Matchday 7 gave NetBet’s Winners and Losers page lots to talk about this week. Without further ado, let’s get underway.
Winners
Tottenham
Spurs were this week’s big winners as they ended Manchester City and Pep Guardiola’s unbeaten run, and in doing so continued their own one. There are two ways of handling Guardiola’s teams, one is to sit back and absorb the pressure, the other is to get in their faces and harass them when they have the ball. Mauricio Pochettino picked the latter and it worked.
Heung Son-Min
Son has been superb so far in his second season at Spurs and although he didn’t find the back of the net against Manchester City, he produced one of the passes of the season to set up Dele Alli’s goal. Rumours were rife that he was set to depart in the summer after a difficult first season in English football, but he stayed and everyone’s now seeing what he can do.
3-5-2
Football tacticians everywhere will have noticed that Antonio Conte deployed a 3-5-2 formation at the weekend, with David Luiz in the centre, accompanied by Cesar Azpilicueta and Gary Cahill. Victor Moses and Alonso played as the wing-backs and it worked for the Blues boss. David Moyes also employed the formation and although Sunderland didn’t win, they gained a valuable point after Patrick Van Aanholt’s equaliser.
Oriel Romeu
Romeu has been an unsung hero of the Southampton team so far this season. His ability to patrol the midfield with purpose has greatly aided his team. His triple block to deny Jamie Vardy and Islam Slimani was a thing of beauty for defensive enthusiasts. He’s another player who Chelsea might end up regretting that they sold him.
Dimitri Payet
Dimitri Payet’s brilliance has been seldom seen so far this season, but his goal against Middlesbrough was simply incredible. He dribbled past more than half of Boro’s team, before sliding the ball past Victor Valdes. West Ham shouldn’t be where they are in the table, but Payet’s goal could prove a change in fortune for the club. Another boost for the Hammers is the impending return of Aaron Cresswell.
Jurgen Klopp
Klopp’s Liverpool team climbed to second in the table after a fourth successive Premier League win and it seems as if his half time team talk inspired his players. The Reds were dreadful in the first half, but after what was a likely rollicking, they appeared full of energy in the second half. Liverpool look to have banished the demons of last season, where they failed to perform in the lower-profile games and they should be treated as serious contenders for Champions League qualification.
Glen Johnson
A non-Premier League related winner, Johnson (aged 32) has received a shock recall to the England squad. The defender hasn’t played for England since 2014 and has only just returned to the Stoke team following injury. He’s played four matches so far this season, two draws, two defeats, eight goals conceded. Hardly an inspiring defensive choice from Gareth Southgate, but he’s a winner for this week nonetheless.
Losers
Pep Guardiola
One thing that you can’t accuse Pep Guardiola of is abandoning his principles when his side are losing. City played the “Guardiola way” and it didn’t work out for them. The game against Celtic has highlighted ways of preventing his playing style from working and it’s now up to one of the game’s master tacticians to figure out a way to counter the opposition’s strategy.
Mike Phelan
Hull were never going to “do a Leicester” and win the title, but they were in the top four after two games of the season. As many predicted though, the off-field issues have started to take precedence, none more so than the failure to commit to Mike Phelan and offer him the manager job. You sense that the day where he offers the club an ultimatum is not far away now as his side are slowly falling down the table.
Troy Deeney
With three goals in seven games so far this season, including one against Bournemouth on Saturday, Deeney could have been in line for an England call up. Unfortunately caretaker manager Gareth Southgate has gone for tried and tested, rather than giving out any new caps in his first England squad. Deeney can consider himself unlucky.
Swansea
The new American owners were in South Wales on Saturday to watch Swansea carry on their dismal run of form. Francesco Guidolin looks to be on the precipice of the sack and the only thing in his favour is that the performances have improved in recent weeks. The players have kept playing for him and he hasn’t been helped by the fixture list. Huw Jenkins and the owners should keep their manager for another three games and then take stock.
Burnley
There was only one thing that’s worth talking about in the game between Burnley and Arsenal on Sunday afternoon, that being the legitimacy of the 93rd minute (and winning) goal. Burnley can rightly feel aggrieved at losing a point that their performance had deserved.