EPL 2019/20 - Game Week 19

Merry Christmas! Peace on earth and goodwill to Man!

I could not catch up with the frantic pace of EPL soccer so I took a vacation. Tis the season to be merry and the EPL has thrown out some unexpected results since Game Week 17 and happened again in Game Week 18. There may be more to come. When your body and legs get tired and sinew exhausted, your brain goes bonkers. In this time, Liverpool continued their march to glory - Champions of Europe in June, Champions of Champions in Europe in August and Club World Cup Champions in December! 

Question is will Liverpool be the English Champions by May? With a ten point lead over 2nd place Leicester City and a game in hand, they could stretch the lead to 13 points and 14 points over Manchester City. They can't afford to slow down or slip up. It has to be relentless. Klopp said it correctly that his team is not one that can't be beaten but his team is one that will have to work their socks off including their Christmas socks! 

Everton and Arsenal both have new and interesting managers but work will be long and arduous as they played to a stalemate at Goodison Park. Carlo Ancelotti is an old hand and one of the worlds' best based on his record and Mikel Arteta, the former Arsenal player under Wenger and Man City's assistant with Pep Guardiola could bring something new. Bournemouth is like the Nissan Presea - when you look at that car from front or back, you won't know whether it was coming or going. They had Chelsea beaten at Stamford Bridge and then crashed at home to Burnley. 

Aston Villa are a good side let down by their defence leaking goals and hardly got the results needed. Whether they go down or not, their young, stylish and talented captain Jack Grealish may be lost to some top clubs. Southampton have defied some odds with a few good wins recently. Has Ralph Hasenhuttl turned things around? Brighton are struggling just below mid-table as usual while Sheffield United have proven they can take on the best. Steve Bruce has surprised everyone keeping Newcastle in 9th. Norwich face a challenging season as they are not faring as well in transition from Championship division to Premier League and Wolves remain difficult to beat even as they drew more games then win. West Ham could be could be in trouble if they do not pick up from here.

Tottenham v Brighton - Spurs' last five matches were LDLDL, the last was a home defeat in a London Derby to Chelsea. Jose Mourinho has realised it is no easy task now. They flatter then deceive and now lies 7th with 26 points from 18 matches. Brighton didn't do themselves any favours as they lost at home to Sheffield United after a win and 2 draws previously. The danger for Spurs here is that Brighton could be difficult to break down and strike at you in a moment. Mourinho would need to be brave here. There is nothing to lose but Son Hueng-Min is suspended after being red-carded and he will be missed. Let's see how Mourinho handle this one. Spurs are at a stage where they feel some doubts hanging over them but they are a good side so the results are equal to that. Still a home win for me here but just so Mourinho can have a little cheer. 2-1.

Aston Villa v Norwich - Both fought for promotion just a year ago and now they must start fighting against relegation lying in 18th and 19th respectively. Both do have some players who would score but both have leaky defences and have conceded the most goals already (33 and 37). Both have not won since 5 league games ago. When you cannot outrun a bear, you must outrun the other guy. One thing is quite sure. It should be an entertaining match as both play quite attractively. Villa have that slight home advantage. Its anything goes but without Tyrone Mings and John McGinn Villa have a little set back. 2-2.

Bournemouth v Arsenal - I have said earlier, Bournemouth is like the Nissan Presea because you do not know whether it is coming or going. If you have seen a Presea, you could not help but notice that the front from the bonnet to the back have lights and shape that were quite identical that is why you do not know whether it is coming or going.  Haha. The Cherries are in such form now letting their early season's good results gone to waste. They have just lost at home to Burnley after beating Chelsea away and before that lost all 5 games after beating Man Utd. So it seems like a curse of beating a top 6 team and then they crash. Maybe better to lose this one and break the curse. Haha. The good thing for them is Arsenal are not in great shape as they crashed 0-3 at home to City and were held 0-0 by Everton. Taking chareg for the first time, new manager Mikel Arteta may be an old boy and hone his coaching skills from Wenger and then Guardiola but it will take time so fortunately they have a less dangerous Bournemouth to experiment with. Arsenal win but beware as they have beaten Man Utd and Chelsea. 1-2.

Chelsea v Southampton - If you have watched how Chelsea played when they beat Spurs 2-0 away you would have automatically call this a sure win at home to Southampton by 2 or 3 goals. Willian was brilliant. Tammy Abraham and Mason Mount could have scored too. Southampton are having a bit of their own revival having won 3, drew 1 and lost 2 in their last six matches and just 3 points up from the relegation zone. Their last match was an impressive 3-1 win away to Aston Villa so Chelsea are not going for a picnic. But Chelsea was very impressive in their away win against Tottenham and if they could defend higher up then Southampton wouldn't have a chance. 2-0.

Crystal Palace v West Ham - Palace only lost once in their last 5 matches while the Hammers lost 3. West Ham have been woeful when they were not brilliant. They do not seem to do the in-betweens such as less brilliant or less woeful. But then again this is a London Derby which will sometimes throw out somewhat different expectations and result. I say a good draw here is possible. A surprise draw when you expect the Hammers to lose? Hey, it's Christmas! 2-2.

