three clubs have scored more than the 15 goals posted by both Spurs and the Reds this season.

The next best game of the weekend sees third place Brighton visiting sixth place Aston Villa. The Seagulls lead the Premier League in goals scored and have lost but once, a surprising 3-1 defeat at the hands of West Ham. Evan Ferguson’s four goals lead five Brighton players with two or more goals for the Seagulls. Aston Villa, meanwhile, has beaten four clubs in the bottom half of the table while looking vulnerable against better opponents in losses to Newcastle and Liverpool. The league performance of both Aston Villa and Brighton has been better than their cup adventures to date. Both lost their opening European matches and were bounced in the third round of the Carabao Cup this week. A victory on Saturday would put Villa, which has won its last nine home matches, level on points with Brighton.

League leading Manchester City travels to Wolverhampton on Saturday looking to remain perfect with a seventh victory of the season. The chances of that happening are quite good because Wolverhampton struggles to score goals. In fact, Manchester City striker Erling Haaland has scored two more goals than the entire Wolves team. It will be difficult for Manager Gary O’Neil’s side to close that scoring gap against a Manchester City defense which has conceded a league low three goals this season.

At least O’Neil has won a game this season, which is more than can be said for the man who replaced him at Bournemouth, Andoni Iraola. Bournemouth is unlikely to deliver that first win when Arsenal visits on Saturday. The Cherries have won but once in 14 meetings with Arsenal over the years and the Gunners are currently unbeaten in seven Premier League matches dating to last season. Bournemouth, meanwhile, is in the company of the three clubs in the relegation places as the only winless wonders this season. A lengthy injury list for Arsenal - which includes Declan Rice, Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli among others - provides a puncher’s chance for the Cherries.

West Ham will look to get back on track when it hosts Sheffield United at London Stadium, The Hammers have dropped back-to-back matches to fall from fourth to seventh in the table. This week, however, they face winless Sheffield United which was shellacked 8-0 by Newcastle last week and are bottom of the table by virtue of goal differential under embattled manager Paul Heckingbottom. Only Sheffield United has conceded more goals than Burnley and Saturday the Clarets must visit the executioners who put the Blades to the sword last week.

Newcastle returns home to face Burnley riding the high of last week’s destruction of Sheffield United and a midweek Carabao Cup win over Manchester City, a third consecutive win across all competitions.

Manchester United, in a scheduling oddity, will face Crystal Palace for a second time in the past week at Old Trafford. The Red Devils downed the Eagles  3-0 in a Tuesday Carabao Cup match. Sofyan Amrabat made an impressive first start for Manchester United in an unaccustomed left back role. The defensive midfielder is covering for injuries in the Red Devils' back line. Tenth place Crystal Palace are just a point behind the Red Devils in the table but will again struggle to find the net without injured striker Odsonne Edouard.

Fulham is currently level on points with Crystal Palace as they host a London derby versus Chelsea. Fourteenth place Chelsea will hope to build some momentum from Wednesday’s Carabao Cup win over Brighton but won’t be helped by the absence of Wednesday’s goal scorer Nicolas Jackson who is suspended for Monday’s league match due to accumulated yellow cards. Fulham have only beaten Chelsea twice in 32 Premier League meetings between the clubs but this is not the same Chelsea which tormented the Cottagers over the years.

Everton is on a two-match win streak after the Toffees followed up last week’s first win in the league with a mid-week Carabao Cup victory over Aston Villa. The Toffees should have a great chance of extending that run when bottom of the table Luton Town visits Goodison Park. The return of Dominic Calvert-Lewin has had an immediate impact for Everton with the striker scoring in each of the two recent Toffee wins. Luton Town, meanwhile, has scored a league low three goals while only Wolverhampton has conceded more than the 11 goals allowed by the Hatters. Nottingham Forest is home to Brentford in a matchup of two mid-table clubs. The Tricky Trees are normally formidable at the City Ground, unbeaten in six home matches dating to last season, though a draw with newly promoted Burnley in their last home match was a disappointment. Meanwhile, Brentford’s midweek loss to Arsenal in the Carabao Cup marked a fifth consecutive winless outing for the Bees. 

at No comments:

Tuesday, September 26, 2023

Premier League Week 6 Results: North London Draw; Liverpool Goes Second With Win Over Hammers; Brighton Beats Bournemouth On Mitoma Brace; 10 Man Manchester City Defeats Forest; Newcastle Shreds Sheffield United; Everton Shocks Brentford; Fernandez Lifts United

Son Heung-min scored twice as Tottenham Hotspur overcame errors by center back Cristian Romero to capture a point in a 2-2 final at rival Arsenal in north London. Spurs came back twice to frustrate the Gunners as both clubs remained undefeated but dropped points in their chase of league leading Manchester City. A Romero own goal, on a deflection of a Bukayo Saka shot, gave Arsenal an early lead at the 26-minute mark. Son then sent the clubs to the locker rooms knotted at a goal apiece when he found himself on the end of a cross from James Maddison just before halftime. Romero would once again help Arsenal move ahead when his handball resulted in a successful Saka penalty kick for a 2-1 Gunner advantage. Just a minute later, however, Maddison would dispossess Arsenal’s Jorginho and find Son a second time. Son’s second goal of the match, his fifth in his last two appearances, gave the South Korean 150 goals for his Tottenham Hotspur career.

