EPL 2019/20 - Game Week 30

Welcome back! To life. Back to life, back to reality. Our history, memories, our love's enough to transcend us through space and time. Life is all about space and time ain't it? Do you have the space and the time for others? 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Z1Gx3DYVqs (Back To Life - Hailee Steinfeld)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TB54dZkzZOY (Back To Life - Soul II Soul)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YxaaGgTQYM (Bring Me To Life - Evanescence)

I hope all of you are well. Sports and soccer would be nothing without the fans. It also brings us back to appreciate the front line workers at the hospitals, the food delivery, logistics people and cleaners. Appreciation cannot be empty words only or it would be meaningless. We should appropriately reward them. As if not enough with the unprecedented deadly pandemic, we are seeing riots, looting, police brutality and racism rearing their ugly heads. Humanity's ugliness lies in its selfishness in all. When will this conundrum of bias and of prejudice finally go away? Maybe sports and soccer can heal us. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5anLPw0Efmo (My Immortal - Evanescence) 

I penned this half-way and left it when the EPL was abruptly halted:

"Liverpool return to winning ways after a few hiccups when they defeated Bournemouth 2-1 at Anfield. It was the worst possible way to start when they conceded a 9th minute goal by Callum Wilson which was allowed though he appeared to have shove Joe Gomez to win the ball leading to the goal but goals by Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane gave them three points to lead 2nd place Manchester City by a massive 25 points though City have two games in hand. So when City lost at Old Trafford, the Reds still lead by 25 points with City having a game in hand with 9 matches to go. Liverpool now need 6 more points i.e. two more wins to clinch the title for sure for 88 points as City could only reach 87 points if they won all their remaining 10 games. 

Meanwhile, though unlikely so soon, the Reds could be crowned Champions by the time they play at Goodison Park if City lose to Arsenal on Wednesday and Burnley on Saturday but as the news came in the City v Arsenal has been postponed again as some Gunners personnel came into contact with a CoVid19 person from Olympiacos two weeks ago. Arsenal was fortunate to have won 1-0 against West Ham. I thought the Hammers played well and the Gunners have their goalkeeper Bernd Leno to thank for the many saves. Though they have 69% possession, their opponents had 14 shots at them. West Ham are 16th and they are still in relegation battle while Arsenal climbed to 9th. Watford battled and wer equal to Crystal Palace but lost 0-1 away. They did not play like the team that had Liverpool beaten, the only side to have done it. Palace rose to 11th but the Hornets remained at 17th with 27 points like West Ham and Bournemouth and still battling to avoid the drop. Bottom team Norwich once again played really well, dominated possession and had 12 shots at Sheffield United whose goalkeeper Dean Henderson saved them on numerous occasions and ended up 1-0 losers away. Southampton's slump continued as they lost 0-1 at home to Newcastle, so the Magpies went up to 13th as the Saints drop to 14th. Wolves could not find a way past Brighton and battled to a goalless draw. The Seagulls are just two points above relegation zone. Burnley dominated Tottenham and are very safe but Tottenham are a far cry from their days when Pochettino was in charge. 

Chelsea were highly impressive so those who have to play Chelsea watch out. Lampard took the risk and it paid off where they, especially two youngsters shone - Mason Mount who scored a brilliant goal and Billy Gilmour. Ross Barkely  bossed the entire show. As good as Chelsea's performance was Everton's poor showing - completely poor from start to end so much so that you wonder what happened but the cruncher of a game was at Old Trafford where United completed over a blunt City with a 2-0 win. United, as expected were there to absorb the pressure and then throw a sucker punch to get a goal can close shop and they were gifted with not one bu two goals as City's usually excellent keeper made two errors. In the first goal, a free kick should not have been given but the resultant free-kick that led to goal was quite brilliant and the second towards the end was a uncharacteristic bad throw by Ederson which Scott McTominay's quick thinking and fast action put paid to City's game when he swung it first time into goal. Thanks to United, Liverpool now need only to win two games to be crowned Champions. Meanwhile, Jamie Vardy and Leicester roared back to form with a 4-0 thrashing of Aston Villa. Vardy came in only n the 59th minute and got 2 goals and helped the Foxes to remain 3rd in the standing while Villa 2nd from bottom with a game in hand and a point behind 3 teams above them and a win will see them get a little ahead that is if they could beat Chelsea at home next.

