Premier League Notes - Week 3

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 3

The third week of the 2019-2020 Premier League season saw: 

30 goals - most by CHE/WHU/LIV/MCI = 3 each

284 shots - most by Liverpool = 25

79 on target - most by West Ham = 10

101 corners - most by CHE/BRI/MUN/WAT = 8 each

199 fouls - most by CRY/EVE = 18 each

33 bookings - most by Crystal Palace = 4

1 red card - Andone for Brighton

4 penalties - 3 scored (Noble for West Ham, Salah for Liverpool, Jiménez for Wolves)

#ASTEVE

It was a miserable Friday night for Marco Silva and his men. Goals from club record £22m signing Wesley and Anwar El Ghazi lifted Dean Smith's side up to 11th in the table and gave Aston Villa their first win in the top flight since February 2016. Everton have failed to come from behind at the interval to win a Premier League game since September 2015 at West Brom (W0 D5 L33 since), suffering only their third league defeat in their past 14 matches in the competition (W7 D4 L3).

#NORCHE

Frank Lampard’s first win came with Chelsea’s youngest starting line-up in the Premier League since February 1994. But Norwich didn’t make it easy for them at Carrow Road, equalising twice, despite all the visitors’ dominance! Tammy Abraham is the youngest Blues player to score a Premier League brace since Mark Nicholls in January 1998, helping his side to the three points.

#BRISOU

Brighton's sending off came from what looked like a career ending tackle! Florian Andone was shown a straight red card on the half-hour mark following a high, rash challenge on Saints defender Yan Valery. Albion manager Graham Potter said he "can't defend" the Romanian’s challenge. The Seagulls were out of the game after that, unable to form much opposition nor competition. Southampton's opening goal was a stunner! Moussa Djenepo broke the deadlock with a fine strike moments after coming on as a second-half substitute. Another super sub!

#MUNCRY

Man Who? Crystal Palace pounced, making all the home side’s dominance count for zero. Daniel James thought he had rescued a point for the home side in the final minute of normal time. But full-back Patrick van Aanholt netted in the 93rd minute equaliser off Wilfried Zaha's burst forward, becoming only the second player to score a 90th-minute winner against United in the Premier League after Thierry Henry for Arsenal in January 2007, and the first to do so at Old Trafford. Roy Hodgson’s men like to travel, 60% of their points last season came on the road. This was their first victory at the famous Manchester ground since 1989, making Marcus Rashford rue his missed spot kick earlier in the second half - deja vue for the Red Devils after Paul Pogba’s missed penalty last week. Manchester United have won only one of their past nine matches, scoring just eight goals and conceding 16. Ole’s at the wheel...

#SHULEI

Super subs at Sheffield United as well: Harvey Barnes snatched the winner from the edge of the box six minutes after coming on, recording the Foxes’ first league win of the season and Chris Wilder's side only their second defeat in 21 matches. Former Wednesday player and boo man Jamie Vardy had given Leicester the lead at Bramall Lane, before club record signing Oliver McBurnie headed in the equaliser for the home side and the sub's heart-breaker. 

#WATWHU

There was a penalty within the opening couple of minutes at Watford! Like Aston Villa conceded last week, making the mountain too high to climb straight away. West Ham pounced and won comfortable thanks to the spot kick and record signing Sébastian Haller’s brace. Despite all the chances and effort, it’s been a miserable start for the Hornets, three defeats out of three games. Javi Gracia's side, who sit bottom of the table, have now lost seven successive games in all competitions for the first time since 1999.

#LIVARS

Liverpool recorded their 12th consecutive Premier League win, equalling their best sequence in the top flight under Sir Kenny Dalglish between April and October 1990. Mohamed Salah has been involved in 77 goals in 77 games, 57 goals and 20 assists. It was a comfortable home win against Arsenal, Joël Matip with the opening header before the great Egyptian added his brace, helped by David Luiz’s idiotic foul in the box, pulling him down by the shirt and handing the Reds a penalty. And then Mo embarrassed the former blue again out on the touchline at the start of a dazzling run that ended with a low, curling finish into the bottom corner just before the hour. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has faced Arsenal eight times without defeat in the Premier League (W5 D3). Vielen Dank!

