Premier League Notes - Week 30

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 30

And YEAH, WE’RE BACK! After 100 eventful and challenging roller-coaster days without football, the Premier League has finally returned! It’s been over three months since my last blog and emotional Twitter thread explaining my addiction and dedication to the game. So, here we are, BACK WHERE WE BELONG! Here’s my summary of what happened in the 30th week of the Premier League, just some key facts and stats and notes, because there’s a lot more action coming thick and fast:

28 goals - most by Man City (v SHU) = 5

263 shots - most by Saints = 22

97 on target - most by Man City (v ARS) = 12

143 corners - most by Villa (v SHU) = 12

278 fouls - most by Man United = 18

29 bookings - most by Bournemouth = 3

2 red cards - David Luiz for Arsenal (v MCI), John Egan for Sheffield United (v NEW)

3 penalties  - 3 scored (De Bruyne for Man City (v ARS), Bruno Fernandes for Man United, Mahrez for Man City (v BUR))

All games were played in empty stadiums with one minute's silence before kickoff in memory of all those who passed away due to COVID-19. #ThankYouNHS And everyone knelt down for the first eight seconds of every match remembering George Floyd and playing with Black Lives Matter on the back of their shirts instead of their names, giving me goosebumps every single time. #YNWA

(Two games in hand were played on Wednesday, postponed from week 28 due to the Carabao Cup final.)

(#AVLSHU)

(And of course, football is back, and with it officiating controversy - COCK-UP! The ref’s watch and VAR were unable to detect and see that the ball had gone over the line with tumbling fumbling Villa goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland off Oliver Norwood’s free kick a few minutes before the break. Everyone saw and knew, just not the officials. Michael Oliver knew as well, but kept pointing to his watch, because it didn't go off. Technology is supposed to just be there for back-up in case you didn’t see anything or aren’t sure, and not be the one and only decider. The Villans did play better after the restart, keeping MOTM United stopper Dean Henderson busy, but the Blades will still feel robbed of two crucial points in the European qualification race.)

(#MCIARS)

(The Citizens dominated from the start, but the Gunners coped and controlled them well. Until David Luiz came on for an injured Pablo Marí and spoiled the show, giving away a goal to Raheem Sterling (45+2’), a penalty (netted by Kevin De Bruyne 51’) after being sent off for pulling back Riyad Mahrez in the box (49’) - what a hat-trick to have within the 26 minutes the Brazilian had on the pitch - another BIG FLOP! It could not have been more one-sided after that. Sub Phil Foden added a third goal off a rebound from Sergio Agüero’s saved strike late on (90+1’), to make it three goals and three points for the still-just-about reigning champions. The result meant Man City closed the gap to the top to 22 points, meaning the Merseyside derby on Sunday wouldn’t be the title decider. See below for more updates and details)

#NORSOU

The home side started strong, the first 10-20 minutes, then it was all Saints. Goalless at the break, there was some hope for the struggling hosts, but it didn’t last long. Danny Ings bashed (49’), Stuart Armstrong boomed (54’) and Nathan Redmond banged the visitors on top (79’), keeping their side in 14th, but ten points safe from the drop zone. The Canaries just couldn’t cope, let themselves down and are most probably out, rock bottom, six points from safety. 

#TOTMUN

A David de Gea howler put Red Devils behind (27'), the Spanish keeper should have stopped Steven Bergwijn's shot, but let it through. A soft penalty netted by Bruno Fernandes pulled the visitors back into the game (81'), and United nearly got another spot kick, but VAR correctly turned that crap call down. It ended a goal and point each, keeping the sides in 8th and 5th respectively, OGS smiling, José Mourinho fuming, the Premier League is well and truly back. Oh, and Roy Keane’s rant on Sky Sports about his former side was priceless! 

#WATLEI

For all Leicester’s dominance, Watford had the best/only real chance in the first half, Abdoulaye Doucouré denied by Kasper Schmeichel (35’). The Foxes had just not clicked yet, the Hornets could smell blood, for the same Frenchman to be denied by the great Danish stopper again with a brilliant spread-body-block shortly after halftime. Whatever Nigel Pearson said during the interval, it worked, his side were much more on top. Brendan Rodgers’ men put on the pressure later on, Marc Albrighton rattling the woodwork before James Maddison forced Ben Foster into an excellent save (75’). Both keepers definitely earned their money at Vicarage Road! Until the 90th minute, and what a hit it was by Ben Chilwell! From the left corner of the box, curled up and into the top right corner - off the post and in, Foster had no chance getting anywhere near that. Wow! Football can be so cruel! Or so I thought. Acrobatic Craig Dawson had a better idea and levelled the score off a corner and Schmeichel’s glove and in during the final seconds of added time. It ended a goal and point each, a fairer result. 

