2016-17 Premier League Tops & Flops

Sports - Football - 2016-17 Premier League Tops & Flops

So, last season we saw:

- 296 wins, 168 draws
- 1064 goals, 942 inside the box, 122 outside the box, 36 own goals
- 9731 shots, 253 hit the woodwork
- 1455 offside
- 109 penalties, 82 scored, 17 saved, 10 missed
- 1392 yellow cards
- 41 red cards

And the teams to blame the most and/or least for those stats are:

TOP TEAMS

Chelsea were the main gainers of course, the champs, 43 points and 9 places better off than last season!

Tottenham and Liverpool were the next best improvers, going from strength to strength, both with 16 points more, finishing one and four positions higher respectively.

Everton were worth mentioning too, 14 points and 4 spots stronger and higher.

Here is the full comparison table how all teams did 2016-17 in comparison to the season before.

Most wins were produced accordingly by the Blues with 30, Spurs 26, Arsenal and Manchester City with 23 each.

Least defeats were suffered by Tottenham with 4, Chelsea and Manchester United with 5 each and City and Liverpool with 6 each.

Top scorers were Spurs with 86 goals, followed by the champions Chelsea with 85 and Sky Blues with 80.

Tottenham produced most of those goals from inside the box (74), followed by Chelsea and City (73) and Arsenal (70).

Top scorers from outside the box were Liverpool with 13, Chelsea and Spurs with 12 and Leicester with 9.

Most shots also came from Tottenham with 669, the Reds and Sky Blues the next best with 640 and 633 respectively.

Liverpool, West Ham, Crystal Palace and Middlesbrough avoided putting the ball into the back of their own net.

Spurs, the Eagles and Blues conceded the least spot kicks with only 2 each.

Swansea were flagged offside only 49 times, Boro 51 and Bournemouth 53.

Least cautions went to the Cherries with only 52 yellow cards, the Reds with 54 and Swans with 56.

Chelsea, Spurs, LFC, West Brom, Palace and Sunderland were clean with no names on the red cards list.

The most action-packed weeks were: Follow the links to read and relive my picks of that week.

Most goals: 37 in week 14 & week 38

Most shots: 295 in week 1 & week 10

Wrote most: week 13 & week 14, week 31 & week 32

FLOP TEAMS

Leicester are the biggest losers, 36 points and 11 places worse off, oh Claudio!

Southampton and West Ham deflated by 17 points, two and four positions respectively.

Sunderland imploded/dissolved/destroyed completely, relegated having dropped 15 points and three spots.

Here is the full comparison table how all teams did 2016-17 in comparison to the season before.

Least wins came from Middlesbrough with just 5, Sunderland 6 and Hull City 9.

Most defeats crushed The Black Cats with 26, The Tigers with 22 and Swans 21.

Boro found the net the least with only 27 goals, followed by Sunderland with 29 and Hull with 37.

The Smoggies also recorded the least number of goals from inside the box with 26, outside the box with just 1 and shots with 351, the Black Cats following them nearly as miserably with 387, 26 and 3 respectively.

Burnley didn't give their fans much more to shout about with just 31 attempts converted from inside the box, Hull 33.

Crystal Palace don't like distance with only 2 goals from outside the box and Everton 3.

Most own goals went to Bournemouth, Hull, Stoke and Swansea with 5 each.

Hull City topped the penalty list with 13 conceded, followed by Arsenal with 10 and Southampton and Swansea with 9 each.

Burnley saw the offside flag most, a whole 101 times, whilst United missed out on the century with 99 and Arsenal 95.

Watford collected most bookings with 84 yellow cards, followed by West Brom with 80 and MUFC, Sunderland and the Hammers with 78 each.

Hull, Watford and West Ham saw red most with 5 sent off each.

Weeks to forget were: Follow the links to read and relive my picks of that week.

Least goals: 14 in week 28 (5 games postponed) & 16 in week 35

Least shots: 123 in week 28 (5 games postponed) & 158 in week 34 (3 games postponed) & 174 in week 9.

