EPL 2021/2022 - Game Week 5

Liverpool's important 3-0 away win over Leeds was a massive statement as elsewhere Chelsea trounced Villa 3-0 at Stamford Bridge with a brace from new signing, old boy Romelu Lukaku scoring a brace while Manchester United crushed Newcastle 4-1 at Old Trafford with also a brace from new signing, old boy Cristiano Ronaldo. City won 1-0 at Leicester with new signing Jack Grealish playing well so far. Liverpool had only one signing - defender Ibrahima Konate who has so far not featured. While not every team that have big signings will win titles, Liverpool should have signed at least another proven forward and a midfielder even if they have always believe in bringing players with potential to train, groom and grow. New players can sometimes unsettle teams and staying with the trusted way with players together for a good period of time may have its advantages but so far, United and Chelsea are making all the noises. 

18 year old Harvey Elliot's horrific injury is a case in point. It did not look good as his ankle must have snapped after a tackle by Leed's Dutch defender Pascal Struijk who himself seemed somewhat distraught by his own action and was sent off. Elliot is likely to be out for the season and this is devastating for a young talent who just broke into the Reds' first team. This is a blow to both player and club. You can only hope for his full recovery. Let us enjoy the precocious talents of Harvey Elliot, Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka but also those greats a the tail end of their career like Ronaldo, Messi and Ibrahimovic. 

Elsewhere, the Eagles soared as Palace humbled Spurs in their London derby and what a debut for substitute Odsonne Edouard who scored twice in the 84th and 92nd minute. Arsenal were fortunate to have scored their first goal and recorded their first win. Brentford lost their first game, United had an emphatic win with Ronaldo not only having returned but he scored twice. Southampton somehow stopped West Ham scoring for the first time in a 0-0 draw. Wolves won for the first time despite playing away to Watford at Vicarage Road with South Korean debutant Hwang Hee-Chan scoring in the 83rd minute. Chelsea dispatched Villa but after a little scare their Senegal goalie Edouard Mendy made six saves to keep them in the game and finally Liverpool answered some critics with a good 3-0 win over Leeds at Elland Road but this strong away result and fine performance has been overshadowed by Harvey Elliot's serious injury. Meanwhile, I once saw this funny jersey and nearly bought it!

Newcastle v Leeds - To me, since the tail end of last season, Newcastle have been playing quite attractive soccer. They have a few interesting players like Allan Saint Maximin and Miguel Almiron who actually troubled Manchester United. They paid too much respect to Cristiano Ronaldo and paid the price. Leeds are one of the teams still without a win this season. They have played the same way attacking-wise but are still leaking goals. The Magpies can get at least a goal here. So too Leeds but it depends on Leeds to get one or two. 1-2.

Wolves v Brentford - Wolves finally won last week and they have a four match unbeaten record against the Bees but Brentford are unbeaten in two away games this season. Wolves' one win and 3 defeat has been absurd as their stats were all good. Brentford are undefeated and have been fighting hard. Wolves at the Molineux after their first win looks quite daunting. Adama Traore has been outstanding for Wolves and may be Man-of-the-Match again. 2-1.

Burnley v Arsenal - The Gunners were lucky to have scored their first goal and registered their first win. A huge sigh of relief for sure. To be fair they came in charging in the first 20 minutes. Norwich did expose their vulnerability on some occasions. The winner from Aubameyang was a result of a goal mouth scramble. Arsenal now has an advantage in that they o European football to play and the Premier League is their main focus but it is disturbing to note that Arsenal have scored the same number of goals as Burnley up till now this season - 3 and have not beaten their visitors in their last 3 meetings. Every team knows what to expect from Burnley. They are physical and will get into you. Are Arsenal known to be made of steel? 1-1.

Liverpool v Crystal Palace - Mohamed Salah has now scored 100 Premier League goals. Only the 30th player to do so and achieving it in just 162 games! Only Alan Shearer, Harry Kane, Thiery Henry and Sergio Aguero got there quicker but take note that unlike the others, Salah is a winger. Liverpool could have been out of sight at Leeds by half-time as Meslier made some important saves. It was not that the Reds had 56% possession but they had xG (expected goal) of 4.12 to Leeds 0.89 and had 30 shots at goal, created 28 chances with 5 big ones. The entire team played well but I feel Mane need to improve. At times, his first touch deserted him and there were poor decision making choosing to go alone rather than release the ball. He seemed a little selfish taking shots when he should have passed to Salah or Jota. It is gutting to see the precocious talent of 18 year old Harvey Elliot cut short in what must have to be a wonderful season ahead. Anyway, Liverpool were impressive but somewhat wasteful and now have to play 7 games in 22 days. Liverpool were terrific individually and as a team at Leeds with Trent Alexander-Arnold (back at his best), Fabinho and Salah outstanding. Fabinho is my Man-Of-The-Match. He is by himself like a double pivot where England needs 2 in Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips. He broke up play, retrieve balls with his telescopic legs, releases and passes them and even found time to score a goal. Even Gary Neville admitted he was wrong when he doubted if Liverpool could compete on all fronts. It is still early days so their focus must be to win a game here first. Their mid-week Champions League opening 3-2 win over AC Milan was significant. They were rampant but missed a penalty and were somewhat sloppy when they conceded 2 goals in 2 minutes but the Anfield comeback was once again quite spectacular. No Van Dijk, with Matip and Gomez playing together for the first time and Origi started and what an assist he provided. 