#BHAARS

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette both missed early chances, then Bukayo Saka smacked the crossbar, it was all Gunners in the first ten minutes. The Seagulls created a couple of chances as well after that, but not much to shout about. Arsenal keeper Bernd Leno had to come off just before the break with a bad looking injury, his shouts of pain echoed around the ground and the reaction of the other players said it all. His replacement Emiliano Martínez made a fine save seconds later. I’m still wondering how come the Brighton player Neal Maupay, who the injured keeper clashed with leading to the awkward fall, didn’t see any punishment?! Nicolas Pépé gave the Gunners a beautiful lead just before the second drinks break with a beauty, from the right corner of the box, into the top left corner of the net! Both keepers made some good saves beforehand, even-ish game, the visitors will have been relieved. But not for long, this time the ref’s watch worked: Brighton corner, ping pong in the box, Arsenal all over the place, the Seagulls skipper Lewis Dunk tapped the ball over the line to level the score (75’). And then non-other than Maupay nicked it in the final seconds, up and over Martínez and in (95’). The Gunners gutted, the Seagulls flying away with the three points. The Frenchman had his cheeky say after the final whistle as well, to rub it under everyone's noses.

#WHUWOL

The Hammers stayed back, Wolves dominated with double the possession at times, but not enough to find a breakthrough. The only shots on target in the first half were by the visitors, but all soft, Pablo Fornals blasting one good chance high and away for the hosts. Super sub Adama Traoré found Raúl Jiménez in the box, who made no mistake of heading it down and in from close range, to finally get the visitors a deserved breakthrough with just over 15 minutes to go. Ten minutes later, Traoré in the buildup again, to Matt Doherty, who provided Pedro Neto with a perfect cross, from the right, brilliant take, smash in, keeper no chance, exemplary Wolves in 6th, Hammers down and out in 17th, level on points with Bournemouth in 18th. 

#BOUCRY

Luka Milivojević gave the visitors the lead with a perfect free kick, over the wall, into the top left corner, keeper full stretch but no chance (12’). A lovely low finish by Jordan Ayew doubled the Eagles’ lead just before the first drinks’ break (23’). Gary Cahill was a lucky man not having his name added to the ref’s book for taking Joshua King out - a nasty ankle shock, not even a yellow was surprising and despite VAR. Not the start the home side were looking for shortly after the interval. And they never got into the game, the ref didn’t help, but that’s no excuse. It ended 0-2, with a happy hairy Roy Hodgson, worrying headache for Eddie Howe with his side in the drop zone on goal difference.

#NEWSHU

Goalless at the break, Sheffield United pressed the self-destruct button after the restart at St James Park. Down to ten men after John Egan’s clumsy second yellow (51’), the Magpies capitalised on every mistake after that. The visitors were all over the place for Allan Saint-Maximin to net the opener (55’). Matt Ritchie doubled the hosts’ lead with a lovely finish to punish United’s clumsiness (68’). And Joelinton ended his long wait for a goal to make it three goals and three points for Steve Bruce’s men (78’), unmarked, from close range, even he can’t miss that one! 

#AVLCHE

Sleepy game, Chelsea on top, until a couple of minutes before the break, totally out of the blue, the Villans nicked one in. Ping pong in the visitors’ box, Kepa Arrizabalaga blocking one chance, defenders nowhere, three Villa players free to play, for Kortney Hause to smash it home to give the hosts the unexpected lead. Chelsea were having 90% of the ball after the interval, so it was no surprise when sub Christian Pulisic tapped one back from close range on the hour, a couple of minutes after coming off the bench. And two minutes later Olivier Giroud turned and saw a deflected shot into the bottom left corner to turn the game on its head, Villa just watching as the Blues slashed through them in a lovely buildup. Villa remain 19th, one point from safety, whilst the Chelsea stay fourth, widening the gap to United in fourth to five points.