#BOUMCI

Manchester City cruised to a win at Bournemouth, no shocks or surprises there. David Silva starred in his 400th appearance for the club, contributing to all three goals = Sergio Agüero’s brace taking him to 400 goals for club and country, 235 of them for City, and Raheem Sterling’s poke in. The Cherries, who drop to 10th place, continued a miserable run against the Citizens, that has seen them concede 28 times in their last nine league meetings. Pep Guardiola's side has won all nine of their top-flight games against Bournemouth - the best 100% win record by a team over an opponent in top-flight history.

#TOTNEW

Club record £40m signing Joelinton with his first Newcastle goal served Steve Bruce his first points as Magpies manager, stunning Tottenham at Wembley. The Brazilian striker took advantage of sleepy defending to control substitute Christian Atsu's pass beautifully before drilling past Hugo Lloris. Spurs lacked the creativity to break down a resolute Newcastle side, whose four-man midfield kept sitting deep in front of a back five. Bruce hopes Newcastle win "will shut a few people up". Tell that the fans who have travelled more than 1,000 miles over the past two weekends. But hey, they definitely weren't complaining on their way back from London this time!

#WOLBUR

Raúl Jiménez's penalty in the 97th minute was the latest ever Premier League goal by Wolves, just their second shot on target in the game, grabbing his side a point against Burnley. Ashley Barnes looked to have won it for the Clarets after pouncing from around 25 yards - his fourth goal in three Premier League games this season - against a disjointed Wolves side playing their third game inside a week. Nuno Espírito Sante's side has drawn their first three games of a league campaign for the first time since 1938-39, when they finished second in the top flight. Good omen? The Wanderers are unbeaten in their last 10 home games in the Premier League (W6 D4); their longest run without defeat in the top flight since April to October 1979 (also 10 games). Brilliant run!

So, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Wolves were the only three home sides not to suffer defeat! #HomeSweetHome

My Predictions - Actual Results

Aston Villa 1:2 Everton - 2:0

Norwich 1:1 Chelsea - 2:3

Brighton 2:2 Southampton - 0:2

Man United 2:0 Crystal Palace - 1:2

Sheff United 1:1 Leicester - 1:2

Watford 0:0 West Ham - 1:3

Liverpool 4:2 Arsenal - 3:1

Bournemouth 0:4 Man City - 1:3

Tottenham 2:1 Newcastle - 0:1

Wolves 2:2 Burnley - 1:1

Click here for last week’s Premier League Notes.

All pictures, facts and stats were taken from the BBC match reports, Sky Sports and RMC Sport live coverage.

Premier League Notes - Week 2

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 2

The second week of the 2019-2020 Premier League season saw:

25 goals - most by Norwich = 3

262 shots - most by Man City = 30

88 on target - most by Man City = 10

129 corners - most by Man City = 13

44 offsides - most by Arsenal/Aston Villa = 5 each

363 tackles - most by Watford = 34

219 fouls - most by Wolves = 17

29 bookings - most by WAT/NEW/SHU = 3 each

0 red cards

2 penalties - 1 scored (King for Bournemouth)

VAR Stats

Average 6 checks per game

3 overturned decisions

3 disallowed goals (Arsenal, Brighton and Man City)

VAR denied Raheem Sterling a last-second winner! Cruel but correct. Hand ball is hand ball, the (not really) new rule book says. Pep Guardiola was gutted of course, pointing out the deja vue of last season’s Champions League quarter-final drama between the same two sides. The boss' bust-up with scorer and star-man Sergio Agüero on the sideline didn't help polish the match report either. And more than ever, it just showed once again, something I always preach, NEVER LEAVE A GAME EARLY!!! No matter how much you dominate, it’s only the scoreboard that counts!!! Brighton's opening goal was also reviewed and disallowed for offside. Oh so close, but rightly so. That's what VAR was introduced for, no? To make sure goals ARE goals. Or not. 

Liverpool made it 11 consecutive league wins as their record run continued at Southampton, having not dropped a point since March 3. Replacement keeper Adrián's late blunder was a nightmare goal to concede, a present for former Red Danny Ings (83'), but Sadio Mané’s opener was just top class (45'+1')! The Senegalese forward turned from scorer to provider as Roberto Firmino produced a fine finish to double the Reds' lead (71') before their keeper's giveaway spoiled the show, ever so slightly. Still, three points and a 100% start is the main thing for Jürgen Klopp and his men.

It's the first time since 2009-10 that Arsenal have won their opening two league games, beating a fighting Burnley side 2-1 at the Emirates. However, Sean Dyche lauded his side's mentality, his side recording more shots than the home side, and was not impressed and complained about all the diving and whining, and I couldn’t agree more! It's not just the Gunners, but especially with replays available, all the drama queens just look more and more ridiculous! But they still keep on falling as long as they get some advantage and calls their way. Annoying but true. The refs need to toughen them up and punish them more for their acts, especially when it's obvious in the replays!

