The 2017/2018 EPL Weekend-Round 3

Manchester United continued their good start to the season with a hard fought 2 nil win at home to Leicester. That’s now 3 wins, 10 goals scored and none conceded. United were once again impressive in a game they would have drawn last season. Leicester defended resolutely and at some point it was beginning to look like it might be one of those days for United. Credit to Mourinho though because he made the correct changes in the 2^nd half and both his subs scored. Mourinho was quick to point out in his post match interview that last season United won their first 3 as well so nothing to celebrate yet. Deep down though he must feel more confident especially due to the manner of this season’s wins. United are more confident, more direct, passing it around well and looking much better. Mourinho decided to start with Martial in place of Rashford. I like Martial because he is very direct, rarely loses possession and has an eye for goal. I however think for now United are better off starting with Rashford and having Martial come on in the second half. Martial is an excellent impact sub. Pogba has been playing a lot better this season mainly because of Nemanja Matic. The calmness and protection provided by Matic has freed Pogba to push upfront and dominate the midfield. I expect him to provide more assists than last season and score at least 10 goals in the league. Mkhitaryan is another player who is playing well evidenced by his 5 assists in the first 3 games. The excellent form of these players has meant some players who would be expected to play have missed out on game time. Herrera for instance is yet to feature this season. There’s also a lot of push for playing time in defence with the likes of Smalling, Lindelof, Rojo and Shaw yet to feature. All this competition for places is good though and Mourinho must be satisfied with his squad. Having re-signed Ibrahimovic, I don’t expect further transfer activity for United.

Chelsea easily dispatched of Everton with an easy 2 nil win in a potentially tricky fixture. Alvaro Moratta and Cesc Fabregas were both on target as the Champions further provided proof that their opening day loss to Burnley was a minor blip. Antonio Conte has made no secret about his desire to strengthen the squad even with the signings of Bakayoko, Moratta and Rudiger. With the anticipated departure of Costa, Conte is looking to get an additional striker, with the defence also in need of reinforcements. Ngolo Kante is the main holding midfielder for the Blues and alongside him it’s either Fabregas or Bakayoko with Matic’s departure. Last season Fabregas and Matic shared that role with each starting depending on the opposition, Matic preferred in games where Conte felt he needed more steel and power in the midfield while Fabregas featured in games Conte wanted a more attacking approach. I feel Fabregas provides a bit more. Conte’s concern has always been that Fabregas doesn’t defend well when the Blues don’t have the ball. His attacking qualities though are world class. I feel this season despite Bakayoko’s arrival, we might see more of Fabregas and Kante than Bakayoko and Kante. Eden Hazard is soon returning to the squad so you feel Chelsea will be kicking on as the season progresses.

Manchester City were lucky to get a 97^th minute winner against Bournemouth in a very eventful match. Sterling was once again the hero coming on a second half sub to stab home the winner. City on paper look to have a very good squad, probably the best in the league, but they are still to gel and find the right chemistry. Guardiola is still not sure of his starting 11. They have a lot of attacking talent and to think that they are still chasing Alexis Sanchez and Kylian Mbappe makes for a scary attacking prospect. If and when Pep gets the right chemistry and mix, City will be deadly.

The weekend’s big match was Arsenal away to Liverpool and it didn’t disappoint, unless you are an Arsenal fan. This is the worst time to be an Arsenal fan. The Gunners put up a really horrible display at Anfield, it was difficult trying to remember the last time they were this bad. They were poor all over the pitch with the exception of Cech who must have been wondering what he was doing in the field. Arsenal wouldn’t have had a worse week. Reduced to watching Europe’s big boys drawn in the champion’s league groups, the Gunners then had to endure the humiliation of being lined up alongside Europe’s second class clubs in the Europa League group draws. For Arsenal to concede four and still have Cech as their best player on the pitch just shows the extent of Liverpool’s dominance. The Reds were all over Arsenal and would even have scored more had it not been for a couple of good saves by Cech. As much as Wenger’s selection of his squad was questionable, the performance by the players was even more disappointing. None of the 10 outfield players can look up and feel proud of their contributions. Wenger decided to start with a back 3 with the Ox and Bellerin as wing backs, a system that has never worked for him. For some strange reason, he also decided to start Bellerin, their first choice right back, on the left wing. He also decided to use the inexperienced Rob Holding in place of established defenders like Mustafi against Liverpool’s attacking trio of Mane, Firminho and Salah. Wenger also decided to start with his record signing and first choice striker Lacazette on the bench. Arsene Wenger still believes he can improve Arsenal but even his staunchest supporters are now doubting him. Arsenal are on a downward trajectory. Having failed to qualify for the Champion’s League this season, a lot of transfer activity was expected. Instead all the news is about Arsenal players wanting to leave the club instead of the other way. Sanchez, Chamberlain, Mustafi, Gibbs are all being linked with moves away from the club. And you wouldn't really blame them. No replacements are forthcoming though. With clubs around them strengthening, it’s hard to see Arsenal competing at all. Arsenal’s minimum target this season should be top four. On current evidence they are nowhere near that. It’s going to take an unprecedented transfer deadline day activity for the Gunners to bring the right personnel in to have a squad good enough  to challenge for any honours this season.

