Premier League Picks Of The Week 30

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 30

The 30th week of Premier League action saw:

33 goals - most by Liverpool = 4

237 shots - most by Liverpool = 23

81 on target - most by Man City = 9

103 corners - most by Chelsea = 13

220 fouls - most by Brighton and Man United = 18 each

38 bookings - most by Brighton = 5

0 red cards

3 penalties - 2 scored (Milivojević for Crystal Palace, Aubameyang for Arsenal)

What a game! It was a super comeback by Newcastle against Everton, their best, winning a Premier League game from two goals down for the first time since October 2003 against Fulham under Sir Bobby Robson. Rafael Benítez's men were 0-2 down and showed no sign of any threat at half-time, however, the Magpies took the Toffees apart after the break. Ayoze Pérez was the controversial hero with a brace (81’, 84’) plus an assist (Rondón 65’), for a perfect second-half comeback, including a Jordan Pickford flop. More to the England keeper's disastrous performance below.

It was a Super Sunday indeed, three games, plenty of goals, including two braces at Anfield, later than late equaliser at Stamford Bridge and end of a run at the Emirates. More to the first two below. The Gunners shot down and ended the Red Devils' unbeaten run in the league under caretaker Ole Gunnar Solskjær, thanks to Granit Xhaka's swerving shot making David de Gea look like a fool (12') and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang converting a super-soft penalty (69'). The visitors had hit the woodwork a couple of times before the break and didn't go down easily, so it was a sweet win for Unai Emery's men, their ninth home win in a row, which takes them above United and back up to fourth, just one point behind Tottenham in third.

What a team! Liverpool kept the title race going thrashing Burnley 4-2 at Anfield, but not without controversies and tensions. Roberto Firmino (19’, 67’) and Sadio Mané (29’, 90’+3’) with a brace each made up for Ashley Westwood’s controversial opener (6’), where Alisson looked like being fouled before the corner went into the back of the net. The Red keeper was booked for his objections against the decision, double argh! Sub Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson pulled one back late on (90’+1’), but the home side sealed and bagged the three points despite all ups and downs. Manchester City had kept the pressure on with a win the day before, more to the questionable calls at the Etihad against Watford below.

Fulham join Huddersfield in deep trouble after a flopping defeat at Leicester. West Ham have to be careful not to join the two clubs in the drop zone after yet another disappointing result at Cardiff! Consistently inconsistent! More below.

What a man! The double-century for Harry Kane was set up by Dele Alli (26’), but was all for nothing thanks to the super goal by Southampton mentioned below. The Spurs star looked offside anyways. More to the usual useless refereeing below, as always. 

Jamie Vardy’s 100th and 101st banked Brendan Rodgers his first win as Leicester boss against Fulham. The managerless London side look doomed and down with Huddersfield.

And it was Eden Hazard of course, who else, to spare Chelsea from yet another miserable defeat against Wolves. His 92nd minute equaliser was like scripted, fitting to the top player he is, curled in to the bottom corner to nullify Raul Jiménez’s opener on the counter (56’). It was the only shot on target for the Blues. Cruel. More to Manchester City's hat-trick-man below. 

What a goal! Brighton’s and Southampton’s second goals were both unstoppable crackers into the top corner, no chance for either keeper. The prior was Anthony Knockaert’s winner at Crystal Palace (74’), whilst the latter was James Ward-Prowse’s incredible free-kick that shocked Tottenham (81’) after Yan Valery’s equaliser (76’). The prior was especially outraging for Roy Hodgson after the Brighton winger got booked with just 28 seconds on the clock, lucky it wasn’t red! Glenn Murray’s 100th was double-sweet/sour after that (depending which side you're on)! 
The first Manchester City goal looked offside: The defender made contact with the ball, yes, but when the cross was made, Raheem Sterling was offside. The long debate between the linesman and ref was double-annoying. The Watford bus was broken after that. Sterling doubled the lead, Sergio Agüero looking offside in that buildup. The hat-trick was no doubt though, the former Red running through the Hornets defence, to make it three goals in 13 minutes (46’, 50’, 59’), 3-1 to the Citizens, keeping them at the helm. For now