Biggest rant: week 36

TOP PLAYERS

Tottenham's front man Harry Kane tops the league scorers list with 29 goals, followed by Everton striker Romelu Lukaku with 25 and Arsenal forward Alexis Sánchez with 24.

Manchester City's boomer Sergio Agüero produced most chances with 139 shots, Tottenham midfielder Christian Eriksen and Gunner Sánchez just behind him with 133 and 129 respectively.

Most assists came from Manchester City's winger Kevin De Bruyne with 18, Spurs man Eriksen the next best with 15 and Swansea playmaker Gylfi Sigurdsson with 13.

De Bruyne has also hit the woodwork most with 9 smackers, United's Paul Pogba saw 6 come off the bar, Eriksen, Sánchez and team mate Jack Wilshere 5 times each.

Chelsea full-back César Azpilicueta has seen most of the ball with 2,459 passes, Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka behind him with 2,299 and Citizen Fernandinho with 2,180.

Burnley keeper Tom Heaton has spoilt most chances with 141 saves, followed by relegated Sunderland (now Everton) stopper Jordan Pickford with 135 and Swansea saviour Lukasz Fabiański with 117.

FLOP PLAYERS

Watford midfielder José Holebas has been cautioned most for his indiscipline with 14 yellow cards, followed by Leicester right-back Danny Simpson with 12 and a whole bunch of players with 11 bookings each (Bournemouth midfielder Harry Arter, Everton middle man Idrissa Gueye, Arsenal centre back Shkodran Mustafi and Saints defensive midfielder Oriol Romeu).

Watford centre back Miguel Britos, City's Fernandinho and Gooner Xhaka are the most convicted serial offenders with two red cards each.

WHO IS IN? WHO IS OUT?

A few weeks to go and we already know:

Arsene Wenger is in, for another two years. Happy Gunners?

Mauricio Pellegrino replaces Claude Puel. Change of fortune for the Saints?

Big Sam says bye bye, hello Frank de Boer at Palace. Boom or boo?

Watford welcome Marco Silva as their new boss replacing Walter Mazzarri after the Portuguese saw Hull drop down into the Championship. Ha or hm?

Rafa's back with Championship winners Newcastle! Brighton and Huddersfield joining them on the promotions list. Yay or nay?

Red Devils skipper Wayne Rooney has returned back to his Toffee roots... Whilst Lukaku went the other way. Part of a swap deal or not, good or bad? Happy or sad? Mad either way!

Big bosses Pep Guardiola (MCFC), José Mourinho (MUFC) and Jürgen Klopp (LFC) will feel the pressure to step up and heat up the competition and keep title winner Antonio Conte (CFC) on his toes next season. They're all busy bees in the transfer market and rumour mill that's for sure!

Can Spurs do it again? Or even top the outstanding season they had? All eyes will be on Mauricio Pochettino and co...

To be or not to be... Which Leicester will turn up? Only Craig Shakespeare knows...

Whatever will happen, I know one thing: I CANNOT WAIT!!!

Most facts and stats were taken from the official Premier League website.

Pictures were taken from my weekly Premier League Picks blogs.

Premier League Picks Of The Week 36

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 36

The 36th week of the Premier League action saw:
217 shots - most by Man City = 26
25 goals - most by Man City = 5
175 fouls - most by Stoke = 15
25 bookings - most by West Ham = 4
0 red cards
1 penalty - 0 scored

What a game! Sunderland's win over Hull came just as surprising as Arsenal beating Manchester United, and comfortably so! From the relegated side doing their one and only double of the season, dragging their opponents down with them, to the old senior manager beating his special rival for the first time, keeping both sides' hopes of breaking into the top four super-slim. Looking at the table, these results were welcomed by winners Swansea and strugglers Liverpool respectively.

What a team! Chelsea sealed Middlesbrough's faith with a comfortable 3-0 win, putting one hand on the trophy themselves. Respect to Antonio Conte for lauding and applauding the Boro fans for staying at Stamford Bridge despite facing the dire result and drop. No one can deny the passionate Italian guy has done something right, learning from mistakes and finding formation with form and consistency, something all the other sides and bosses have been missing. Champions Leicester meanwhile recorded another win which takes them to the top half of the table, back where they belong their fans will feel, surely Craig Shakespeare too, underlining his right for a longterm deal.

