The Premier League never fails to surprise us and this weekend was no different. At the top end of the table, City dropped more points, Arsenal coolly defeated Brighton, Aston Villa beat Brentford narrowly, and Liverpool played out a 0-0 at Anfield against a stubborn Manchester United. At the end of week, Arsenal lead the table but they play a big match against Liverpool next week between 1st and 2nd.
The main point of Saturday was Man City dropping more points at home against Crystal Palace. They were in control for most of the game and held a 2-0 lead until late in the game. Palace scored once in the 76th minute through Mateta and then Olise equalized with a 95th minute penalty. City haven’t been as intimidating to teams this season and what looked like a comfortable 3 points turned into a 1 point afternoon. City haven’t been as intimidating this season and they haven’t stretched defenses as much. The good news for them is that Kevin De Brunye will be back for them in the New Year and he is a fantastic midfielder who can infuse spark into Pep’s team.
The next big game involving a top team was Arsenal vs Brighton. I thought Arsenal played a great game and they limited Brighton’s chances. They didn’t rush anything and were very patient. The player which could be the difference in winning the title and not is Declan Rice. He is perfect in central midfield and this is what they were missing last year. He’s scored 2 game winning goals and his experience has Arsenal at the top of the table. It was a strong performance at home but next week is the real test as they go to Anfield to play 2nd place Liverpool.
The big game of the weekend was Liverpool vs Manchester United and there were no goals, surprisingly. It was all Liverpool throughout the game but the United were firm and very resilient. The Red Devils didn’t provide much threat from the attacking front but they defended very bravely. Liverpool had a lot of chances but they couldn’t put the ball into the net. It was a slow game and Ten Hag’s team did a fantastic job of silencing Anfield. The thing that concerned me was United’s lack of forward play. They posed little danger and the forwards did absolutely nothing. Antony had a mediocre game and it just shows how much recruitment matters. He was bought for 100 million while Doku and Kudus were both bought for much cheaper. Both Doku and Kudus are performing well while Antony is struggling mightily to be involved in goals. United needs an offensive spark and so far, no one is doing that.
The season is almost halfway over and it’s a tight title race. One point separates 1st from 3rd and there’ll be a lot of more matches in this fixture heavy December. Can Manchester City get back to their formidable self? What will happen between Arsenal and Liverpool next weekend? Will Aston Villa continue their fairytale run?
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