The trio of supremacy

 

As the season reaches week 30, Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City battle for the Premier League title with very little between them.

Week 21 – A mini winter-break to ease the burden on teams losing players to the continental cups in Asia and Africa, meant that the week’s fixtures would be played out over two weeks. On Friday evening Luton scored in stoppage time to draw 1-1 at Burnley and on Saturday Manchester City scored their 3-2 winner also in stoppage time having been 2-1 behind at Newcastle while Fulham fell to a penalty conversion at Chelsea. On Sunday, Aston Villa played a goalless match at Everton while Tottenham drew 2-2 at Manchester United. On the following weekend Gabriel Martinelli came on to net a brace in time added on as Crystal Palace were destroyed 5-0 at Arsenal and Brentford overcame Nottingham Forest 3-2 at home, while with both teams reduced to 10 players Sheffield United scored a penalty deep into stoppage time to draw 2-2 at home to West Ham and Liverpool sailed 4-0 past Bournemouth with Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota scoring 2 each. On Monday evening Wolves drew 0-0 at Brighton.

Week 22 – In midweek matches Elijah Adebayo bagged a hat-trick as Brighton were taken apart 4-0 at Luton while Fabian Schar scored twice in Newcastle’s 3-1 triumph at Aston Villa and Eberechi Eze netted a brace as Crystal Palace twice came from behind to win 3-2 at home to Sheffield United. Arsenal were 2-1 winners at Nottingham Forest while 2 goals from Julian Alvarez helped Manchester City to a 3-1 home win over Burnley and Everton drew 0-0 at Fulham. Liverpool battered Chelsea 4-1 at Anfield while Tottenham got the better of Bretford 3-2 at home and on Thursday West Ham levelled an early setback at home to Bournemouth while in a pulsating match at Molineux, Wolves fought back from 2 down but Manchester United struck the 4-3 winner deep into stoppage time.

Week 23 – Everton scored an equaliser in stoppage time to cancel out Richarlison’s double for Tottenham at Goodison Park while David Fofana also scored a double as Burnley came from 2 down to draw 2-2 at home to Fulham and Crystal Palace were taken apart 4-1 at Brighton. Two goals from Sean Longsatff was not enough for Newcastle who had to come from 4-2 down to draw 4-4 with their visitors from Luton while Aston Villa shredded Sheffield United 5-0 at Bramall Lane and on Sunday Liverpool, who ended the match with 10 players, lost 3-1 at Arsenal while a brace from Alejandro Garnacho helped Manchester United to a 3-0 victory over West Ham United at Old Trafford. Matheus Cunha scored a hat-trick as Wolves tore Chelsea apart 4-2 at Stamford Bridge while Bournemouth, who were reduced to 10 players late on in the match, drew 1-1 at home to Nottingham Forest and on Monday evening Phil Foden scored all 3 goals as Machester City’s came from behind to win 3-1 at Brentford.

Week 24 – Erling Haaland scored both goals of the match as Everton lost at Manchester City while Liverpool were 3-1 winners at home to Burnley and Fulham enjoyed the same result against Bournemouth with Rodrigo Muniz netting twice for the Cottagers. Luton Town suffered a 3-1 loss at home to Sheffield United while Brentford were 2-0 winners at Wolves and Tottenham came from behind against Brighton to win 2-1 in front of their own crowd. Bruno Guimaraes scored a brace as Newcastle won 3-2 at Nottingham Forest while on Sunday Bukayo Saka scored twice as Arsenal hammered West Ham 6-0 at the London Olympic Stadium and Manchester United picked up a 2-1 win at Aston Villa. On Monday evening, Conor Gallagher grabbed a double as Chelsea came from a goal down at Crystal Palace to win 3-1 with 2 goals in stoppage time.