What a man! West Ham keeper Adrián made save, after save, after save, denying Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Eric Dier, amongst others. Manuel Lanzini won it for the Hammers, unmarked inside the six-yard box, netting his ninth goal in 14 London derbies, ending Spurs' nine-game winning run and their real threat and shout in the title race as the gap to Chelsea re-opens to seven points with three games left to play for both sides.

What a goal! It took City under two minutes to take the lead against Crystal Palace and the game was over as the hosts bossed the match from then on to the final whistle, thrashing their opponents 5-0 at the Etihad. Why couldn't Liverpool do that at Anfield?! It just shows the gulf between the two sides, from top to bottom, from top three/four to the rest... Your guess is as good as mine where the Reds fall between all this after yet another frustrating display in the goalless draw after James Milner's penalty miss against Southampton at Anfield. Here is my full LFC match report.

What the hell?! I was very annoyed by Phil Neville on Match Of The Day and the BBC website this weekend, ranting and whining about how bad the Premier League and meaningless the games have become... Hm... Ok, the last couple of weeks haven't been the most exciting... But... Funny the former Manchester United player should fire such criticising shots whilst his team is flopping! Frustrated, are we? Boring for you as your team isn't getting anything in the league (despite 25 games unbeaten, dropping more points than gaining compared to the sides above them thanks to a record number of draws). Comparing and contrasting the top Premier League sides to the likes of Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid - look at their leagues! Booooooring! Bayern have already won the league months ago, whilst both Barca and Real have no serious competition apart from each other, thrashing one opposition after another week in, week out, year in, year out! And Italy and Scotland have been marred by more financial and political affairs and points deductions downing and deleting competitors and the whole competition with them. Not even mentioning all the diving and whining and lack of pace that spoils most European leagues (and I hate to see more and more in the Premier League too! But that's a whole new separate topic to discuss...)! And Leicester made it to the quarter finals of the Champions League! Not bad for a side that only just climbed back into the top half of the Premier League! But wait, it wasn't United, so it doesn't count, right Neville? (And hang on, aren't the Red Devils in the semi-final of the Europa League?! That doesn't count either, does it? Unless they win of course... Then it will be all wow and glory! Hypocrite!) So, it's not the same team winning the title every season... Sorrrrrrry!!! Yes, Chelsea have been the best this season, but hey, after the last three/four seasons, who dares to predict where Conte and Co will be next season?! Fiver on sacking? But who cares, right Neville?

My Predictions - Actual Results
West Ham 0:1 Tottenham - 1:0
Man City 2:0 Crystal Palace - 5:0
Bournemouth 2:0 Stoke City - 2:2
Burnley 1:0 West Brom - 2:2
Hull City 1:0 Sunderland - 0:2
Leicester 2:0 Watford - 3:0
Swansea 1:1 Everton - 1:0
Liverpool 2:1 Southampton - 0:0 or click here for my full LFC match report
Arsenal 1:2 Man United - 2:0
Chelsea 3:1 Middlesbrough - 3:0

Click here for last week's Premier League Picks.

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

Premier League Picks Of The Week 33

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 33

The 33rd week of the Premier League action saw:
256 shots - most by Everton = 29
30 goals - most by Tottenham = 4
239 fouls - most by Chelsea = 20
27 bookings - most by Southampton & West Brom & Man United & Chelsea = 3 each
1 red card - Byram for West Ham
1 penalty - 1 scored (Vokes for Burnley)

What a game! Palace fought back from two goals down to earn a crucial point against Leicester in an absorbing draw at Selhurst Park. A Robert Huth header and a good combo between Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy had given Craig Shakespeare's side a convincing lead, the Foxes looking on top, 0-2. But defensive cracks showed and cost again, giving Yohan Cabaye an easy sweep home before Christian Benteke levelled the score on 70 minutes, converting Andros Townsend's cross with sheer power and stubbornness.