TEAM OF THE WEEK

Peter Schmeichel

Nicolas Otamendi

Phil Jones

Cesar Azpilicueta

Bernard Mendy

Cesc Fabregas

Matt Ritchie

Paul Pogba

Mohamed Salah

Saido Mane

Raheem Sterling

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Mohammed Salah

The 2017/2018 EPL Weekend-Round 2

Manchester United continued their impressive start to the season with another 4-0 win at Swansea. Unlike last week's 4-0 rout of West Ham, they had to wait until the 82nd minute to secure the win as Swansea capitulated and let in 3 goals in a 4 minute spell. For long periods of the game Swansea defended stoically but eventually they gave in as United once again showed some ruthlessness in front of goal that was lacking last season.
Mourinho once again started with the same starting 11 meaning a 4-1-4-1 formation with Matic once again sitting in front of the defence with Pogba and Mkhitaryan dictating play ahead of him and Mata and Rashford providing support to Lukaku from the wings.
Tougher opposition await but this is a very good beginning to the season for United. Another ominous sign for United's rivals is the strength of the bench. With the likes of Herrera, Carrick, Fellaini, Darmian, Smalling, Lindelof, Lingard and Martial on the bench, United do look strong.
Lukaku has slotted into his role with so much ease and it's beginning to look like it was money well spent by United. His sense of awareness, power, speed and eye for goal have been evident so far in the 3 competitive games he has played for United so far. And with service coming from the likes of Mata, Rashford, Pogba and Mkhitaryan, Lukaku looks set to get past if not close to 30 league goals.

Arsenal's past ghosts at Stoke returned to haunt them in the 1 nil defeat. Arsenal had scraped through their first fixture against Leicester last weekend and their luck ran out. Arsene Wenger clearly still has a lot to do if he is to lead this Arsenal side back to the top four and even title contenders. The situation with Sanchez is not helping and the Gunners clearly miss his influence. Arsenal were wasteful in front of goal and when eventually Lacazette did find the net, the linesman's flag cut short his celebrations with a marginal offside decision. Arsene Wenger was left ruing the referee decisions but ultimately the problem lies with his squad. A lot of Arsenal fans were hoping that the squad will undergo a major strengthening this summer but so far only Kolasinic and Lacazette have arrived. It's a bit strange that Arsenal let Gabriel go when defence is one of the areas where they have been short. That Monreal has been playing as a center back so far is further that defence needs strengthening. It was therefore a big surprise that when asked about further signings, Wenger responded that in fact Arsenal need to sell more players as their squad was bloated. With no champion's league football this season, Wenger will need to ensure his side avoid slipping further behind this early as qualifying for the champions league will be the minimum requirement this season.

Chelsea looked almost like the side that won the league title last season with a smash and grab victory over Spurs at Wembley. With injuries and suspensions limiting the number of players available for Chelsea, Conte put out a defensive line up meant to contain Spurs and hit them on the counter. Chelsea employed similar tactics last season on a number of occasions with  lot of success. David Luiz was deployed in midfield meaning the Blues essentially had 3 defensive midfielders in Luiz, Bakayoko and Kante. The tactic worked as Spurs for all their possession were limited in the number of chances they carved out. Tottenham's creative engine Christian Erikssen was smothered and even the dangerous Delle Alli was hounded every time he got close to the ball. In Alonso, Chelsea have a consistent performer and it wasn't really a surprise when he delivered an unstoppable freekick to give Chelsea the lead. His second goal left the usually reliable Lloris embarrassed as he let the ball goal go through his legs.
Moratta for me still does not fit into Chelsea's counter attacking system. I would be looking to sign another striker to complement him. He is a different type of player to Costa. The system Chelsea play when playing against tougher opposition is one where they used to leave Costa as a lone striker and because of his strength and ball-holding qualities, he would retain possession and hold up play giving the likes of Hazard and Pedro time to join the attack. Moratta is more direct and used to playing in triangles of passes with players around him. That might not be the case at Chelsea and so he has a lot of adjusting to make.