Week 25 – Bukayo Saka scored a hat-trick as Arsenal battered Burnley 5-0 at Turf Moor while Liverpool thumped hosts Brentford 4-1 and Wolves won 2-1 at Tottenham with a brace from Joao Gomes. Manchester City dropped point in a 1-1 home draw against Chelsea and Newcastle twice came from behind to draw 2-2 at home to Bournemouth while an Ollie Watkins double gave Aston Villa a 2-1 win at Fulham and 10-man West Ham lost 2-0 at Nottingham Forest. On Sunday Simon Adingra scored twice for Brighton and Hove Albion as 10-man Sheffield United were humiliated 5-0 in front of their home crowd and Rasmus Hojlund scored 2 early goals in Manchester United’s 2-1 win at Luton. On Monday, Crystal Palace drew 1-1 at Everton and on Tuesday, in a rearranged match, a single goal at the Etihad gave Manchester City a win over Brentford while on Wednesday Luton scored first but lost 4-1 at Liverpool.

Week 26 – Fulham scored late in added-on time to win 2-1 at Manchester United while Arsenal triumphed 4-1 at home to Newcastle and a single goal gave Manchester City a win at Bournemouth. A Douglas Luiz double helped Aston Villa to a 4-2 home win over Nottingham Forest while 10-man Brighton scored their 1-1 leveller in stoppage time at home to Everton and 10 men from Burnley were punished 3-0 at Crystal Palace in Oliver Glasner’s first match in charge of the Eagles. On Sunday, while Liverpool were lifting the League Cup at Wembley with an extra-time goal against Chelsea, Sheffield United lost 1-0 at Wolves and on Monday Jarrod Bowen bagged a hat-trick as West Ham United sent Brentford home 4-2 losers.

Week 27 – West Ham United came from behind at Everton to win 3-1 with 2 goals in stoppage time while Chelsea drew 2-2 at Brentford and there were 3-0 home wins for Fulham against Brighton and for Newcastle against Wolves. Liverpool broke the deadlock with virtually the last touch of a controversial match at Nottingham Forest while Crystal Place took the lead but lost 3-1 at Tottenham and Ollie Watkins scored twice for Aston Villa at Luton who fought back only to lose 3-2 to a last-minute goal. On Sunday Manchester United took an early lead at Manchester City but the hosts hit back after the break to win 3-1 with double from Phil Foden while Bournemouth won 2-0 at Burnley and on Monday evening Arsenal hit hosts Sheffield United for six.

Week 28 – Arsenal went top with a hard-fought 2-1 win at home to Brentford while Everton lost to 2 penalties at Manchester United and Bournemouth scored late to come from 2 down and draw 2-2 at home to Sheffield United. Luton scored deep into stoppage time to earn a 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace and Fulham were defeated 2-1 at Wolves while on Sunday Arsenal remained at the top as Liverpool and Manchester City drew 1-1 at Anfield. Ten-man Aston Villa were taken apart 4-0 by their visitors from Tottenham while West Ham United clawed their way back from a 2-goal deficit with a goal in time added on in front of their home crowd to draw 2-2 against Burnley and Nottingham Forest lost 1-0 at Brighton. On Monday evening Chelsea enjoyed a 3-2 win at home to Newcastle and on Wednesday, in a rearranged match, Bournemouth bounced back from 3 down at the break to celebrate a 4-3 win over Luton Town with a double from Antione Semenyo.

Week 29 – With several teams involved in the FA Cup quarter finals, only 4 Premier League were played. Ten-man Brentford lost 2-1 at Burnley and Rodrigo Muniz scored twice as Fulham sent Tottenham home 3-0 losers while a last-minutr goal gave Luton a 1-1 draw at home to Nottingham Forest and on Sunday Aston Villa drew 1-1 at West Ham.

Week 30 – Alexader Isak converted 2 penalties and Harvey Barnes registered a brace as Newcastle United, who had taken an early lead, came from 3-1 down at home to West Ham United to win 4-3 and end the match with 10 players while 10-man Burnley twice came from behind to draw 2-2 at Chelsea for whom Cole Palmer scored both goals and Everton lost 2-1 at Bournemouth. Sheffield United took a 3-1 lead in front of their home supporters but Fulham hit back with 2 late goals to earn a 3-3 draw while Aston Villa defeated Wolves 2-0 and Manchester United drew 1-1 at Brentford with both goals coming in added-on time. Crystal Palace drew 1-1 at Nottingham Forest while Tottenham recovered from an early setback to win 2-1 at home to Luton and Liverpool did the same against Brighton on Sunday while Arsenal drew 0-0 at Manchester City.