#EVELIV

What a letdown. After all the buildup to the Merseyside derby and what it means to the league leading Reds especially, nothing happened. Alisson did make some crucial stops and blocks, the few minutes the Toffees did play. The Reds should have done better with the opportunities Takumi Minamino, Naby Keïta and Sadio Mané created. It was a frustrating watch and result, Jürgen Klopp was fuming on the sideline. Fans were definitely missed, neither team got really going, so, the draw is the fairer result. Carlo Ancelotti will be the happier of the two bosses, that is for sure. The point meant Klopp's side will need to wait till at least Wednesday and WIN to be crowned champions. Click here for my full ByTheMin LFC coverage.

#MCIBUR

Foden’s lovely low smacker from outside the box into the bottom right corner gave the Citizens the lead bang on drinks break (22’). Belter. Mahrez danced and pranced past anyone and everyone in and around the Burnley box and fired the ball across and into the far corner to double the hosts’ lead (42’). And into injury time, Agüero went down and out, had to be subbed, signaled hamstring, Pep Guardiola looked gutted. It was still harsh to punish Ben Mee, he went for the ball, and made marginal contact with the Argentinian’s foot. But penalty was still given, which Mahrez made no mistake of netting to make it 3-0 just before HT (45+3’). Game. Set. Match. Foden and both Silvas combined well for David to make it 4-0 shortly after the interval (51’), top quality all round. Foden made it five but looked very unhappy about a foul in the buildup, Gabriel Jesus setting him up (64’). I was disgusted by the pre-match message by a Burnley plane flying above the ground whilst the players were kneeling down, my tweet(s) say it all! Act now Burnley!!! Club statement and skipper Ben Mee’s words put it right. Let's hope whoever did this, gets found out and punished.

My Predictions - Actual Results

(Aston Villa 0:0 Sheff United - 0:0)

(Man City 1:2 Arsenal - 3:0)

Norwich 1:2 Southampton - 0:3

Tottenham 2:0 Man United - 1:1

Watford 0:2 Leicester - 1:1

Brighton 1:1 Arsenal - 2:1 

West Ham 2:3 Wolves - 0:2

Bournemouth 2:2 Palace - 0:2

Newcastle 0:0 Sheff United - 3:0

Aston Villa 1:2 Chelsea - 1:2

Everton 1:3 Liverpool - 0:0

Man City 3:0 Burnley - 5:0

Click here for my previous Premier League Notes.

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

Premier League Picks Of Weeks 9&10

Sports - Football - Premier League - Weeks 9&10

It's been a while since my last football blog and I need to catch up, with my 500th blog as I just spotted. A lot has been going on and happening over the last few weeks, at home and at work, and in the footballing world. These last two weekends have put everything into perspective, for me personally and professionally, and all football fans. Honestly, without football and sports in general, I would not be here, where and who I am!!! Thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved and if you don't have a clue what has been going on, here's a quick recap/summary of the last couple of weeks, Premier League Weeks 9 &10:

PL W9 & W10

26 & 26 goals - most by Man City = 5 & Liverpool & Chelsea = 4 each

260 & 261 shots - most by Newcastle = 27 & Wolves = 26

71 & 86 on target - most by Man City = 10 & Man United = 10

116 & 91 corners - most by Man City, Newcastle, West Ham & Everton = 10 each & Wolves = 10

247 & 216 fouls - most by Wolves = 23 & Leicester = 17

38 & 28 yellow cards - most by Man United = 5 & Burnley = 4

0 & 2 red cards - McDonald for Fulham & Noble for West Ham
0 & 5 penalties - 0 & 4 scored (Wilson for Bournemouth, Milivojević x2 for Crystal Palace, Sigurdsson for Everton)

What a game! (W9) Chelsea's late leveler against Manchester United led to plenty of bust ups and drama, more to that below. Cardiff's first league win of the season was a belter, 4-2 against Fulham, lifting the Welsh side off the bottom and out of the drop zone, whilst the London side slid into the relegation places having conceded 12 goals in their last three games.

(W10) Luka Milivojević scored twice from the spot to earn Crystal Palace a point in a dramatic draw against Arsenal at Selhurst Park, ending the Gunners' 11-game winning run. The Red Devils edged past Everton, boss José Mourinho unusually quiet, sitting most of the match, away from the sideline, keeping himself out of the limelight much in contrast to last week. More to that below.