Liverpool managed a hard earned win over Crystal Palace with Mane once again the key man. It might have been a long day for the Reds had their former striker Benteke brought his scoring boots as he spurned the Eagles best chance. Liverpool for me still look short up front. Yes they do have Firminho, Origi, Sturridge, Mane and Salah. But for me only Origi and Sturridge are really number 9s. The former is however inconsistent and Sturridge on his part always has the danger of injuries lurking. Liverpool need for Coutinho to stay because he is really the creative engine for the team not to mention his goals as well as set piece distribution. It however remains to be season if their resolve will be broken with Barcelona offering what is quite a crazy sum for his services. Liverpool of course could sell him and use the money to rebuild the team. It is no secret they need a goalkeeper as Mignolet can prove unreliable. In Robertson, they seem to have unearthed another wonderful fullback as the youngster has been peerless in his performances so far.  Liverpool's realistic target this season is a good run in the champions league as well as another top 4 position. A domestic cup triumph would bring back smiles at Anfield. They need to make a few signings before end of August if they are to achieve that.

Manchester City scraped a point in their highly charged fixture with Everton. Guardiola will be reasonably pleased by his team's fighting spirit having been a goal down and a man down by half time. City have outspent the rest of their rivals so far this summer and most of the new signings are still finding their feet. They will need to catch up fast. New keeper Ederson who has been brought in as number one choice was culpable for the goal scored by Rooney as the shot was straight at him. Danillo and Bernado Silva put in ok shifts but much is still expected of them.Jesus and Aguero started together for City but none really impressed. Most pundits have City as their favorites but on this evidence they still have much to do if they are to avoid  repeat of last season.



TEAM OF THE WEEK - Butland Alonso Baily Maguire Valencia Mooy Pogba Mkhitaryan Wilian Jese Mane
PLAYER OF THE WEEK - Alonso

2017/2018 SUMMER TRANSFERS

So after the season we just had, what are the potential transfers this summer? Which areas do clubs need to strengthen in? Which players will be dropped?
The transfer period has been abuzz with possible deals and plenty of gossip. There have been transfers already but there's a feeling the real big ones are yet to be seen. We are still watching the curtain raisers in preparation for the main event.
As teams prepare to begin pre-season next week, the transfer period activity is set to go up a notch.
Champion's Chelsea look set to wrap up the reported £35m signing of Monaco midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko. The Blues have already completed the signing of former Man City keeper Willy Caballero on a free transfer to fill the gap left by Asmir Begovic. Antonio Conte is keen on strengthening his squad in preparation for the defense of their EPL title as well as next season's Champion's League.
As well as bringing in reinforcements, Conte will be desperate to hold onto his big names, some of whom have been linked with other clubs. The most likely departure looks to be Diego Costa with Atletico Madrid looking the most likely destination. Antoine Griezman's decision to stay with Atletico might have however put some doubt on Costa's departure. Should he leave, it would leave a big hole for Chelsea to fill. Despite being a firebrand with aggresive personality, there is no doubting his ability in front of goal evidenced by his 52 goals in 89 appearances for the Blues. But while the Blues seem prepared to lose Costa, they will be desperate to hold on to Eden Hazard. Real Madrid have been longtime admirers of the Blues winger and it remains to be seen what would happen if they made a solid bid for him. It would take a huge bid to prise Hazard from the Blues and Real Madrid are one of the few clubs who would afford it. Nemanja Matic is also linked with a move away from Chelsea with Mourinho looking to link up with his former player at United. Would Chelsea sell a key player to a direct Premiership rival? 
Chelsea will also be looking to fill the gap left by legendary Captain John Terry who looks set to join Aston Villa after being released. It does look like majority of transfer activity for Chelsea will depend on whether they keep hold of their key players. If they manage to hold on to them then there might not be a lot of activity. However should any of the key players depart, it would potentially set off a series of transfer activity. Departures of Hazard or Costa would even see Chelsea put up a strong bid for Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez.

