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Could Cavani be the first choice soon?
Edinson Cavani has yet to start in just one Premier League game: Manchester United’s 3-1 win over West Ham when he was hooked at halftime with the team one goal less. But after his last impact off the bench in the 2-2 draw at Leicester, the case for the Uruguayan forward to be entrusted with a bigger role in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side is growing.
“He made an immediate impact with a great pass,” Solskjaer said afterward. He arrived within minutes of his introduction as a substitute in the second half, kicking the ball over to Bruno Fernandes. He would have been the winner had it not been for Axel Tuanzebe’s own goal.
Cavani’s contribution was in stark contrast to that of Anthony Martial, whose nine Premier League starts so far this season have given up just one goal, against Sheffield United. If both are fit, is there reason to go with the most experienced man, the most natural striker?
Solskjaer is willing to be patient. “Edinson has been out injured for a while,” he explained. “He played a full game, a physically demanding game for him against Everton on Wednesday night, so we decided to have him on the bench.
“It will have to be like that with him for a while as he gets used to English football, and also to the demands of this season, because he is very starting with a game every three days. He made a big impact today.”
Cavani only signed a one-year deal but, even at the age of 33, there are signs that Manchester United could put his talents to use beyond the end of this season.
Adam Bate
City building momentum, but next triple headline is key
There won’t be many more comfortable 2-0 wins this season than Manchester City’s efficient dispatch of Newcastle.
With a storm blowing, no strikers started for the hosts at the Etihad, and there was always that air of unpredictability about results on Boxing Day, Pep Guardiola looked a bit nervous in the first half. You shouldn’t have worried.
City were in cruise control when Ferran Torres went to make it 2-0 in the 55th minute and their defense, which racked up its 13th clean sheet in all competitions this season, the best tally in Europe, rarely struggled.
Guardiola’s team is beginning to find its form and with Sergio Agüero gaining a few more minutes from the bench as he regains all his strength, City’s charge seems to be starting to pick up steam. And it should be so, with a key series of games on the way.
Next up for City are Premier League trips to Everton (Monday) and Chelsea (next Sunday), followed by a Carabao Cup semi-final at Manchester United on January 6. It is a crucial triple game.
City will be the big favorites to win their next five in the league, against Brighton, Crystal Palace, West Brom, Sheffield United and Burnley, before taking on Liverpool at Anfield on 6 February.
So if they can score three wins they will be in a cup final and well positioned to face that game with Liverpool in a long winning streak. Have City returned to the level where they are once again Liverpool’s strongest rival? We will have a clear idea in about 11 days …
Peter smith
Villa still flying without Mings
Not showing emotions on the soccer field can be a key weapon. Leeds United is the master at this, every time a goal or big decision comes in against them, their focus doesn’t change. Aston Villa also appears to possess the same psychological mental toughness, as Dean Smith’s team continued their charge towards the top end of the Premier League.
When Tyrone Mings was fired with Villa 1-0 in good hands and in control of the game, they could have panicked. But they remained confident and played very smart on the counterattack against a predictable Palace team that froze when tasked with destroying this Villa team.
Ollie Watkins provided his platform to play with tireless display, but at the other end, Matt Targett was the featured player as part of Villa’s poor defense. They have now kept eight clean sheets in the Premier League this season, more than any other team, while their streak of four shutouts in a row is the best in the competition since February 2010.
No player made more tackles in this game than Targett’s six, as Palace found absolutely no route to goal from his side. This performance was another sign from Villa that they are a force to be reckoned with.
Lewis jones
Chelsea – Ever challengers, now suitors?
The stage was set for Frank Lampard and Chelsea, and the task on their Boxing Day journey through the capital to Arsenal seemed straightforward.
The prize for extending Arsenal’s miserable winless streak to eight games was emerging as the main rivals for leader Liverpool’s crown in the Premier League. What happened was an alarmingly abject performance that shook Chelsea’s title credentials to the core.
In hindsight, Lampard’s insistence on downplaying Chelsea’s title chances was as accurate as the bolt of a Granit Xhaka free kick or Bukayo Saka’s glittering balloon that led Arsenal to an impregnable three-goal lead in the Emirates.
But while the Chelsea manager was in the best position to make such an assessment of his team, his third consecutive loss on the road has brought clarity to outsiders.