Patrick Viera have proven against Spurs that he could do a fine job with the Eagles. His Crystal Palace had 18 shots to Spurs' 2 and created 18 chances. He will have a new plan for Liverpool and it won't be easy even at Anfield for the Reds if Palace were allowed to do what they did against Spurs. Wilfried Zaha and Conor Callagher have been impressive. We know Zaha but Callagher has been getting better and is a dynamic player. 

The Reds have 8 straight wins over the Eagles. Last season, Liverpool won 2-0 at Anfield and 7-0 at Selhurst Park. As we have seen so far, Liverpool will not allow Palace to play their game like they did to Spurs as evident in their win over Leeds and Milan. The Reds conceded two to Milan and were trailing. Maybe it was due to Van Dijk not being fielded and their own sloppiness. This will be a different game. Liverpool have been looking good though. 2-0.

Manchester City v Southampton - City had a flying start in Champions League. It ain't easy to put 6 goals past RB Leipzig but conceding 3 may be a concern at the other end. And did you see Jack Grealish's goal? Wow! Surely he belongs among Europe's elite. This is why we have to ask of the "what if" Grealish has played a more prominent part in England's Euro campaign had Mr. Southgate has more dare and faith. Southampton are winless in their last 7 away games. They did an amazing job to have held Man U 1-1 and also West Ham's in-form forward line 0-0 but both were home games. Last season CIty won 5-2 here and 1-0 away. 3-1.

Norwich v Watford - History favours Watford who are unbeaten in the last four clashed including both of last season's. The Canaries have lost all games this season even if they play attractively while the Hornets have not yet won away. It seems only a brave man will bet on Norwich. I don't bet so I am picking Norwich. Tim Krul will make all the saves and be Man-of-the-Match. 1-0.

Aston Villa v Everton - Villa's performance against Chelsea was really positive and should have scored but not only did they not but yet shot themselves in the foot. Tyrone Mings' error must have been infuriating as a team like Chelsea do not need your help. Even the third goal was quite preventable and in between Villa had their chances. They have more shots than Chelsea and a higher xG. Solid defending and several key saves from goalkeeper Mendy (who was Chelsea's best player) got Chelsea over. Since their return to the Premier League, Villa have not beaten Everton. It is about time for Danny Ings and Ollie Watkins to score again though. 2-2.

Brighton v Leicester - Brighton are sixth after a narrow 1-0 win at Brentford. Finally the Seagulls are getting points and results which they usually don't. Three wins and one defeat and they did this on merit. Graham Potter mad them play attractive soccer and they have been the unluckiest team in the Premier League because the way they play does not match the results. Leicester by their high standard of the last two seasons seemed to be floundering. Two narrow wins, a hammering by West Ham and a defeat at home to City have left them in 9th and a goal difference in deficit. The Foxes have been poor in creating chances this season. Leicester 2-2 draw with Napoli in the Europa showed they are capable of more but they were leading 2-0. We know they are a good side but they have not been really firing and have been leaky. 1-1.

West Ham v Manchester United - Newcastle ensured that their match with the Red Devils was a contest for much longer than all of us expected so kudos to them. The Magpies threatened United's defence each time they countered. This means that the red Devils still have issues at midfield and their defence at the Magpies breached them. Newcastle managed 12 shots at them and created 8 chances. Against stronger teams, they could get found out. Solskjaer bought Jadon Sancho because his team has been weaker on the attacking right but then has been playing him on the left where he did not look comfortable. Perhaps to accommodate Mason Greenwood on the right? Then on Tuesday, United were properly beaten by some young boys (no pun intended). Yes Ronaldo scored again but they lost 1-2. The stat were not good. Young Boys dominated with 54% possession with xG 1.43 to their 0.53. Had 19 shots to United's 2. created 17 chances to their 3. That is sloppy and they have yet to play Atlanta and Villarreal. That is a new low. After a high, this was a reality check. This also served to confirm that even with Ronaldo setting goal-scoring records, there is no guarantee of winning. However, The Red Devils hold a record of 35 matches unbeaten away league games. Ronaldo and Fernandes are the key. Who knows maybe Sancho or Greenwood but I think very highly of West Ham and United have chinks in the armour and David Moyes will get his team to exploit them like Young Boys did. 2-2.

Spurs v Chelsea - Spurs have big issues to resolve after a poor performance as Selhurst Park crashing 0-3 to Crystal Palace. Spurs were poor from the beginning and managed a total of only 2 shots to Palace's 18 and had only 38% of the ball. Tanganga had two yellows and saw red. Even his replacement Ben Davies gave away a handball penalty to make things worse. 3 clean sheets in 3 games and all it needed undoing was  in this one match. Spurs were dreadful. To host a Chelsea side that is unyielding at the back is now a tall task for points. Villa actually had 1.36 xG to Chelsea's 1.29 and had 18 shots to their 12 with equal chances created but Chelsea finished them off clinically. Lukaku's brace was followed by another and the only goal as Chelsea started the defence of the Champions League with a home 1-0 win over Zenit. Chelsea have not lost to Spurs for a long time. Both have a great goal-scorer - Harry Kane for Spurs and Romelu Lukaku for Chelsea but the Blues striker has a much better supporting cast. Son Heung-Min is unlikely to be back and Lucas Moura will be out too so how do Spurs offer real attacking threat with Harry Kane who is going to be isolated? If this is the case, a Chelsea win. 0-2.