The unfortunate Jorginho was substituting for an injured Declan Rice whose departure at halftime factored into Sunday’s outcome. Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya, meanwhile, conceded his first goals for the club to heighten the selection drama surrounding him and Aaron Ramsdale.

Liverpool jumped over Spurs into second position in the table with its 3-1 win over West Ham. Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez each scored their third league goals of the season as the Reds scored three goals for a fourth consecutive match across all competitions. Salah’s penalty kick opened the match’s scoring while Nunez took back the lead after Jarrod Bowne equalized for the Hammers. Diogo Jota closed out the scoring for Liverpool. The Reds fifth straight Premier League victory left them two points behind Manchester City’s perfect record. A second consecutive loss, meanwhile, dropped the Hammers to seventh in the table. West Ham Manager David Moyes lost to Liverpool for the 24th time in the Premier League, the joint highest loss total against one club in league history.

Brighton moved to third in the table as the Seagulls, recovering from a mid-week loss in their first ever European match, defeated Bournemouth 3-1 on Sunday. Brighton began sluggishly as a goal by Bournemouth’s Dominik Solanke and an own goal by his teammate, Milos Kerkez, left the clubs level after a half of play. Brighton’s Kaoru Mitoma changed the game, however, scoring just one minute after entering the match as a second half substitute. The Japanese international would add a second goal in the 77th minute to put away the Cherries.

Manchester City went down to 10 men in the 46th minute but kept Nottingham Forest scoreless in a 2-0 win at the Etihad. Goals by Phil Foden and Erling Haaland in the first fifteen minutes had the league leaders in command before a moment of madness by Rodri saw the Brazilian booted for putting his hands around the neck of Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White. After going down a man, Manchester City then successfully focused on defending and frustrating the Tricky Trees. City have conceded just three goals in their six victories this season. At the same time, only Brighton have scored more than the Citizens’ 16 goals, half of which belong to Golden Boot leader Haaland.

Newcastle also has 16 goals for the season after smashing Sheffield United in an 8-0 final scoreline. Eight different players scored for the Magpies, the first ever such occurrence in a Premier League match. The goal explosion was shocking for a Newcastle side which had not scored more than a single goal in its previous four league matches and ground out a scoreless draw in Champions League play during the week. The pressure now mounts further on Sheffield United Manager Paul Heckingbottom amid already existent rumors that ownership might replace him with former Blades manger Chris Wilder.

Newcastle’s win kept it level on points with Manchester United, both clubs sitting five points outside the top four. The Red Devils limped to a 1-0 win over newly promoted Burnley with Bruno Fernandes scoring the winner in the 45th minute. Injuries to several defenders gave Jonny Evans his first start for Manchester United since 2015 and the 35-year-old responded. Evans had a goal chalked off by VAR before then assisting on Fernadez’s winner. The defender also contributed to a clean sheet which ended a run of three matches across all competitions where the Red Devils conceded three or more goals. Burnley remains rooted in the relegation zone with Sheffield United and the third newly promoted squad, Luton Town.

The Hatters posted their first point of the season in a 1-1 draw with Wolverhampton. A controversial handball decision led to a winning Luton penalty kick as the Hatters earned their first ever Premier League point at Kenilworth Road. The dropped points could come back to bite Wolves who are currently three points above the drop zone.

Everton are level on points with Wolverhampton after the Toffees shocked Brentford 3-1. Manager Sean Dyche unleashed the hounds as the Toffees emerged from their usual defensive shell to sting the Bees after just six minutes on a goal by Abdoulaye Doucoure. The Bees would level later in the half before the Toffees stuck twice in the second half to notch their first win of the season. The oft injured Dominic Calvert-Lewin scored Everton’s third goal in his 250th appearance for the club. Calvert-Lewin’s return enhances the goal threat for a Toffee side which suddenly has some creativity being provided by players such as Doucoure, transfer signing Beto and central midfielder James Garner, a former Manchester United academy player who assisted on Calvert Lewin’s goal. A second consecutive loss and a four-match winless run leaves Brentford just two points above Everton in the table.

Sitting between Brentford and Everton, 14th in the table, is Chelsea after the Blues fell at home on Sunday 1-0 to Aston Villa. Ollie Watkins provided the winning goal in the 73rd minute after his side gained a man advantage following a red card assessed to Chelsea’s Malo Gusto fifteen minutes earlier. Gusto will miss the next three matches for Chelsea and Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson will miss the club’s next match for accumulated yellow cards, all for dissent. Things continue to go poorly for owner Todd Boehly’s project as his expensively purchased play pieces failed to score for a third consecutive match as the club matched its worst start to a season since 1978. Only Luton Town and Burnley have found the net fewer times than Chelsea.

