Wrapping Up: Premier League Matchweek 17
I have never been this excited to write an article about the Premier League. Manchester United sits level on points with Liverpool! We will get there. First, does anyone else find it satisfying that on the last week of the NFL season the week numbers matched up between the two leagues? I find it to be the third best thing that happened to me all weekend. I am also going to pretend like this is super uncommon because I cannot be bothered to do that research on top of all the other research I do for these articles. I’m rambling, none of this matters. There was so much going on over the past few weeks, and part of that is because the weeks have been so scattered due to Covid that for roughly three weeks there were multiple teams playing games every two days. All that being said, let’s quickly tear through the games no one outside of the hills of central England care about.
Wolves and Brighton played in an extremely exciting three all draw. Brighton grabs a big point to help stay out of the bottom three. Crystal Palace beat Sheffield United two to zero. The season from hell for Sheff United continues as they remain bottom of the table with only two points. The Tottenham Spurs get back on track with a three to nil win over Leeds. Spurs climb back into the top four with the win. Leicester won a hard-fought match against Newcastle United. Leicester sits at third on the table only one point behind the top two. Every other game this week had big implications and/or was a great game to watch.
West Ham United 1 - Everton 0
This game had some bigger implications than you may realize. Everton has looked brilliant all season, however, this loss drops them out of the top six. They remain level on points with the three teams above them, and this loss represents their first dropped points in their last five, however they win close games and their goal differential lacks. West Ham, on the other hand, are now level on points with the eight spot on the table and are three points clear of Arsenal who sit below them. These are two teams that should be battling for the middle of the table and instead, both are viable options to be in the top six.
Manchester United 2 - Aston Villa 1
Speaking of teams that have been over performing this season, here are two more. Aston Villa lost this game but this was maybe the best game of the week. Villa looked fantastic throughout the game. Villa only had two lapses in the game, one was on the coverage of a cross from Aaron Wan-Bissaka that got put away by Anthony Martial. The other one was a silly foul by Douglas Luiz on Paul Pogba in the penalty area. Bruno Fernandes buried it. That was the difference. Villa now sits at eighth on the table while United hold the second spot and are now level on points with Liverpool. I have more to say about this but we will get to that later. Regardless, United have been on great form in their last five, winning four and drawing one. United are coming.
West Bromwich Albion 0 - Arsenal 4
West Brom will probably be relegated. This is not the thing I want to highlight. Arsenal looks really good. They have now won three straight games and sit at eleventh on the table. Just two short weeks ago Arsenal had not scored a goal from open play in what seemed like seven games, and they sat at fifteenth on the table. Arsenal are not contenders this season, but this is encouraging and shows at the very least that Arteta has not lost the locker room.
Chelsea 1 - Manchester City 3
Manchester City had this weird rough patch a few weeks ago, however, they have won three straight now and look to be back to their title-contending form. Kevin de Brunye looks as good as he ever has, and Pep has this team rolling. Meanwhile, Chelsea just fired Frank Lampard from his managerial job. These teams are headed in two opposite directions. Chelsea has looked lost as they have lost three of their last five and have dropped to ninth on the table. Chelsea has so much talent, but with their coaching situation in flux and their rotations in a seeming bit of disarray, Chelsea has some major work to do before climbing back into that title picture.
Southampton 1 - Liverpool 0
What an interesting game. Let’s start with Southampton. That back four is as legitimate as it gets. Liverpool possessed the ball for two-thirds of the game. Liverpool also had ten more shots on goal, and yet only one of those shots was on target. Southampton had a game plan and they executed it to perfection. Danny Ings scored for Southampton in the second minute and they never looked back. As for Liverpool, this loss is such a disappointment. Trent Alexander-Arnold is a young and fantastically talented player but he looked awful in this game. To have thirty-eight giveaways in only seventy-seven minutes is inexcusable. Jurgen Klopp is maybe the best manager in the world, but to not get Arnold out earlier when he is clearly struggling is a major lapse. Also, when down one to nothing with almost no quality chances being created, how do you leave Divock Origi on the bench?
Where this leaves Liverpool is at the top of the table. However Manchester United is level on points with a game in hand. That game is being played against relegation zone contender Burnley. There is a very strong likelihood that going into January 17th’s matchup between Liverpool and United, United will be top of the league by three points. That week Leicester will play Southampton, so Liverpool could conceivably be third on the table heading into that matchup. This will be Liverpool’s second major test for league supremacy of the season. A few weeks ago Liverpool knotted it up against Tottenham and they came out ahead. Now the Spurs sit in fourth and have won only one game in their last five. The game on the 17th will be critical for both teams going forward. United could realistically open up a six-point lead on the rest of the table going into the halfway point of the season. Had you told 99% of soccer fans that this was a realistic possibility, they would have each replied with some form of, “You’re delusional.” Liverpool are so deep and so good they could very easily turn this around, beat United, and be right back in the driver’s seat. As for United, What will Ole Gunnar Solskjaer come to the dinner table with? He tends to either have his players in top form with a unique gameplan or recycle an old formation and get absolutely outshined and out classed. If Ole can get United truly prepared for this game and have them with a real shot at three points come stoppage time of that game, United are a threat to win the league this year, which is not something I thought I would be typing this season.