Another round-up of Premier League news including Arsenal leapfrogging Spurs, Everton collapsing at St Mary’s, and Man City striding towards the title with another win.
Huddersfield 1 v 2 Man City
The Terriers like the taste of Manchester meat.
A month ago, David Wagner’s fighters secured an eminent victory when they beat the mighty Man Utd at the Kirklees Stadium, and they nearly made it a double against the blue half of the city putting in an accomplished performance against the runaway leaders.
If you’re going to beat the saints of City you need to score first. Not since 1995 has a Man City side come from behind to win after going a goal down. So history was on Huddersfield’s side when Nicolas Otamendi scored an own goal in first-half injury time.
And then came the ‘Pep’ talk.
“We spoke at half-time about how to react, we had enough chances to score, and the first time Huddersfield had a chance they scored,” Pep Guardiola told reporters after the game. “We spoke about not giving up, to keep going.”
The reaction was immediate; City was level within two minutes of the restart when Sergio Aguero scored his ninth Premier League goal of the season courtesy of a penalty. It was the Argentine’s third successful conversion of the campaign, and Raheem Sterling has won them all.
Arsene Wenger’s favourite Greg Louganis impersonator is finally living up to his top billing, putting in the season of his life. The England star has always been spilt necklace beads tricky, but this year he has added a goal threat to his CV.
Before this game, only five players had scored more Premier League goals than Sterling, and it was his winner, his eighth of the season, that clinched the three points for the Manchester club.
It’s inconceivable to think the race for the Championship is over after only 13 games, but that’s how the bookmakers see things, with a smattering of them offering odds of 1/12 on a City win.
And it’s with good cause.
The victory over the West Yorkshire side was City’s 11th successive Premier League win, equalling their 2015 record. Add in the League and Champions League cup games, and you are looking at an 18 game winning streak.
37 points in 13 games is a Premier League record. The frontline battering ram has scored 42 goals in 13 league games, and they have now won 11 away league ties on the bounce.
And what of Huddersfield?
After a first season bloom saw them lose one of their first six games, they are now a dying orchid with five defeats in their previous six games and sit 11th in the table, 11/8 shots to return to the Championship.
The Chasing Pack
Neighbours Man Utd maintained an eight-point gap between the top two places after a 1-0 win over newly promoted Brighton. It was a remarkable performance for the Seagulls, who had numerous chances to register in the goal count while keeping the Red Army at bay at the back. Ashley Young eventually found a way around the Brighton bus, in the 66th minute, after his shot cannoned off Lewis Dunk and looped over the Brighton keeper.
The Champions, Chelsea, fall three points behind United in third after a hard-fought draw at Anfield. Mohamed Salah became the Premier League’s top marksman after opening the scoring in the 65th minute, for his tenth goal of the season. Willian arose from the bench to score a fortunate cross-come-shot in the 85th minute to salvage a point.
Spurs dropped to fifth as their stuttering league form continued with a 1-1 draw at home to managerless West Brom. Salomón Rondon brushed Davinson Sanchez off like a tired whore to open the scoring in the fourth minute. Harry Kane put away a Dele Alli cross to level things in the 74th minute (his 40th goal of 2017). And Rondon failed to convert from seven yards when a winner seemed as inevitable as West Brom’s return to the Championship.
Spurs’ failure to beat the Baggies allowed arch-rivals Arsenal to move above them with a controversial away win at Burnley. As seems to be the norm when these two sides meet, Arsène Wenger’s side snatched the three points with a last-gasp goal coated in controversy when Laurent Koscielny’s winner hit his elbow before nestling in the back of the net.
Southampton 4 v 1 Everton
Everton continues to look like a team that’s been sleeping in an unlocked car after a crushing defeat against Southampton at St Mary’s. And it’s a very nice car, one of the best, after Everton spent a club record £140m on transfers in the summer.
The club is fast becoming the joke of the season. All bone, no muscle. And Everton’s stand-in coach told reporters after the game that Everton’s recent form is killing me (Joey Barton thinks it’s the pies).
The Toffees have only won once in seven games since Unsworth took temporary charge, and the hammering by the Saints comes days after losing 5-1 to Atalanta in the Europa League.
Everton’s woes seem even more compelling when you consider that before this match, Southampton’s frontline had only scored six goals at home all season. Dusan Tadic and Steven Davis scored either side of a Charlie Austin brace. Gylffi Sigurdsson scored for Everton, his first since joining the club for a club record £45m.
Everton lies two points off the relegation zone, but the bookmakers believe they have enough talent to stave off relegation, making them a 7/1 shot for a shock exit.
With Swansea, West Ham, and West Brom each collecting a point this weekend, it allowed Crystal Palace to claw some ground back with a 2-1 win over Stoke. Mark Hughes’s side is only three points off the bottom three. The bookies have them as a 9/2 shot to go down, the same as Newcastle, who Watford thumped 3-0 at St James Park.
Results in Full
Man Utd 1 v 0 Brighton
Crystal Palace 2 v 1 Stoke
Liverpool 1 v 1 Chelsea
Southampton 4 v 1 Everton
Burnley 0 v 1 Arsenal
Huddersfield 1 v 2 Man City
Newcastle 0 v 3 Watford
Swansea 0 v 0 Bournemouth
Spurs 1 v 1 West Brom
West Ham 1 v 1 Leicester
Premier League Table
1. Man City – 37
2. Man Utd – 29
3. Chelsea – 26
4. Arsenal – 25
5. Spurs – 24
6. Liverpool – 23
7. Burnley – 22
8. Watford – 21
9. Brighton – 16
10. Southampton – 16
11. Huddersfield – 15
12. Leicester – 14
13. Bournemouth – 14
14. Newcastle – 14
15. Stoke – 13
16. Everton – 12
17. West Brom – 11
18. West Ham – 10
19. Swansea – 9
20. Crystal Palace – 8
Premier League Winning Odds (Courtesy of Bodog)
Man City 1/10
Man Utd 14/1
Chelsea 22/1
Spurs 50/1
