EPL Game Week 7

As far back as two seasons ago, I mentioned that Man Utd were in relative decline but few people believed me as they were still in euphoria. The Golden Generation of the Neville brothers, Butt, Scholes, Beckham, Giggs were gone and replacements that came in were not equal in quality. They still won last year as the other teams were also not as good. 

Poor David Moyes has succeeded finally to get Everton above Man Utd. Some people may blame Moyes but it is certainly not his fault as he inherited the squad. Bosses can be biased too as in the case of Daniel Sturridge who never got his chance to really shine at Chelsea until Liverpool came along. Now he is a star. Juan Mata is not a policeman but he was Chelsea's best player and has been largely sitting on the bench this season. Meantime, Romelu Lukakau who shone brilliantly on loan to WBA previously was discarded once again and on loan to Everton now. 

There is something about Sir Alex Ferguson that I like. He can be angry in the heat of the moment but he always gave credit when it is due. He acknowledged that "Beckham's unbelievable, good and well done to him. You can't argue with the status he has in life. Amazing boy, yeah, I mean how has he created himself. He's fantastic. Wonderful boy." Then there was the time when Arsenal wasn't doing as well and they were calling for Wenger's blood and yet Sir Alex defended him. That is the magnitude of a great man.

Fortunes are changing all the time. Now Arsene Wenger feels like Arsenal was named after him again. He was much in the doldrums in the last couple of seasons and even after the opening match this season, now he is the best! The Gunners could do not wrong sweeping all asunder. 10 wins in a row. How will this weekend's matches be like after European nights in mid-week? Soccer is just as in life. Sometimes you need a bit of luck. Watch:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nl4AwJBOG-g

Man City v Everton - This is not a good time for City to play Everton. Pelligrini is not having an easy task to mould the team. They were so good in their 4-1 win over Utd, thrahed Wigan 5-0 in the Cup then were shocked 3-2 by Villa and just been beaten 1-3 at home to Bayern. One word - inconsistency. Roberto Martinez inherited Everton from Moyes and added adventure into their steel and Everton remained the only unbeaten team. The bad news is Everton have a great record against City. They won 3 out of 5 meetings previously (all at home 1-0, 2-1 and 2-0), drew 1-1 and lost once by 2-0 in 2011. City can win this but only if they play to their full potential. If the visitors cause an upset, City would join their Manchester neighbours below the iPhone screen. Draw. 2-2.

Cardiff v Newcastle - Cardiff are impressive. Other than their opening 2-0 loss to the Hammers, they had beaten Man City 3-2, held Everton 0-0, lost narrowly to Tottenham 0-1 and won away 2-1 at Fulham. The Magpies have lost twice in a row by 3-2 to Hull and Everton. They can't afford to lose another. It is suggestive that while they are scoring more they have also been leaking. Draw. 2-2.

Fulham v Stoke - Fulham are not doing well and they just went down 1-2 to Cardiff at home. Stoke were doing well but surprisingly went down 0-1 to Norwich at home. Both bad results for them. However, if you look at their head-to-head meetings in the past, Fulham won all 3 home games while Stoke also won 2 games at home. So will it be a draw or the home team to win. Home win. 2-1.

Hull v Villa - The Tigers shocked Newcastle 3-2 away then had West Ham beaten 1-0. You can say they can give anyone a game but history and fate do not favour them as Aston Villa seem to be their bogey team. From 2008 to 2010, they have met 4 times but they lost all matches to Villa - home or away. Villa have just conquered Man City 3-2 and are in a meaner mood. 1-2.

Liverpool v Palace - Liverpool are in an unfamiliar position. They used to draw or lose to teams like Sunderland but now they have won 3-1 away. Suarez is back and he had a brace and Sturridge is shining like a beacon. If you add Coutinho into the equation, they can potentially do some damage to most teams even if Suarez is not biting anyone. Palace have lost all their last 3 matches 2-0. This will be another one. 2-0.

Sunderland v Man Utd - No easy job for temp manager Kevin Ball. The Black Cats are left licking their wounds. They may think of helping to lick the wounds of their visitors too who were shocked and humbled 1-2 at home by WBA. There is not a better time to play Sunderland and it is the best team to play after you have been humiliated at home. On top of this, Sunderland have never beaten the Red Devils in five outings. They have lost 1-0 (x3), 2-0 (x1) and 3-1 (x1). The away games were 0-1 to Utd. Sunderland may also think it is the best time to play Utd. but Rooney is hot. He should score again and maybe RVP is back. 0-2.

Norwich v Chelsea - The Canaries result improved when they won 1-0 at Stoke. After drawing 1-1 with Tottenham, Chelsea won impressively in Europe (4-0). In previous meetings, Norwich drew only once and lost three times. With David Luiz and Juan Mata back, Chelsea have got back their swagger. Mourinho may be smiling a bit more. 0-2.

Southampton v Swansea - The Saints are a happy team now realising a bit more of their potential this season. Swansea have dipped a bit in form losing 3-1 to Birmingham in the Cup and then to Arsenal but no shame as everyone is losing to Arsenal these days. In their last two meetings they drew both matches 0-0 and 1-1. Southampton are in form and may surprise but I feel it will end up as a draw. 1-1.

Tottenham v West Ham  - This London derby will show contrasting fortunes of both side. I have fond memories watching them since the good old days. The Hammers had a good start to the season but are now languishing while Tottenham’s fortunes have turned around and with the moolas from Bale have built an interestingly strong squad under AVB and they do not leak goals these days playing a very compact game. The Hammers current form is not good and they do not have a great record against Spurs winning only once at Upton Park but losing all at White Hart Lane and drawing once away in 5 meetings. The previous 2 meetings were won by Tottenham 3-1 and 3-2. West Ham must be eager to get back after losing away to Hull and Tottenham will want to consolidate their position and spurred on by their away 2-0 victory over Anzhi. Question is will they be tired after a long trip back? Remember, they now have a deeper and more balance squad where AVB could use or rest different players. 2-0.

WBA v Arsenal - The Baggies are coming back to life after a slow start. They have not lost since hosting Swansea on 1 Sep. They have actually held Arsenal 1-1 in the Cup and went on to clinched that famous victory over man Utd at Old Trafford. They are in form but so too are the Gunners. To say Arsenal are in form is an understatement. They are in irrepressible form. It is now who has Arsenal not beaten. They have just swept aside Napoli and Ozil is breathing new life even inspiring others like Aaron Ramsey who himself has been incredible. So too Alain Giroud. It could be a draw like their last meeting and Arsenal have played a midweek game but Arsenal did not travel and played at home. However, before the recent Cup draw, WBA have lost all four matches to the Gunners. Unbeaten in 10 matches in all competition, will this be the eleventh? An away win for the Gunners. Go Gunners go. 1-2.