Another weekend of heroics, excuses, individual magnificence and collective mediocrity. It’s the Game Day 16 Premier League Review.
You Can Do Better Than This, Brendan
Photo: @LFC | Twitter
“We did enough to win the game,” said Brendan Rodgers after Liverpool’s 3-0 defeat to Man United, ad infinitum and in several different sentence compositions. “We created more chances…. We didn’t deserve to lose.”
We fully understand Rodgers reaching into the dark depths of his barrel of excuses on Sunday. After all, 21 points from 16 games is The Reds’ worst start to a season in half a century. But this one we can’t let slide:
“With the players we had, we did the best we could.”
For the discerning readers of The18, here’s a list of the first team regulars not at Rodgers’ disposal going into Sunday’s game:
Daniel Sturridge.
And…that’s it.
Liverpool spent £117M on eight players this summer, including four strikers, three of whom were available to the Northern Irishman this weekend (19-year old Divock Origi was loaned back to Lille before the start of the season). For Rodgers to even consider uttering the above sentence is a sad indictment of both Liverpool’s transfer policy and his own current state of mind.
In absentia, Sturridge’s reputation soars with every inept Liverpool performance. Liverpool supporters and Rodgers alike would do well to remember that D-Stu isn’t messianic; he’s fallible, made of flesh and blood, and will be as rusty as hell when he does finally return from injury in the new year.
And he won’t be bringing Luis Suarez back with him.
The Human Wall
Photo: @worldsoccertalk | Twitter
Where would Man United be without David de Gea? Mid-table or worse, we’d say. Winning whilst playing poorly, which United have made a habit of over the last half-a-dozen games, starts with an exceptional goalkeeper: de Gea is following in the well-trodden footsteps of Peter Schmeichel and Edwin Van Der Sar.
Despite a carousel of a defensive line in front of him (United started with a completely different back three against Liverpool to that which took the field against Southampton on Monday), in 16 fixtures de Gea has been imperious on 16 occasions, and Sunday’s performance was no different.
The young Spaniard made eight saves against Liverpool. In a match of such importance that’s an heroic effort, especially the four point-blank reflex blocks against a pair of shots each from Raheem Sterling and Mario Balotelli. To put de Gea’s eight stops in some context, QPR’s Rob Green – the busiest keeper in the Premier League – averages 2.7 saves per game.
De Gea has less than 18 months to go on his United contract: unless somebody in the personnel department at Old Trafford has it on good authority that league officials will let them play an 8ft x 16ft brick wall in his stead, they better start drawing up a stupendously lucrative contract offer.
All About That Bass
Photo: @samlong_89 | Twitter
While his 48th minute strike for Swansea wasn’t enough to defeat Spurs (the North Londoners prevailed 2-1 away at the Liberty Stadium), Wilfried Bony’s 20th goal of 2014 makes him the most prolific Premier League striker of the calendar year.
Which just goes to show that, while rabonas, nutmegs and other fancy footwork may be pleasing on the eye, it isn’t the be-all and end-all. 196-pound Bony’s party piece? He likes to take the ball with his back to goal and hold off a defender with an outstretched arm for as long as he likes, rolling the ball this way and that under his studs. “I just make the defender angry and show him he can’t do nothing when I’m there” says Wilfried.
His mother was a black belt in Judo.
Oh Jozy
Photo: @kieranswales | Twitter
The18 has a soft spot for Jozy Altidore. He works hard, he’s strong on the ball, and his link-up play is usually effective.
But, having not found the back of the net in 28 Premier League appearances, he certainly isn’t a goalscorer. And here’s why:
All Is Well In North London, Right?
All right, things probably aren't that well. Photo: @Metro_Sport | Twitter
Two 4-1 victories on the spin for Arsenal against Galatasaray and Newcastle, and suddenly all is well in the House of Wenger, apparently.
Remember, Arsenal have lost just once to Newcastle in 15 Premier League meetings. What’s more, the Magpies were without both their first- and second-choice goalkeepers for the weekend’s trip to the Emirates: The Gunners scored with each of the four shots they mustered on target.
So more telling exams await Arsenal and Wenger. But hey, at least they’re only two points shy of their habitual fourth place.
Reaching for the stars.
Sheikh Mansour’s Middle Finger
Photo: @BBCSport | Twitter
Following yet another trademark late arrival into the penalty box, the perennial Frank Lampard scored the 175th goal of his Premier League career against Leicester this weekend, helping Man City laboor to a 1-0 victory and moving him level with Thierry Henry in the Premier League’s pantheon of all-time leading goal scorers.
With Sergio Aguero out for at least a month, Edin Dzeko injured during Saturday’s warm-up and Vincent Kompany limping off with 15 minutes to play, is it any wonder Sheikh Mansour’s Manchester City are about to unilaterally extend their Lampard loan agreement with Sheikh Mansour’s New York City FC?
It makes sense to us, but then we haven’t paid up to $3,000 for a season ticket to be part of “New York City soccer history.”
If you liked this, you might also like…
Premier League To Play On Fridays
Watch A Compilation Of The Best Premier League Goals So Far
No Love Lost: The Ferocious Rivalry Between Man United And Liverpool