What the hell?! Everton keeper Pickford should have been sent off. He was the last man, didn’t go for the ball and took the man out, in this case Rondón, in a goalscoring opportunity. Penalty was given, but the England stopper was lucky to stay on the pitch. Matt Ritchie's poor take of the spot kick was an easy stop, the more aggrieving and annoying it was for the home side. And was Newcastle’s late winning goal offside? Marco Silva was not happy but cannot ignore his side's inconsistencies and lack of oomph. Just poor all round. The Portuguese cannot deny that his side did not deserve more and had lucky calls of their own. He is not alone with his frustrations about the officials, I rant on about them every week! Week in week out there are too many errors. In any other profession, one would expect consequences if someone would make so many bad calls! Penalties, suspensions, sackings... I am not gonna repeat all the bad calls I mentioned above... And there were more! Cardiff’s second goal was just as questionable as City’s opener. As well as Burnley’s first. Etc. Etc. So. Many. Calls. JUST WRONG! AGAIN! ARGH! BOO! WTF?!

My Predictions - Actual Results 

Crystal Palace 2:1 Brighton - 1:2

Cardiff 2:0 West Ham - 2:0

Huddersfield 1:0 Bournemouth - 0:2

Leicester 2:1 Fulham - 3:1

Newcastle 2:1 Everton - 3:2

Southampton 1:2 Tottenham - 2:1

Man City 2:0 Watford - 3:1

Liverpool 3:0 Burnley - 4:2

Chelsea 3:1 Wolves - 1:1

Arsenal 3:2 Man United - 2:0

Click here for last week’s Premier League Picks.

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

Premier League Picks Of The Week 29

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 29

The 29th week of the Premier League action saw:

23 goals - most by Man United and Crystal Palace = 3 each

234 shots - most by Man City = 23

80 on target - most by Man City and Chelsea = 7 each

106 corners - most by Man City = 14

204 fouls - most by Tottenham and Watford = 15 each

39 bookings - most by Watford = 5

1 red card - Torreira for Arsenal 

4 penalties - 2 scored (Kane for Tottenham, Noble for West Ham)

What a game! There were goals and action galore at Old Trafford. Southampton scored two crackers, but were still the losers in the end, whilst Manchester United had plenty more chances and misses but were able to end up on top despite more injuries and a missed spot-kick. More details about all the top goals below.

It was derby day on Sunday... More on Chelsea’s win at Craven Cottage below. Disappointing 200th league Merseyside derby for goalless and hopeless Liverpool: Everton were definitely happier after denying Mohamed Salah and Fabinho, the only two that got anything on target for the visitors at Goodison Park. Red boss Jürgen Klopp blamed the wind. Whatever it is, it’s costing his side dearly. Four draws in the last six league games means eight points dropped. For the first time in 14 weeks, the Reds have dropped all the way down to second (ignoring week 26 where Manchester City played the extra game because of the League Cup), one point behind Pep Guardiola's men. Following the Red Twitter world, it seems like all is over, the chance has been blown, the first title in 28 years is gone. The difference between the top two clubs is just ONE point, with NINE games to go. And LFC are TEN points and TWO places BETTER off than last season (whilst City are TEN points DOWN!). PERSPECTIVE!

What a team! More injuries hit Manchester City on Saturday, but they’re still winning, that’s the main thing for the league leaders in the title race. It was one-way traffic at Bournemouth (18%-82% possession, 0-23 shots, 0-7 on target, 0-14 corners). Kevin De Bruyne went off injured, his replacement Riyad Mahrez got the winner (55’), a fine low finish in the bottom right corner after a nice team interplay, his first goal since 4th December, his 11th of the season. That is all that was needed. Crucial. 

And it was another good away win for Crystal Palace, this time at Burnley, Roy Hodgson consolidating his and his sides’ place in the top league. A fine run of three wins in the last five games has seen the London side climb up the table by two places, eight points clear from the drop zone. This time, Phillip Bardsley (OG 15'), Michy Batshuayi (48') and Wilfried Zaha (76') were on the scoreboard, denying Sean Dyche’s side any way back, condemning them to their second defeat on the trot, sucking them down to 16th. Contrast.

