Friday Nov. 29
Brighton 1-1 Southampton
Lots of mixed emotions swirling around this match. Brighton will be pleased that the result propelled them into second place (pending results of the weekend’s matches), but bemoan wasting first half chances that could have sealed them a win. Southampton, on the other hand, will be aggrieved after a four-minute VAR check revoked a Cameron Archer winner (though they should be thankful that Flynn Downes was not sent packing for a second yellow). Teenager Tyler Dibling was simply magical for Southampton.
Saturday Nov. 30
Brentford 4-1 Leicester
Incoming Leicester manager Ruud van Nistelrooy got to see how challenging his job will be. The Foxes were absolutely carved up by Kevin Schade, who logged a hat-trick. Cue the inevitable headline puns: “A Ruud Wake Up Call” and/or “Schade-freuden”.
Crystal Palace 1-1 Newcastle United
It has not been an easy season for Palace fans (I should know). Staring into the void of yet ANOTHER loss in the 93rd minute of a game in which they outplayed, outshot and generally outperformed the visiting Magpies, we finally got a ray of hope. Daniel Muñoz, who missed a sitter in the first half and had a second half shot blocked off the goal line, leapt up on the wings of angels to power a header low and inside to beat Nick Pope with seconds remaining. That the cross came from the left foot of Marc Guéhi, whose own goal had put Palace in the hole, was even more redemptive.
Nottingham Forest 1-0 Ipswich
Once again, Nottingham Forest live or die on the foot of Chris Wood. A 49th minute penalty was all the Kiwi needed to register his 9th goal of the season, give Forest the lead, and scribe his name into the club record books. Ipswich once again looked lively in defeat, with plenty of chances that just didn’t fall their way.
Wolverhampton 2-4 Bournemouth
For the hosts, striker Jørgen Strand Larsen shone with two lovely goals. But two penalty concessions from goalkeeper José Sá wiped those out. For the visitors, this day was all about Evanilson & Justin Kluivert. Both set Premier League records: the former who earned three penalties, and the latter who converted them for a hat-trick.
West Ham 2-5 Arsenal
I’ve been poo-pooing Arsenal the past fortnight, but I might have to eat my words. They were simply majestic in this thorough dismantling of West Ham, striking fast and hard with four goals in 34 minutes. There was a very brief period between the 36th and 41st minutes when West Ham put two in the net and chopped the Gunners’ lead in half, but then Bukayo Saka converted a penalty before halftime to add to his impressive three assists. Just how ruthless were Arsenal? They scored off 5 of 9 shots. Nasty.
Sunday Dec. 1
Chelsea 3-0 Aston Villa
Two teams with a LOT on the line… the Blues need a win to stay close and Villa are desperate for anything positive to turn around their recent slump.
Not to belittle how good Chelsea were in this match, and they were simply outstanding, what the living fork were Aston Villa doing? They didn’t seem to care at all, playing at a pace and desirer more akin to an opioid stupor than a professional team. Villa now have a winless run of eight straight; Chelsea are sitting pretty in third.
Manchester United 4-0 Everton
It will be interesting to see how Carlos Amorim sets the line-up. With the Everton defense so abysmally poor, this should be a turkey shoot for the Red Devils.
Nailed it.
Tottenham 1-1 Fulham
Now that Arsenal and Chelsea have begun to resemble proper football teams, I’ve got to find another London club to hate on. Enter this fixture….
I could go on about either squad’s inability to find consistent form or that ruthless edge to finish off games, but Spurs earn lowest marks as they could not topple a 10-man Fulham.
Liverpool 2-0 Manchester City
Every other game has been a tease leading up to this one. Must-see TV. And it did not disappoint.
By all rights, Liverpool should’ve been up 3-nil before the 15th minute. From the starting whistle they were playing on a different level. Between 15 and 70 minutes, Liverpool weren’t quite as dominant and it was a question whether they would rue all the chances that didn’t hit the net. But Mohamad Salah had other plans. His picture-perfect pass to Cody Gakpo gave them that all-important early goal; his cool finish from the penalty spot was the dagger.
In a bizarre coda, City manager Pep Guardiola flashed six fingers (representing their six titles) around the grounds after the game. It was an oddly disrespectful gesture that reveals just how deep the rot lies at this time.
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