The Premier League Gameweek-14 concluded with two matches stealing the spotlight. The reigning champions, Liverpool, and Manchester United finally got their much-awaited comeback. They won their respective games scoring the exact goals they had conceded in Matchweek-4.
On the other side of the table, Arsenal’s struggle continues as they lost 2-1 against Everton.
THE PREMIER LEAGUE CONTENDERS:
Crystal Palace 0-7 Liverpool:
Liverpool hammered Crystal Palace on their own turf, Selhurst Park.
Takumi Minamino, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah, and Jordan Henderson were all on the scoresheet, with Bobby and Salah scoring a brace. Liverpool is now 5 points clear of 2nd and will be entering the boxing day as the League leaders.
Crystal Palace, on the other hand, can only recover from this hammering as they visit Aston Villa next week, who scored the same against Liverpool.
Salah scored two goals in the final minutes to take his tally to 13 league goals, now leads Premier League Golden Boot race comfortably.
Southampton 0-1 Manchester City:
Manchester City continues their unbeaten run to 8 games as they defeated resurgent Southampton in an evenly distributed match. Pep Guardiola’s team kept yet another clean sheet.
Raheem Sterling scored the only goal early on when he fired De Bruyne’s cross. Both the goalkeepers made exceptional saves to keep both their teams in the game. Southampton had a great chance to equalise, but Che Adams shot was missed from close range.
City are currently 8th with a game in hand.
Tottenham 0-2 Leicester City:
Jose Mourinho’s side was handed their 2nd defeat in a row as they lost 0-2 to Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester City.
A penalty from Jamie Vardy and an own goal from Toby Alderwiereld was enough for the Foxes as they move up to 2nd which was once Tottenham Hotspur’s 2 weeks ago.
They are currently 6th with 2 points behind Leicester.
Manchester United 6-2 Leeds United:
The great rivalry was resumed after 17 years and it was not too welcoming for Leeds. Manchester United was firing all out as they scored 6.
Scott McTominay became the first player to score 2 goals in the starting 3 minutes. Bruno Fernandes did what he always does best by scoring 2 and assisting a goal. Daniel James and Victor Lindelof were also on the scoresheet. Marcelo Bielsa’s side scored 2 consolation goals.
United now rise up to 3rd with a game in hand.
Chelsea 3-0 West Ham:
Chelsea has found back their winning ways as they defeated West Ham after losing 2 games in a row.
The 36-year-old defender, Thiago Silva, scored the opener for the Blues with a powerful header. After that, the Blues had to wait till the end to wrap the game, when Tammy Abraham scored a brace with 101 seconds separating them.
Chelsea’s win sees them gain back points and close the gap with the top-4. However, West Ham has dropped to 10th place.
THE UNEXPECTED ONES:
Everton 2-1 Arsenal:
How the mighty have fallen! Arsenal who were the title contenders once upon a time is now fighting for a place in the Premier League.
Everton registered their 3rd win in a row to rise up and are now 4th. Yerry Mina’s header cancelled out the Gunner’s equaliser and that remained the same till the final whistle.
Arsenal are now just 4 points away from the relegation zone.
Burnley 2-1 Wolves:
Wolverhampton Wanderers are not in their best form, but they should have clawed out a win as the were facing a relegation zone team.
Both Burnley’s strikers scored in each half to secure the win. For Wolves, Fabio Silva scored the consolation goal from the penalty spot along with becoming the youngest player to score for Wolves.
Nuno Espirito Santo was blaming the official for improper refereeing. Wolves are placed 14th with 20 points.
West Brom 0-3 Aston Villa:
Sam Allardyce’s first match as the Baggies manager began with the defeat against a high flying Aston Villa.
The game was completely dominated by the Villans as their opponent only registered 1 shot on goal.
With this win, the dream run continues for Aston Villa who is currently 9th with 2 games in hand and the top-4 clearly in sight. West Brom on the other hand is 2nd from the bottom with 7 points.
RELEGATION-ZONE BOUND:
Newcastle United 1-1 Fulham:
Fulham was close to a narrow win when a needless challenge was made by Joachim Andersen who saw red and giving away the penalty in the process.
Newcastle United remain in the mid-table with Fulham trying their best to move up.
Brighton & Hove Albion 1-1 Sheffield United:
Sheffield United was really close to registering the first win of their hard-luck campaign, but those dreams were broken when Danny Welbeck equalised in the 87th minute.
Graham Potter must be wondering how his team failed to win the game. They had more than 70% of the possession and the Blades were down to 10 men in the 40th minute.
In addition to the draw, Sheffield United registered their 2nd point of the game and remain well seated at the bottom. The Seagulls are 2 points above relegation.
In conclusion, the Premier League is getting more and more exciting with no clear leaders visible now. Around 10 teams are neck to neck and one slip-up will cost them dearly. With Boxing day coming up, we will see who will be ending the year on a high.
Premier League Team and Player of the Week.
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