Changing of the Reds

 

Arsenal went into the Christmas period as league leaders but by the end of the year were replaced by Liverpool with Aston Villa and Manchester City above the Gunners.

Week 11 – A controversial goal at Newcastle ended Arsenal’s unbeaten run while Manchester City battered Bournemouth 6-1 at the Etihad with a brace from Bernardo Silva and Manchester United scored in stoppage time to win at Fulham. Brentford scored first at home but had to come from behind to beat West Ham 3-2 while Crystal Place won 2-0 at Burnley and Brighton drew 1-1 at Everton. Sheffield United picked up their first win of the season 2-1 at home to Wolves and on Sunday Aston Villa lost 2-0 at Nottingham Forest while Liverpool needed a goal in stoppage time to draw 1-1 at Luton. On Monday evening Nicolas Jackson scored a hat-trick as Chelsea came from behind to win 4-1 at nine-man Tottenham who also lost their unbeaten record.

 Week 12 – Tottenham took an early lead but lost to 2 goals in stoppage time at Wolves while Arsenal, who finished the match with 10 players, were 3-1 winners at home to Burnley and Newcastle lost to a Dominic Solanke double to Bournemouth. Everton were 3-2 winners at Crystal palace and Luton lost to a single goal at Manchester United while on Sunday Mohamed Salah netted a double as Liverpool put 3 past their visitors from Brentford and Aston Villa defeated Fulham 3-1 at Villa Park. West Ham United scored an early goal in front of their home crowd but needed a late goal to overcome Nottingham Forest 3-2 while Sheffield United drew 1-1 at 10-man Brighton and in a pulsating match at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea converted a stoppage-time penalty to draw 4-4 with reigning champions Manchester City for whom Erling Haaland scored twice.

Week 13 – After Liverpool had drawn 1-1 at Manchester City, a late goal at Brentford took Arsenal to the top of the table while 10-man Chelsea were thumped 4-1 at Newcastle and West Ham came from a goal down to win with 2 late goals at Burnley. Luton Town picked up their first ever Premier League home win with a 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace while Joao Pedro scored twice for Brighton, who were reduced to 10 players, in the 3-2 win at Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United lost 3-1 at home to Bournemouth for whom Marcus Tavernier netted a brace. On Sunday, in their first home match since being deducted 10 points, Everton lost 3-0 to Manchester United and Aston Villa came from behind to win 2-1 at Spurs while on Monday evening a second successful spot kick from Willian gave Fulham a 3-2 home win over Wolves in stoppage time.  

Week 14 – Two early goals gave Arsenal a 2-1 home win over Wolves while Burnley buried 10-man Sheffield United 5-0 at Turf Moor and Manchester United lost 1-0 at Newcastle. Brentford were 3-1 winners at home to Luton and a single goal gave Everton 3 points at Nottingham Forest while on a goal-rich but controversial Sunday Aston Villa scored in the last minute to draw 2-2 at Bournemouth and Enzo Fernandez scored twice for 10-man Chelsea who defeated Brighton 3-2 at Samford Bridge while Liverpool scored 2 late goals to overcome Fulham 4-3 at Anfield and Crystal Palace drew 1-1 at West Ham. Tottenham scored in the last minute to earn a 3-3 draw at Manchester City.  

Week 15 – In midweek Arsenal scored a last-gasp 4-3 winner at Luton Town to stay top while Liverpool kept up the pressure with 2 goals at Sheffield United and Aston Villa sent Manchester City home 1-0 losers. A double from Scott McTominay gave Manchester United a 2-1 win over visiting Chelsea and Crystal Palace lost 2-0 at home to Bournemouth while Burnley were beaten 1-0 at Wolves and Nottingham Forest were swept aside 5-0 at Fulham with Alex Iwobi and Raul Jimenez scoring 2 each. Brighton came from behind to win 2-1 at home to Brentford while on Thursday Tottenham took the lead at home but lost 2-1 to West Ham and Everton triumphed 3-0 at home to Newcastle.