Chelsea’s unprecedented summer splurge on the transfer market and its ensuing spells of brilliance convinced many that they could compete at the top, but as long as a performance like that at Arsenal remains in their system, it will remain an off-target target. its scope.
Jack Wilkinson
Young gunners invigorate the Arteta project
Out with the old, in with the new?
Alexandre Lacazette, Granit Xhaka and Bernd Leno with a late penalty save ensured that the end-of-the-year mantra didn’t quite fit in with Arsenal’s big Boxing Day win over Chelsea, but their landslide victory over their London rivals. It was fueled by an injection of youth.
After no Premier League win in seven and a defeat in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals just days before Christmas, Arsenal were on their knees as Chelsea traveled to the Emirates.
The defeat would have put pressure on boss Mikel Arteta and left the Gunners staggering dangerously above the relegation zone.
But step forward Emile Smith Rowe, 20, and Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka, 19. The young Gunners took up the challenge, and more importantly, they dragged their teammates with them.
The toothless and injured Arsenal that we have become familiar with in recent months was revitalized by these three talented and energetic players who make the future at the Emirates look much brighter than it did before Christmas.
Peter smith
Everton showing their steel with another win
Everton surprised everyone with their undefeated start to the season. In the Premier League, they won their first four matches before a draw against Liverpool in the Merseyside derby. After a bump in form, I have once again won four in a row, the last one against Sheffield United.
At the beginning of the season, Everton scored many goals but also filtered them behind. Now the defense has hardened considerably, having conceded just twice in their last five games and keeping three clean sheets. Only one of his victories has been by more than one goal.
Have we seen Everton play better? Absolutely. But at Steel City, they showed that to overcome a Sheffield United that did their best for vital points but continues to fight up front. Everton just had that extra slice of quality, even without attacking stars Richarlison and James Rodriguez.
Such is the nature of this year’s Premier League, Everton have moved from the middle of the table to second place, behind local rivals Liverpool by just two points. Carlo Ancelotti has insisted his goal remains European football rather than a title race, but Everton are certainly spoiling the party.
Charlotte Marsh
Salisu still dark in Southampton
Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl said he could “live with the point” after a 0-0 draw with Fulham in which his team had just three shots, the fewest in a single Premier League game since Opta began collecting this data in 2003-04.
The visitors were turned off by two marginal offside decisions, as Shane Long and Theo Walcott’s spikes were correctly marked in chalk, but Hasenhuttl will be very encouraged in his team’s defensive display in the absence of the injured Jannik Vestergaard and the suspended Oriol Romeu.
The Austrian opted to line up Jack Stephens instead of the Danish defender, meaning that summer signing Mohammed Salisu was again an unused substitute. Since his £ 10.9 million arrival from Real Valladolid, Salisu has yet to play a single minute and Hasenhuttl has opted to stick with an established starting XI whenever possible.
Hasenhuttl has described the Ghanaian as the future of Southampton, insisting that his appearance in the first team will take time, but it is curious that he is currently the fourth option.
Jan Bednarek and Jack Stephens did well to keep Fulham at bay, and the FA Cup home tie with Shrewsbury on 9 January should offer Salisu the perfect opportunity to make his late debut.
But with Vestergaard expected to be out for at least a month, Hasenhuttl is happy to go with league experience for now.
Ben grounds
Lookman returns to impress in Parker’s absence
Fulham have not conceded for 450 minutes in open play and it is a sign of their progress that assistant coach Stuart Gray revealed a disappointing locker room after the goalless draw with Southampton. The visitors to Craven Cottage were looking for a 10th consecutive win against a newly promoted team, and while Fulham were lucky at times, this was a fair result.
Only Manchester United (36) have taken more points from the Premier League than Southampton (30) in 2020, but they were limited to just three attempts all afternoon. Teams now have to think much more about how to stop Fulham instead of focusing on their own game.
Scott Parker will return for Wednesday’s trip to Tottenham after being forced into isolation, but will have been impressed by the continued threat from Ademola Lookman. The 23-year-old was involved in half of Fulham’s 10 shots against the Saints, taking two attempts and creating another three for his teammates, and Southampton frequently doubled him off the ball as they struggled to a point.
Too often, the last ball left Fulham, and Kyle Walker-Peters was excellent at nullifying Lookman’s threat. But having now matched the same number of clean sheets at home as achieved throughout the 2018-19 season, Parker’s return comes with his team’s momentum intact.
Ben grounds
Source: m.allfootballapp.com
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