What a team! Tottenham made it seven top-flight wins in a row for the first time in half a century, staying in hot pursuit of league leaders Chelsea, cutting the gap to four points. Spurs dominated Bournemouth left, right and centre, and the result reflects that, a comfortable 4-0 home win. Boom! The Blues meanwhile looked a shadow of themselves being well beaten 2-0 by Manchester United at Old Trafford, Antonio Conte looking shocked, close to crying or bursting out in tears at times, seeing his side lose for the second time in four outings. Doom and gloom?

What a man! Harry Kane became just the fourth player to score 20 Premier League goals in three consecutive seasons, joining the elite list of strikers of Alan Shearer, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Thierry Henry. Another guy on a high, Romelu Lukaku scored for a ninth successive home game, the first man to do so for Everton since Dixie Dean in 1934, to make it eight league wins in a row for the Toffees beating Burnley 3-1 at Goodison Park. And last but not least, Roberto Firmino scored a winner for the second weekend running as Liverpool edged past West Brom 1-0 to go third.

What a goal! Xherdan Shaqiri's beauty of a strike from 30 yards out sealed a first league win in six games for Stoke City, downing Hull City 3-1 and seeing his side climb up to 11th. The Tigers could still hold their heads up high despite staying winless in 16 away games as they end the weekend with their fate in their own hands with two points separating them from the bottom three with five games remaining thanks to Swansea's 1-0 defeat at Watford. The Welsh side's defender Alfie Mawson took too much time in a dangerous area and Étienne Capoue pounced and scored sealing the home win at Vicarage Road.

What the hell?! West Ham have been shown more red cards than any other side in the Premier League season, seeing their fifth player sent off in their 2-2 draw at Sunderland, giving away a goal and throwing away two points late on. It is just not the Hammers' season, manager Slaven Bilić knows and has conceded that much. Southampton looked just as subdued, giving away three goals and three points at home against Man City, seeing them remain in ninth. Arsenal meanwhile, have finally had something to smile about again, beating Middlesbrough 1-2 at the Riverside in a dull encounter. The win is only the Gunners' third in their past nine league games, moving them up to sixth, seven points behind City in fourth with a game in hand. Boro remain deep in trouble six points from safety. Still cheering loud you Gooners?!

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

Click here for last week's Premier League Picks.

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

Premier League Picks Of The Week 31

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 31

The 31st week of the Premier League action saw:

286 shots - most by Southampton = 25
31 goals - most by Hull City = 4
229 fouls - most by Everton = 18
37 bookings - most by Everton = 5
2 red cards - Miguel Britos for Watford, Ashley Williams for Everton
2 penalties - 1 scored (Ibrahimovic for Man United)

What a game! Hull came back and turned the game around against Middlesbrough in a cracking opening at the KCOM which saw four goals, a disallowed one and chances galore in just over half an hour. Oh, and an offside one that was given to make it 3-2 at half time. Crazy! Spurs did even better completing a sensational comeback with three goals in six minutes, two of them in stoppage time to deny Swansea a home win, a crucial result at both ends of the table.

Saints left it late to beat Palace, too, after Christian Benteke had given the visitors the lead at St Mary's. Bournemouth spoilt the show at Anfield in the dying minutes as well. It was goal madness in the last 5-10 minutes, the late dramas made my mobile overheat and me dizzy trying to track of all the updates on Wednesday night!

What a team! Old Trafford witnessed a rare embarrassment for David de Gea, Phil Jagielka cheekily netting an Everton corner off the outside of his eight boot, through the United keeper's legs to make it 0-1, nutmeg style. The Toffees keeper Joel Robles on the other hand(s) made some impressive saves keeping the Red Devils at bay before the break. Things heated up in the second half after Paul Pogba hit the crossbar and the home side looked more and more frustrated, all over the place. Zlatan Ibrahimović was denied an equaliser and correctly so as replays showed the Swede striker was offside.