Week 16 – Liverpool came from behind at 10-man Cystal Palace to win 2-1 and go top as Arsenal fell to an early goal at Aston Villa while Manchester United were humiliated 3-0 at home to Bournemouth. There were 1-1 home draws for Brighton against Burnley and for Wolves against Nottingham Forest while a single goal on the stroke of half time gave Sheffield United a home victory against Brentford. On Sunday West Ham were hammered 5-0 at Fulham and Newcastle United were taken apart 4-1 at Tottenham for whom Richarlison netted a brace while Manchester City came from a goal down to win 2-1 with goals in quick succession at Luton Town and Everton enjoyed a 2-0 home win against Chelsea.

Week 17 – On Friday evening, Nottingham Forest lost 2-0 at home to 10 men from Tottenham while on Saturday, Chelsea put 2 past their visitors from Sheffield United and Everton enjoyed the same result at Burnley. Crystal Palace came from 2 down to earn a 2-2 draw with a penalty in stoppage time at champions Manchester City and 10-man Fulham were beaten 3-0 at Newcastle while the match between Bournemouth and Luton was abandoned at 1-1 after Luton captain Tom Lockyer suffered a cardiac arrest and was taken to hospital with about 30 minutes remaining. On Sunday, Arsenal were 2-0 winners at home to Brighton and Aston Villa, who ended the match with 10 players, came from behind to win 2-1 at 10-man Brentford while Mohammed Kudus scored a double as West Ham triumphed 3-0 at home to Wolves and Manchester United, who saw red in time added on, drew 0-0 at Liverpool.

Week 18 – On Thursday Brighton and Hove Albion drew 1-1 at Crystal Palace and on Friday Aston Villa needed a goal deep into stoppage time to cancel out Sheffield United’s late goal at Villa Park while on Saturday Arsenal secured top spot for Christmas with a 1-1 draw at Liverpool. Manchester United lost 2-0 at West Ham and while Manchester City were celebrating winning the Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia, Tottenham picked up a 2-1 home win against Everton. Nottingham Forest, who were controversially reduced to 10 players in Nuno Espirito Santo’s first game in charge, took the lead at home to Bournemouth but lost 3-2 with Dominic Solanke scoring all 3 goals for the Cherries while Newcastle lost 1-0 at Luton and Burnley enjoyed a 2-0 victory at Fulham. On Sunday Chelsea were beaten 2-1 at Wolves.  

Week 19 – On Boxing Day Chris Wood scored a hat-trick as Nottingham Forest came from behind to win 3-1 at Newcastle and Alejandro Garnacho netted a brace for Manchester United who came from 2 down to celebrate a 3-2 home win over Aston Villa while Luton Town won 3-2 at Sheffield United and Liverpool put 2 past their hosts Burnley without reply. Fulham lost 3-0 at Bournemouth and on the following day Hee-chan Hwang scored twice as Wolves buried Brentford 4-1 in their own backyard while Manchester City came from behind to win 3-1 at Everton and Chelsea sent Crystal Palace home 2-1 losers. On Thursday evening Joao Pedro converted 2 penalties as Brighton put their visitors from Tottenham 4-2 to the sword while Arsenal suffered a 2-0 loss at home to West Ham.  

Week 20 – Ten-man Burnley lost 3-2 to a last-minute penalty at Aston Villa while Cole Palmer bagged a brace for Chelsea who achieved the same result at Luton Town and Crystal Palace came from an early setback at home to defeat Brentford 3-1 with a double from Michael Olise. The crowd at Nottingham Forest celebrated a 2-1 win over Manchester United while Everton Lost 3-0 at Wolves and Manchester City were 2-0 winners at home to Sheffield United. On the last day of the year, Arsenal failed to return to the top after losing 2-1 at Fulham despite taking an early lead while Tottenham their visitors from Bournemouth 3-1 and on the following day, after a goalless first-half, Mohamed Salah scored twice at Anfield as Liverpool moved to the summit with a 4-2 win over Newcastle. On Tuesday evening, Brighton played out a goalless match at West Ham.

North London give City break

 

After 10 weeks, Manchester City are in the unfamiliar 3^rd place behind Tottenham and Arsenal with Liverpool and Aston Villa hot on their heels.

Week 1 – Erling Haaland began the new season with 2 goals on Friday evening as Manchester City scored 3 times at new boys Burnley who finished the match with 10 players and on Saturday Arsenal started their campaign with a 2-1 home win over Nottingham Forest while 2 goals from Alexander Isak helped Newcastle to a thumping 5-1 victory over Aston Villa at St James’ Park. Debutants Luton Town found the going tough as they were brushed aside 4-1 at Brighton and there were 1-0 away wins for Fulham at Everton and for Crystal Palace at Sheffield United while West Ham drew 1-1 at Bournemouth. On Sunday, Tottenham drew 2-2 at Brentford while Cheslea hosted and drew 1-1 with Liverpool while on Monday a single goal gave Manchester United all 3 points at home to Wolves.

Week 2 – On Friday evening Nottingham Forest scored a last-minute 2-1 winner at home to Sheffield United while on Saturday a single goal gave Manchester City a home win over Newcastle and 10-man Liverpool defeated Bournemouth 3-1 at Anfield having fallen behind early in the match. Solly March scored twice as Wolves lost 4-1 to Brighton and ended the match with 10 players in front of their home crowd while Manchester United were beaten 2-0 at Tottenham and Brentford triumphed 3-0 at 10-man Fulham. On Sunday, Aston Villa took Everton apart 4-0 at Villa Park and 10 West Ham players sent Chelsea home 3-1 losers while in the Monday match, the 10 men of Arsenal overcame hosts Crystal Palace from the penalty spot.

Week 3 – Raheem Sterling scored twice as Luton Town lost 3-0 at Cheslea on Friday evening. On Saturday Arsenal dropped points as they drew 2-2 at home to 10-man Fulham while Manchester United conceded twice in the first 4 minutes at Old Trafford but bounced back to beat 10-man Nottingham Forest 3-2 and West Ham United were 3-1 winners at Brighton. Bournemouth lost 2-0 at home to Tottenham while Crystal Palace drew 1-1 at Brentford and Everton fell 1-0 to a late goal at home to Wolves. On Sunday 10-man Liverpool came from behind to win 2-1 at Newcastle while a double from Matty Cash helped Aston Villa to a 3-1 win at Burnley and Manchester City won 2-1 at Sheffield United.

Week 4 – On Friday evening Luton Town played their first-ever Premier League match at Kenilworth Road where they lost 2-1 to West Ham United. On Saturday, Evan Ferguson scored all 3 goals for Brighton as they defeated their visitors from Newcastle 3-1 while Erling Haaland netted a hat-trick in Manchester City’s 5-1 demolition of Fulham at the Etihad and Heung-min Son also scored a hat-trick as Tottenham came from an early goal down to win 5-2 at Burnley. Chelsea lost 1-0 at home to Nottingham Forest while there were 2-2 draws for Everton at Sheffield United and for Bournemouth at Brentford. On Sunday, Arsenal stuck twice in stoppage time to beat Manchester United 3-1 at the Emirates while Liverpool scored 3 times without reply against Aston Villa at Anfield and Crystal Palace were 3-2 winners at home to Wolves.

Week 5 – Liverpool and Manchester City came from behind to win 3-1 at Wolves and West Ham respectively while Aston Villa achieved the same feat with 2 goals late in added time at home to Crystal palace. Brighton enjoyed the same result at Manchester United while Sheffield United, who finished the match with 10 players, took the lead but lost to 2 goals deep into stoppage time at Tottenham and there were 1-0 home wins for Fulham against Luton and for Newcastle against Brentford thanks to a penalty conversion. On Sunday, after a goalless match between Bournemouth and Chelsea, one goal gave Arsenal 3 points at Everton while on Monday evening Burnley, who ended the match with 10 players, earned a 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest.  

Week 6 – Manchester City, who were reduced to 10 players on their home ground, continued their perfect run thanks to 2 early goals against Nottingham Forest while Manchester United picked up 3 points with a single goal at Burnley and Everton enjoyed a 3-1 win at Brentford. Ten men from Wolverhampton drew 1-1 at Luton while Fulham played a goalless match at Crystal Palace and on Sunday Heung-min Son hit back twice as Tottenham earned a 2-2 draw at Arsenal while Newcastle United tore Sheffield United apart 8-0 at Bramall Lane. Brighton came from behind to win 3-1 at home to Bournemouth with a double from Kaoru Mitoma while Liverpool achieved the same result at home to West Ham and 10-man Chelsea lost 1-0 at home to Aston Villa.

Week 7 – Manchester City suffered their first defeat of the season when they went down 2-1 at Wolves while 9 men from Liverpool lost 2-1 to a last-gasp own goal at Tottenham in a shameful match for the officials who erroneously disallowed a Liverpool goal despite clear video evidence and Ollie Watkins netted a hat-trick as Brighton were battered 6-1 at Aston Villa. Manchester United lost 1-0 at home to Crystal Palace while Arsenal cruised 4-0 past Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium and Luton were 2-1 winners at Everton. Newcastle and West Ham United won 2-0 at home to Burnley and Sheffield United respectively while on Sunday Nottingham Forest, who were reduced to 10 players, drew 1-1 at home to Brentford. On Monday evening, 2 goals in quick succession gave Chelsea a win at Fulham and in a rearranged match on Tuesday, Burnley won 2-1 at Luton.

Week 8 – A single goal gave 10-man Tottenham 3 points at Luton while Chelsea came from behind to win 4-1 at Burnley and Everton celebrated a 3-0 home win over Bournemouth. Scott Mc Tominay scored twice deep into stoppage time as Manchester United turned the match around to beat Brentford 2-1 at Old Trafford while Sheffield United lost 3-1 at Fulham and there was a goalless match between Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest. On Sunday, Mohamed Salah scored both goals for Liverpool who drew 2-2 at Brighton and Alexander Isak did the same for Newcastle who achieved the same result at West Ham while Wolves, who ended the match with 10 players, drew 1-1 at home to Aston Villa. Arsenal went joint top with Tottenham after defeating Manchester City 1-0 at the Emirates.

Week 9 – Ten-man Everton lost to a Mo Salah double at Anfield while Arsenal came from 2 down to draw at Chelsea and Luton earned a 2-2 draw at Nottingham Forest in Similar fashion. Brentford picked up a 3-0 home win against 10-man Burnley and Newcastle did one better at home to Crystal Palace while Wolves came from behind to win 2-1 at 10-man Bournemouth and there were 2-1 wins for Manchester City, who finished the match with 10 players, at home to Brighton and for Manchester United at Sheffield United. On Sunday, Douglas Luis scored twice as West Ham were hammered 4-1 at Aston Villa and on Monday evening Tottenham scored twice at home to Fulham to go to the top of the table.

Week 10 – The fixtures began on Friday evening with a 2-1 win for Tottenham at Crystal Palace while on Saturday Brentford were 2-0 victorious at Chelsea and Eddie Nketiah scored a hat-trick as Sheffield United were humbled 5-0 at Arsenal. Callum Wilson scored both goals for Newcastle who drew 2-2 at Wolves and Bournemouth came from behind to win 2-1 at home to Burnley while on Sunday Erling Haaland scored twice in Manchester City’s 3-0 win at Manchester United and Liverpool scored 3 at home to Nottingham Forest. A single goal gave Everton 3 points at West Ham while Fulham earned a 1-1 draw at Brighton and Luton lost 3-1 at Aston Villa.