Premier League Picks Of The Week 32

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 32

The 32nd week of the Premier League action saw:
243 shots - most by Man City = 23
29 goals - most by Tottenham & Everton = 4 each
221 fouls - most by Man United = 20
34 bookings - most by West Ham & Man United = 5 each
1 red card - Sebastian Larsson for Sunderland
1 penalty - 1 scored (Milivojevic for Palace)

What a game! From the first minute, it was all bang boom bang, comeback versus comeback, game on at Goodison Park! Everton took the lead in the first minute thanks to Tom Davies poking in the joint fastest goal in the Premier League. But champions Leicester came back hitting two in six minutes, Islam Slimani in the fourth and Marc Albrighton in the tenth minute. The Toffees showed more stubbornness and hunger though, Romelu Lukaku's double taking his tally to 13 in the last eight home games and turning the game on its head yet again. The Belgian striker served Craig Shakespeare his first defeat, making it a club record of seven out of seven home wins for Ronald Koeman's men. Great entertainment, which saw the home side in seventh move level on points with Arsenal in sixth, whilst the Foxes stay in 11th.

What a team! Liverpool did what Arsenal were not able to - both played absolute shambles, the Reds making much needed changes at the break to turn the game around at Stoke, whilst the Gunners kept firing blanks and looked nowhere near anything at Crystal Palace. Jürgen Klopp started with the youngsters, but after seeing his side being chopped to bits and falling behind thanks to boyhood Evertonian Jonathan Walters, the German brought on Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino who both banged in a goal each to take and turn the game around 1-2 and make a statement, even though the boss was adamant they didn't start due to lack of fitness... Arsène Wenger meanwhile looked clueless and helpless at Selhurst Park, his team mirroring that in their way of play, or lack of, the Eagles bossing it from start to finish, winning convincingly 3-0. If the games reveal or reflect anything, then it's the contrasting trend/spiral each side is finding themselves in!

What a man! This weekend my vote goes to the keepers, so many superb saves! Wow! Simon Mignolet kept Liverpool in the game with some great quick-reaction, reflex-type stops, putting his body on the line till the final whistle, very much appreciated by his team mates and manager and fully deserved to be crowned man of the match. Both Ben Foster and Fraser Forster served tung twisters for the commentators with their super saves at the Hawthorns, Jordy Clasie the only one to find a way through with a perfect strike, bang into the right side of the net to make it 0-1 to Southampton. And it was thanks to Forster it stayed that way late on, denying West Brom a late equaliser. Darren Randolph also starred keeping West Ham ahead after Cheikhou Kouyaté had given the Hammers the lead at the Olympic Stadium, with some astonishing stretching and diving, denying Swansea any way back into the game and point with it. Show stoppers and stealers with it, well and truly!

What a goal! Dele Alli's right-foot curler into the top right corner that opened the scoring for Tottenham against Watford gets my vote. It was a beauty that just started what ended up being a thrashing onslaught that downed the Hornets 4-0 with Eric Dier and Son Heung-min also on the scoreboard. The double for the latter saw Spurs complete their 11th straight home win, their best run since 1987. Table-toppers Chelsea also eased to a win at Bournemouth, Marcos Alonso making it 1-3 with a perfect unstoppable free-kick, left-foot curler into the top-right corner. It just finished off a top class win, the Cherries just could not compete with the likes of Eden Hazard, who scored the second goal and is outrunning and -scoring anyone and everyone at the moment it seems. Top class.

What the hell?! The refs were so hypocritically useless once again this weekend. On the one hand, Firmino and Kouyate got booked for celebrating their goals for Liverpool and West Ham respectively, but then Burnley's Ashley Barnes got away with elbowing his opponent in the face and then giving him a blow in the nuts just to top it off. Oh, and the last defender Michael Keane incident bringing down Patrick Bamford also at the Riverside, shouldn't that have been red rather than yellow? It ended up goalless between Boro and Clarets, the bottom three remaining winless in the last six, and deservedly so looking at this less impressive encounter. And then seeing Sunderland's Sebastian Larsson sent off for the first time in his 278 Premier League appearances the next day in the Super Sunday clash against Manchester United... It just crushed any kind of chance the Black Cats had against the Red Devils, destroying any kind of competition there was. And it was harsh. Very harsh. And very inconsistent.

My Predictions - Actual Results
Tottenham 2:1 Watford - 4:0
Man City 3:3 Hull City - 3:1
Middlesbrough 2:1 Burnley - 0:0
Stoke City 3:2 Liverpool - 1:2
West Brom 2:2 Southampton - 0:1
West Ham 2:1 Swansea - 1:0
Bournemouth 0:2 Chelsea - 1:3
Sunderland 1:1 Man United - 0:3
Everton 3:2 Leicester - 4:2
Crystal Palace 1:2 Arsenal - 3:0

Click her for last week's Premier League Picks.