Both sides had plenty of chances after that, Romelu Lukaku was better than at Anfield but not quite in his usual lethal form, wasting quite a few golden chances. And it ended up costing the visitors. The last-minute penalty and sending off of Ashley Williams for a blatant handball saved the match and point for the home side, Ibrahimovic converting the spot-kick gratefully in the last minute of added time! Classic United! Deserved? I'm sure both bosses José Mourinho and Ronald Koeman will not agree, the Portuguese boss continuing his record run of league draws (12, most since 1998-99 when they drew 13) and United's worst home record win percentage of 37.5% since 1973-4 (33%). Você pode ser orgulhoso!

What a man! Super-sub Marc Albrighton set up both Leicester goals in the second half against Sunderland, first sub Islam Slimani, then Jamie Vardy a few minutes later to complete the perfect win and run. The masterful changes made by Craig Shakespeare produced his sixth consecutive win in all competitions, fifth in the league, surely keeping the champions safe from the drop now, whilst Sunderland remain rock-bottom, having not scored in two months.

Both keepers did not have a very good night at Stamford Bridge, Willy Caballero letting Eden Hazard's shot in with not much of an effort to stretch and save, whilst Thibaut Courtois' clearance/pass back even made me cringe and I'm not a Chelsea fan, handing Sergio Agüero the equaliser after gloving away David Silva's attempt straight to the Argentine. Caballero tried to make up for it with a penalty save, but handed the ball straight back to Hazard who gratefully netted the rebound.

City had plenty of chances to spoil the Londoners' show after that, and keep the title race at list a little bit open, but just couldn't find the back of the net again, miss after miss, John Stones missing the easiest sitter late on. It was the first time Pep Guardiola has been beaten home and away in his managerial career. I'm sure Antonio Conte is very happy about just that. Not the fact that his side is seven points clear at the top with eight games remaining. Na. Not at all.

What a goal! M'Baye Niang's diagonal curling shot into the top right corner of the net that opened the scoring for Watford against West Brom was a sweet strike. Much in contrast to that was Georginio Wijnaldum's back pass into nowhere handing Benik Afobe an easy goal, Bournemouth's first at Anfield in nearly half a century, serving a very sour taste to Liverpool.

And it got even worse, after Philippe Coutinho and Divock Origi both scored tasty goals and thought they had turned the game around for the Reds, for Joshua King to spoil the show with a dramatic late equaliser that left LFC manager Jürgen Klopp sick in the stomach. Mesut Özil was the very unusual hero at the Emirates, scoring and providing to make sure Arsenal downed the Hammers and muted the critics. Not that there were many, there were a lot of empty seats. Say no more.

What the hell?! I think this is the most I've ever written in this blog. And that's just scratching the surface! As mentioned above, so much happened! So many goals! So many incidents! So many ifs, buts and what the... Hows?! Unpredictably awesome. See what next week will bring, after just a couple of days off. No rest for the wicked, ey?! ⚽👊⚽👊⚽

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

Click here for last week's Premier League Picks.

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

Premier League Picks Of The Week 10

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 10

The 10th week of the Premier League action saw:

295 shots - most by Man United = 38

28 goals - most by Liverpool, Arsenal & Man City = 4 each!

233 fouls - most by Leicester = 20

42 bookings - most by West Brom, Leicester & Sunderland = 4 each

1 red card - Herrera for Man United

2 penalties - 2 scored (Janssen for Spurs & Defoe for Sunderland)

What a game! What a mad first half it was at Palace - five goals with the first three netted in under six minutes (5:45 minutes to be exact). Liverpool ended up on top, 2:4, at the end of the cracking encounter at Selhurst Park. Defending champions Leicester won their first away point at White Hart Lane, Spurs keeping their unbeaten record intact. And Everton ended their sequence of five games without a win with a scrappy home win against West Ham. Much needed to say the least.

What a team! Lots of sides are on a very dire run at the moment. West Brom are without a win in five games after getting thrashed 0-4 by Man City, whilst Hull City suffered their sixth straight league defeat, 1-0 at Watford, with no win since 20th August. Sunderland are still rockbottom without a win after Arsenal inflicted them with a painful 1-4 home defeat, David Moyes' men taking just two points from ten games. And Swansea, just one place and three points above Sunderland, are without a win since the opening day! Much in contrast to them, Chelsea are flying high in fourth place with double the points total they had after ten games last season (José Mourinho 11-22 Antonio Conte).

