1. Norwich-Liverpool epitomises best & worst of Premier League
IT’S GENERALLY AGREED that, so far, it has been one of the best Premier League seasons ever in terms of entertainment. On the other hand, it has arguably been one of the worst campaigns with regards to quality.
Granted, the league is now more evenly balanced, with most of the traditionally ‘weaker’ teams stronger than ever, however it’s hard to argue the case that any current team is truly top-class, or even close to the level of the holy European triumvirate of Bayern, Barca and Real.
Yesterday’s Norwich-Liverpool match was so exciting that it was somewhat reminiscent of the famous 4-3 classic involving Newcastle and the Anfield outfir in the 1995-96 campaign, albeit without that game’s symbolic significance and importance.
And while Saturday’s match undoubtedly contained moments of attacking brilliance, it also featured the kind of defensive mishaps and basic errors that would make schoolboy footballers blush — a perfect encapsulation of the current state of Premier League football in more ways than one.
It’s therefore no surprise that both managers were heavily critical of their sides after the game, and Norwich in particular may struggle to get over the psychological blow of losing this nine-goal thriller, as they bid to avoid relegation amid their first season back in the top flight.
2. Leicester starting to look odds-on for top four
Before Saturday, Leicester were showing signs of nervous uncertainty recently, having won just one of their previous five Premier League matches.
Moreover, key attacking duo Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez, both of whom are largely responsible for Leicester’s current position at the summit of the Premier League having scored 29 of the club’s 42 goals this season, had not been on target in any of the games during the aforementioned indifferent run of form.
Therefore, Saturday’s 3-0 win over Stoke had greater significance attached to it than a simple three points. Boss Claudio Ranieri will be particularly pleased that Vardy scored, while Mahrez once again looked close to his influential best, showing sublime skills to outfox his man and cross for Leonardo Ulloa’s goal.
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The win means the Foxes are now three points clear at the top of the table with 15 games to play — a situation no critic could have predicted with a straight face at the start of the campaign.
Perhaps more importantly, Leicester are 10 points clear of fifth-placed Man United, with a top-four spot now looking more achievable than ever.
At this stage of the season, this improbable situation cannot be dismissed as pure luck — Ranieri’s men are top of the table on merit, and so it’s about time the rest of the league starts showing them a bit more respect and sets up to combat their unorthodox but hugely effective high-intensity style of play, rather than complacently assuming they can outplay them regardless.
3. Alli & Kane will win Tottenham games but their defence could win them titles
Dele Alli celebrates after the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Tottenham Hotspur. AP / Press Association Images
AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images
Tottenham’s Harry Kane and Dele Alli are rightly getting plenty of headlines right now. Alli, in particular, at just 19, has been an unexpected sensation this season, as epitomised by his goal-of-the-season contender in yesterday’s 3-1 win at Crystal Palace.
The man signed from MK Dons an initial fee of £5 million (€6.6 million) is a phenomenal athlete, boasting a box-to-box style and striker-esque finishing ability that’s genuinely reminiscent of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard in their younger days.
Kane, meanwhile, continues to impress, as he showed his predatory instincts with a bullet header to get Tottenham’s equaliser — the England international’s sixth goal in nine games and 18th of the season in all competitions.
But just as deserving of praise is Tottenham’s defence — statistically the best in the league having let in just 19 goals all season. Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld have been a revelation as a central pairing, while Eric Dier — previously deployed more regularly in defence until this season — has been similarly exceptional in the holding midfield role.
4. Dimitri Payet good enough to play for any Premier League team
With Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva, Yaya Toure and Sergio Aguero in their side, Man City took the field with some of the best attacking players in the Premier League at Upton Park in the late kick-off yesterday. Yet West Ham’s Dimitri Payet did not look at all out of place in the company of those illustrious names.
Bought from Marseille in the summer for a figure believed to be in the region of £10.7million (€14.1 million), Payet has been arguably the signing of the season, and last night, he showed why.
The 28-year-old French international at times looked as if he was toying with City’s expensively assembled side, forcing a superb save from Joe Hart and generally running the game in midfield.
If West Ham’s unlikely top-four bid is to persist, Payet will be integral to their hopes, and if the elegant ex-Lille man was five years younger, all of Europe’s top clubs would surely be targeting him right now.
5. Are United’s problems under Louis van Gaal now irreparable?
Despite certain critics, most notably Paul Scholes, suggesting there have been signs of improvement in United’s play of late, there was an overwhelming sense of deja vu at Old Trafford yesterday amid a desperate 1-0 loss to Southampton.
The Red Devils scarcely created a chance of note for the entire 90 minutes against Ronald Koeman’s disciplined outfit, and managed to get just one of their eight shots on target.
United are beginning to look a parody of themselves, as they have now failed to score a first-half home goal in 11 consecutive matches — their last one coming on 30 September against Wolfsburg in the Champions League.
There’s an element of desperation that did not solely extend to dreadful defending, as an unmarked Charlie Austin headed home a late winner from a set piece with his first touch, after coming on, to exacerbate the increasingly disillusioned home crowd’s misery.
The arrival off the bench of Adnan Januzaj, after 86 minutes, was particularly striking. The 20-year-old Belgian international, who was ostensibly deemed surplus to requirements by Van Gaal at the start of the season and whose loan spell at Borussia Dortmund has since failed, was now being asked to bail out the veteran Dutch coach who had brazenly cast him aside back in August.
There was an element of ‘last chance saloon’ about the Januzaj substitution, and with United’s attacking problems more pronounced than ever despite the £300 million-plus spent and countless formations attempted, it begs the question: can Van Gaal take or develop this team any further?