What a man! REF!!! Watford's opener was just weird?! Jonathan Moss made a very late call on a free-kick after Troy Deeney broke free into the box... To head it in seconds later off the set-piece, but the English striker looked offside (5’). More iffy goals and decisions are mentioned above and below as well. Ridiculous refereeing! So, Brendan Rodgers’ first match as Leicester boss didn’t start well with that! Kasper Schmeichel made a brill block seconds before. Jamie Vardy and keeper Ben Foster clashed and you can tell when players are really injured and hurt when they lay flat and DON’T ROLL AND MOAN AROUND!!! Both were fine in the end. But OUCH! And the champion striker levelled the score in the second half (75’) after the visitors dominated all round, keeping his record going of scoring under five out of six new Foxes managers and taking his club tally to 99. But Hornets sub Andre Gray nicked an injury-time winner for the home side and got booked for his shirtless celebrations (90’+2’) to spoil the party for the Northern Irishman. Javi Gracia and co meanwhile were over the moon. A tense finish at Vicarage road saw Foster blocking and saving again, but it ended 2-1. BRilliant.

What a goal! Talking about managers, Fulham’s first match after sacking Claudio Ranieri was only against Chelsea at Craven Cottage. The managerless side did well under the circumstances, keeping the pressure on and not making it easy for the Blues. Ryan Sessegnon’s injury-time equaliser was flagged offside - a very close call! It looked fine! Another tense finish. Maurizio Sarri’s men ended up on top 1-2 thanks to Gonzalo Higuaín (20’) and Jorginho (31’) after Calum Chambers' leveller (27’). Cruel. How the latter boss is still hanging on to his job, I do not know... *shaking*my*head*

Saints defender Yan Valery’s first professional goal (26’) and United’s first equaliser by Andreas Pereira, the Brazilian's first Premier League goal (53’), were both just unstoppable, breathtaking takes. To add to the iffy list mentioned above, the 2-1, Romelu Lukaku’s first (59’), looked a hint offside though? The second equaliser (2-2 in case you can't keep track) was a beautiful free-kick by James Ward-Prowse (75'), into the top corner, who’s the keeper again?! However, Lukaku snuck in the late low winner (88’), a cruel one into the bottom right corner, 3-2. And that was not all! A later than late penalty to the Red Devils, after Stuart Armstrong brought down Marcus Rashford from behind, saw Paul Pogba selfishly take it, not giving Lukaku a chance of a hat-trick, keeper Angus Gunn kicking the central shot away with his left boot. Top match. Top goals. Plenty of flops as well. Never boring. Another win for Ole Gunnar Solskjær, to make it 10 wins out of 12 league games for the Norwegian temp boss.

What the hell?! Another soft penalty call went Tottenham's way in the London derby Saturday lunch-time, and it was offside in the build-up to the foul as well?! An easy equaliser for Harry Kane out of nowhere against Arsenal (74’) after Aaron Ramsey’s opener (16’). The Gunners got a spot-kick back late on, but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang made a soft mess of the take and Hugo Lloris the hero, and Jan Vertonghen’s defending in the aftermath controversial as the Belgian defender looked way over the line when the penalty was taken, denying the visitors a winner. The game exploded into life in the final minutes, seeing Lucas Torreira sent off. As mentioned above, numerous times, I know I am repeating myself, but that is because the bad calls and refereeing overlooks and errors are piling up, again and again, every game, every week! If you like VAR or not, at least that is SOMETHING to check and double-check all these iffy calls!!!

After Cardiff boss Neil Warnock revealed that Nuno Espírito Santo is his wife's favourite manager, there could only be one winner on the day at the Molineux Stadium... ;-) I LMAO AT THE CHANTS!!!

My Predictions - Actual Results 

Tottenham 0:1 Arsenal - 1:1

Bournemouth 2:2 Man City - 0:1

Brighton 0:1 Huddersfield - 1:0

Burnley 2:3 Crystal Palace - 1:3

Man United 1:1 Southampton - 3:2

Wolves 2:1 Cardiff - 2:0

West Ham 2:1 Newcastle - 2:0

Watford 1:1 Leicester - 2:1

Fulham 1:2 Chelsea - 1:2

Everton 1:2 Liverpool - 0:0

Click here for the previous Picks Of The Week.

