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Tag: Epl

  • Ex-EPL referee Mark Clattenburg reveals club he supports

    Ex-EPL referee Mark Clattenburg reveals club he supports

    Former Premier League referee, Mark Clattenburg, has revealed that he supports Newcastle United, during a Twitter question-and-answer session.

    Clattenburg was a match official in the English top flight for 13 years before he left the UK in 2017 for a role with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation.
    Earlier this year, he confirmed that he had been hired by the Chinese Football Association.
    As he has cut all ties with the Professional Game Match Officials Limited in England, Clattenburg has also decided to reveal his preferred football team.
    Responding to a fan asking him to reveal his football club on Twitter, Clattenburg replied: “Newcastle United. The best team in the world!”
  • Manchester City, Liverpool raring to go in final sprint towards EPL title

    Manchester City, Liverpool raring to go in final sprint towards EPL title

    The English Premier League (EPL) returns this weekend for a final sprint to the title, with champions Manchester City looking to overtake Liverpool at the top.

    Liverpool, two points clear having played one game more, host third-placed Tottenham on Sunday.

    Manchester City visit Fulham early Saturday, giving them a chance to add to the pressure on a Liverpool side trying to win the title for the first time since 1990.

    Pep Guardiola’s men have not lost to Fulham in any competition since 2008 and were last beaten at Craven Cottage in 2005.

    The international break has allowed Fernandinho, Kevin De Bruyne, John Stones and Benjamin Mendy to return to training and each could be involved this weekend.

    Fulham, second-bottom and 13 points from safety, look certain to be relegated but midfielder Tom Cairney believes there is still plenty to play for this season.

    “There’s a better vibe around the training ground and among the fans (after Scott Parker took over as interim manager),” Cairney said.

    “It’s looking unlikely we’re going to stay up. But there’s a bigger picture. We’ve just got to build now. It’s not the season we dreamed of having but these things happen.

    “We’ve got to start rebuilding. We lost a bit of what we had last season. It’s mad how fast things can change.”

    Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp this week urged his side to take advantage of the “wonderful base” as they try to win the title.

    And Klopp, like Guardiola, should be boosted by the return to training of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Joe Gomez.

    Oxlade-Chamberlain has been out for almost a year after knee surgery, while Gomez missed the last three months.

    Liverpool midfielder James Milner, who won the Premier League title twice with Manchester City, believes strength in depth is likely to be key in the last two months of the season.

    “I think it’s important that we have everyone available,” he told Liverpool’s website. “That’s why you need a squad when you have these sorts of injuries and stuff.

    “Ox has obviously been out a long time and was playing fantastically well before he got injured. The same applies to Joe. He’s been brilliant when he’s played this season and formed a great partnership with Virgil (van Dijk).

    “It’s important with the (number of) games you’ve got and the intensity of the run-in that we have the squad and everyone’s going to have a big impact on the end of the season, even if they’re not out on the field — just in training keeping that intensity and pushing people for their starting places.”

    Tottenham are third but, with just four points between themselves and Chelsea in sixth, the remaining Champions League places are likely to go right down to the season’s last game.

    Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino will check on the fitness of Eric Dier after the midfielder pulled out of the England squad against Montenegro on Monday with a thigh problem.

    Fourth-placed Arsenal have to wait until Monday to face Newcastle United, allowing Manchester United the chance to leapfrog them if they can win at home to Watford on Saturday.

    That match will be the first in permanent charge for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after the caretaker manager signed a three-year contract on Thursday.

    Chelsea are away to third-bottom Cardiff City on Sunday.

    Bottom side Huddersfield, 16 points adrift of safety, are away to Crystal Palace while fourth-bottom Burnley host Wolves.

    Southampton, above Burnley only on goal difference, travel to Brighton, while Leicester meet Bournemouth and West Ham face Everton in the weekend’s other matches.

  • Liverpool return to top after 2-1 victory

    Liverpool return to top after 2-1 victory

    Liverpool returned to the top of the Premier League but needed James Milner’s late penalty to avoid dropping points at Fulham.

    Leading through Sadio Mane’s 11th goal in as many games in all competitions, the visitors failed to put a limited Fulham side away, allowing the hosts back into the game.

    A dire defensive mix-up between defender Virgil van Dijk and goalkeeper Alisson gifted Ryan Babel an equaliser against his former club on 74 minutes.

    But Fulham keeper Sergio Rico then made an equally poor blunder, dropping Mohammed Salah’s curling shot and fouling Mane as the Senegal forward went for the ball, BBC reports.