Now all these do not matter much as the world battles the CoVid19 pandemic which has been an anti-climax in all things and everywhere. It is the only thing we have to win against. Hopefully real soon. The games will be played behind closed doors which will be kind of strange."

This week's restart begins with Aston Villa v Sheffield United and Manchester City v Arsenal, postponed matches due to the League Cup final and all shall be level at 29 games in the season. Game Week 30 begins from Saturday:

Norwich v Southampton - Norwich's spirited display away to Sheffield United still ended up pointless resigning themselves to the bottom. This is an opportunity to welcome  the Saints in poor form having won only once in their last 6 matches. The Canaries are bottom with 21 points and need a miracle to avoid the drop and the miracle need to start now. 1-1.  

Tottenham v Manchester United - Tottenham have been poor for sometime and have been very unlucky with injuries especially to their top scorers Harry Kane, Son Heung-Min and Steve Bergwijn. It is difficult to fathom where their goals will come from but the long break from the pandemic means they may have them back otherwise it is hard to fathom where their goals will come from. They are without a win in 5 matches while their visitors are on a 10 game unbeaten run. That 2-0 win over City and doing the double over derby rivals could be inspirational. It boosted the confidence and stock of manager Solskjaer so much he has fired a warning shot at Liverpool asking the Reds to watch out. In Bruno Fernandes they have a more than proper player. I thought Aaron Wan-Bissaka has been highly impressive. It looked like he won every tackle and duel so much he made Raheem Sterling switched wing the last time. He was that good. Surely England would need him in their squad. United is not that good as yet among the top sides in Europe or even the top three in the Premier League but Spurs are without a win in 5 matches in all competition and only drawing their last two. So United have an upper hand here for current form. A Spurs win could be considered an upset. Jose Mourinho would love to win this one for personal reason. It is a game Spurs cannot afford to lose if they still harbour hopes of Champions League qualification. 1-2.

Watford v Leicester City - Watford could not sustain that giant performance against Liverpool and lost narrowly to a Jordan Ayew goal in the 28th minute but could not find their way back. It seems like a bad time to host Leicester who roared back to life as they crushed Villa 4-0 making a tricky tie for the Hornets to get more points. Can the Hornets do a Liverpool to Leicester now that the Foxes have regained their strides and Jamie Vardy is smelling blood again? Watford need points to stay up and Leicester need points to ensure qualification for Champions League. Seems like Troy Deeney has opted not to play. As he is a main threat, the Hornets will miss him. 0-2.

Brighton v Arsenal - Brighton will pose an obstacle for the visiting Gunners as they battled and held Wolves 0-0. Though Arsenal won 1-0 against West Ham, it was the Hammers with 31% possession who hit them with 14 shots to their 9. It could have been a different result if West Ham were more clinical but thanks to MOTM Bernd Leno who saved on a few important occasions. Though Arsenal are in 9th they are really 8 points from 4th placed Chelsea and 5 behind 5th placed Manchester United. They could narrow the gap with a win or at least keep pace in case others drop points. As I wrote this, it was reported that when Olympicacos played Arsenal few weeks ago, the owner who also owned Nottingham Forest met Arsenal officials and later confirmed to have been infected by the CoVid19. Then Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is also now a confirmed victim. So this game is confirmed to be postponed. After the lag and returning to action, the Gunners look good for a win but Brighton are a team that fights which means Arsenal will have a battle. 1-2.