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

Premier League Picks Of The Week 28

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 28

The 28th week of the Premier League action saw:

29 goals - most by Arsenal and Liverpool = 5 each

251 shots - most by Man City = 22

65 on target - most by Liverpool = 10

102 corners - most by Man City = 13

176 fouls - most by Southampton = 15

30 bookings - most by Cardiff, Burnley and Man United = 3 each

0 red cards

1 penalty - 1 scored (Agüero for Man City)

What a game! Arsenal and Liverpool were on fire! The Gunners took Bournemouth apart at the Emirates, 5-1 with five different scorers including recalled Mesut Özil with the opener after just four minutes. Substitute Alexandre Lacazette sealed the win making it five with a superb free-kick (78’), condemning the Cherries to their ninth consecutive away defeat for the first time since the 1933-34 season. The result keeps Unai Emery’s men in the top four, one point ahead of Manchester United. More to the Red Devils' impressive win and run below.

The Reds thrashed Watford 5-0 at Anfield, which was just what the doctor ordered for them in the title race and after their disappointing and frustrating goalless draw at Old Trafford on Sunday. Sadio Mané (9’, 20’) and Virgil van Dijk (79’, 82’) starred with a brace each - the prior’s second the cheekiest of cheeky back-healers, absolute stunner, the latter’s both headers. Injured Roberto Firmino's replacement Divock Origi contributed one as well in-between (66’), adding up to their biggest win of the season. But the real star was man of the match and night Trent Alexander-Arnold. Left out at the weekend, the youngster showed how much he was missed, producing top passes, crosses, control and precision, becoming the youngest player ever at 20 years and 143 days to get three assists in a Premier League game. Just wow! The win helped Jürgen Klopp’s men and their goal difference, just one point clear at the top ahead of Manchester City in second. More to the Citizens' lucky winner below.

What a team! Chelsea beat Tottenham at Stamford Bridge, Mauricio Pochettino’s men slumped and bumped out of the title race too easily. The Blues had dropped goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga after his League Cup antiques at the weekend, but his replacement Willy Caballero didn’t have anything to do = 0 shots on target produced by Spurs. The embarrassing scenes were in the opposing goal this time, Hugo Lloris letting the opener by Pedro go through his legs (57’) before watching his team mate Kieran Trippier pass the ball past him and into his own net (OG 84’). That makes it two own goals in their last six Premier League games, as many as in their previous 113 in the competition. They are still in third, but now eight points behind City in second and nine away from the top.

Manchester United recorded their eighth consecutive away win - not even the great Sir Alex Ferguson was able to achieve that! Ole Gunnar Solskjær (still only caretaker) saw his side beat Crystal Palace convincingly despite their looooong list of injuries (of eight first-team players!). Romelu Lukaku stepped up and scored twice (33’, 52’), and Ashley Young drilled in a third (83’), to hand the Red Devils yet another win and keep them in fifth and in the race for the top four, just one point separating them from Arsenal in fourth. Surely, the Norwegian boss will be made permanent, a question of when.. Not if... ?!

What a man! Brendan Rodgers was announced as the new Leicester boss hours before their match against Brighton at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday night. The news of his talks with the club was no real surprise, but the speed of his departure from Celtic caught out everyone. It seemed like the Northern Irishman couldn’t wait to get away! The Foxes recorded their first home win in five on the night, beating the Albions 2-1, thanks to goals by Demarai Gray (10’) and Jamie Vardy (63’), Davy Pröpper with a cracking but the only reply for the visitors (66’). But most of the main focus and attention was on the new man in the stands. The 2016 champions are up to 11th, on 35 points, ten points clear of the drop zone, 18 away from the top six. What will the new boss' ambition/aim/target be without any silverware in sight (unlike in Scotland)?!

What a goal! Newcastle’s opener against Burnley at St James’ Park by Fabian Schär (24’) was sublime! Sean Longstaff pounced on the visitors' weak defense to double the home side’s lead (38’). Both goals were clinical and crucial in the relegation battle, ending Sean Dyche’s side’s eight-game unbeaten run in the league and easing the Magpies’ relegation worries.