What a team! (W9) Newcastle's struggle continued after losing at home against Brighton despite having 27 shots on goal, with six of them on target, even out-shooting the league leaders! (It says a lot when manager Rafael Benítez was happy with just a point at Southampton the week after, see W10 results below!) Liverpool kept going and winning thanks to Mohamed Salah's 50th goal in English football, the Reds not impressive but narrowly victorious at Huddersfield.

(W10) Fulham fell to their fourth consecutive defeat with 15 goals conceded, slammed 0-3 at home by Bournemouth with Kevin McDonald sent off for a second bookable offence to add to the Cottagers misery. Defense was just non-existent, falling, crumbling, failing at every turn, take and try for the only side to have conceded in every game this season. No discrediting Eddie Howe's men who stay sixth and have closed the gap above them just to one point.

What a man! (W9) Joe Hart made his first return to the Etihad after ending his 12-year stay at the club in the summer, bagging five goals against his former side. Manchester City outplayed and -scored Burnley convincingly and spectacularly, 24-5 shots, 10-0 on target! Much in contrast to that, Tottenham had their stopper Hugo Lloris to thank for their win after the France keeper made some outstanding saves in their 0-1 win at West Ham. And last but definitely not least, Mesut Özil was the star man for Arsenal in their 10th successive win in all competitions, starting the Gunners' comeback from behind to beat Leicester 3-1 at the Emirates.

(W10) Glenn Murray won the game for Brighton 1-0 against Wolves with his 100th goal for the club after being a doubt for the game with the concussion he suffered last weekend (W9). It was the only shot on target for the home side, the visitors left empty after throwing everything at them! Ross Barkley scored one and set up two as Chelsea thrashed Burnley 0-4 on Sunday. The win made Maurizio Sarri the first Blues boss unbeaten in the first ten Premier League matches in charge of the club. No Hazard? No problem.

What a goal! (W9) Barkley's 96th minute equaliser mentioned above, that grabbed a point for Chelsea against United and rescued the Blues' unbeaten record, was the latest the Red Devils have conceded a goal in the league since October 2009. André Schürrle's spectacular effort for Fulham was for nothing in the end, his side's defense leaking too much and many at Cardiff, as mentioned above. And Watford ended their five-match winless run with two goals in 58 seconds at Wolves. It was a rocket of a shot by Étienne Capoue (20') and a nice slick finish by Roberto Pereyra (21') that ended the hosts' six-game unbeaten run.

(W10) Liverpool conceded at home for the first time in yonks (918 PL minutes to be exact), Callum Paterson denying the Reds a tenth consecutive Premier League clean sheet at Anfield. But the Reds still smashed Cardiff in the end, thanks to Salah (10'), Sadio Mané's brace (66', 87') and sub Xherdan Shaqiri (84') who made a big difference after coming on. And the Hornets secured their best start to the top-flight season thanks to two fantastic individual goals by Pereyra again (10') and Gerard Deulofeu (19') sealing their 3-0 win against miserable Huddersfield. Great running, playing and finishing, something David Wagner's side is missing very dearly and desperately, failing and falling to the bottom of the table.

What the hell?! (W9) I do not know what game Mourinho was watching talking about an unfair result at Stamford Bridge after Chelsea scored a late leveller against United, as mentioned above. It all boiled over with the bust up between the Portuguese and a Blues assistant coach, so I was very surprised to see José say it was all sorted and not making a meal of it after the match. Credit to Sarri, he dealt with the situation very professionally, apologising and sorting it straight away, his counter part could and should learn a lot from the Italian!

(W10) The pitch at Wembley on Monday night was ridiculous, making the game very difficult to play and watch. So many mess ups and misses though, fitting to Tottenham's new stadium plan... Spurs struggling, City just about winning it 0-1 thanks to Riyad Mahrez - who put his hands up to the sky in memory of his former team's owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha who passed away with four others when his helicopter crashed after the Foxes' match on Saturday. Wilfred Ndidi's late equaliser grabbed a point for Leicester against West Ham (89'), but what followed after the match was just devastating... I was and still am lost for words... We all loved that season where the underdogs, black horses, new guys became the champions. Thoughts and prayers are with everyone involved. #RIP XxXxX #YNWA