Manchester City have been relatively active in the transfer market so far. Bernado Silva has been signed from Monaco for £43m, while Goalkeeper Ederson has arrived from Monaco for a world record Goalkeeper's fee of £35m. That has led to the departure of Willy Caballero for Chelsea as Ederson and Claudio Bravo battle for the keeper position. That also puts to rest any remote chance of Joe Hart returning to the club. Pablo Zabaleta has left and it does look like he will be followed out by a few other defensive players like Sagna. 
Bernado Silva's arrival could also lead to the departure of Nolito.
City have continued to be linked to Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez.That has been one of the summer's big transfer rumours and  it's an interesting one to keep an eye on. City though do have a good attacking squad as it is. In attack they probably have one of the best squads in Europe. Gabriel Jesus and Ilkay Gundogan will both feel like new signings after playing only a handful of games last season. 
In defense though, Guardiola will still have a lot of work to do. Kompany's waning influence mainly because of injuries, John Stones inconsistencies, and the aging Kolarov, Clichy and Sagna means Guardiola will have a lot of rebuilding to do. That is their soft underbelly.

Liverpool have signed Mohamed Salah for £34m but they will need more if they are to again at least compete for the EPL as well as do well in the Champion's League.
They will need at least a big defender to replace the out of favor Mamadou Sakho, cover for Milner and Clyne at the fullback positions, a holding midfielder and another Striker. What Klopp can be assured of is that he will get the financial backing to strengthen the squad. 
Another area Liverpool might look to strengthen is the Goalkeeping position with Karius and Mignolet not yet looking like holding down the position. It's still a puzzle why Liverpool didn't move in for Hart last season. There are some good goalkeepers around and Liverpool should make a move for the likes of Donnaruma and Rui Patricio.

Tottenham will be hoping to go one better in the EPL having been close the last 2 seasons. They will also be looking to do much better in the Champion's League and avoid another early exit like last season. They will need to add to the depth of their squad in order to challenge in both fronts. Spurs have a good squad and what Pochettino has been able to do is to motivate his players while getting his team selections spot on. Spurs have also benefited from the good forms of their key players among them Harry Kane, Delle Ali, Eriksen, Wanyama, and Dier. Whether they can do it again remains to be seen. There has always been doubt that should Spurs suffer injuries to their key men they would struggle but last season they managed well with long term injuries to Rose and Walker as well as Kane. One downside for Spurs last season was the form of their striker Vincent Janssen who returned 2 goals in 27 appearances. The only reason his poor form wasn't highlighted much was because other players notably Son and Alli stepped up and provided the goals when Kane was missing. He will need a big season.

Manchester United have reinforced their defence with Victor Lindelof joining from Benfica. That might spell the end of either Jones or Smalling. Mourinho will be looking to form a solid central defence partnership between Lindelof and Bailly. Luke Shaw will be looking to reclaim his left back position for both United and England ahead of next year's world cup. He is facing a key season. Valencia looks to have secured the right back position and with Rojo, Blind, Darmian, Smalling, Jones, Tuanzebe and Mensah, United have good defensive cover. One player that might move on is Ashley Young who has been a good servant over the years.
In midfield Mourinho is looking to add a defensive midfield partner for Herrera to eventually replace Carrick. United have been linked with Nemanja Matic and Monaco's Fabinho who is also wanted by PSG. Fabinho would be an excellent prospect considering he can cover in defense as well.
Upfront United desperately need to sign a striker to replace Ibrahimovic as well as Rooney who might have played his last match at United. Griezman looked the most likely to come to Old Trafford until his decision to stay at Atletico. United continue to be linked with Alvaro Morata and Romelu Lukaku although the asking price for the former by Real Madrid might prevent any move. 

Arsenal are having difficulties attracting quality talent with no Champion's League football on offer next season. Kylie Mbappe at some point looked to be heading to the Emirates but at the moment Real Madrid and PSG look the most likely destinations. With Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil stalling in signing their new contracts and with City and Chelsea hovering over Sanchez, it is not a good summer for the Gunners so far. However, there has been positive movement in their pursuit of Lyon's Lacazette and should they wrap up the signing, it will be a massive confidence booster at the Emirates.

It is bound to get even more interesting in the transfer market for the next few weeks.