    Substitute Milner calmly hit his penalty down the middle as Rico dived right, sending a relieved Liverpool back to the top for the first time since 1 March.

    Jurgen Klopp’s side are now two points ahead of Manchester City, who have a game in hand.

  • Mourinho’s successor, Gunnar Solskjaer crowned EPL manager of the month

    Mourinho’s successor, Gunnar Solskjaer crowned EPL manager of the month

    Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been crowned Premier League manager of the month, becoming the first person in the Manchester United dugout to win the award since Sir Alex Ferguson.

    The 1999 treble hero has won nine of his first 10 matches in charge in all competitions, with United securing 10 of the 12 Premier League points available last month.

    That fine form saw him named January’s Barclays manager of the month ahead of Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl and Burnley’s Sean Dyche.

    It is the first time that a United manager has won the award since Ferguson in October 2012 – his final season and one that ended with the Premier League crown.

    Solskjaer celebrated his prize with his entire coaching team and posed for a photo with them while holding the award.

  • EPL: Statistics show Liverpool face unprecedented challenge in title race

    EPL: Statistics show Liverpool face unprecedented challenge in title race

    History is on the side of English Premier League leaders Liverpool as they chase a first league title since 1990.

    But their four-point lead over Manchester City after 21 games is the smallest margin between the top two in over a century.

    The last 11 teams with the equivalent of 52 or more points at the same stage since 1905/1906 went on to lift the title.

    But the strength of this year’s top four means Liverpool on 54 points face an especially daunting task.

    Sports data company Gracenote have recalculated seasons before the English top flight moved from two to three points for a win in 1981.

    They said the data reveals that the current top four is the most dominant ever.

    Liverpool, City, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea are separated by 10 points.

    They are on course to break the record cumulative tally of 333 points set by the top four in each of the last two seasons.

    Of the 11 teams that won the league after leading at this stage since 1905-06, when 20 teams competed for the first time, many had sizeable leads.

    This is unlike Liverpool’s slender advantage this time round.

    Manchester City, for instance, held a 14-point advantage over Chelsea at the same stage last year.

    They are the first top-flight team to reach the 50-point mark after 21 games and not lead the table.

    While wealthy teams at the top of the pile have improved, the evidence suggests those at the other end of the table have got comparatively worse.

    Basement side Huddersfield Town’s 10 points after 21 games is the lowest by any English Premier League team since Derby County managed seven points 11 seasons ago

    Fulham’s tally of 14 points is the lowest for a team in 19th place for six years.

    Fulham are one of only four teams in the English Premier League era to record 14 points or less at this stage and not be bottom of the league.

    The others — Watford (1999/2000), Southampton (2004/2005) and Reading (2012/2013) —-were all relegated.

    Reuters

  • EPL: Why Arsenal fell flat to Liverpool – Unai Emery

    EPL: Why Arsenal fell flat to Liverpool – Unai Emery

    Arsenal manager, Unai Emery, has blamed his defence and officiating, for their 5-1 loss to Liverpool on Saturday.

    The Gunners took the lead in the 11th minute, after Ainsley Maitland-Niles converted Alex Iwobi’s cross.

    Arsenal’s goal sparked the hosts into life, as they took the lead within five minutes, through a Roberto Firmino brace.

    Sadio Mane connected with Mohammed Salah’s touch-down to make it 3-1, before Salah converted from the spot in added time of the first half.

    Firmino rounded off scoring in the 65th minute from the penalty spot.

    “In the second half we needed to stand up, to keep our position individually and collectively on the game.

    “The two last goals, two penalties, it’s a lot for us.

    “VAR is important – it’s coming next year, because it’s going to help the referees to take better decisions,” he told BBC.

    On the better performances within his squad, Emery singled out Maitland-Niles and Alex Iwobi for praise.

    “There were some positives, Ainsley played as right winger and scored. Iwobi, after some matches not playing very well, today he played 90minutes with a good performance. But defensively we need to be stronger, to work.

    “Our defensive moments in our box, it’s my responsibility,” he added.