And it's great to hear Tottenham and England legend Glenn Hoddle is doing better after being taken ill on Saturday, suffering a heart attack. At least some good news in all the goosebumps of the weekend. #WalkOn #WithHope #InYourHeart 

My Predictions - Actual Results:
Week 9:
Chelsea 2:1 Man United - 2:2

Bournemouth 2:0 Southampton - 0:0

Cardiff 2:2 Fulham - 4:2

Man City 2:0 Burnley - 5:0

Newcastle 1:0 Brighton - 0:1

West Ham 1:2 Tottenham - 0:1

Wolves 2:1 Watford - 0:2

Huddersfield 0:3 Liverpool - 0:1

Everton 1:2 Crystal Palace - 2:0

Arsenal 2:1 Leicester - 3:1
Week 10:

Brighton 1:1 Wolves - 1:0

Fulham 1:3 Bournemouth - 0:3

Liverpool 3:1 Cardiff - 4:1

Southampton 2:0 Newcastle - 0:0

Watford 2:1 Huddersfield - 3:0

Leicester 1:1 West Ham - 1:1

Burnley 1:2 Chelsea - 0:4

Crystal Palace 0:2 Arsenal - 2:2

Man United 2:1 Everton - 2:1

Tottenham 0:0 Man City - 0:1

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

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

Deadlocked & Unbeaten Reds & Citizens

Sports - Football - Premier League - LFC 0:0 MCFC

Liverpool and Manchester City remain unbeaten and tied with Chelsea on 20 points at the top of the Premier League after their goalless draw at Anfield on Sunday.

It was definitely not the Super Sunday clash as it was built up and expected to be between the two sides that shared 12 goals in their two league meetings last season and six goals in their Champions League matches.

MCFC 5-0 LFC (09/09/2017), LFC 4-3 MCFC (14/01/2018)
LFC 3-0 MCFC (04/04/2018), MCFC 1-2 LFC (10/04/2018)

It took 62 minutes to get the first shot on target, Riyad Mahrez testing Alisson from inside the box shortly before Mohamed Salah's curler from 20 yards was easily caught by Ederson.

Both keepers had nothing to do until then, after a frantic opening 15-20 minutes, the Sky Blues kept the Reds under control and vice versa.

The visitors had 51% possession, their lowest in a Premier League games under their Spanish boss, the home side weren't helped though by injury to their vice-skipper James Milner with under half an hour gone.

It was the first time City failed to have a single shot in the first half since April 2010 against Arsenal and a shot on target in the first half of a Premier League game since the final game of last season against Southampton.

And November 2017 against Chelsea was the last time for Jürgen Klopp's side not to register an attempt on target in the first half of a Premier League game.

But it was not like they were not trying, Sadio Mané and Salah worked hard throughout, Roberto Firmino still seemed isolated and hardly got a touch or look into the game.

Man of the match Bernardo Silva was the key to that, keeping the Citizens locked, recording and completing more tackles than anyone else on the pitch.

Former Red Raheem Sterling and Argentinian fireman Sergio Agüero were both kept quiet, the latter was taken off after 66 minutes, his record against LFC looking dire with no goals in his ten appearances (700 minutes played, 0 wins, 11 shots, 3 on target).

The first genuine save came in the 74th minute, the home side's Brazilian stopper tipping away Mahrez's low shot.

Pep Guardiola's men were given a lifeline after Virgil van Dijk slid into Leroy Sané, getting more of the man than the ball, seconds after it looked like the latter had fouled Salah in the buildup.

Penalty to City it was, five minutes of normal time to go, all hard work looked to be undone for the Reds, until Mahrez took the kick off Gabriel Jesus and put it sky-high to the left and out, relief all round at Anfield.

The Algerian winger has missed five of his last eight spot kicks (four for Leicester, one for City), among players to have taken at least 10 penalties in the Premier League, only former Aston Villa man Juan Pablo Ángel (50%, 5/10) has a lower rate than Mahrez (58%, 7/12).

The champions have not won a league game at Anfield in 15 years, but as frustrating as that miss was, both bosses left happy with their sides' unbeaten records and clean sheets in tact.

Pep has won just one of his past eight managerial meetings with Klopp in all competitions (D3, L4), and is winless in the most recent four (D1, L3, see links above).

Liverpool's total of 20 points is their joint-most after eight games of a Premier League campaign, having also done so in 1996-97 and 2008-09.

