Matchday 14, United, Spurs, Leicester rundown

The Premier League is having quite a spectacular time in respect to its uncertainty in recent months, with more chilling matches and unpredictable results. As we enter the festive season, the defending champions Liverpool are sitting 4 points clear at the top of the table as Manchester United climbed to third in the table with a 6-2 victory over Leeds United. Tottenham, on the other hand, failed to win their third consecutive match after a 2-0 home defeat against Leicester City, who have now moved to second in the table. Elsewhere, Manchester City managed to earn three valuable points after a difficult night of football at Southampton as Arsenal’s freefall continues with a 2-1 defeat against Everton at Goodison Park. Liverpool’s 7 goal thriller against Crystal Palace place them pretty comfortable at the top of the table with a genuine chance of defending their title. With one-third of the season now done and dusted, results at the end of boxing day will prove to be crucial for teams at both ends of the table.

Manchester United vs Leeds United

The talking point of the week would be last sunday nights match at Old Trafford as Manchester United record their second home win of the season in gripping fashion against Leeds United. The match saw a combined 43 shots registered, with the Reds having the majority of the game under their grip with Leeds Goalkeeper Meslier having a difficult night out. McTominay scored two goals within three minutes of kick-off as Bruno Fernandes continued his fine form with goals in both halves of the game. Lindelof and Daniel James also found the back of the net as Leeds struggled to deal with their defensive flaws throughout the entirety of the game. The only positive Bielsa could derive out of this game would be the two consolation goals they scored in either half of the game. Leeds are now sitting 14th in the table only three points of Arsenal.

Tottenham Hotspur vs Leicester City

After an unlucky day out at Liverpool last week, which Mourinho has branded “best team lost”, seems to look odd, as Spurs failed to win their third consecutive match losing 2-0 against Leicester City. Having never conceded at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium since November, Spurs came into the game without Steven Bergwijn, who was largely criticized following his disappointing performance at Liverpool. Le Celso and Ndombele both started the game but were eventually substituted and replaced by Lucas Moura and Gareth Bale. The game was largely uneventful until the silly challenge which lead to the Penalty at the end of the first half. As the last kick of the half went past Lloris with a goal for Leicester, it was pretty much evident, Spurs would have to do more in the second half. The second half started with threatening pace as James Maddison found the back of the net from a long ball from James Justin, only to be ruled off as offside. Spurs meanwhile tried to push ahead which resulted in the second goal, a poor clearance from a Vardy shot deflected off Alderweireld into the back off the net. Spurs lack of creativity in the final third was pretty much evident during the day and is a silent reminder of their lack of strength playing against teams with a better creative unit in the middle. The result is a downhill run for Spurs and a positive result for Leicester who would be looking to challenge for the premier league title for the first time since the 2015/16 season.

Meanwhile, Sam Allardyce’s return to the Premier League was cut short by a 3-0 defeat against Aston Villa in the late-night kickoff, which featured goals from El Gazhi and Traore, with West Brom only managing to register a single shot during the entire 90 minutes of football. With Jake Livermore’s first-half dismissal and Aston Villa’s fifth away win this season, Aston Villa move to 9th in the table with two games in hand with West Brom struggling near the bottom of the table. Elsewhere, Brighton managed to salvage a point against Sheffield United as Fulham despite being one man down continued their comfortable run in recent weeks with a draw against Newcastle United.