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Manchester City picked up another victory to maintain their dominance of the Premier League title race, but pursuers Manchester United and Leicester City scored important victories to improve their top four on Sunday.
Guardiola delights with the victory over Arsenal
So much has been written about the style in which Pep Guardiola’s teams play football, but his 1-0 win at Arsenal Sunday was a master class in the art of keeping opponents away from their own goal.
It was his thirteenth consecutive Premier League victory and the 10th clean sheet in that streak, and Guardiola got lyrical about veteran defensive midfielder Fernandino, whose match art helps make City such a difficult team to pressure.
“He knows exactly what he has to do and yes, what game he played today in such a tough game,” said the Spaniard. “I am more than happy to win 1-0.”
Mou will save Bale for the Europa League
José Mourinho has a dilemma: Gareth Bale’s performance in the second half of Sunday’s 2-1 loss to West Ham United was at times majestic and showed why fans are demanding that the Welshman start Premier League matches.
After a fifth loss in six league games left Tottenham in ninth place, nine points out of the top four, Mourinho suggested that his best route to next season’s Champions League might be to win the Europa League.
Bale has participated regularly in that competition since his loan from Real Madrid and with Mourinho says he still has a hard time playing games in a row He might feel that saving Bale for the Europa League would make more sense than flogging him in an increasingly desperate Premier League cause.
Tuchel upset over Chelsea’s lack of bite
Chelsea manager Thomas tuchel he jumped in frustration on the touchline during Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Southampton when his team once again failed to turn his dominance of the ball into clear opportunities.
Low german, Chelsea have scored eight goals in six league games, enough to win four and draw two, but not the expected return from a beefed up team with 200 million pounds ($ 280.28 million) in signings, including forward Timo Werner.
Of those six games five were against teams that currently sit in the bottom half of the table.
Tuchel hasn’t been able to count on the creativity of playmakers Christian Pulisic and Hakim Ziyech for much of his time at Stamford Bridge as they have struggled with injuries.
But he exposed his frustrations on Saturday by replacing Callum Hudson-Odoi half an hour after bringing in the English winger as a substitute, proof that he will be a tough foreman.
Liverpool targets the top four
Liverpool started the season with staunch league winners Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez in central defense, but Juergen Klopp now faces the prospect of playing relatively unheard of in Ozan Kabak and Nat Phillips for the foreseeable future.
Playing Fabinho and Jordan Henderson while makeshift defenders failed, with Liverpool losing their midfield screen, and injuries to both meant the champions have now deployed 18 different pairs of central defenders this season.
Schalke loan officer Kabak has jumped from the pan that is the Bundesliga into the fire that is the hustle and bustle of the Premier League with no time to settle, playing alongside Phillips, who has only appeared eight times with Liverpool.
How Everton ended a 22-year curse and scored more goals at Anfield in a 2-0 win than Liverpool in five games in 2021January’s league leaders fell to sixth place, five points behind West Ham United’s surprise package in fourth.
Villa lacks advantage without Grealish
Jack Grealish’s courage to Aston Villa was proven when, without him, they fell in a 2-1 loss to Leicester City.
Grealish was removed from the team before Sunday’s clash after complaining of a leg injury during the week, and Villa struggled to find a creative spark in his absence.
Grealish’s ability to wander between the lines and going out on the wing to pick up the ball and wreak havoc has seen it heavily marked in recent games, and manager Dean Smith hopes the injury isn’t serious.
Source: m.allfootballapp.com
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