The 2015/2016 EPL Weekend-Round 2

Manchester United as was the case last week got the weekend rolling with their Friday night away trip to Aston Villa. United once again ran out 1-nil winners after an unconvincing showing against a Villa side with a poor record in this fixture. United are yet to really get going especially in terms of attacking football. Chances are few a far between and a return of only three attempts on target over 180 minutes of football is not what you would expect from a side boasting the likes of Depay, Rooney, Mata, Young, Januzaj et al. In deed Rooney has been a pale shadow of his former self in the opening two fixtures often struggling to adjust to his lone striker role. His contribution and especially as the club captain has been lacking and if ever Van Gaal needed proof that he needs to buy another striker, all the evidence is there. Rooney's place in the team would have come under scrutiny had he not been captain but Van Gaal needs to have the courage to substitute him when things are not working. The common feeling is that Rooney seems to flourish when he plays off a main striker.
Januzaj on the other hand was handed a rare start and took advantage of the opportunity to score the game's only goal with a neat finish from a clever Juan Mata pass. The Belgian needs game time and Van Gaal will need to find a way of playing him regularly as he looks a good prospect.
The one side of United's game that has been impressive is the defence. Talk of a marquee defender coming to old trafford have been cooled off largely thanks to Chris Smalling's performances. Together with Blind they did a good job snuffing out any potential danger caused by Villa. For the time being the Ramos, Hummels, Otamendi rumors will be forgotten. United next shift their focus to Europe and a home game against Club Brugge is up next.  For the time being, the fans will be reasonably pleased with the teams progress and more-so the statistics, 6 points, 2 clean sheets.

Manchester City were totally flawless against Chelsea in the weekend's big game. Few would have expected the Blues to capitulate in such a manner against a City side that finished 8 points behind them last season. That Chelsea's best player was their stand in keeper Begovic points towards a totally one sided affair. Mourinho's assertion that the result was "fake" and that Chelsea were the better side in the second half borders on absolute madness. In what had already been a bad week for Chelsea and Mourinho in the never ending saga involving the teams medics, the nightmare unfolded in a manner that shocked all of us. Chelsea were outclassed in all departments. Aguero would have scored 5 goals had it not been for Begovic who thwarted Aguero at least 3 times before the Argentine finally gave City a fully deserved lead. Mourinho's withdrawal of Terry at half-time for Zouma provided another talking point with the Portuguese confirming the substitution was tactical and not due to injury. Could this be the beginning of the end for Terry.
City were totally efficient. Mangala for once is starting to justify his hefty price tag and his solid partnership with Kompany provided the foundation for a successful afternoon for City. Fernandinho had one of his best performances in a City shirt protecting the back four and providing Yaya Toure with a licence to foray into Chelsea's box time and again. David Silva was once again totally dominant in midfield and he together with Toure totally dominated Fabregas and Matic. Chelsea's defence duo of Terry and Cahill were exposed in the first half with little help coming from midfield. Diego Costa lacked service and the few times he go onto the ball, he was more concerned with causing infringements rather than finding the back of the net. 1 point out of a possible 6 means Chelsea already trail City and United by 5 points and although it's early days, they cannot afford for the gap to widen. Chelsea's transfer business looked done but now it seems they may have to go back and bring reinforcements. Chelsea have already acquired a left back in Rahman and the need for a striker cannot be overstated. I have always said that this City side has the solutions from within. Last season the only reason they lost the title was that key players such as Toure, Silva and Kompany did not perform to their standards. If they can do that, and there is plenty of evidence so far to suggest that they are up to the task, then City will be very difficult to beat.

Arsenal got back to winning ways in a tough away game at Palace. The game could actually have gone either way had Palace been a bit more clinical towards the end when chances presented themselves. Overall though Arsenal dominated and should have put the game to rest early on. Ozil in particular was back to his best and created a lot of goal scoring chances for the Gunners. Monreal had a good game at left back and him together with Bellerin nullified the threat posed by the pacy Palace wingers, Zaha and Bolasie. This was a potential banana skin and although not Arsenal's best display by their standards, the 3 points gained were very valuable.

Liverpool scraped to another fortuitous 1 nil win against a Bornemouth side that deserved more from this game. Christian Benteke's controversial goal should have been ruled out as offside since Coutinho a few meters off Benteke was clearly offside. To add salt to injury Bournemouth themselves had a goal ruled out wrongly. Liverpool won't care much as like Man Utd they have 6 points on the board and are yet to concede. Their next match however presents a sterner test as they face a resurgent Arsenal side this coming weekend. This will provide a clearer picture of Brendan Rogers' teams ability to seriously challenge for honors this season. One bright spot for Liverpool was Jordan Henderson who continues to thrive since taking over from Steven Gerard as club captain.
Have a sporty week!


Team of the week
Begovic
Kompany
Smalling
Monreal
Whittaker
Barkley
Toure
Ozil
Montero
Ireland
Lukaku

Player of the week
Lukaku

The 2015/2016 EPL Weekend-Round 1

The new EPL lived up to it's billing as the most exciting and unpredictable league on the opening weekend of fixtures.

There were goals, upsets, nervous moments and plenty of talking points.

Manchester United and Spurs got things moving in the day's early kick off. as opposed to last season, United were able to start this season with a win and a vital 3points against a stubborn Spurs side.
Although the perfomance wasn't vintage by all standards, Louis Van Gaal will have been delighted with the victory and more importantly the performances of his summer recruits. Darmian was the pick of the lot marshaling the right side of defence while offering a lot of attacking threat down that side. Schneiderlin slotted well in the midfield role alongside the experienced Carrick and he offered good cover to the back line. Memphis had a promising game although not to the level that will be expected of him as the season progresses. Sergio Romero making his debut in goal in the absence of De Gea had a good game making key saves in the second half, although his kicking and distribution is something he still has to work on. Schweinstiger came on as a second half substitute to also make his debut. United still have a lot of work to do. It is telling that Rooney, United's key striker rarely threatened as the service to him was non-existent. United had to wait past the hour mark to make their first attempt on goal. There still needs to be an element of speed and creative play in their game. Blind also looked a bit shaky in defence and it remains to be seen if Van Gaal will still acquire a central defender before the transfer window closes.

Arsenal were humiliated at home in their London derby against West Ham. This would not have been part of Arsene Wenger's plan but the way the Gunners capitulated was shocking. Petr Cech had a debut to forget but his errors only mask a bigger problem in that Arsenal were ineffective in almost every part of the pitch.
Oxlade Chamberlain was a rare bright spot for the Gunners and he seems destined for a big season coming up. Arsenal need to quickly put this defeat behind them and start to focus on the next match. The faster they can do that the better for them. The Gunners have had a good pre-season and they were widely expected to blow West Ham away. Arsenal should be able to overcome this disappointment and if they can get their act together this will only have been a rare bump on their way. Their have been calls for Wenger to add a striker and one Karim Benzema's name has popped up severally. I doubt Wenger will spend big on a striker and with Welbeck still to come, Arsenal should be able to have enough forwards for the season. Cech didn't endear himself to the Gunners faithfuls but he is experienced enough to let those errors affect him. He is still a world class Goalie and he will move past this. One thing though as much as plenty will see this as poor showing by Arsenal, the truth is West Ham played really well and deserved to win on he day.

Chelsea and Mourinho battled to a 2 all draw against Swansea in match that th Blues might feel lucky they didn't lose. Swansea are no stranger to claiming opening day scalps as they also beat Man United last season.
The Blues should expect a tough season defending their title since a lot of the teams will be approaching games against them with an extra bit of motivation. With the sending off Courtois, and with Cech gone, it means the Blues enter their next few games with summer signing Begovic as their goal keeper. It's a huge opportunity for Begovic to prove that he has what it takes to more than deputize for Courtois.
Next up for Chelsea is a tough game against Manchester City in a match more likely to help us gauge the shape of how the two title favorites are prepared for the season.

Liverpool claimed a hard fought 1 nil win over a dogged Stoke side that thrashed them 6-1 at the end of last season. Phillipe Coutinho picked up from where he left last season scoring a screemer to guarantee Brendan Rodgers 3 points. Rodgers is still trying to find out his best shape and when he eventually does, Liverpool might prove a force to reckon with. Not a wonderful display but Liverpool will know opening the season with a win does a lot for the team's morale and mental well being.

Manchester City were imperious in their 3 nil demolition of West Brom in the weekend's last match. Yaya Toure was back to his best dictating play in the center of the pitch alongside David Silva. I have stated before that this City side can win the league if their top players perform to their potential, something that was lacking last season. Toure, Silva and Kompany were way below par last season and that was largely the reason for their lacklustre defence of their title. For City and Pellegrini, the solution for them this summer wasn't necessarily buying new players but rather motivating the existing ones. I still feel Sterling was a waste of money and City did not need him. They have quality all over the pitch and City's only Achilles heel this season will be themselves.

TEAM OF THE WEEK
Adrian
Reid
Smalling
Richards
Soares
Silva
Toure
Mahrez
Montero
Coutinho
Gomis

Player of the week
Winston Reid

NEW SEASON, NEW EXPECTATIONS, PLENTY OF TWISTS!! BRING ON THE EPL 2015/2016!!

It seems just the other day that John Terry lifted the EPL Trophy after Chelsea completed a rather straight forward title march but after three long months that seemed to last an eternity, the new 2015/2016 EPL season is here with us.

Players have come and gone, managers replaced, new contracts signed, new teams promoted and most of all plenty of expectations by fans, players and managers.

The new EPL season kicks off today with Manchester United and Tottenham getting things underway at Old Trafford. A lot of the clubs have been busy in the transfer market and let's look at how the big teams will have lined up.

Chelsea haven't done much in the transfer market, but that is understandable with the old adage, don't fix it if it ain't broken.
Asmir Begovic has come in to replace the departing Petr Cech while Mourinho has gambled on Falcao to replace club legend Didier Drogba. The only other notable exit is left-back Luis Felipe who endured a frustrating season having to watch Azpilicueta play all season.
Mourinho has suggested he might still buy a player most likely a left back before the trasfer window ends but that remains to be seen.
I think if there is one area Chelsea need strengthening it's the striking position. Diego Costa is world class but i tend to think he has a bit too many fitness issues to be relied upon. In deed ever since he joined the Blues his fitness situation has remained a mystery. And without him Chelsea only have Loic Remy and now Falcao. Falcao is a big gamble judging from his horrible time at Manchester United last season. He went on to have an ineffective Copa America tournament as well proving that his problems are far from over. Remy is talented but he lacks top level experience and cannot be relied upon to lead the line. Other than that i don't see any other positions where Chelsea are short and it is easy to see why they are most people's favourites to retain the trophy given their strength in almost every position.

Arsenal haven't been busy either but they have made a key signing in luring Petr Cech from Chelsea to The Emirates. The only notable exit is Szczesny who's gone out on loan to Roma. The Gunners had a promising season last year but they still only managed third place and didn't really put enough pressure on eventual Champions Chelsea. Petr Cech will bring with him a wealth of experience plus a championship mentality having won numerous trophies with Chelsea. But Arsenal need more. It still remains to be seen if Ospina will agree to play the back up role to Cech considering he is his country's number one. The good thing about Arsenal is that they have plenty of competition for places all over the pitch. Kosicelny and Mertesacker have been consistent in central defence and they do have Gabriel and Chambers waiting on the wings. They need for Koscielny to overcome his fitness struggles that he had at some points last season. Bellerin had a brilliant season at right back while Gibbs also provides good cover down the other side. Arsenal need Ozil to have a good season. He wasn't at his best last season and you feel he has the key to deciding whether Arsenal have an okay season or an excellent season. Arsenal's injury problems are legendary and already Wilshere looks set to be out for a long time. Welbeck has spent most of his time on the injury table as well. The Gunners need luck to be on their side in keeping away the injuries and fitness concerns. You can understand why Arsene Wenger doesn't want to sign players, he feels he has enough with his current squad. I dont see them making a major signing before the transfer window closes.

Manchester United alongside Liverpool have probably been the busiest of the big boys. Robin v Persie, Falcao, Di Maria and Rafael have left to be replaced by Schneiderlin, Schweinsteiger, Darmian and Depay.
United have also brought in Romero as cover with De Gea looking more likely to depart for Real Madrid.
Most if not all of the exits are understandable. Van Persie has only had one good season at Manchester United,his first. The subsequent two seasons were blighted by injuries and there were no indications that he was going to overcome this. From Van Persie's point of view, he was no longer guaranteed first team football at United and with Euro 2016 looming, he needed to play regularly to protect his place in the Dutch squad.
Falcao just wasn't going to be signed permanently by United after the awful season he had. Di Maria's transfer was interesting, i actually think it makes Van Gaals work easier. There is the feeling that Di Maria is too big a name to be spending time on the bench. Had he stayed at United it would have complicated Van Gaals already tough dilemna in selecting his midfield and forward players. United did make a 15m loss on the sale but i think that is not a big deal for United especially since the savings in terms of wages for Van Persie, Falcao, Di Maria and Nani are massive.
United have a lot of midfield options and it's going to be interesting to see how Van Gaal makes his selections. Upfront there is need to buy a striker to provide cover for Rooney although Chicharito has come back from his loan spell. A lot of the fans still feel United need a world class central defender. I am one of the few who don't agree. United's central defensive options are Rojo, Evans, Jones, Smalling, McNair and Blind. Surely Van Gaal can get 2 out of the six and make them the mainstay of United's defence. I don't know any other club that has that many options. Sometimes buying quick fix players is not the solution-as evidenced by Di Maria. What Van Gaal needs to do is settle on his preferred two and play them frequently so they get used to each other. I would select Rojo and Smalling.
The main issue for Van Gaal is going to be transforming this huge array of big names into a team that can play and understand each other. It was the same challenge at the beginning of last season and i dont think he did particularly well.

Manchester City had a disappointing season last year but they have gone with continuity and stability rather than making wholesome changes to sort their problems. Pellegrini has been given a new contract, no big names have left and there has been only one notable addition in Raheem Sterling. City have resisted the temptation to make a lot of changes and have kept faith with their manager. If the big names can regain their best forms that seemed to depart them last season then City are going to be a major force this season. Kompany, Toure, Silva, Nasri didn't have good seasons and City need for them to perform this season. Dzeko and Jovetic are leaving but City already have Bony and Aguero with Sterling also providing a lot of threat going forward. There's is no need for major changes.

Liverpool have been understably busy this summer with Sterling, G.Johnson, Gerard, and Lambert leaving to be replaced by Milner, Ings, Benteke, Firminho, and Clyne. On the face of it it looks like Brendan Rodgers has made some really good signings but it remains to be seen how the group will gel and play as a unit. If Rodgers can make them play together as a team and if he can get his starting 11 right then Liverpool will certainly challenge for top four.

Top Five Predictions
1.Chelsea
2.Manchester United
3.Manchester City
4.Arsenal
5.Liverpool

Have a sporty weekend!!

SEASON SUMMARY

In the end Chelsea ran out pretty comfortable winners as Mourinho brought the trophy back to Stamford Bridge after a four-year hiatus. Nobody can argue that the blues didn't deserve it although chants of 'boring, boring' became a familiar occurrence in games involving Chelsea towards the end of the season. Deep down though we all know that trophies are what matters and fans would prefer a 'boring', trophy-laden season than an exciting one without silverware. Some of those chants had tints of envy and jealousy punctuated by the reality that their clubs were not as good as Chelsea over the course of the season. Chelsea might not have had a strong finish to the season but their hard work during the first half of the season when they were unstoppable was key.

Manchester City put up a rather lacklustre defense to their title. At one point they were even in danger of missing out on the top four but a combination of their rivals poor end of the season form coupled with some sort of resurgence by them ensured they got home in second. They never got close to threatening Chelsea for the title and that should present a worry for the expensively assembled squad. Their key players were hampered by poor form and injuries throughout the course of the season. That Aguero still ended up with the Golden Boot despite missing games is evidence of his world class abilities. The Argentine was a constant bright spot for the Citizens throughout the season with eye catching performances. That cannot be said of some of his fellow starts at City. Yaya Toure had a poor season by his high standards constantly unable to control midfield like he normally does. David Silva put in some good perfomances but not as consistently as he should have. Vincent Kompany, for a long time City's symbol of stability was far from stable at the back. He commandeered a porous defence that struggled in most games especially away from home. His partners Mangala and Demichelis did not fair any better with the former failing to justify his huge transfer fee. City are known for having Fullbacks that regualrly join the attack and provide routes for most of their goals. Their marauding full backs, Clichy, Zabaleta, Kolarov, Sagna didn't contribute enough to their attacking play. Apart from Aguero, the rest of the forwards didn't particularly do much. Dzeko didn't make a lot of contribution this season. The arrival of Bony in January was intended to add spark to the attack but his displays showed he is still adapting to City's way of playing.City look like keeping Pellegrini on for another season to give him time to develop this squad. He has his work cut out in the summer transfer window.

Arsenal once again flattered to deceive before finishing third. Just a few games to the end of the season, Arsenal were the only team that looked likely to catch Chelsea at the top of the log. In the end they were left holding off Manchester United for third place. In retrospect, it wasn't such a bad season for the Gunners though. Yes they once again failed to seriously challenge for the title, but the signs are that Arsenal are improving. The squad is getting better and there's a lot of competition for places especially in Midfield. The one place they probably need to look at during the transfer period is another striker and goal-keeping. The Gunners managed to retain the FA Cup and that at least mitigated their failure to challenge for the title. Arsenal's should now target the title next season. They need to shedd off the title of being shoo-ins for top four but never a title challenger.

Manchester United and Louis Van Gaal managed to achieve their pre-season target of Champion's League football but the feeling is it could have been better.  Out of ten, United probably got a 5 out of 10 for their efforts this season. There's the feeling of what might have been. One side of the argument is that with the resources United have, they should have been challenging for the title. The more conservative approach is that having finished 7th in the previous season, this season was more about rebuilding and qualifying for the Champion's league. The real pressure on LVG will be on show next season when United followers will expect their team to challenge for the title and do well in Europe. United's marquee signings did little to endear themselves to the fans. Di Maria and Falcao were disappointing, Rojo, Herrera and Blind were average and Shaw was injured a bit too often.
Falcao has since left, the five plus any other additions in the summer will be expected to do much better next season. United also face a real battle to keep hold of their player of the season, De Gea. You get the feeling if Real Madrid decide to go for it they will surely get their man. United still need a midfield force to provide cover for Carrick. They probably also need a striker with Falcao gone and RVP's future looking uncertain. It also remains to be seen if Chicharito will be welcomed back.


Player of the season
Eden Hazard

Team of the season
De Gea
Terry
Fonte
Clyne
Azpilicueta
Matic
Hazard
Coutinho
Sanchez
Kane
Aguero

The EPL Weekend-Round 30

The business end of the season is here with us and results have never been as crucial.
Manchester United visited Liverpool in the weekend's big game and what a game it turned out to be. Liverpool's long unbeaten run was finally ended thanks largely to a limp first half display by the hosts.
United were absolutely dominant in the first half dominating possession and taking a fully deserved half time lead courtesy of a resurgent Juan Mata. Brendan Rogers had started with Gerard on the bench and the Reds captain red card seconds after coming on in the second half made an already difficult task even harder. Gerard has enough experience to know mistakes such as these could prove costly to the Club's ambitions. His slip last season possibly handed the title to Manchester City and he might just have cost his team a top four finish. It remains to be seen. Mata followed up his wonderful display against Spurs with an even better showing at Anfield. His second goal was superb. LVG named the same squad and played the same system and maybe finally he has found the system and squad to suit his philosophy. It is no coincidence that United's good displays have been paralleled by Carrick's performances. The midfielder has been the symbol of calmness in United's play and has enabled other members of the team to perform. The understanding between him, Fellaini and Herrera have seen United dominate midfield in recent games. Rooney had a very poor game and ended up missing a late penalty. Liverpool next play Arsenal and they will need to quickly forget this defeat and focus on that match. They will do that without Gerard and possibly Skrtel whose late stump on De Gea was missed by the ref.

Arsenal were made to work hard as they finally overcame a determined second half performance by Newcastle. Olivier Giroud divides opinions but there is no argument about his goals/minute ratio. The Frenchman has been on a red hot scoring run and scored twice to give Arsenal a two goal lead at half time. In the second half a number of the Gunners players looked tired maybe due to their recent run of games in the Champions League and FA Cup. The Magpies sensed this and were all over Arsenal in the second half with only Ospina and wayward finishing saving Arsenal. In the end Arsenal held on for three valuable points that keeps the pressure on Man City.

Man City returned to winning ways with an easy 3-0 win over West Brom aided by a second minute sending of for the Baggies. City desperately needed the win to repair their lost confidence as well as keep alive their feint hopes of retaining their title. In the end they got the job done and they will continue to hope Chelsea drop points in their remaining matches.

Chelsea put in a lacklustre performance against Hull and were lucky to come away with all three points. Not for the first time this season Chelsea lost a two goal lead although this time they went on to claim a second half winner. Th Blues look to be tiring towards the end of the season but with a 6 point advantage and a game in hand, they are well set to be crowned champions.

Team of the week,
Speroni, Smalling, Cresswell, Collins, Clyne,  Mata, Fellaini, Silva, Hazard, Kane,Giroud

Player of the week,
Mata

The EPL Weekend-Round 29

The EPL season is on the final stretch now and teams cannot afford to make any mistakes at this stage.

Manchester City endured another weekend to forget with a potentially damaging defeat and

City have all but given up hope of catching Chelsea at the top of the log with only nine games left. And to add insult to injury, even the Citizens second place is now under threat. From title contenders, City are now only a point ahead of Arsenal and two ahead of United. And with Liverpool also winning, Manchester City are right in the battle for the top four Champions league spots. Their poor run of form has coincided with a run of good form among all the other top four contenders. Since the turn of the year, and since Yaya Toure left for the African Cup of Nations, City have really struggled to perform in games. Aguero has found it difficult to find goals and even the ever green David Silva for once had a poor game against Burnley. The defence and in particular Kompany have been really poor and have not protected Joe Hart enough. City really need to get their act together because the chasing pack are winning and they might just find themselves outside top four.

Manuel Pellegrini faces a tough task to retain his job with City also looking like they are out of the Champions League.

Arsenal's good run of domestic run just goes on. After beating United in the FA Cup, Arsenal comfortably ran over West Ham to keep the pressure on second place City. The Gunners are playing really well since the turn of the year and it looks like whoever plays in midfield, they always dominate that area of the pitch. There is a really fierce competition for places in the Arsenal team and the players have been upping their performances. This has been the biggest reason for the Gunners improved performances. Every player has competition for his position and mistakes are punished as was the case with Mertesacker recently. At the moment Arsenal look a good bet to make top four quite comfortably.

Manchester United got a morale boosting 3-0 win over top four rivals Tottenham. It was by some distant their best performance and result of the LVG era. The team almost looked like the United of old with Carrick and Fellaini dominating midfield. Mata was in the starting 11 and gave a brilliant performance. The result was achieved without the suspended Di Maria and that poses the question whether he should be left out altogether against Liverpool.
 Another thing worth noting also was that Blind played very well on the left side of defence covering well defensively while at the same time providing valuable crosses. It was almost like Patrice Evra at his sublime best. I would like to see Blind get more game time in that position. He excelled there for the Netherlands during the World Cup. Next up for United is Liverpool and that game will give us a true measure of United's progress. It will be a very important match for the red devils in the context of Champion's League qualification.

Chelsea were held to a 1-1 draw that could have been damaging had City not lost at Burnley. In the end the Blues actually increased their advantage at the top to 6 points with a game in hand. Chelsea have been stuttering of late in the league with the team struggling to impose themselves in matches like they did earlier in the season but such is their advantage at the top of the table that they are still overwhelming favourites to clinch the title. The chasing pack and especially City have simply not taken advantage. Failure to progress in the Champion's League was a huge blow to Chelsea but they are set to get consolation in the form of the EPL title.

Team of the Week

Forster, Smalling, Blind, Koscielny, Bellerin, Fellaini, Carrick, Ramsey, Agbonlahor, Giroud, Benteke

Player of the week

Fellaini

The EPL Weekend-Round 28

The big guns all got back to winning ways in the mid week EPL action.

Manchester City bounced back from their damaging loss to Liverpool last weekend to earn 3 crucial points at home to Leicester. It was not an easy win and Leicester will feel they at least  deserved to be awarded a penalty courtesy of a Bony foul in the first half. It was only after Milner scored a second in the last minute that the points were secure for City. Perhaps the biggest news of the night was captain Kompany being dropped from the starting line up. Kompany has had an indifferent season so far and has lately been culpable in a number of City's defensive frailties.  He is no longer the commanding force he was last season although a lot of that can be said about most of City's defence including Joe Hart in goal. The one person whose form and contribution can however not be questioned is David Silva. Once again the spanish midfielder gave an assured display and scored his sides first. Him and Aguero have been behind the good things City have been doing this season.
Following the loss toLiverpool, City are in a difficult position as Chelsea now have a game in hand in addition to their 5 point cushion. The gap to the chasing pack led by Arsenal is also down to only 4 points. The cannot afford another slip up.

Arsenal continued their good domestic form with a comfortable 2-1 win over QPR in their latest London derby. Alexis Sanchez rediscovered his scoring form and it is good to see a player who puts in a lot of energy get reward for their effort.
The Gunners are on a very good run form in the EPL and look a shoo-in for top four.
They have important few weeks ahead with the FA Cup clash against United on Monday and then trying to overturn a 3-1 deficit against Monaco in the Champions League. After uncertainties and questions being asked about Wenger and his side towards the end of last year, the Gunners have responded well. Wenger must take enough credit for reorganizing the defence with young Bellerin the preferred right back at the moment. The way he has eased Gabriel into the side has been a bonus for Wenger with the defender giving assured displays in his first two matches. The Frenchman does get a lot of criticism, and he will be severely castigated should should Monaco complete the job against Arsenal. But i think amidst the criticism people at times lose sight of the amount of work he has done.

Manchester United got another lucky break against Newcastle. How many times has this statement been said about United this season.United were once again all puff with no substance. Fan favourite Herrera has been restored to the starting 11 in recent weeks and he provides United with a lot more positive play added with the fact that he has been reasonably prolific from midfield.. which is more than you can say for most who have been playing there. LVG should continue playing the Spanish star as he represents the future of that United midfield. Rooney was played upfront again and he still has sharpness issues to sort out. De Gea once again was instrumental in goal for United fending off a number of the magpies attacks.
Following the loss to Swansea coupled with Liverpool's resurgence, United now face a real fight to finish in the top four. The upcoming games against fellow contenders Liverpool and Spurs will be massive.

Chelsea got over their Capital One triumph hangover to easily see off West Ham. Mourinho's team look to have come through their recent run of dropped poimts and with City failing to capitalise, Chelsea are almost looking a sure bet to win the title. 5 points ahead, a game in hand, ten games to go, surely the title is Chelsea's.
The Blues have coped well with the absence of Nemanja Matic in midfield. Zouma has come in to fill the defensive midfielder role and it looks like another Mourinho masterstroke. Chelsea will be pretty confident of adding a second title to their capital one and who knows, maybe the UEFA Champion's league as well.

Liverpool just look like going from strength to strength. Jordan Henderson looks a totally different player ever since Gerard announced his intentions to leave the club in the summer. The incoming captain has been the key figure for the team with strong displays from midfield. He has been on a scoring run while providing a number of key assists for his team members as well. And a lot of credit must also go to Brendan Rogers for changing the system and making bold decisions such as pushing Sterling more forward and narrow especially when Sturridge was being eased into the squad. With the reds out of Europe, their main concern will be making top four and it is looking increasingly hard to bet against them making it.

Team of the week;

De Gea, Young, Terry, Zouma, Ivanovic,  Coutinho, Henderson, Herrera, Austin, Hazard, Giroud

Player of the week

Hazard