Everton v Burnley - Carlo Ancelotti takes charge for the first time. They aren't too bad as after beating Chelsea they have not lost a single game in their last 4 and that became part of the problems - winning. Burnley have pinched two 1-0 wins over Newcastle and Bournemouth. These little pinching are points stealers so the Toffees need to watch. Everton are better than Bournemouth and Newcastle. They have beaten Chelsea, held Man Utd , Leicester and Arsenal. This is their most winnable game which they must seize. The difference is not losing and winning are very different things. You need something more to win and Ancelotti needs a bit more time. 1-1.

Sheffield United v Watford - The Blades are hardly beaten and an admirable team. Everyone who wish to build a good soccer team should look at them. Unassuming and relentless work without fear. If you have a team who plays the way they pay, you would surely support them always regardless. I am not talking Manchester United. It is Sheffield United. The last time Watford on was 6 matches ago at Norwich so everybody might have written them off when they hosted Man Utd last week and they promptly dispatched them off with a emphatic 2-0 win. Recently appointed new manager Nigel Pearson and Craig Shakespeare must have worked some magic back. If we think that if the Hornets could beat Man Utd then surely they could a something here then we may have missed the other point which is while Watford played very well, the Red Devils were rather poor. It will probably not come easy but Sheffield United should prevail. 2-1.

Manchester United v Newcastle - Before the Watford crash, United was undefeated in 6 matches and won 4 of them so nobody saw it coming at Vicarage Road. They even have Paul Pogba back. Their only hope seems to be young Marcus Rashford. The Magpies have won 3 of their last 6 and held Man City 2-2 five matches ago and have just beaten Palace. It shall be no walk in the park at Old Trafford where I now seldom hear being call the Theatre of Dreams anymore. Their own great Eric Cantona described the insipid performance as like old man having sex - it leads only yo disappointment. Lol. Haha, and Newcastle is not just going to lie down for the old man at Old Trafford. Pardon the pun. Unless the Red Devils found a new motivation, I suspect the Magpies could fly in and steal some cookies. Steve Bruce knows some ways. 1-1.

Leicester City v Liverpool - Leicester went down 1-3 to Manchester City at the Etihad while Liverpool's match with West Ham was postponed as they were in Qatar playing in the Club World Cup. Roberto Firmino struck the winner against against Mexico's Monterrey. In the Final against Flamengo, it was Firmino again who got the only goal for Liverpool to be officially crowned the best team in the world! Henderson played an excellent pass to release Mane who turned his marker and found a lurking Firmino who took a touch to take the goalkeeper and a defender out of the game before finishing a brilliant goal! Flamengo are no small team, they are the Libertadores Champions. European Champions League winner in June, European Super Cup winner in August and now Club World Cup champions in December. They lead 2nd place Leicester by 10 points and have a game in hand and lead Champions Man City by 11 points with a game in hand and this is their game in hand. Only injuries could derail them. 

Leicester have been wonderful and this team under the charge of former Liverpool Brendan Rodgers may be even better their shocked title winning team. They have been playing ever so well and Jamie Vardy has 17 goals to his name now leading the pack by quite a margin. Vardy has 33 goals against the big six teams and no one has more. Liverpool plays a high line and this favours Vardy with his tenacity and mentality in big games. If the Foxes hope to catch the leaders, they must win this game. They did very well at Anfield but lost 1-2. Revenge is in their mind and City wouldn't mind a helping hand to close the gap and especially so as the Reds may be exhausted? Takumi Minamino could only start playing from 1 January 2020. So, the Gini, Mane, Mini, Mo could only gather steam later. Liverpool did get some rest as they play this match on Friday and two days later they welcome Wolves to Anfield. 

Firmino is back to his best. Mane is still very good as he has been. Salah has a new weapon - his right foot is currently magical as evident in his last two goals versus Watford and finally Naby Keita has got 3 goals recently. Liverpool is chasing a new landmark. They have won all three international Cups, it is the League title left. Leicester for all their qualities could not match City. A win here is a big statement for the Foxes but Liverpool are the best in the world. Winning has become a habit. They are not going to lie down and blow it twice just like they did in the Champions League. Leicester will attack more at home and it will be a more open game. A Liverpool win will dishearten the chasing pack. A very important  result for both teams here psychologically. Oh, despite Vardy's incredible against the top six, he has not scored against Liverpool in their last 3 meetings. That was probably due to the presence of Van Dijk. 1-2.

Wolves v Manchester City - One name - Kevin De Bruyne, a player Jose Mourinho deemed not good enough at one time. His performance where he also scored twice against Arsenal at the Etihad 2 games ago was the most complete performance I have seen for a long time. Such complete mastery and ability it was like watching the Kevin De Bruyne show. He was Man Of The Match again when they have beaten Leicester 3-1. He will again be the key guy here but CIty will be very wary of Wolves who went to the Etihad ant took the mickey out of them when they won 2-0. At the Moulineux, Wolves wouldn't be afraid of City would they? City showed they still have the class and the goods evident in their last tow matches. They definitely cannot afford any further setback as they are eleven adrift and Guardiola can't even tear his hair off. 1-2.