West Ham v Wolves - West Ham played well at the Emirates but lost. They must overcome Wolves now at home as they have to travel to Tottenham next and host Chelsea. There aren't many games left. Wolves were not a their best against Brighton and they laboured. The Hammers must get points here and there but it is hard to see them winning many games so they could probably still stay up because others are also languishing. West Ham could take the game to Wolves but Wolves are hard to break down. I think a draw here is likely even as many expect Wolves to win. 1-1. 

Bournemouth v Crystal Palace - Though Bournemouth lost 1-2 at Anfield and were dominated, they did not play badly and are still battling against relegation and hosting a Palace side that have won their last 3 matches 1-0 means they will need quite a performance to get something here even if they are playing at home. Palace have no pressure in mid-table. An away win is possible here. 0-1.

Newcastle v Sheffield United - The Magpies are flying after coming home from Southampton with 3 points due to the brilliance of Allan Saint-Maximin and they even missed a Matt Richie penalty as Alex McCarthy saved the penalty and some blushes. Sheffield United did what Sheffield United do best when they won 1-0 at Bramall Lane against a spirited Norwich leaving them 2 points behind Manchester United with a game in hand. Newcastle are now unbeaten in their last 2 league matches. The Toon Army at St. James Park will be roaring them on. 1-1.

Aston Villa v Chelsea - Villa 0-4 thrashing by Leicester left nothing to celebrate while Chelsea were simply awesome in the 4-0 rout of Everton. It was possibly their best home game of the season. How many teams could do that to Everton? Magnificent for Lampard and his young charges. Since their last win in end January over Leicester, Villa have not only no won but lost all their last 4 league matches and are just 4 points ahead of Norwich. Chelsea may even be the team to watch next season as it was reported that they have signed Ajax's Hakim Ziyech and soon Timo Werner from RB Leipzig, both once Liverpool targets. Villa have only one player to cause real problems in Jack Grealish and Chelsea can be free scoring. 1-3. 

Everton v Liverpool - Everton were insipid and flat which was a bit shocking. They have lost form and confidence but this is a Merseyside Derby and Liverpool aren't really at their best of late. The Toffees were pretty good before Chelsea where they looked non-existent especially in defence. Between Mo Salah and Sadio Mane, Mane is the one who is the most consistent in overall play and contribution even as Salah has more goals. Mane's speed and clever movements could unsettle Everton and feast to prosper. The Toffees have also not beaten the Red since 2010. It is a short trip for Liverpool but a very important step as a win will mean they need to win again just one more time to be champions so the stakes are high. A win will also help Liverpool forget their unfortunate Champions League exit as they move on to the only title they could now win which is their most coveted - the Premier League. Unfortunately, Liverpool have conceded 11 goals in 5 matches in all competition so Everton may fancy their chances for goals. Surely Liverpool must go all out to win it. With Alisson Becker back from injury, Liverpool should get back their stability.  Great teams do not wallow in sorrow. They pick themselves and go again. When they last met at Anfield Liverpool won 5-2. Three points for the Reds. 0-2. 

Manchester City v Burnley - City had an incredible 72% possession at Old Trafford and yet lost 0-2 to United. Kudos to the Red Devils but frankly were blunt. Burnley had 21 shots against Spurs' 13 and drew 1-1 at Turf Moor. That they are 10th and 2 points behind Spurs is testament of their resolve and that of manager Sean Dyche. City are supposed to play their postponed game with Arsenal on Wednesday but the game has been postponed again due to possible contact with a CoVid19 person who met Arsenal staff when they played Olympiacos back then. We will probably see City at it again, winning. 3-1.

You could see from it all that freedom in life is so important. The freedom to play sports or watch it as fans. Freedom that most of us take for granted in pre-Covid days. The simple things in life matters. Yet, the liberation to do anything you like clearly affects others. In a globalized world, we saw how quickly the human race could be decimated. Just like that. And so, we live to fight another day. The last few months should give the world a time to ponder and reflect. In the meantime, take care and stay safe. Hope we see some light at the end of the tunnel and pray that it is not an oncoming train.

YNWA!