All stats and pictures are taken from MOTD and BBC match reports.

Week 26: Premier League Tops & Flops

Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Weekend

WOW!

Swansea wiped QPR away, showing the big gaping gap between the two sides. The Welsh side are having everything else but the second season syndrome, sitting comfortably in the top half of the table, in eighth place, whilst Harry Redknapp has been assigned to a lost cause, sitting at the bottom of the table, seven points from safety. QPR were shambolic and the Swans were able to make the most of it.

OMG!

Manchester City's defeat against Southampton was shocking! No discrediting the Saints and their strong display and stubbornness, but the Champions looked the shadow of the fighting team and players they used to be and they still have! Are Roberto Mancini's men missing Mario Balotelli = some ATTITUDE?! Gareth Barry's header into the back of his own net completed a nightmare afternoon for City, widening the gap to rivals United at the top to twelve points. Southampton meanwhile move into 15th, four points clear of the relegation zone, after their first win under Mauricio Pochettino.

TOP!

As mentioned above, United are now twelve points ahead of their City rivals after a routine-win against Everton. I feel and think that is a more than comfortable gap/seat/throne at the top of the table, their name and with it their 20th title already engraved on it! Looking at the next five opponents on both sides' (Premier League) fixture list, I feel and think again, that by the time the two rivals meet in April, the title race will already be over and decided. I hope not, for entertainment sake and value, but have to stay realistic.

FLOP!

No discrediting West Brom, but their win at Anfield was nearly comical. Liverpool had so many chances, including a penalty, all off target. Ben Foster was on form and did his job too, that's for sure, same goes for his defence. But the Reds went down to ninth, one point behind West Brom in eighth, even though they could and should have been a couple of goals ahead and settled the game by half time! The result means Liverpool are still to beat a team currently in the top half of the Premier League table this season.

HERO!
 
Gareth Bale scored and starred yet again, two goals and three points for Tottenham in a highly competitive game against Newcastle. This brought his total to 13, four goals in three league games, not bad for a midfielder! And he could have had a double-hat-trick if he had netted all chances! But Andre Villas-Boas and the fans at a packed White Hart Lane will have forgiven him after leaving the ground all smiles and three points richer in fourth, one point behind Chelsea in third and four points clear of bitter rivals Arsenal in fifth.

ZERO!

England keeper Joe Hart's blooper which conceded the second goal epitomised City's fall against the Saints, the blue Mancs looked like a sinking ship, a hobbling runner from start to finish. As mentioned above, Barry's headed own goal put a very sour icing on a very bitter cake for City. The first goal came after a Barry giveaway too! It was just a collection of total shambles! Mancini's men have Chelsea next on their (Premier League) fixture list, who have made a fine comeback from their own set of shambles with a 4-1 thrashing of Wigan. I'm curious which side will step up and make a match rather than a mess of it next weekend!

My Predictions => Actual Results:
Tottenham 1-0 Newcastle => 2-1
Chelsea 2-1 Wigan => 4-1
Norwich 0-0 Fulham => 0-0
Stoke 0-0 Reading => 2-1
Sunderland 0-1 Arsenal => 0-1
Swansea 2-2 QPR => 4-1
Southampton 2-3 Man City => 3-1
Aston Villa 1-1 West Ham => 2-1
Man United 2-2 Everton => 2-0
Liverpool 2-0 West Brom => 0-2

West Brom stun Anfield with two late goals

Sports - Football - Premier League - Liverpool 0:2 West Brom

West Brom snatched a remarkable win with two late goals at Anfield ending their sequence of six games without a win and leaving Liverpool and their chances and hopes of Champions League qualification reeling.

The result means Brendan Rodgers' men are still to beat a team currently in the top half of the Premier League table this season.

The visitors, managed by former Reds assistant boss Steve Clarke, kept the Reds at bay thanks to a top-notch performance by their keeper Ben Foster.

The former England keeper was on form and did his job, not last when he denied Steven Gerrard from the spot after Luis Suarez had gone down typically over-dramatic under Jonas Olsson's challenge.

This save hosts' 19th attempt on goal with Suarez, Gerrard, Stewart Downing and substitute Fabio Borini all denied.

Jonjo Shelvey, in place of injured striker Daniel Sturridge, had the ball in the net but saw his effort correctly disallowed for offside earlier on in the game before Steven Reid almost scored an own goal following Shelvey's cross.

But after all the pressure, it was the visitors who broke the deadlock thanks to Gareth McAuley heading in Chris Brunt's corner completely unmarked with just under ten minutes to go.

And substitute Romelu Lukaku heaped more misery onto Liverpool, breaking forward and past Daniel Agger, shooting the second goal and winner past Pepe Reina bang on 90 minutes.

