Blog

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at what we learned this weekend.

to the wire?

Manchester City’s impressive 4-1 win over Liverpool was their seventh successive in all competitions, a sign that Pep Guardiola’s men may be in position for another of those irresistible late-season runs that were key to their triumphs. for the title in 2018-19 and 2021. -22. But if City are putting pressure on Arsenal, it’s not yet showing: they responded to the lunchtime result by beating Leeds by four to restore their cushion at the top. With Arsenal at City at the end of the month, this has all the makings of another Premier League title race that could go down to the final day.

Liverpool must rebuild

As City celebrated at the end of a second half that they completely dominated, Liverpool faced more questions about where they are headed. Jurgen Klopp played down questions about a potential red card for Rodri by saying his side probably wouldn’t have beaten 10 men either, and the huge gap that had yawned between the two teams in the space of just a few months was obvious. Liverpool’s 7-0 win over Manchester United earlier this month was an exception, a flashback rather than a revival, and it is clear that major decisions must be made at Anfield this summer to reshape a team that is no longer able to challenge on multiple fronts.

flying foxes

Brendan Rodgers’ four-year reign at Leicester came to a premature end on Sunday when the Northern Irishman left the King Power Stadium by mutual consent – the 11th Premier League manager to lose his job this season (not counting Graham Potter who leaves Brighton for Chelsea) . The decision came after Saturday’s late defeat to Crystal Palace left six games winless and put Leicester in the bottom three. Rodgers brought the FA Cup to Leicester and twice came within a win of qualifying for the Champions League, but injuries and a lack of updating for an aging squad have left the club struggling for survival.

chelsea drought

Another frustrating day for Chelsea ended with Graham Potter’s side sinking to the bottom half of the table after a 2-0 defeat at home to Aston Villa. It was a familiar and depressing story for Potter, whose team dominated the game and had a number of great chances, but for the fourth time this season he failed to score and suffered defeat at home. More than £550m has been spent on players since Todd Boehly’s inauguration last summer, but among the long list of new faces, there isn’t what’s most needed: a reliable goalscorer.

Fulham paying a price

This week Marco Silva and Aleksandr Mitrovic publicly apologized for their actions in the FA Cup collapse at Old Trafford before the international break, when three red cards in 40 seconds saw the Cottagers blow a lead to lose to Manchester United. But signs that the full cost of the day has yet to be paid were seen in Saturday’s loss to Bournemouth, the kind of game Fulham simply must be winning to maintain their European ambitions. Mitrovic does not yet know when he might return with the Football Association pushing for a ban longer than the usual three games, while Silva is awaiting a personal hearing after which he, too, could be suspended.