What a man! Talking about runs, Man City boss Pep Guardiola will be glad to have the monkey off his back, ending his worst run of no win in six games, and in style netting four goals against sorry Baggies at the Hawthorns. Clarets keeper Tom Heaton had a stunner of a game, keeping a clean sheet and grab a point at Old Trafford! Legendary display for Burnley, frustration for the Red Devils.

What a goal! Gastón Ramírez deserves a shoutout for his great individual goal an run for Boro. Arsenal's three goals in seven minutes stunned and battered the Black Cats, super-sub Olivier Giroud starting the perfect comeback. And Wilfried Bony will be more than relieved to finally be back on the scoreboard with two goals for Stoke against his former side Swansea.

What the hell?! The Hammers' struggle continues. Slaven Bilić's men are slumping deep in 17th place on ten points out of ten games after suffering their sixth defeat of the season at Goodison Park. The media are always quick to blame the new ground, but even away the London club looked no competition to the Toffees who are flying high in sixth and on form with 18 points much to Ronald Koeman's delight.

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

Click here to read last week's Premier League Picks

All pictures taken from the BBC match reports

Premier League Picks Of The Week 9

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 9

The 9th week of the Premier League action saw:

174 shots - most by Liverpool and Crystal Palace = 14 each - least so far (227, week 7)

19 goals - most by Chelsea = 4 - least so fat (20, week 7)

238 fouls - most by Man United = 17

39 bookings - most by Sunderland = 5

No red cards not penalties first time this season - but there should have been at least one, see below... => What the hell?!

This week has seen the least number of shots and goals so far this season (after week 7 which saw 227 shots and 20 goals).

Stamford Bridge made sure they were heard - "You're not special anymore!" adding salt to United's wounds.

And José Mourinho did take it personally and let Antonio Conte know how he felt. Very sour grapes indeed.

What a game! Chelsea's 4-0 thrashing of United not only showed how far Chelsea have come since Conte's takeover and Mourinho's departure, but also how far United have fallen since Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement and the Portuguese's tenure. The Blues broke down the Red bus in the first minute - 30 seconds to be exact - thanks to Pedro and took over total control from there, riding high and all over United. The Red Devils were all over the place, missing organisation and stability, skipper Wayne Rooney being absent due to injury (apparently/allegedly, although rumour has it, Mourinho wants the Scouser out). Gary Cahill smashed one in from close range, Eden Hazard and N'Golo Kante completed the rout with all the space and time in the world, United's non-existent back line and keeper David de Gea just watching. This dire defeat keeps United on 14 points, which means even much-demonised LVG had recorded more points after nine games at this stage last season (= 19) and only in 2014/15 under David Moyes had they recorded less (= 13).

What a team! It was not pretty, but Burnley did it again! The Clarets recorded another strong home win, making teams dread more and more to come and play at Turf Moor. With only 34% possession, Sean Dyche's men were less dominant, but more and better organised defensively with some old-school blocks at the back and reliable challenges in the middle. Criticised as "ugly" and "dirty work", it still ended up being rewarding = three points in the bag, hard-earned and well deserved. Ask high-flying Liverpool how it is to play here...!!!

What a man! Pep Guardiola's change did the job, after seeing John Stones gifting Southampton the opener after 27 minutes, Nathan Redmond taking advantage of the giveaway. Substitute Kelechi Iheanacho equalised in the second half, nine minutes after coming on, making it eight goals in his last 11 Premier League games for Man City. But still, the Saints ended up grabbing a point at the Etihad, taking the Sky Blues' winless run to five games. They have certainly lost their way after ten straight wins and everyone had already crowned them champions a bit prematurely. I'm sure the former Barca man does not have to worry too much with his side still top of the table on goal difference. However, he did have his say after the disappointing draw, keeping his side locked in and listening, the media and press calling it an "angry 50-minute inquest". What would be a better way of coming back on track than beating bitter rivals United in the EFL Cup midweek.