  • Arsenal run riot over Fulham in 6 goals thriller

    Two goals from Frenchman Alexandre Lacazette and two more from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang gave Arsenal a 5-1 win over Fulham at Craven Cottage in the Premier League on Sunday.
    There was also a wonderful back-heeled strike from Aaron Ramsey in between.
    Fulham pressed forward in the opening minutes as they looked for their first win over Arsenal since January 2012.
    And Argentine midfielder Luciano Vietto very nearly beat Gunners keeper Bernd Leno in the second minute.
    Fulham’s powerful Serbian forward Aleksandar Mitrovic also had a number of half-chances but was unable to get any clear shots in on goal.
    Perhaps his best attempt was a thumped volley over the bar from outside the area.
    Against the run of play, Lacazette opened the scoring in the 29th minute for Arsenal.
    The Frenchman collected a pass from Nacho Monreal, spinning round past defender Tim Ream and rifling the ball low into the corner of the net from close range.
    Fulham’s Andre Schurrle levelled the score just before the break, chipping calmly over Leno for his third league goal since joining the Cottagers in the summer on loan from Borussia Dortmund.
    But the visitors ran rampant in the second half, with three unanswered goals.
    Lacazette scored his fourth league goal of the season before substitute Ramsey back-heeled in an exquisite third for the Gunners after a pass across the area from Aubameyang.
    The Gabonese striker then took the game away from the home side with two more goals that left Fulham with the worst defensive record in the league by a distance.
    They have now let in four more goals than any other team.
    “We don’t show the Premier League level, and this is our situation,” Fulham manager Slavisa Jokanovic told reporters.
    “Today we tried, we offered some positive signs, but it’s not enough.”
    The loss leaves the Cottagers on the edge of the relegation zone in 17th place.
    Arsenal, on the other hand, move up to third above Tottenham on goals scored and ahead of Chelsea who play at Southampton later on Sunday.
     

  • EPL: Howe wants Bournemouth to stay grounded after strong start

    EPL: Howe wants Bournemouth to stay grounded after strong start

    Bournemouth have offered a glimpse of their potential with two victories but cannot let their strong start lead to complacency, manager Eddie Howe says.

    Bournemouth beat promoted Cardiff City 2-0 in their season opener and followed it up with a 2-1 win at West Ham United last weekend to maintain their perfect record.

    “I think we’ve shown in the two games some good signs of what the team could be, glimpses of what the future may hold.

    “But we’ve still got to deliver that and we know in the Premier League how difficult that can be,” Howe told reporters.

    The south coast club signed midfielder Jefferson Lerma in the close season but the Colombian has yet to appear for the club after playing at the World Cup in Russia.

    Lerma could make his debut at the weekend or in the League Cup tie against MK Dons next week.

    “There are players that we haven’t seen yet who I think can really contribute to the season, I think that’s really exciting for everybody,” Howe added.

    “The strength in depth we have although not high on numbers is high on quality so I’m excited about the next week.

    “We’ve got two games and a good opportunity to see everyone play,” Howe added.

    Reuters/NAN

     

  • Man Utd defeat Leicester in Premier League opener

    Man Utd defeat Leicester in Premier League opener

    Manchester United captain Paul Pogba scored the opening goal as the Red Devils beat Leicester in the first game of the Premier League season.

    United had a frustrating summer, unable to sign any centre-backs and with Jose Mourinho looking increasingly irritated, but that did not hinder them too much at Old Trafford as they made a flying start on Friday night.

    They won a penalty in the second minute when Daniel Amartey handled Alexis Sanchez’s deflected shot.

    France midfielder Pogba stepped up and after a slow run-up placed the ball in the top-right corner above Kasper Schmeichel. The World Cup winner had not even expected to start, having only returned to training on Monday.

    Left-back Luke Shaw then scored the first senior goal of his career after controlling Juan Mata’s aerial pass to seal the victory.

    Substitute Jamie Vardy scored a late consolation after Ricardo Perreira’s cross had hit a post, and Foxes goalkeeper Schmeichel came forward for an injury time corner but his header went wide.

    The Foxes had edged the first half following their early setback with debutants James Maddison and Ricardo both forcing saves from David de Gea.

    The second period was a slightly tamer affair before the late goals, although substitute Romelu Lukaku was denied a goal by a good Schmeichel save.

    It was the third season in a row Leicester have conceded the opening goal of the season – having lost to Hull and Arsenal in the first games of the previous two campaigns.

  • EPL: Wilifred Zaha clinch player of the month award

    Wilfried Zaha has become the first Crystal Palace player to win a Premier League player of the month award since Andrew Johnson in October 2004.

    The 25-year-old winger had four goals and an assist in his four matches in April as Palace secured their Premier League status for another season.

    “I’m just happy that the performances are coming together,” said the Ivorian.

    “People are actually seeing for themselves that I’ve put in the hard work.”

    The Ivory Coast international received the most combined votes from a panel of experts, Premier League captains and fans to claim the award ahead of six other nominees: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Christian Eriksen, Jake Livermore, Jordan Pickford, Paul Pogba and Raheem Sterling.