As mentioned above, both the Reds and Sky Blues with Chelsea remain unbeaten in the league this campaign, which is just the second time in the Premier League era that as many as three teams have gone unbeaten in their opening eight games of a single season (also 2011-12 with Manchester City, Manchester United and Newcastle).

The international break is coming at a perfect time for all three sides, to recharge, recap and restart their winning mentality and firing boots.

Liverpool Team: 13 Alisson; 26 Robertson, 4 van Dijk, 6 Lovren, 12 Gomez; 7 Milner (8 Keita 29'), 14 Henderson (c), 5 Wijnaldum (booked 90'); 10 Mané, 9 Firmino (15 Sturridge 72'), 11 Salah. 4-3-3
Subs not used: 3 Fabinho, 22 Mignolet, 23 Shaqiri, 32 Matip, 66 Alexander-Arnold.

Man City Team: 31 Ederson; 22 Mendy (booked 64'), 14 Laporte, 5 Stones, 2 Walker; 25 Fernandinho, B Silva (booked 21'); 7 Sterling (19 Sané 76'), 21 D Silva (c), 26 Mahrez; 10 Agüero (booked 56') (33 de Jesus 66'). 4-2-3-1
Subs not used: 3 Danilo, 4 Kompany, 30 Otamendi, 47 Foden, 49 Muric.

HT Stats: LFC 0-0 MCFC
Possession: 43%-57%
Shots: 2-1
On target: 0-0
Corners: 2-4
Fouls: 5-3
Bookings: 0-1

FT Stats: LFC 0-0 MCFC
Possession: 49%-51%
Shots: 7-6
On target: 2-2
Corners: 2-6
Fouls: 10-10
Bookings: 1-3

Referee: Martin Atkinson
Man of the match: Bernardo Silva
Ground: Anfield
Attendance: 52,117

Click here for my last LFC match report.

All pictures, facts and stats were taken from the BBC match report, Twitter, Sky Sports and RMC app and match coverage.

Premier League Picks Of The Week 17

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 17

The 17th week of the Premier League action saw:

21 goals - most by Leicester & Man City = 4 each
238 shots - most by Tottenham = 25
88 on target - most by Leicester = 11
99 corners - most by Tottenham = 10
209 fouls - most by Watford = 18
15 yellow cards - most by Palace, Everton, Bournemouth & West Ham - 2 each
2 red cards - Cleverley for Watford, Shelvey for Newcastle
0 penalties - :-o

What a game! It was an easy record-breaking 15th consecutive Premier League win for Manchester City after beating Swansea 4-0 at the Etihad thanks to David Silva's double, Kevin De Bruyne and Sergio Agüero with the other goals and some brilliant exemplary football - unstoppable top dogs!
West Ham saw their goal disallowed for offside after some woeful defending by Arsenal - lucky Gunners! Petr Čech nearly handed the Hammers the lead but was lucky to see his defender clear the ball off the line after the keeper was unable to punch it clear. Former Manchester United striker Javier Hernández hit the bar after some more poor defending with a poor clearance, the visitors lucky to see the ball bounce off the bar, off the line and away. It ended 0-0 and a point each at the London Stadium. Arséne Wenger was again a very fortunate man to see his side get anything at all after a useless performance, but still making it no win in the last three league games. David Moyes on the other hand can be and is "really enjoying" life in East London after beating champions Chelsea at the weekend and holding the Gunners to a point. Revival.

What a team! It was all late drama on Tuesday night! What a late turnaround for Crystal Palace, and what a resurrection by Roy Hodgson, undefeated in the last six! The dramatic 2-1 win against Watford at Selhurst Park took the London side out of the relegation zone for the first time this season, at least temporarily after Tuesday night, off the bottom at least and just goal difference separating them from safety after Wednesday's matches. Tom Cleverley's late sending off for a second yellow card started the downfall for Marco Silva's side (87'). The Hornets leaked two goals in the final minutes, Bakary Sako (89') and James McArthur (90'+2) turning the game on its head and three crucial points into the home side's bag, the only win in the bottom half of the table this week!
And Burnley are flying higher and higher. Sean Dyche's side broke into the top four, at least for the time being after their 1-0 win against Stoke City on Tuesday night thanks to Ashley Barnes' late match winner at Turf Moor. This is the highest position the Clarets have been in the top flight since 1975! And even after the Wednesday matches, only goal difference separates them from the Champions League. Just imagine that!!!
Much in contrast to the other two matches on Tuesday night, it was all too easy and no competition for Chelsea, 1-3 winners at Huddersfield, keeping up the pace with second-placed Manchester United. This defeat was the fifth in the last six matches for the Terriers, nicht gut for David Wagner.