Everton’s team work goals at Cardiff were top-quality, all three of them. Gylfi Sigurðsson's brace (41’, 66’) and Dominic Calvert-Lewin's late finish (90’+3’) ended the Toffees’ league run of three successive defeats. The win takes them up to ninth, four points behind Watford in eighth and level on points with West Ham in tenth.

Manchester City’s penalty against the Hammers was softer than soft, which was otherwise a very frustrating night for Pep Guardiola’s side at the Etihad. Sub Bernardo Silva went down without any contact, seconds after coming on. Surrounded by West Ham players, replays showed, if anything, the Portuguese midfielder twisted and tripped over his own feet. But the spot kick was given, and of course Sergio Agüero made no mistake of netting it (pen 59’) and the three points for the Citizens with it, to keep them in the title race, one point behind the Reds. Hammers boss Manuel Pellegrini was understandably less happy with that call and result.

What the hell?! HUDDERSFIELD WON!!! SCORED AND WON!!! Celebrations galore!!! Lots of sickies up North on Wednesday, I bet. Yes, they are still bottom, but sweeter than sweet it still was for them. Only the third win of the season. First since November. After seven consecutive defeats at home. Sweet home. After African striker Steve Mounié scored the winner in the 91st minute, he got buried under his team mates as a thanks. Boss Jan Siewert was also taken over by wild celebrations with his backroom staff after the German's first win in charge of the club. Wolves were their victims, having lost eight of their last nine league matches against the Terriers and seven of their 12 against teams starting the day at the bottom of the Premier League. Southampton meanwhile moved out of the relegation zone after beating Fulham 2-0, and with Cardiff’s defeat, will have added to the bottom club’s celebrations and the tiniest of tiny glimmer of hope that has returned for them in their chance of somehow climbing out of the deep and dark relegation swamp they’re in.

My Predictions - Actual Results

Cardiff 0:0 Everton - 0:3

Huddersfield 1:2 Wolves - 1:0

Leicester 1:1 Brighton - 2:1

Newcastle 2:2 Burnley - 2:0

Arsenal 2:0 Bournemouth - 5:1

Southampton 2:1 Fulham - 2:0

Chelsea 3:1 Tottenham - 2:0

Crystal Palace 1:3 Man United - 1:3

Liverpool 2:0 Watford - 5:0

Man City 3:0 West Ham - 1:0

Click here for the previous Picks Of The Week.

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

Premier League Picks Of The Week 27

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 27

The 27th week of the Premier League action saw:

29 goals - most by Watford = 5

243 shots - most by Newcastle = 29

84 on target - most by Newcastle = 12

110 corners - most by West Ham and Newcastle = 12 each

213 fouls - most by Liverpool = 17

29 bookings - most by Wolves = 5

1 red card - Smith for Huddersfield 

3 penalties - 2 scored (King for Bournemouth, Jiménez for Wolves)

What a game! The Super Sunday clash between arch rivals Manchester United and Liverpool ended goalless, quite disappointing after all the hype and buildup, but not a big surprise. The Red Devils defended well, held solid against all the Red pressing, whilst the visitors were unable to get the breakthrough at Old Trafford and had their keeper Alisson and defender Virgil van Dijk to thank for a breathtaking save against sub Jesse Lingard and a masterclass in stopping, blocking and denying Paul Pogba any look into the game. United stopper David de Gea kept his 100th clean sheet, which wasn't too difficult on the day, having just faced one shot on target, his side just producing three of their own at the other end as well. Mohamed Salah looked very clumsy, losing the ball too easily and too often, and it was no surprise when the

Egyptian was subbed off as well. Not much action, but plenty of injuries saw Ole Gunnar Solskjær forced to use up all his substitutions in the first half! 
And to add frustration to injuries, his men dropped two points and one place down to fifth after Arsenal’s comfortable 2-0 win against Southampton. That victory saw the Gunners overtake the Red Devils. Jürgen Klopp’s side meanwhile, returned to the top, one point ahead of the Citizens. Pep Guardiola's men won the Carabao Cup final against Chelsea on the same day after some penalty drama, having played and won the scheduled Premier League fixture of this weekend a couple of weeks ago, ending up 0-2 winners at Everton on the 6th February.*(See the note in brackets at the bottom of this blog.)