Teemu Pukki's first hat-trick for Norwich is also a first in 26 years for the club in the top-tier. All three goals were superb finishes, including the cracking opener, downing a miserable Newcastle side at Carrow Road. But, as mentioned above, Mané’s stunner gets my top vote (of course)! Leicester's equaliser at Chelsea, Wilfred Ndidi's banging header, is worth a shout-out as well! Aston Villa shot themselves in the foot straight away, conceding a penalty after 26 seconds, giving the home side no chance for the rest of the race against Bournemouth. What a wonder goal it was to make it 2-1 though! Worth nothing in the end, but just in awe!

And last but definitely not least, on Monday Night Football, Paul Pogba's penalty flop cost Manchester United at bogey team Wolves, the first team to come from behind and avoid defeat in three consecutive Premier League games against United. Why oh why did the number 6 take it?! Marcus Rashford is the usual and most reliable taker! Talk afterwards was all about the racist abuse the Frenchman received on Twitter. I always report and block anything repulsive like that straight away. But, on another note, isn’t it funny how racist insults against a Red Devil gets all the attention and condemnation, suddenly there's all sorts of shout-outs and meetings, but a certain Red Egyptian and plenty of other players have had to deal with it for years, but nothing happened. A fine distraction from a weak display and result, me thinks. 

My Predictions - Actual Results

Arsenal 3:1 Burnley - 2:1

Aston Villa 2:2 Bournemouth - 1:2

Brighton 2:0 West Ham - 1:1

Everton 2:1 Watford - 1:0

Norwich 3:2 Newcastle - 3:1

Southampton 0:3 Liverpool - 1:2

Man City 3:1 Tottenham - 2:2

Sheff Utd 1:1 Crystal Palace - 1:0

Chelsea 1:1 Leicester - 1:1

Wolves 1:2 Man Utd - 1:1

Click here for last week’s Premier League Notes.

All pictures, facts and stats were taken from the BBC match reports, PL app, Sky Sports News and RMC Sport live coverage. 

Premier League Notes - Week 1

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 1 

The opening week of the 2019-2020 Premier League season saw:

27 goals - most by Man City = 5
228 shots - most by Tottenham = 31
78 on target - most by Man City = 9
91 corners - most by Tottenham = 14
34 offsides - most by Norwich/Burnley = 5 each
359 tackles - most by Aston Villa = 29
225 fouls - most by Sheff Utd = 19
28 bookings - most by Chelsea = 4
1 red card - Schneiderlin for Everton
2 penalties - 2 scored (Agüero for City, Rashford for United) 

VAR Stats 
Average of 7 checks per game 
3 overturned decisions: 
2 disallowed goals (City and Wolves) and Agüero’s penalty retake

The first game of the season was Liverpool's convincing win against Norwich on Friday night, thrashing the newly promoted side in the first half, and keeping them at bay after the break. An injury to Red keeper Alisson didn't help Jürgen Klopp's men, his replacement and LFC debutante Adrián did a good job under the circumstances. VAR went totally unnoticed, surprisingly. Click here for my ByTheMin Twitter live match coverage. 

Manchester United thrashed Chelsea in the Super Sunday clash. But the scoreline is very harsh and doesn’t reflect the game at all. It was much more competitive, cagey and close in the first hour, just fell to bits with two quick goals. Same with Tottenham against newly promoted Aston Villa, Harry Kane making the crucial difference with two goals in the final four minutes (86', 90').

Manchester City took West Ham apart, making my prediction look more ridiculous with every goal. I honestly thought the Hammers could surprise us after having a very active and positive summer. Pf. Fool me. Dream starts for Burnley and Brighton went pretty unnoticed with all the focus just on the top teams, both sides recording convincing 3-0 wins against Southampton and at Watford respectively.

Raheem Sterling starred for the champions with a hat-trick (51', 75', 90'+1'), Kane and Marcus Rashford (18' pen, 67'), as mentioned above, helped their sides to opening wins with a brace each. Mohamed Salah scored and provided (19', 28') in an explosive first half at Anfield. Same old names at the top, ey?
Billy Sharp’s last-minute equaliser for Sheffield United broke Bournemouth hearts (88'). In only his third PL appearance, the local lad scored with his first top-flight shot. One to remember. Tanguy Ndombele’s leveller for Spurs against Villa was a cracker as well.

