The Premier League returns to action with a tasty top four matchup as league leading Liverpool hosts a dangerous Chelsea side at Anfield. Liverpool has won six of seven matches, three in succession after a shocking home defeat against Nottingham Forest back in mid-September. Chelsea, meanwhile, is undefeated since an opening week loss to Manchester City and the Blues are currently in fourth position in the table by virtue of goal differential over Aston Villa. Sunday’s contest, in a sense, will represent an irresistible force colliding with an immovable object. Only Manchester City has scored more goals than Chelsea. No club has conceded fewer times than the measly two goals allowed by Liverpool this season. The Reds will be missing goalkeeper Allison who is out with a hamstring issue, but deputy keeper Caoimhin Kelleher has performed admirably when called upon in the past. Chelsea’s defense will be without suspended players Wesley Fofana and Marc Cucurella though perennially injured Reese James is rumored to potentially be experiencing one of his infrequent spells of fitness. The match at Anfield marks the initial meeting between first time Premier League managers Arne Slot and Enzo Maresca.
Liverpool 🆚 Chelsea
— Premier League USA (@PLinUSA) October 17, 2024
The league's No. 1 defense 🆚 No. 2 attack
Who's winning the chess match on Sunday? ♟️ pic.twitter.com/iRd9x3VMnN
Another new manager experiencing success to date is Brighton’s Fabian Hurzeler. The 31-year-old manager, the youngest in Premier League history, has the Seagulls in sixth place based on a current goal differential advantage over Newcastle. That margin will be put to the test on Saturday when the Seagulls visit St. James’s Park to face the Magpies. Newcastle has been hamstrung in recent matches by injuries to strikers Alexander Isak and Callum Wilson, forcing Manager Eddie Howe to employ winger Anthony Gordon in an unaccustomed tip of the spear role. Isak could be available this week while Wilson is a lesser possibility.
Arsenal appears to have dodged a bullet with Manager Mikel Arteta indicating that Bukayo Saka’s injury sustained on international duty is not serious and the winger is tracking toward being available for the Gunners’ match with Bournemouth. Arteta’s side is already playing without the services of injured captain Martin Odegaard who is getting closer but will not make it for the bout with the Cherries. Bournemouth has lost three of four matches, scoring just once during a dismal run.
No club has been as dismal as Wolverhampton, however. Wolves has lost four in a row and six of its seven matches so far. Already allowing three goals per match, Manager Gary O’Neil’s club now must face Manchester City, which leads the league in goals. Good luck.
A loss at the Etihad just before the break snapped a five-game unbeaten run for Fulham. The Cottagers are back home this weekend to host Aston Villa. Eighth place Fulham is only three points back of the visiting Villans who are level on points with fourth place Chelsea. The Cottagers have played well at home this season, but this has not been a good match-up for them in the past as Aston Villa have won five of the last six meetings between the teams.
Elsewhere in London, Tottenham Hotspur will be hosting a derby with West Ham. Spurs squandered a two goal lead in a brutal loss at Brighton before the break. West Ham entered the break in a much more positive mindset, having seemingly found their missing attack in a 4-1 pounding of Ipswich Town which marked Manager Julen Lopetegui’s first win at London Stadium.
Ipswich will be engaged in a relegation rumble at Portman Road with visiting Everton on Saturday. The Tactor Boys are just a point above the relegation line, one point behind 16th place Everton. Ipswich had drawn four consecutive matches before being blown out by the Hammers before the break. Calls for the sacking of Everton Manager Sean Dyche have died down a bit after the Toffees captured all five of their season to date points in their final three matches before the break.
Another manager, however, could surprisingly be in trouble. No one expected to be talking about the job security of Crystal Palace Manager Oliver Glasner after the Eagles finished last season strongly after the Austrian’s February appointment. Palace is a disaster so far this season, however, with the Eagles winless and sitting in the dreaded relegation zone after seven matches. David Moyes has been rumored as a possible Glasner replacement as the Eagles prepare to face Nottingham Forest. Nuno Espirito Santo, on the other hand, entered the season on a short leash but has the Tricky Trees in the top half of the table with just a single loss on their resume. Santo will miss Monday’s match at the City Ground due to his disciplinary suspension dating to a volatile moment at Brighton some weeks ago.
Leicester leads the three newly promoted sides with six points to date as former Nottingham Forest Manager Steve Cooper tries to win over the supporters of his new club. A win Saturday at relegation bound Southampton is essential toward that end for Cooper.
And then there is the case of Manchester United. Embattled manager Eric ten Hag drags his 14th place squad to Brentford for a matchup with the Bees on Saturday. The Dutch manager told the media this week that they are “creating fairytales” and “bringing lies” by suggesting his job may not be secure. The reality is that ten Hag guided the team to its worst ever Premier League performance last season and this is the worst start to a season after seven matches in the club’s history. The proud franchise is currently among the bottom three clubs in goal production. A loss to the industrious Bees, currently three places above United in the Premier League table, would surprise no one. Ten Hag chalking it off as no big deal would be no surprise either.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please leave a comment: