City steam ahead to title

Having led the way for 248 days, Arsenal finally ran out of steam and Manchester City claimed their third Premier League title in a row. Manchester United finished third, followed by Newcastle United who also qualify for the Champions League.

Week 31 – In a week of important results, Aston Villa enjoyed a 3-0 home win over Newcastle with a double from Ollie Watkins while Brighton came from behind to win 2-1 at Chelsea and Fulham were 3-1 winners at Everton. Eberechi Eze scored both goals for Crystal Palace at Southampton while Bournemouth scored a last gasp 3-2 winner at Tottenham and Brentford lost 2-0 at Wolves. Another Erling Haaland double at the Etihad helped Manchester City to a 3-1 win against Leicester City while on Sunday Arsenal scored twice within the first 10 minutes at West Ham but for the second time in a week let their lead slip to draw 2-2 and Manchester United scored twice without reply at Nottingham Forest. On Monday evening Leeds United were humiliated 6-1 by Liverpool with Mohamed Salah and Diogo Jota each netting a brace for the visitors.  

Week 32 – On Friday evening Arsenal salvaged a 3-3 draw with 2 goals in the dying minutes at home to Southampton while on Saturday Leeds lost 2-1 at Fulham and Wolves took the lead but suffered the same outcome at Leicester. Nottingham Forest twice fought back but were beaten 3-2 at Liverpool for whom Diogo Jota scored twice while Aston Villa drew 1-1 at Brentford and Everton finished a goalless match with 10 players at Crystal Palace. On Sunday Jacob Murphy and Alexander Isak scored twice each as Newcastle demolished Tottenham 6-1 with 5 goals in the first 21 minutes at St James’ Park and West Ham cruised past Bournemouth 4-0 at the seaside. Manchester City and Manchester United will meet in the FA Cup final after wins over Sheffield United and Brighton respectively.

Week 33 – In midweek, the much-anticipated match between the top two ended in a resounding 4-1 win for Manchester City over league leaders Arsenal with Kevin de Bruyne scoring twice in front of his home crowd while Newcastle triumphed 4-1 at Everton with a brace from Callum Wilson and Tottenham came from 2 down to draw 2-2 at home to Manchester United. Crystal Palace lost to goals at either end of the match at Wolves while a single goal gave Aston Villa a home win against Fulham and Leicester drew 1-1 at Leeds United. Brentford beat Chelsea 2-0 at Stamford Bridge while Brighton took the lead but lost 3-1 at Nottingham Forest and Liverpool came from behind to win 2-1 at West Ham. Bournemouth scored a vital goal to win at Southampton. Sheffield United were promoted to the Premier League.

Week 34 – In a 7-goal thriller, Crystal Palace won by the odd goal at home to West Ham United while Deniz Undav, Pascal Gross and Danny Welbeck each scored 2 goals as Brighton and Hove Albion ripped Wolves apart at the coast and Nottingham Forest took the lead but lost 2-1 to late goals at Brentford. On Sunday, Jefferson Lerma struck twice as Leeds United were humiliated 4-1 at Bournemouth while Newcastle fell behind but hit back with a double from Callum Wilson to win 3-1 at home to Southampton and Aston Villa lost to a single goal at Manchester United. Manchester City overtook Arsenal at the top with a 2-1 win at Fulham while Tottenham, who collapsed in the first 15 minutes at Liverpool, fought back from a 3-goal deficit to draw level in stoppage time but went home 4-3 losers. On Monday evening Everton drew 2-2 at Leicester while on Tuesday Martin Odegaard netted twice as Arsenal leap-frogged Manchester City with a 3-1 win over Chelsea at the Emirates. A day later, in rearranged matches Manchester City went back to the top with 3 second-half goals at home to West Ham while a penalty conversion in Liverpool’s favour was the difference between them and their visitors from Fulham and on Thursday Brighton broke the deadlock in front of their jubilant fans with the last kick of the match from the spot against Manchester United.

Week 35 – Chelsea scored 2 late goals to win 3-1 at Bournemouth while Aston Villa fell to an early goal at Wolves and there were 1-0 wins for Tottenham and Liverpool at home to Crystal Palace and Brentford respectively. Ilkay Gundogan scored both goals as Manchester City took a step closer to the league title with a 2-1 win at home to Leeds United, with Sam Allardyce in charge, while on Sunday Arsenal kept hot on their heels with a 2-0 victory at Newcastle and Manchester United lost 1-0 at West Ham. There were goals galore on bank-holiday Monday as Harvey Barnes scored twice for Leicester City who attempted to come back from 4 down but lost 5-3 at Fulham for whom Tom Cairney also netted twice while Everton ran riot at Brighton stunning their hosts 5-1 with Abdoulaye Doucoure and Dwight McNeil scoring 2 each and Taiwo Awoniyi scored a brace for Nottingham Forest who got the better of Southampton 4-3 at the City Ground.

Week 36 – Southampton were the first Premier League team to be relegated after losing 2-0 at home to Fulham while Leeds United, who ended the match with 10 players, missed a penalty in front of their home crowd and drew 2-2 with Newcastle for whom Callum Wilson netted twice from the spot. Taiwo Awoniyi and Raheem Stirling scored 2 apiece for their respective teams as Nottingham Forest drew 2-2 at Chelsea while Tottenham lost 2-1 at Aston Villa and there were 2-0 home wins for Manchester United against Wolves and Crystal Palace against Bournemouth with Eberechi Eze scoring both goals for the Eagles. Manchester City moved to within 2 points of the league title after a brace from Ilkay Gundogan helped them to a 3-0 win at Everton while Arsenal crumbled 3-0 at home to Brighton. West Ham lost 2-0 at Brentford while on Monday evening Curtis Jones struck twice as Liverpool won 3-0 at troubled Leicester and in a rearranged match on Thursday Newcastle enjoyed a 4-1 home win with 2 late goals against Brighton.

Week 37 – Nottingham Forest celebrated survival in front of their home crowd with a 1-0 win over Arsenal that handed Manchester City the league title while Liverpool scored a last-minute goal to earn a 1-1 draw at home to Aston Villa and an early goal gave Manchester United 3 points at Bournemouth. Brentford fell behind but bombed back in the second half with a brace from Bryan Mbeumo to win 3-1 at Tottenham while Crystal Palace drew 2-2 at Fulham with Aleksandar Mitrovic scoring both goals for the hosts and Everton scored right at the death to pick up a vital 1-1 draw at Wolves. On Sunday Leeds United took the lead were dragged back into the relegation zone after conceding 3 goals at West Ham while Brighton secured a place in Europe as Evan Ferguson scored twice in their 3-1 home win against Southampton and finally newly crowned champions, Manchester City, lifted the trophy in front of their jubilant supporters after a 1-0 win over Chelsea. On Monday evening Newcastle made sure of a Champions League place with a goalless draw against Leicester at St James’ Park and in rearranged matches Brighton earned a 1-1 draw at home to Manchester City that took them into the Europa League competition on Wednesday while on Thursday evening Manchester United thumped Chelsea 4-1 at Old Trafford to qualify for the Champions League.

Week 38 – Leeds United were relegated on home soil after being swept away 4-1 by Tottenham for whom Harry Kane scored twice while Leicester City won 2-1 at home to West Ham United but were also relegated as Everton celebrated survival in front of their home supporters with a single goal against Bournemouth. Manchester City lost 1-0 at Brentford while Granit Xhaka hit a quick double as Arsenal finished the season in style with the 5-0 mauling of Wolves at the Emirates and there were 1-1 draws for Newcastle at Chelsea and for Nottingham Forest at Crystal Palace. Aston Villa secured a European spot with a 2-1 victory at home to Brighton while Manchester United came from behind to beat Fulham 2-1 at Old Trafford and Southampton bid farewell to the Premier League in an entertaining match at St Mary’s where having gone 2 down, they took a 4-2 lead with 2 goals from Kamaldeen Sulemana but ended up drawing 4-4 with Liverpool. Luton Town were promoted to the Premier League after beating Coventry on penalties at Wembley.  

 The final Premier League table for 2022-2023

Pos	Club	Pts	GD
1	Man City	89	61
2	Arsenal	84	45
3	Man Utd	75	15
4	Newcastle Utd	71	35
5	Liverpool	67	28
6	Brighton	62	19
7	Aston Villa	61	5
8	Tottenham	60	7
9	Brentford	59	12
10	Fulham	52	2
11	Crystal Palace	45	-9
12	Chelsea	44	-9
13	Wolves	41	-27
14	West Ham Utd	40	-13
15	Bournemouth	39	-34
16	Nottingham Forest	38	-30
17	Everton	36	-23
18	Leicester City	34	-17
19	Leeds Utd	31	-30
20	Southampton	25	-37

 

Top two eye title

 

With the Premier League title within dreaming distance, Arsenal’s lead over Manchester City is suddenly looking precarious while Manchester United and Newcastle are vying for third place.

Week 21 – Chelsea played a goalless match at Liverpool as did Newcastle at Crystal Palace while Bournemouth drew 1-1 at home to Nottingham Forest and Brighton shared 4 goals with hosts Leicester City. A Jarrod Bowen brace gave West Ham a home win over Everton and one goal was enough to give visiting Aston Villa a win at Southampton while on Sunday Eddie Nketiah completed his double in the last minute of a pulsating match at the Emirates to give Arsenal a 3-2 victory over Manchester United and Erling Haaland scored all 3 goals in Manchester City’s win at home to Wolves. Brentford drew 0-0 at Leeds and on Monday Fulham fell to a solitary goal at home to Spurs.

Week 22 – The week’s fixtures began with a goalless draw between Chelsea and Fulham on Friday evening and on Saturday, league leaders Arsenal came unstuck 1-0 at Everton while Crystal Palace lost 2-1 at 10-man Manchester United and Newcastle drew 1-1 at home to West Ham. Leicester City won a thrilling match 4-2 at Aston Villa while Southampton were beaten 3-0 at Brentford and Liverpool were taken apart 3-0 at Wolves. A late goal settled the match in Brighton’s favour against their visitors from Bournemouth and on Sunday Manchester City failed to take advantage of Arsenal’s slip up when they lost 1-0 at Tottenham who finished the match with 10 players while Leeds United parted company with manager Jesse Marsch after losing 1-0 at Nottingham Forest. On Wednesday evening, in a rearranged match, Manchester United fought back from 2 down against managerless Leeds United to draw 2-2 at Old Trafford.  

Week 23 – In a controversial weekend, Brentford managed to draw 1-1 at league leaders Arsenal and there were 1-1 draws for Chelsea at West Ham and for Brighton at Crystal Palace while Tottenham opened the scoring but were thumped 4-1 at Leicester and Fulham defeated Nottingham Forest 2-0 at Craven Cottage. Ten-man Wolves came from behind to win 2-1 at troubled Southampton and Newcastle drew 1-1 at Bournemouth while on Sunday Manchester United scored 2 latre goals to win at Leeds and Manchester City registered a 3-1 home win against Aston Villa. On Monday evening Liverpool put 2 past Everton in the Merseyside derby at Anfield and in a rearranged match on Wednesday, Manchester City Overtook Arsenal at the top on goal difference after a 3-1 victory at the Emirates.

Week 24 – Arsenal regained top spot after twice coming from behind and scoring twice in stoppage time to win 4-2 at Aston Villa while Manchester City could only draw 1-1 at Nottingham Forest and 10-man Newcastle lost to 2 early goals at home to Liverpool. Chelsea were stunned 1-0 at home to bottom of the table Southampton and Brighton fell to a late goal at home to Fulham while Brentford scored a last-gasp goal to draw 1-1 at home to Crystal Palace and Leeds lost to a single goal at Everton. Bournemouth scored the only goal of the match at Wolverhampton Wanderers while on Sunday a double from Marcus Rashford helped Manchester United to a 3-0 win at home to Leicester and West Ham lost 2-0 at Tottenham.

Week 25 – On Saturday, after Wolves had drawn 1-1 at Fulham on Friday evening, a single goal gave Arsenal 3 points at Leicester while Manchester City sailed 4-1 past Bournemouth on their travels and Nottingham Forest fell apart 4-0 at West Ham for whom Danny Ings netted a double. Everton lost 2-0 at home to Aston Villa while Leeds got the better of Southampton with a goal at Elland Road and Liverpool played a goalless match at Crystal Palace. On Sunday, while Manchester United were winning the League Cup with a 2-0 win over Newcastle at Wembley, Chelsea lost 2-0 at Tottenham while in rearranged matches on Wednesday Gabriel Martinelli scored twice as Arsenal brushed Everton aside 4-0 at the Emirates and Liverpool put 2 past Wolves at Anfield.

Week 26 – With Manchester City having won 2-0 at home to Newcastle, Arsenal conceded after only 9 seconds and went 2 down to Bournemouth before mounting a valiant comeback that saw them score the 3-2 winner with the last kick of the game in front of their jubilant home crowd while West Ham were hammered 4-0 at Brighton and 10 men from Crystal Palace fell to an own goal at Aston Villa who were joined by Chelsea, Wolves and Southampton in achieving 1-0 home wins, beating Leeds, Tottenham and Leicester respectively. On Sunday, after Everton had drawn 2-2 at Nottingham Forest, Manchester United were destroyed 7-0 at Liverpool for whom Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah each grabbed a brace while on Monday evening Fulham lost 3-2 at Brentford.

Week 27 – Liverpool lost 1-0 at Bournemouth and Brentford suffered the same result with a first-minute goal at Everton while Brighton twice took the lead but drew 2-2 at Leeds. Harry Kane score twice as Tottenham ran out 3-1 winners at home to Nottingham Forest while Chelsea enjoyed the same result at Leicester who finished the match with 10 players and a penalty conversion in favour of Manchester City was the difference between them and their hosts Crystal Palace. On Sunday Arsenal picked up another win with 3 first-half goals at Fulham and Newcastle sent Wolves home 2-1 losers while Southampton earned a 0-0 draw at Manchester United who were reduced to 10 players and West Ham drew 1-1 at home to Aston Villa. On Wednesday evening, in rearranged matches Brentford put 2 past their hosts at troubled Southampton while Crystal Palace lost 1-0 at Brighton.

Week 28 – On Friday evening Newcastle United came from a behind to win 2-1 at Nottingham Forest with Alexander Isak completing his brace from the spot in stoppage-time while on Saturday, a stoppage-time penalty earned Southampton a 3-3 draw at home to Tottenham having  trailed 3-1 to the Londoners and Wolverhampton Wanderers attempted to fightback from 3 down at home to Leeds but ended the match 4-2 losers with nine players on the field. Aston Villa put 3 past their visitors from Bournemouth without reply and Everton twice came from behind to draw 2-2 at Chelsea while Leicester drew 1-1 at Brentford who finished the match with 10 players. On Sunday, after parting with manager Patrick Viera, Crystal Palace lost 4-1 at Arsenal with Bukayo Saka netting twice for the league leaders.

Week 29 – Liverpool took the lead at Manchester City but were outclassed 4-1 while Gabriel Jesus scored a double as Arsenal enjoyed the same result at home to Leeds United and Chelsea lost 2-0 at home to Aston Villa before dismissing manager Graham Potter. Brighton and Hove Albion 3 times came from behind to earn a late 3-3 draw at home to Brentford while Bournemouth fell behind but defeated their visitors from Fulham 2-1 and Crystal Palace achieved the same result with their winning goal at home to Leicester coming in stoppage time. Wolves drew 1-1 at Nottingham Forest and on Sunday one goal was enough to give West Ham a home win over Southampton while Newcastle beat Manchester United 2-0 at St James’ Park. On Monday evening, 10-man Everton scored a last-minute goal at Goodison Park to draw 1-1 with Tottenham who also finished the match with 10 players. In rearranged matches in midweek, Liverpool played a goalless match at Chelsea and Brighton won 2-0 at Bournemouth while there were 2-1 wins for Leeds who came from behind at home to Nottingham Forest and for Aston Villa at 10-man Leicester City who had recently parted company with manager Brendan Rodgers. West Ham United were hammered 5-1 at home to Newcastle for who Callum Wilson Joelinton each netted a brace while a single goal at Old Trafford gave Manchester United 3 points against Brentford.