What a team! Leicester have lost four consecutive home Premier League games for the first time since January 2000. The oldest ever manager in the Premier League with 71 years and 198 days = Roy Hodgson and Crystal Palace meanwhile, are in dreamland after thrashing the Foxes 1-4 in their own backyard on Saturday evening. Claude Puel was sent packing not even 24 hours later, no surprise there, sad but true. The home side had over four times the attempts (27-7), but just the same on target (5-5), the scoreboard reflecting the sour and fruitless times. The more surprising his replacement is: Brendan Rodgers, surprising everyone including his Celtic players with the news of his departure.

Huddersfield are down and out. Nothing new there, they have been rock bottom for months now, but the way they lost at Newcastle, there was just no chance, no way, not even half a penny of hope, outdone and outplayed in every way, especially after (but not because of) the sending off. Good result for Rafael Benítez’s men, taking them up to 15th. The Magpies have recorded a league double over the Terriers for the first time since 1964-65 with their third successive Premier League win at St James’ Park for the first time since April.

What a man! Watford’s Gerard Deulofeu is only the third player to score a Premier League hat-trick on a Friday, after Dean Windass for Bradford (April 2000) and Thierry Henry for Arsenal (two in April 2004). The Spaniard did not just score three (18’, 61’, 63’), but also set up Troy Deeney (73’), who finished off with a brace of his own (91’), taking Cardiff apart. Sol Bamba was on the score-sheet (82’), a mere consolation, as 1-5 was the full-time score in Wales. It was the Hornets’ first top-flight hat-trick since Mark Falco v Aston Villa in October 1986, and the first time the side scored five in a top-division encounter since winning 5-1 against Leicester in November 1986. History.

What a goal! Was is really a corner in the buildup to the first Burnley goal or should it have been a goal kick? Chris Wood headed in the set-piece to open the scoring for the Clarets against Tottenham (57’). It doesn’t really matter, as the home side scored another one and you can’t say they didn’t deserve it. Ashley Barnes' tap-in (83’) won it for Sean Dyche’s men after Harry Kane, back from injury, had equalised and given the visitors hope of a comeback (65’). That equaliser was off a dodgy throw as well, but I’m sure Mauricio Pochettino didn’t mention that to referee Mike Dean when he stormed, shouted and pointed at the official after the full-time whistle. The boss was in the man's face! As it turned out, the temperamental Argentine accepted all charges and apologised. Meanwhile, Burnley are on their best = longest unbeaten top-flight run since 1966, unbeaten in eight (W5, D3), picking up 18 points in the last 8 games after just gaining 14 from their previous 24! This glorious run takes them up to 14th on 30 points, six clear from the drop zone. More controversial goals and decisions below...

What the hell?! The last time Fulham won an away game in the Premier League, David Moyes was still the manager of Manchester United. And the London side have still no clean sheet - even lovely Claudio Ranieri was outraged and having a go at the fourth official after West Ham’s Javier Hernández had bundled the ball over the line with his hand but the goal was still given to make it 1-1 (29’). The visitors had opened the scoring at the London Stadium just a couple of minutes into the match (3’), Ryan Babel’s first Premier League goal since 6 December 2010, exactly 3000 days ago. After the handled equaliser, Issa Diop put the Hammers ahead before the break (40’), and Michail Antonio made it 3-1, sealing the win and points in injury time (90’+1’). Any kind of confidence the Cottagers had was shattered after clear incompetence, ignorance, sheer blindness by the referees! VAR would have undoubtedly cleared that decision within seconds! 
More dubious calls were made at Bournemouth by referee Roger East, handing out penalties here, there and everywhere, leaving Wolves boss Nuno Espírito Santo scratching his head. But the Spaniard refused to blame the ref, pointing out the lying, diving, whining, cheating players (no exact quote, he was too nice about it in my opinion!). It ended 1-1, Joshua King hitting and missing one (pen 14’ and pen 85’ respectively), and Raúl Jiménez levelling from the spot (pen 83’), consistency not being in the officials' dictionary whatsoever! The first one was soft, the last one not even in the box! The other one was soft as well, whilst a clear handball was overlooked. Ridiculous! I could go on and on... As always! Every week it's the same shambles! Argh!