Aston Villa, meanwhile, rebounded nicely from a mid-week Europa Conference League loss in Poland. The Villans’ fourth win in their six Premier League matches puts them sixth in the table, just two points off the top four.

In perhaps the most inconsequential match of the weekend, mid-table clubs Crystal Palace and Fulham played to a goalless draw, leaving the two London clubs level on points and 10th and 11th in the table, respectively.

at No comments:

Friday, September 22, 2023

Premier League Week 6 Preview

Sunday’s London derby at the Emirates between Arsenal and Spurs takes top billing this weekend. Both rivals are undefeated in the Premier League this season. Spurs is undergoing a renaissance under the new management of Ange Postecoglou. Arsenal is trying to retool for another title bid after last season’s success fell short in the end. Declan Rice has been a hit for the Gunners, Kai Havertz not so much. Currently there is also a goalkeeper controversy at the Emirates with former Brentford goalkeeper David Raya acquired to compete with and potentially replace Aaron Ramsdale. Postecoglou, meanwhile, has instituted a more attacking style which has so far compensated for the departure of Harry Kane and his consistent goal production. Son Heung-min seems re-energized, James Maddison has proved a valuable addition and Richarlison could be heating up. After a miserable start to the season, the Brazilian forward scored and assisted in last week’s dramatic win over Sheffield United.

Undefeated Liverpool is level on points with Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur as the Reds prepare to host a West Ham side which was humbled by Manchester City last week. The Hammers lost for the first time this season but were clearly outclassed by the Citizens in a 3-1 defeat. Despite that setback, the Hammers will likely once again employ the low block defense which has seen West Ham prevail three times in the league this season, including an impressive defeat of Brighton, the Premier League’s highest scoring club this season. The formidable West Ham defense, however, will be severely challenged for a second consecutive week as it faces a Liverpool attack with a host of attacking options headlined by star Mohamed Salah. Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota are other forward threats which the Hammers must deal with while a new and improved Liverpool midfield has kindled optimism that the Reds could mount another title bid after a disappointing 2022/23 season.

It could be a difficult environment at Stamford Bridge should Chelsea not show improvement when the Blues host Aston Villa on Sunday.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino was critical of Chelsea supporters and their lack of patience after the club’s listless draw last weekend at Bournemouth. The former Tottenham Hotspur manager likely just added fuel to the fire as supporters are unimpressed with the on-field results of the club’s lavish spending spree on young and largely unproven talent. Supporter angst might be mitigated if just one of the many players purchased in the past year would step up and validate their purchase price. Only Everton, excluding relegated and newly promoted clubs, has picked up fewer Premier League points than Chelsea in calendar year 2023. Meanwhile, only Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have more points than Sunday’s opponent Villa during that same period.

Manchester City seeks a sixth consecutive league victory when the Citizens host Nottingham Forest on Saturday. Forest seems to have the potential of a mid-table club versus relegation straggler but endured a disappointing home draw to previously pointless Burnley last week. Callum Hudson-Odoi scored his first goal for Forest in that match and Taiwo Awoniyi and former Manchester United forward Anthony Elanga add additional threat for the Tricky Trees. Manchester City, however, are a different talent level altogether and should do some tree chopping on Saturday.

Burnley will seek to build on its solitary Premier League point when the Clarets welcome Manchester United to Turf Moor. The match couldn’t have come at a better time for Burnley as their opponent is racked with issues. Manchester United’s difficult season, which has seen three league losses already, has been marked by injuries and unusual player leaves of absence as Eric ten Hag tries to hold it all together. A reported but-up among four frustrated players in the dressing room following last week’s loss to Brighton only heightened the crisis atmosphere for the Red Devils.

Brighton has won four of five matches this season as they face a Bournemouth side on Sunday looking to notch a first Premier League win for new manager Andoni Iraola. The Seagulls present a difficult matchup, but Iraola desperately needs to show some results to appease ambitious American owner Bill Foley.

Another manager rumored to be on the hot seat is Sheffield United’s Paul Heckingbottom. The Blades have shown a distressing tendency towards late game collapses as they continue to search for their first win of the season. Sheffield United gets another try this weekend when it hosts Newcastle United. The Magpies have won five of the last six contests between the clubs.

Brentford will try to rebound from its loss at Newcastle last week when the Bees return home to face Everton. It should be a pleasant homecoming against one of the league’s poorest clubs in the Toffees. Everton has just a single point this season, earned in a draw with struggling Sheffield United where the Toffees scored their only two goals of the season.

Bottom of the table Luton Town will try to add to its own paltry two goals for the season when the Hatters host Wolverhampton. Both clubs are early entrants to the relegation discussion. Wolverhampton have lost four of five matches under former Bournemouth manager Gary O’Neil, defeating only woeful Everton.

Crystal Palace will try to regroup at home versus Fulham after conceding three late goals to lose at Aston Villa last week. Injured center back Marc Guehi was sorely missed in the late defensive failure against Villa and his questionable return could be key to the Eagles’ prospects this week. Fulham, however, has its own defensive problems. Only Wolverhampton and Burnley have conceded more often than O’Neil’s squad.

at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)