Week 30 – Manchester United scored twice at home to Everton and Aston Villa achieved the same result with a goal in stoppage-time against Nottingham Forest while there were 1-0 away wins for West Ham at Fulham and for Bournemouth at Leicester City. In a controversial match, Tottenham beat their visitors from Brighton 2-1 and at Brentford, Toney, who missed a penalty for the first time, made amends with another spot kick, but Newcastle came back after the break to win 2-1 and Chelsea were defeated by a single goal at Wolves. Erling Haaland netted a double as Manchester City ran out 4-1 winners at Southampton while on Sunday Arsenal took a 2-goal lead at Liverpool but were pegged back to 2-2 and Leeds United went ahead in front of their home crowd but were thumped 5-1 by Crystal Palace for whom Jordan Ayew scored twice. Burnley became the first team this year to gain promotion to the Premier League.

Gunners’ gap growing

 

After 20 weeks, though most teams have a game or two in hand, Arsenal are at the top of the Premier League table followed by Manchester City with a resurgent Manchester United in third and an exciting Newcastle United in fourth place.

Week 11 – Ivan Toney scored both goals as Brentford beat Brighton at home on Friday evening while on Saturday after a goalless draw for Crystal Palace at Leicester, Bournemouth drew 2-2 at Fulham and there were home wins for Wolves, 1-0 against Nottingham Forest and for Tottenham, 2-0 against Everton. On Sunday Manchester City lost 1-0 at Liverpool where Juergen Klopp saw red while Arsenal held on to win 1-0 at Leeds and Mason Mount scored both goals in Chelsea’s win at Aston Villa. Newcastle United drew 0-0 at Manchester United and there was a 1-1 draw for West Ham at Southampton.

Week 12 – On Tuesday evening Brighton were held to a goalless draw at home to Nottingham Forest while Wolves took the lead but lost 2-1 at Crystal Palace and on Wednesday Tottenham lost 2-0 at Manchester United while there were 1-0 wins for Liverpool and Newcastle at home to West Ham and Everton respectively and for Southampton with an early goal at Bournemouth. Brentford were held to a goalless draw at home to Chelsea while on Thursday Leeds lost 2-0 at Leicester and 10-man Aston Villa suffered a 3-0 loss at Fulham resulting in the dismissal of their manager Steven Gerrard.

Week 13 – Liverpool lost 1-0 at bottom of the table Nottingham Forest while 2 goals from Erling Haaland helped Manchester City to a 3-1 home win over Brighton and Manchester United shared 2 late goals with hosts Chelsea. Crystal Palace were beaten 3-0 at Everton while on Sunday Arsenal dropped points in a 1-1 draw at Southampton and Newcastle were 2-1 winners at Tottenham. Danny Ings netted a brace as Aston Villa swept Brentford away 4-0 at Villa Park while Leicester City enjoyed the same result at Wolves and Leeds lost 3-2 at home to Fulham. On Monday evening West Ham scored at the end of each half to register a home win against Bournemouth.  

Week 14 – Chelsea were battered 4-1 at Brighton and Liverpool lost 2-1 to a last minute goal at home to Leeds United while Tottenham trailed to a Kieffer Moore double but won 3-2 with a stoppage-time goal at Bournemouth. A brace from Callum Wilson helped Newcastle brush Aston Villa aside 4-0 at St James’ Park while there were 1-0 wins for Manchester City at Leicester and for Crystal Palace at home to Southampton and Brentford drew 1-1 at home to Wolves who finished the match with 10 players. Everton drew 0-0 at Fulham while on Sunday Reiss Nelson scored 2 goals in quick succession as Arsenal sailed past Nottingham Forest 5-0 at the Emirates and Manchester United picked up 3 points with a single goal against West Ham at Old Trafford.

Week 15 – Leeds United came from 3-1 down to win 4-3 at home to Bournemouth while 10-man Manchester City scraped past Fulham 2-1 with a stoppage-time penalty at the Etihad and Nottingham Forest also needed a stoppage time goal to salvage a 2-2 home draw against Brentford. Brighton and Hove Albion were 3-2 winners at 10-man Wolves and Leicester struck twice at Everton while on Sunday Arsenal defeated Chelsea 1-0 at the Bridge and Newcastle romped to a 4-1 win at Southampton who parted with manager Ralph Hasenhüttl. Mohamed Salah scored both goals in Liverpool’s 2-1 win at Tottenham while Crystal Palace enjoyed the same result with a stoppage-time winner at West Ham and Manchester United lost 3-1 at Aston Villa.