As mentioned above, it has been confirmed and was quite clear from the offset, Alisson went down and will be out for a while! It looked like the Brazilian stopper was hit by a ghost?! He looked and searched for the culprit behind him  But it was obvious, he had pulled something. Worrying for Klopp and co. The Schadenfreude of the opposition fans was all over the social media afterwards.

And last but definitely not least, the beloved, VAR! See stats above. It has finally arrived in the Premier League and of course still needs getting used to. But I expected worse to be honest. The interruptions weren't half as long and bad as in the trials. And the reviews and overturned decisions were clear. I am sure especially Wolves boss Nuno Espírito Santo and also City manager Pep Guardiola see it differently, the prior's disallowed goal costing his side two points. It is just impossible to get everything right, but everything can at least be double-checked now. In the end, there is still human beings sitting in front of the screens, so, the decisions are, though more objective, still subjective. So we can and will still curse the officials. Same old. Even with the new technology.

My Predictions - Actual Results
Liverpool 5:1 Norwich - 4:1
West Ham 2:1 Man City - 0:5
Bournemouth 2:1 Sheff Utd - 1:1
Burnley 1:0 Southampton - 3:0
Crystal Palace 0:1 Everton - 0:0
Watford 0:0 Brighton - 0:3
Tottenham 3:1 Aston Villa - 3:1
Leicester 2:1 Wolves - 0:0
Newcastle 0:1 Arsenal - 0:1
Man United 1:1 Chelsea - 4:0

Click here for my previous Premier League Picks Of The Week.

All pictures, facts and stats were taken from the BBC match reports, PL app, Sky Sports News and RMC Sport live coverage.

Happy Summer Of Sports

Sports - Football - Tennis - Cricket

So, the summer break is nearly over, we’re just a day away from the new Premier League season. Did you miss it? I have to say, for me it was not as much as usual. 

There was plenty of football and other sports to watch, follow, cheer and/or curse. Here’s a little summery of what wows and ohs I filled my time with over the last month(s).

WWC and Euro U21s - YAY

It was the first time I followed the ladies and youngsters football competitions so closely. It obviously helped that all the matches were available to watch (remember something called freeview?!). It was good to see the stadiums full as well. But apart from that, less pace and physicality aside, the games were intense, entertaining and served a lot the others can learn and develop from. The others = the men’s game. Less diving and whining. More playing and competing. And VAR!
Although on the other hand, both the England ladies and youngsters were too nice, as if they were holding something back, which made them unable to reach the top. The United States retained their world title for the ladies, England ending fourth. The youngsters stumbled and tumbled out of the group stage once again, like in 2013 and 2015. The Spaniards ended up on top, beating defending champions Germany. All too familiar in the men's game. Just not (quite) good enough. Harsh but true.

CAF African Cup and Copa America - NAY

All the big names flopped. It was heartbreak for the hosts Egypt and a disappointing final for Senegal against Algeria in the prior. Hosts Brazil ended on top in the latter, whilst Argentina were left whining and reeling once again. I don't have to name and shame the specific individual players in the limelight. You know who I'm on about. These competitions were more disappointing, with more trouble and noise around the games, whilst seeing and feeling less crowd and action in the games and on the pitch. Just not worth it.

French Open and Wimbledon - OMG

Cori Gauff surprised us all in South-West London, the youngster pouncing and impressing with her comebacks, beating Venus Williams and making it all the way to the fourth round. Rafael Nadal ended on top in France, his 82nd career title. Novac Djokovic won Wimbledon beating Roger Federer in the longest final in the tournament's history. The Serb drove me mad with all his complaining, moaning and ranting. He's just unprofessional and immature and should know better with his experience, totaling 75 career titles. Simona Halep beat Serena Williams on the grass, the latter was looking to come back after maternity leave and break more records, but it was just too much. Ashleigh Barty won on the clay after seeing all first-time semi-finalists guaranteeing a new winner. It was good to see Andy Murray was back and impressed in the doubles with Williams. Old newbies or new oldies? Either way, it would have been too good to be true for them to win. The wave of change is noticeable. Williams got so close. But it just seemed too far. Same for Federer. Has-beens? Start of new era? Or am I just being harsh (again)? Exciting times ahead, that's for sure.