 

What a goal! Hull's misery continues thanks to a brilliant strike by Stoke's Xherdan Shaqiri, from nearly 25 yards, it was an unstoppable stunner, leaving keeper David Marshall hopelessly beaten. And a lovely curling free-living from 20 yards made it 0-2, handing the Potters a crucial win and a deserved man of the match award for the Swiss star.
Winston Reid left it very late and controversial for West Ham, scoring in the 90th minute to record the Hammers' first home win at the Olympic Stadium since August...

What the hell?!...  But Moyes was not happy that goal counted and is looking at facing charges after a tunnel bust-up with referee Bobby Madley. Replays did show at least two West Ham players did look offside. Desperate times for Sunderland, stuck at the bottom of the table, luck is definitely not going their way...
Much in contrast to Moussa Sissoko, what were you thinking?! How the officials did not spot the big fat elbow beats me! Bournemouth's Harry Arter accepted the Spurs sub's apology and said all was forgiven, but the three-match ban he has received in the meantime is appropriate to say the least!

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

Click here for last week's Premier League Picks

All pictures taken from the BBC match reports

Premier League Picks Of The Week 6

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 6

The 6th week of Premier League action saw:

268 shots - most by Liverpool = 32

34 goals - most by Liverpool = 5

252 fouls - most by Sunderland, Swansea and Watford = 15 each

44 bookings - most by West Ham = 5

1 red card - Elmohamady for Hull City

3 penalties - 3 scored

Mike Phelan's birthday spoilt - only one manager has lost on a bigger margin on their birthday = Colin Todd at Bolton 0:5 Man United

Mane Sakho's social media rants are destroying the bridge back into the team which he was trying and supposed to rebuild

What a game! It was goals galore this weekend! My vote goes to Crystal Palace's dramatic comeback. All other games were thrashes, the results not surprising much after one-sided games. This was a true contest, until Sunderland crumbled to bits. Jermain Defoe's double put the Black Cats ahead and feeling confident about bagging their first league win of the season. But that was dashed very quickly, Joe Ledley pulling one back a minute later before James MacArthur's equaliser in the 76th minute and Christian Benteke's last-minute header to kill off the home side with the Eagles flying high all over them.

What a team! Man City are still top dogs keeping their 100%-record spotlessly shiny. Liverpool and Arsenal showed their worth though as well, all impressing and dominating their opponents. The results could have been even more damning and thrashing. The Reds have scored more goals since Jürgen Klopp's takeover on the 8th October 2015 than any other side = 71.

What a man! Daniel Sturridge, Benteke and Pogba, all under fire, were on the scoreboard and on fire, slapping their opponents and critics in the face. The prior and latter's goals may have been less decisive, but all part of the same reassuring and convincing form and status.

What a goal! Philippe Coutinho's unstoppable right-footed cut and smash into the top corner was breath-taking. Demarai Gray's spectacular long-range consolation goal for Leicester did not mean much but oh what a beauty. Arsenal's second goal was a brilliant team goal, completed by Theo Walcott to give the Gunners a 2-0 lead after just 14 minutes.

What the hell?! It was not a weekend for defenders. Marking was awful, back-passes cringe-worthy and keepers - well, let's just say it won't be a display they'll like to remember. Overall, it was a weekend to forget for the backlines. It's been especially devastating for West Ham and Hull after four straight defeats for the prior and four out of three defeats and just one point in the last four games for the latter.

My Predictions - Actual Results
Man United 2:2 Leicester - 4:1
Bournemouth 1:2 Everton - 1:0
Liverpool 3:1 Hull City - 5:1 - clicke her for my match report
Middlesbrough 1:3 Tottenham - 1:2
Stoke City 0:0 West Brom - 1:1
Sunderland 1:2 Crystal Palace - 2:3
Swansea 1:5 Man City - 1:3
Arsenal 0:0 Chelsea - 3:0
West Ham 1:3 Southampton - 0:3
Burnley 0:0 Watford - 2:0

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All images taken from the BBC match reports