Premier League Picks Of The Week 15

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 15

The 15th week of the Premier League action saw:

27 goals - most by Liverpool = 5
257 shots - most by Arsenal = 33
91 on target - most by Arsenal = 16
106 corners - most by Arsenal = 12
189 fouls - most by Watford = 16
30 yellow cards - most by Watford = 4
2 red cards - Sanchez for Tottenham, Pogba for United
2 penalties - 2 scored (Hazard for Chelsea, Murray for Brighton)

What a game! Arsenal suffered their first home defeat at the Emirates since January, losing 1-3 against 10-man Manchester United. The Gunners fell two goals behind after 11 minutes and couldn't recover after those errors, no matter what they threw at the Red Devils. The defeat sees Arsène Wenger's men drop out of the Champions League qualification places to fifth. More to the fiery encounter below.
Watford were unlucky just to get a point against Tottenham, referee Martin Atkinson not making (m)any friends at Vicarage Road. Less than a minute after the home side felt Richarlison was fouled, but nothing was given, Son Heung-min levelled the score from the counter. Christian Kabasele had headed the Hornets ahead from a corner and the home side fought hard to stay in the match. Too hard and physical according to some, but the officials ignored all appeals and calls on both sides. Mauricio Pochettino felt it was long overdue for some decisions to go his side's way, avoiding any further word about Davinson Sánchez's red card for an elbow. Spurs have now gone four league matches without a win, unable to deal with Marco Silva's side's fighting spirit.

What a team! Man City are still topping the lot with an eight-point cushion - next weekend's derby is going to be interesting! The odds on an 8-0 win to the league leaders against West Ham were lower than the visitors nicking a 0-1 win at the Etihad, which said it all!!! But the Hammers started so well and worked so hard though and got a surprise lead in the first half thanks to Angelo Ogbonna's header. However, it was no surprise they got knackered and leaked the goals in the end, Nicolás Otamendi (57') and David Silva (83') handing the Citizens their record-equalling 13th PL win in a row in Pep time.
Crystal Palace have moved off the bottom of the table for the first time this season and have been replaced by Swansea after the Welsh side's 2-1 defeat at Stoke. Mark Hughes was a very relieved man seeing his side showing much more "courage and character" as he put it after the Potters recorded their first win since October, first home win since September. The pressure is up and going more and more against Paul Clement. Despite failing to score for the 10th away game in a row for the first time since Manchester City in 1950, the Eagles were happy with the point at West Brom, Alan Pardew full of praise for his side too.
Huddersfield are sliding down the table, Everton making it two wins and six goals in two games and Big Sam very happy after his first match in charge beating the Tigers 2-0 at Goodison Park.

What a man! Man of the match at the Emirates David de Gea made the most saves in a single match in Premier League history = 14, including a breathtaking double-save against Alexandre Lacazette and Alexis Sánchez. 33 attempts made by the home side, 16 on target, but just one goal to show for on the scoreboard. José Mourinho's side produced just 8 shots, 4 on target, but 3 goals meant 3 points. It was a thriller and a very harsh lesson to the London side, despite having the extra man for the last 15ish minutes after Paul Pogba was sent off for a dangerous tackle.
Man of the Match at Stamford Bridge Eden Hazard made a big difference for Chelsea as the Blues came back from a goal down to beat Newcastle 3-1 at Stamford Bridge. The former Premier League Player of the Year levelled the score with an angled strike and sealed the win from the spot after striker Álvaro Morata had given the Blues the lead. This result made it ten wins for Antonio Conte's side in the league, whilst Rafael Benítez's Magpies have seen no wins in the last six and been dragged down to 15th, 5 points from the drop zone.

What a goal! All FIVE Liverpool goals just over-rolled Brighton... Great team play, counter attacking, running, passing, smashing. Mohamed Salah wasn't on the scoreboard for a change but was more than involved. The Egyptian has played part in 15 goals in the first 15 PL games for Liverpool, more than any other player for the club (12 goals, 3 assists). Man of the match Philippe Coutinho's cheeky low free kick that went under the wall made it four and settled any nerves and fears of a comeback like Sevilla in the Champions League. And unlucky Lewis Dunk put the ball into his own net it sealed the deal 1-5 at the Amex Stadium. The Brighton defender is only one away from Martin Škrtel's record for the season (= 4 in 2013/14). The Reds meanwhile have moved into the top four of the Premier League for the first time since August after scoring 15 goals in their past four away games in all competitions. BOOM!

What the hell?! There were lots of questionable refereeing decisions once again, as (some) mentioned above... Penalties... Bookings... Red cards... The inconsistencies are just mad! I could fill books with all the errors (and arguments FOR video reviews and WHY THE HELL they still haven't been introduced)! Bournemouth defender Adam Smith said in the post-match interview referee Jonathan Moss admitted his booking for diving was a mistake instead of a giving a penalty - too little too late as the game against Southampton ended 1-1!!! And as it is Cherry's fifth yellow card of the season he will be suspended for the next game. It's ridiculous that it cannot be retracted. It is rare an official so openly concedes a mistake, so, something should be done!!!
And a little LOL to cheer up and finish things off: I loved Gary Lineker's MOTD running order prank on Twitter, LMAO!

My Predictions - Actual Results
Chelsea 4:1 Newcastle - 3:1
Brighton 1:3 Liverpool - 1:5
Everton 3:0 Huddersfield - 2:0
Leicester 1:1 Burnley - 1:0
Stoke City 2:1 Swansea - 2:1
Watford 2:1 Tottenham - 1:1
West Brom 0:0 Crystal Palace - 0:0
Arsenal 2:1 Man United - 1:3
Bournemouth 2:1 Southampton - 1:1
Man City 6:0 West Ham - 2:1

Click here for my previous Premier League Picks.

All pictures, facts and stats were taken from the BBC match reports, MOTD, Twitter and SFR live match coverage.