CWC and the Ashes - WTF

England showed their best and worst sides during the World Cup, scraping through the group stage, to then smash their way to the final and grab it oh so dramatically late. Australia didn’t impress me at all. After the embarrassing collapse by England in the warm-up test match against Ireland, everyone expected the worst from the Ashes. But I wouldn’t overestimate the opposition. Nor underestimate them. It’s gonna be interesting. Prediction, I said before and still say, god knows! The first Ashes test showed the best and worst of both sides. England's batting and bowling ended in absolute shambles. Injuries never help of course, but fielding decisions and captaincy are more than questionable! The Aussies recovered well after a disappointing start, saved by Steven Smith and Nathan Lyon! All the boos and controversies aside, England cannot and shall not distract from the obvious, they need to get a grip and have the guts to make changes to avoid ended up thrashed on their home turf!!! Otherwise it will end up like the last Ashes, an absolute disappointing downfall down under, read my rant about that thrash here.

The New Season - OH YEAH!!!

As a Liverpool fan, I haven’t been enjoying the pre-season too much. But of course, we’re spoiled, after an unforgettable, record-breaking last season. Click here to read my notes from that night in Madrid, XxXXxX. The Community Shield last weekend was a game of two halves, decided by penalties. Manchester City ended up lifting the trophy, but weren't exactly the shiny winners. After the English champions dominated the first half, the Reds took over after the break and despite losing in the shootout, Jürgen Klopp and his men can be very encouraged by their character, resilience and display, especially after falling behind early on. There's been so many chops and changes in the whole Premier League, on and off the pitch, introductions and updates, I think there will be quite a few surprises next season. Good and bad. And that is even before mentioning VAR, adding more spice to an already very hot dish So, before I start rambling and ranting on even more, let's just say, I am soooooo looking forward to the new season!!! And you can be sure, like last season, I will blog on, week in, week out, no matter what! 

Click here for my previous post.

All pictures, facts and stats were taken from the Wikipedia pages and various articles and reports (see under links).

Let’s Talk About Six Baby

Sports - Football - CL Final - THFC 0:2 LFC 

LFC Make It Six

XxXXxX 

A week to go till the UEFA Super Cup in good old Istanbul (oh yes, we LOVE Istanbul), I thought I would go through my notes to recap and relive the night we became European Champions for the SIXth time:

That Saturday night, Madrid turned red, the whole of Europe and the football world was covered in red, cheers, songs and fire works.

After last year’s heart break against Real Madrid in Kiev, Liverpool came to the Spanish capital to make sure it will all be rectified, by beating Tottenham 0-2.

It took just over 22 seconds for the Reds to get a breakthrough. Handball given against Moussa Sissoko, blocking Sadio Mané’s take, penalty! VAR confirmed the arm moved towards the ball after it bounced off the player’s chest.

Mohamed Salah banged the spot kick in, leaving Hugo Lloris uselessly blank, 0-1 (2’). 

Jürgen Klopp’s men were in control from then on, but had Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker to thank for keeping their cool and very solid on a handful of occasions.

Spurs dominated possession and chances, Christian Erikson’s late free kick was the top pick of the saves, full-stretch (85’). Gulp.

The more relieving and satisfying it was to see sub Divock Origi double the Reds’ lead (87’) and get the party started. Boom!

This encounter was maybe less thrilling, shocking, unbelievable than the semi-finals and THAT 2005 final  (the last time LFC won the CL in case you needed reminding, in Istanbul, I thought maybe just to mention), but still unforgettable. 

The stories leading up to the night, fans and players, of both sides, made this night oh so sweet! That's why we love football! :-D And that YNWA at the end, goosebumps! #YNWA

XxXXxX 

I enjoyed the night in a casino in the South-West of France, I was not the only Red full of joy (and my Gunner husband was happy as well).

The drive back up North was good fun, sharing the motorway with happy Red and not so happy Spurs vans and busses. Again, unforgettable.

I followed the victory parade on my phone, couldn't get the smile off my face and still can't. #LetsTalkAboutSixBaby

And what makes this even better, I am so sure it is just the start, the first, just the opening chapter of an even more glorious, joyous, and oh so happy story. #WalkOn #WithHopeInYourHeart #YNWA

Lots of fans are worried because of the lack of summer transfer activity at the club. WHY? Have you already forgotten what Klopp and co have done?! Why chop and change the record-breaking kings of Europe?! #WeAreTheChampions #WeWillKeepOnFighting

Click here for my last post.

All pictures, facts and stats were taken from the BBC live match and parade coverage and report.