My Predictions - Actual Results

Cardiff 1:2 Watford - 1:5

West Ham 3:0 Fulham - 3:1

Burnley 1:2 Tottenham - 2:1

Bournemouth 2:2 Wolves - 1:1

Newcastle 3:0 Huddersfield - 2:0

Leicester 1:2 Crystal Palace - 1:4

Arsenal 2:0 Southampton - 2:0

Man United 2:3 Liverpool - 0:0

*(Everton 0:2 Man City was rearranged to the 6th February due to the League Cup final on Sunday; Chelsea 3:0 Brighton to the 3rd April, see PL week 33; both match stats have been to this week they were scheduled for)*

Clicker here for the previous Premier League Picks.

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

Premier League Picks Of The Week 26

Sports - Football - Premier League - Week 26

The 26th week of the Premier League action saw:

31 goals - most by Man City = 6

268 shots - most by Crystal Palace = 25

103 on target - most by Liverpool and Leicester = 9 each

102 corners - most by Wolves = 13

218 fouls - most by Watford = 21

38 bookings - most by Fulham, Palace, Huddersfield, Southampton, Cardiff, Tottenham and Newcastle = 3 each

1 red card - Zouma for Everton

5 penalties - 4 scored (Pogba for United, Noble for West Ham, Barnes for Burnley, Agüero for City)

What a game! City!!! WTF?!?!?! They absolute swept Chelsea aside, 6-0 in the Super Sunday encounter, more to that humiliating thrash below.

It was a super-late double-drama at Southampton! Sol Bamba had opened the scoring for Cardiff from close range with their first shot on target of the match (69’). The Saints thought they had grabbed a late point, with Jack Stephens’ tap-in making it 1-1 in the first minute of stoppage time. But two minutes later, Kenneth Zohore struck and Neil Warnock’s men ended up on top and out of the relegation zone. It was another emotional day, the Welsh side still mourning the death of their record signing Emiliano Sala after his body was formally identified just a couple of days before the match. Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side had dominated but Neil Etheridge made some impressive stops to make sure his side stayed in the match. Southampton on the other hand, have kept just one clean sheet in their past 16 Premier League games (0-0 v Chelsea in January), and with the other results saw them slip into the bottom three for the first time since the beginning of January. But on the brighter side, it's their first defeat in six (W2 D3).

What a team! Tottenham are winning the ugly way. The Londoners frustrated the hell out of Leicester on Sunday, but they all count, and should not be ignored in the title race. Ugly win? Or uglier defeat? The Foxes fought back after Dávinson Sánchez (33’) and Christian Eriksen (63’) had put the home side ahead at Wembley. Sub Jamie Vardy pulled one back (76’) after Hugo Lloris denied him from the spot, seconds after coming on. But Son Heung-min sealed the win 3-1 (90’+1’), Spurs’ fourth consecutive league win. Form. Who is/needs Harry Kane?!

Arsenal recorded their first away win since November, beating bottom club Huddersfield 1-2 at the Kirklees Stadium. The result saw the Gunners remain sixth for the day, but moving within a point of fourth-placed Manchester United and level on points with fifth-placed Chelsea, before swapping places with them on goal difference after their thrashing at City on Sunday. The Red Devils had it too easy in the early kick-off on Saturday at Fulham, ending up comfy 0-3 winners at Craven Cottage, continuing Ole Gunnar Solskjær's unbeaten run as their caretaker boss (= 11 games = 10W + 1D). 

What a man! Claude Puel’s days are numbered after a reported bust-up with Vardy saw the striker start on the bench. The French boss' voice was all that could be heard in the background at times at Wembley. Mental! It was a sour defeat and another nail in the Foxes manager's coffin. Harsh? But true! A lot of fans have been showing how unhappy they are with Puel at the helm.

Man of the match at Selhurst Park Wilfried Zaha scored his first home goal in 11 games in all competitions for Crystal Palace, since netting against West Brom on the final day of the 2017-18 campaign. The equaliser denied West Ham a crucial win, but the point saw the Hammers climb two places to 10th, whilst Roy Hodgson’s side are up to 13th, four points clear of the drop zone. Both the former England boss and his counterpart Manuel Pellegrini can be happy with their sides’ progress, having looked much more in danger a couple of months back.