Week 16 – Ivan Toney completed his double late into stoppage time to stun Manchester City 2-1 at the Etihad and ensure a Christmas top spot for Arsenal who later won 2-0 at Wolves with a brace from Martin Odegaard while Leeds United twice took the lead with a double from Rodrigo but ended the match with 10 players and on the losing side after Rodrigo Bentancur scored twice in quick succession for hosts Tottenham Hotspur to make it 4-3. Everton were beaten 3-0 at Bournemouth while Southampton took the lead but lost 3-1 at Liverpool for whom Darwin Nunez netted twice and a single goal gave Nottingham Forest a home win over Crystal Place. Newcastle United consolidated third spot with a 1-0 win at home to Chelsea and Leicester won 2-0 at West ham while on Sunday Aston Villa came from a first-minute goal down to win 2-1 at Brighton and Manchester United enjoyed the same result at Fulham with the last kick of the match deciding the result before the World Cup break.  

Week 17 – On Boxing Day, Tottenham scored twice in 6 minutes to draw 2-2 after going 2 down at Brentford in the first match after the World Cup while Newcastle scored 3 times in the first half to win at Leicester and Arsenal fell behind to their visitors from West Ham but turned the match around for another win with 3 goals after the break. Nine-man Crystal Palace lost 3-0 at home to Fulham while Wolves scored their 2-1 winner in stoppage time after suffering an early setback at Everton and there were 3-1 away wins for Brighton at Southampton and Liverpool at Aston Villa. On Monday, there were easy home wins for Chelsea, 2-0 against Bournemouth and for Manchester United who defeated Nottingham Forest 3-0 while on Wednesday evening Erling Haaland netted another 2 goals as Manchester City won 3-1 at Leeds United.

Week 18 – On Friday evening Leicester City took the lead at Liverpool but lost 2-1 after Faes scored 2 own goals in the space of 8 minutes while Brentford won 2-0 at West Ham and on Saturday a single goal gave Manchester United all 3 points at Wolves while Manchester City dropped points in a 1-1 draw at home to Everton. Crystal Palace scored twice at Bournemouth while Southampton were 2-1 losers at Fulham and Leeds United held hosts Newcastle to a goalless draw. The year ended in a thrilling match in which Arsenal were 4-2 winners at Brighton while the first match of 2023 saw Tottenham lose 2-0 at home to Aston Villa followed by a 1-1 draw for Chelsea at Nottingham Forest.

Week 19 – On Monday Brentford beat visiting Liverpool 3-1 while on Tuesday Brighton took Everton apart 4-1 with 3 goals in 6 second-half minutes and Manchester United put 3 past Bournemouth at Old Trafford. Newcastle drew 0-0 at Arsenal and a single goal gave Fulham a victory at Leicester while on Wednesday Harry Kane scored twice as Tottenham blew hosts Crystal Palace away with 4 goals after the break and West Ham drew 2-2 at Leeds. Nottingham Forest moved out of the relegation zone after a 1-0 win at bottom of the table Southampton and Wolves earned a 1-1 draw at Aston Villa while on Thursday Manchester City picked up a vital 1-0 win at Chelsea.

Week 20 – The week’s matches began on Friday with a 2-1 loss for Leeds at Aston Villa while a day earlier, in a rearranged match, 10-man Chelsea were beaten 2-1 at Fulham. On Saturday Manchester United turned defeat into a 2-1 victory at home to their City neighbours with 2 late goals within 4 minutes while a brace from Solly March shocked Liverpool 3-0 at Brighton and James Ward-Prowse scored twice as Southampton came from behind to win 2-1 at Everton. Brennan Johnson scored both goals in Nottingham Forest’s win at home to Leicester and Brentford enjoyed the same result against Bournemouth while a single goal saw West Ham fall at Wolves. On Sunday Arsenal were 2-0 winners at Tottenham while there were 1-0 home wins for Chelsea against Crystal Palace and for Newcastle after a last-minute goal against Fulham who had missed a penalty. In rearranged matches Crystal Palace denied Manchester United an away win with a 1-1 leveller in stoppage time and Tottenham scored twice just before the break but lost 4-2 at Manchester City for who Riyad Mahrez scored twice.