What a man! Romelu Lukaku has been under fire to say the least for his dip in form, so, when he gave Manchester United the lead with a header against Bournemouth, the unexpected non-celebration was weird. Nearly rude. Spoilt. Or something's up. Attitude. It was enough to give the Red Devils the win and three points at Old Trafford, even though the Cherries made much more of the match, actually played, and had more chances against an average side. Yes average. Apart from man of the match David de Gea, no one really showed up, did their job. José Mourinho's side have been less than impressive lately - his antiques off the field and in front of the microphones and cameras have failed to distract from that. Me at least. Attitude. Attitude. Attitude. Where's the quality? For that you have to look to the blue side of Manchester. Full stop.

What a goal! Top: Riyad Mahrez gave Leicester the lead at Southampton with a cheeky left-footer after a great individual run. Shinji Okazaki doubled the Foxes' lead and Andy King made it three, Claude Puel's men are in form and showing some of their good old fab football again we saw 2015-16. Maya Yoshida pulled one back for the Saints, but Okazaki sealed it making it four on the counter, 1-4 at St Mary's and four wins on the trot in the league. Too easy. Mauricio Pellegrino however, has not been questioned and under fire anywhere near as much as other bosses have been after such disappointing displays and results.
Flop: Wayne Rooney was on the spot for Everton after Newcastle goalkeeper Karl Darlow spilled Aaron Lennon's header. Jonjo Shelvey's sending off just added to Rafael Benítez's misery. All the takeover malarkey off the field should not affect the play on the pitch and can definitely not be used as an excuse for such clumsy defending and just bad football.
Serge Aurier fooled the Brighton keeper too to give Tottenham the lead with a mishit cross from the right, similar to Willian's accidental equaliser for Chelsea against Liverpool in Week 13. Son Heung-min sealed the points for Spurs late on to make it 2-0 at Wembley, the Seagulls unable to form any kind of competition. Shame.

What the hell?! It's getting a little repetitive, oh what a surprise, oh shock, oh wow, Liverpool changes, rotation rotation rotation. As long as it brings results, boss Jürgen Klopp knows best... Or does he?! The Reds missed lots of chances and had a goal disallowed. Was it a goal? Nope, handball and booking for Dominic Solanke instead, obvious, replays confirmed, so, 0-0 it ended at Anfield, a point each. It was a deserved point for West Brom as they worked hard and stuck to their plan very well, bagging Alan Pardew's second point out of the three matches he has been in charge. Loris Karius made a couple of crucial top-quality saves to avoid a worse result for the Reds. The German manager was of course not happy, the post-match interviewer didn't get to feel the fumes this time though (unlike after the draw against Everton), no complaints, accepting the result, his side were just not good enough. Verdammt noch mal!

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

Click here for my previous Premier League Picks.

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

Reds Down Foxes In 5-Goal Thriller

Sports - Football - Premier League - LCFC 2:3 LFC

Liverpool ended their dire run of four games without a win, beating Leicester 2-3 in the Premier League Saturday evening kick-off at the King Power Stadium, surviving a fightback with Simon Mignolet denying Jamie Vardy from the spot.

Click here for my full ByTheMinute match coverage.

Both sides made loads of changes from their cup clash on Tuesday, eight each, including Riyad Mahrez, Shinji Okazaki and Vardy all starting for the Foxes, Philippe Coutinho for the Reds with Sadio Mané still suspended.

It started tense, both sides not showing too much confidence with the ball, making the game more open, end-to-end stuff.

Vardy and Mahrez missed a couple of chances early on, the prior denied by Mignolet before the latter saw his rebound shot go wide.

Emre Can hit the post with Kasper Schmeichel on full-stretch, Mohamed Salah putting the rebound wide.

Okazaki headed wide after Liverpool were unable to clear the ball, seconds before Salah broke the deadlock with just over a quarter of an hour gone.