What a goal! It was a cheeky one by Georginio Wijnaldum, tipping it over and in to make it 2-0. And a lovely third one saw some top-quality team play off a throw-in, Roberto Firmino’s back-heeler setting up Mohamed Salah in the box, for the great Egyptian to curl it in. Added to Sadio Mané’s powerful headed opener, it was a comfortable and confident 3-0 win for the Reds, keeping them at the top and unbeaten in their last 34 Premier League home games, winning 24 and drawing 10. Note: City have played an extra game because of rearranged fixtures due to the League Cup final, hence, they went back to the top after Sunday’s thrash.

Sergio Agüero, after missing one from five yards, put the sweetest of the sweet shots in from 25 yards to make it 2-0 to the Citizens early on against Chelsea. And it was 3-0 after 18:06!!! Not the contest everyone imagined!!! The Argentine ended up with a hat-trick (13’, 19’ and 56’ pen), his 11th in the Premier League, putting him level with Alan Shearer. Added to Raheem Sterling’s brace (4’ and 80’) and İlkay Gündoğan's low drive (25’), it ended 6-0, an absolute beating, the Blues’ worst defeat since they lost 7-0 at Nottingham Forest in April 1991. Humiliation. 

Wolves' last-second equaliser against Newcastle, Rafael Benítez was absolutely fuming, understandably so, but I knew it! Said it! Typical! Would have been too good to be true for the Toons! Isaac Hayden had put the visitors ahead earlier on at Molineux (56’), and it looked like a deserved goal and three points. But the longer the clock ticked, one could feel it was not going to last. And when Willy Boly headed one in five minutes into injury time to make it 1-1 and one point each, the ground erupted. The Spaniard was not happy as there seemed to be a foul in the buildup, apart from play continuing later than late into added time (although, it is minimum added time, not maximum, as cruel as it sounds now, but fact). The result leaves Newcastle one point above the bottom three in 16th place while Wolves remain seventh.

Saed Kolašinac's own goal represented the Terriers' first in 597 minutes of football, it was not enough to retrieve a point against the Gunners, as mentioned above.

What the hell?! Similar to Liverpool’s second, it was a sweet goal for Watford against Everton. Half-time sub Andre Gray tapped in Will Hughes’ low cross (65’), condemning the Toffees to yet another disappointing defeat, their third on the trot. "Sacked in the morning" chants could be heard again, just like last week... From both sides of the ground? It was Marco Silva's first return to Vicarage Road since he was sacked by the Hornets at the end of the 2017-18 campaign. Not. Sweet. At. All. A post-match sending off as tempers flared after the final whistle, Chelsea loanee Kurt Zouma given two yellows, added more to the visitors’ misery. Can anything else go wrong for the Toffees?!

Come on ref: TWICE in the first half, it was an obvious handball and Brighton penalty not given before Burnley’s spot kick and third goal after the break! Ashley Barnes converted the penalty (74’), with Chris Wood’s brace (26’, 61’), giving Sean Dyche’s side a comfortable lead. But the Albions didn’t give up, pulled one back soon after, thanks to Shane Duffy’s header (76’). But it was not to be, Tom Heaton made some brill saves, it ended 1-3, the Clarets unbeaten in seven league games and level on 27 points with the Seagulls - three above the relegation zone.

My Predictions - Actual Results 

Fulham 0:3 Man United - 0:3

Crystal Palace 2:1 West Ham - 1:1

Huddersfield 1:2 Arsenal - 1:2

Liverpool 2:1 Bournemouth - 3:0 

Southampton 1:1 Cardiff - 1:2

Watford 1:1 Everton - 1:0

Brighton 0:0 Burnley - 1:3

Tottenham 0:1 Leicester - 3:1

Man City 3:1 Chelsea - 6:0

Wolves 1:1 Newcastle - 1:1

(Everton 0:2 Man City played midweek, rescheduled due to the League Cup final, the stats and facts will have been added to week 27)

Click here for last week’s Premier League Picks.

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