This win takes West Brom up to eighth, one point ahead of the Reds in ninth, who will feel more than frustrated!

No discrediting West Brom, but this game was nearly comical! The home side had so many chances and could and should have been a couple of goals ahead and settled the game by half time!

West Brom Goals: 1.: 80:16 min Gareth Mc Auley (23); 2.: 90:00 min Romelu Lukaku (20).

Liverpool: 25 Reina; 3 Jose Enrique, 5 Agger, 23 Carragher, 2 Johnson; 8 Gerrard, 21 Lucas; 14 Henderson (31 Sterling - 60.), 33 Shelvey (29 Borini - 60.), 19 Downing (10 Coutinho - 78.); 7 Suarez (booked 94.). 4-2-3-1
Subs not used: 1 Jones, 24 Allen, 37 Skrtel, 47 Wisdom.

West Brom: 1 Foster; 6 Ridgewell (bkd 69.), 3 Olsson, 23 McAuley, 2 Reid (bkd 42.)Mulumbu, 5 Yacob; 11 Brunt (bkd 73.), 7 Morrison 7(bkd 2.), 17 Dorrans (20 Lukaku - 74.); 9 Long (32 Fortune - 86.). 4-2-3-1
Subs not used: 13 Myhill, 8 Rosenberg, 28 Jones, 30 Tamas, 14 Thomas.

Sky Stats: Liverpool-West Brom
Attempts: 25-5
On target: 7-3
Offsides: 4-1
Corners: 13-5
Free kicks: 11-10
Possession: 58.5%-41.5%
Tackles/Success: 19-24/63.2%-79.2%
Passes/Success: 529-377/81.7%-75.3%
Crosses/Success: 31-11/16.1%-18.2%

Referee: Jonathan Moss
Man of the match: Ben Foster

Premier League Tops and Flops

Sports - Football - Premier League - Picks of the Weekend

This weekend once again saw twists and turns, delights and outrages, quality and embarrassments:

Top Game: Sunderland's win over Blackburn was the most contrasting result in relation to the actual match. How the ball did not end up in the net more than once for Blackburn and how they ended up on the losing side is inexplicable looking at the chances and dominance they had. They were on top and Sunderland struggling until the visitors fell asleep and gave away the match. Similar to Liverpool's defeat - just examples of when the scores do not reflect the match in the slightest. Seemed to be the theme of the week...

Top Team: Manchester United got back on track this week thumping Wigan. Arsenal served a quality match with plenty quality goals. And Burnley continued their high ride start to their Premier League campaign with a win against a struggling Everton side. But Blackburn and Wigan impressed me most. Both were on the losing side this week but created chance after chance and great entertainment and competitive football.

Top Player: Wayne Rooney scored his 100th and 101st goal for United, stealing the goals, match and show and making him the 21st centurian goal scorer for United. Michael Owen scored his first Premier League goal for the side, hoping to reach similar peaks as his Scouser colleague - which made me grin thinking back to the period he scored over a century of goals for their main rivals. How times have changed.

Top Goal: Carlton Cole's top-draw left-footed turn-strike for West Ham against Tottenham was a beauty. He created a lot of chances for his side, shame he also served Spurs one on a plate, giving the ball away to Jermain Defoe, who did not waste the present to equalise.

Top Save: Brad Friedel did a brilliant job for Aston Villa, making numerous stops and saves for his side. And if it were not for the saves Ben Foster made for Man Utd, the game could have developed very differently, the score not reflecting the threat Wigan were at times.

Flop Team: Liverpool created enough pressure from loads of possession but looked chaotic and clumsy at times, slipping up and losing the ball at crucial times. Man Utd did not look much better in the first half against Wigan, but certainly turned that around in the second half, making the defeat against Burnley fall into oblivion.

Flop Player: If Andriy Voronin or Ryan Babel were supposed to be match-saving subs and are the best Liverpool have on the bench, it indicates very much what they are lacking: resources, backup, alternatives. As I wrote in my season preview, they will need THAT player that can turn up when the team is disappointing and turn the game around. So far, not good and no one spotted.

Flop Goals: Lucas Leiva's own goal crowned and Steven Gerrard conceding a penalty just minutes after his side finally scored peaked the frustration and misery for Liverpool.

My Predictions - Actual Results

Arsenal 3:0 Portsmouth - 4:1

Birmingham 2:0 Stoke - 0:0

Hull City 0:0 Bolton - 1:0

Man City 2:0 Wolves - 1:0

Sunderland 0:1 Blackburn - 2:1

Wigan 1:3 Man Utd - 0:5

Burnley 2:0 Everton - 1:0

Fulham 1:1 Chelsea - 0:2

West Ham 1:3 Tottenham - 1:2

Liverpool 2:0 Aston Villa - 1:3