Norwich-Liverpool epitomises best & worst of Premier League plus more talking points
1. Norwich-Liverpool epitomises best & worst of Premier League
IT’S GENERALLY AGREED that, so far, it has been one of the best Premier League seasons ever in terms of entertainment. On the other hand, it has arguably been one of the worst campaigns with regards to quality.
Granted, the league is now more evenly balanced, with most of the traditionally ‘weaker’ teams stronger than ever, however it’s hard to argue the case that any current team is truly top-class, or even close to the level of the holy European triumvirate of Bayern, Barca and Real.
Yesterday’s Norwich-Liverpool match was so exciting that it was somewhat reminiscent of the famous 4-3 classic involving Newcastle and the Anfield outfir in the 1995-96 campaign, albeit without that game’s symbolic significance and importance.
And while Saturday’s match undoubtedly contained moments of attacking brilliance, it also featured the kind of defensive mishaps and basic errors that would make schoolboy footballers blush — a perfect encapsulation of the current state of Premier League football in more ways than one.
It’s therefore no surprise that both managers were heavily critical of their sides after the game, and Norwich in particular may struggle to get over the psychological blow of losing this nine-goal thriller, as they bid to avoid relegation amid their first season back in the top flight.
2. Leicester starting to look odds-on for top four
Before Saturday, Leicester were showing signs of nervous uncertainty recently, having won just one of their previous five Premier League matches.
Moreover, key attacking duo Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez, both of whom are largely responsible for Leicester’s current position at the summit of the Premier League having scored 29 of the club’s 42 goals this season, had not been on target in any of the games during the aforementioned indifferent run of form.
Therefore, Saturday’s 3-0 win over Stoke had greater significance attached to it than a simple three points. Boss Claudio Ranieri will be particularly pleased that Vardy scored, while Mahrez once again looked close to his influential best, showing sublime skills to outfox his man and cross for Leonardo Ulloa’s goal.
The win means the Foxes are now three points clear at the top of the table with 15 games to play — a situation no critic could have predicted with a straight face at the start of the campaign.
Perhaps more importantly, Leicester are 10 points clear of fifth-placed Man United, with a top-four spot now looking more achievable than ever.
At this stage of the season, this improbable situation cannot be dismissed as pure luck — Ranieri’s men are top of the table on merit, and so it’s about time the rest of the league starts showing them a bit more respect and sets up to combat their unorthodox but hugely effective high-intensity style of play, rather than complacently assuming they can outplay them regardless.
3. Alli & Kane will win Tottenham games but their defence could win them titles
Tottenham’s Harry Kane and Dele Alli are rightly getting plenty of headlines right now. Alli, in particular, at just 19, has been an unexpected sensation this season, as epitomised by his goal-of-the-season contender in yesterday’s 3-1 win at Crystal Palace.
The man signed from MK Dons an initial fee of £5 million (€6.6 million) is a phenomenal athlete, boasting a box-to-box style and striker-esque finishing ability that’s genuinely reminiscent of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard in their younger days.
Kane, meanwhile, continues to impress, as he showed his predatory instincts with a bullet header to get Tottenham’s equaliser — the England international’s sixth goal in nine games and 18th of the season in all competitions.
But just as deserving of praise is Tottenham’s defence — statistically the best in the league having let in just 19 goals all season. Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld have been a revelation as a central pairing, while Eric Dier — previously deployed more regularly in defence until this season — has been similarly exceptional in the holding midfield role.
4. Dimitri Payet good enough to play for any Premier League team
With Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva, Yaya Toure and Sergio Aguero in their side, Man City took the field with some of the best attacking players in the Premier League at Upton Park in the late kick-off yesterday. Yet West Ham’s Dimitri Payet did not look at all out of place in the company of those illustrious names.
Bought from Marseille in the summer for a figure believed to be in the region of £10.7million (€14.1 million), Payet has been arguably the signing of the season, and last night, he showed why.
The 28-year-old French international at times looked as if he was toying with City’s expensively assembled side, forcing a superb save from Joe Hart and generally running the game in midfield.
If West Ham’s unlikely top-four bid is to persist, Payet will be integral to their hopes, and if the elegant ex-Lille man was five years younger, all of Europe’s top clubs would surely be targeting him right now.
5. Are United’s problems under Louis van Gaal now irreparable?
Despite certain critics, most notably Paul Scholes, suggesting there have been signs of improvement in United’s play of late, there was an overwhelming sense of deja vu at Old Trafford yesterday amid a desperate 1-0 loss to Southampton.
The Red Devils scarcely created a chance of note for the entire 90 minutes against Ronald Koeman’s disciplined outfit, and managed to get just one of their eight shots on target.
United are beginning to look a parody of themselves, as they have now failed to score a first-half home goal in 11 consecutive matches — their last one coming on 30 September against Wolfsburg in the Champions League.
There’s an element of desperation that did not solely extend to dreadful defending, as an unmarked Charlie Austin headed home a late winner from a set piece with his first touch, after coming on, to exacerbate the increasingly disillusioned home crowd’s misery.
The arrival off the bench of Adnan Januzaj, after 86 minutes, was particularly striking. The 20-year-old Belgian international, who was ostensibly deemed surplus to requirements by Van Gaal at the start of the season and whose loan spell at Borussia Dortmund has since failed, was now being asked to bail out the veteran Dutch coach who had brazenly cast him aside back in August.
There was an element of ‘last chance saloon’ about the Januzaj substitution, and with United’s attacking problems more pronounced than ever despite the £300 million-plus spent and countless formations attempted, it begs the question: can Van Gaal take or develop this team any further?
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Analysis Dimitri Payet Louis van Gaal Talking Points Liverpool Manchester United Norwich City Southampton