Coutinho set up the Egyptian with a lovely cross from the left, Salah heading it into the right corner from a tight angle, Schmeichel could only tap the ball into the goal with his finger tips.

The Brazilian star doubled the score halfway through the first half with a brilliant free kick from the little semi-circle just outside the box, right-footer into the left corner, no chance for the keeper.

So, 0-2 up, the Red dominance in possession and play was reflected by the score line for a change.

But the home side ended the half pushing and pressing more, seeing Okazaki's goal flagged and disallowed offside.

It would have been too good to be true to go into the break with a two-goal lead AND a clean sheet for Jürgen Klopp's men after bossing most of the half thanks to Salah and Coutinho.

A scruffy end to the half saw Okazaki pull one back for Leicester deep into injury time:

The Japanese forward had the last touch before the ball crossed the line after it looked like Mignolet had been fouled trying to defend a Mahrez corner, Vardy heading the ball away from the keeper.

The goal stood, it was 1-2 at the break, the Reds' high spirit dampened a bit whilst Craig Shakespeare had something to grasp on.

In the second half, Liverpool continued dominating, but not controlling the game, nerves showing and shaking again and again. With just under 25 minutes gone, all madness broke out.

Under-fire skipper Jordan Henderson made it 1-3 with an easy right-footed shot from the centre of the box.

Seconds later, Vardy pulled one back to make it 2-3, heading the ball in from a tight angle on the left, after Mignolet had pushed substitute Demarai Gray's shot to the striker.

Defence was lacking in both build-ups to the goals, unable to mark, tackle or even just close in on their opponents.

Not even three minutes after that, Mignolet conceded a penalty bringing down Vardy in the box, some pointing out his luck just to see a yellow card for the challenge, his contact with the ball most probably to thank for that.

But the Belgian keeper made up for it, pushing away Vardy's right-footed shot, too central to make it past and in.

Mignolet has now saved seven of his 15 penalties faced since joining LFC in the 2013-14, more than any other stopper.

Schmeichel denied Sturridge late on with a full-stretched save, whilst Vardy put a chance wide before a last-minute free-kick to the home side with their keeper in the Red box was cleared.

It ended 2-3, to the Reds' relief. The Foxes have now only won two of the last 11 Premier League meetings with the Reds, losing seven.

Liverpool have lost just one of their last eight Premier League away games. However, they have conceded ten goals in their opening three games on the road for the first time since 1965.

One does not have to point out the problem(s). Again. Rather appreciate the three points and hope it's just the start to the change of fortune and form. #COYR XxXxX #YNWA

LCFC goals: Okazaki 45'+3 & Vardy 69'.

LFC goals: Salah 15', Coutinho 23' & Henderson 68'.

LCFC team: 1 Schmeichel, 2 Simpson, 5 Morgan, 15 Maguire, 3 Chilwell, 10 King, 25 Ndidi (booked 22'), 11 Albrighton (booked 17') (19 Slimani 80'), 26 Mahrez (7 Gray 61'), 9 Vardy (booked 90'+2), 20 Okazaki (8 Iheanacho 74'). 4-4-1-1
LCFC subs not used: 12 Hamer, 18 Amartey, 21 Iborra, 28 Fuchs.

LFC team: 22 Mignolet (booked 72'), 12 Gomez, 6 Lovren (booked 56'), 32 Matip (booked 45'+2), 18 Moreno, 14 Henderson, 23 Can (7 Milner74'), 5 Wijnaldum, 10 Coutinho (21 Oxlade-Chamberlain 79'), 9 Firmino (15 Sturridge 64'), 11 Salah. 4-3-3
LFC subs not used: Bench: 1 Karius, 17 Klavan, 29 Solanke, 66 Alexander-Arnold.

HT stats: LCFC 1:2 LFC
Possession: 41%-59%
Shots: 6-10
On target: 4-3
Corners: 3-3
Fouls: 8-5
Yellow cards: 2-1

FT stats: LCFC 2-3 LFC
Possession: 43%-57%
Shots: 12-23
On target: 7-6
Corners: 3-6
Fouls: 13-14
Yellow cards: 3-3

Referee: Anthony Taylor
Man of the match: Philippe Coutinho
Stadium: The King Power

Click here for my last LFC match report.

All the pictures, facts and stats are taken from the BBC match report, Twitter and SFR match coverage.