Is Michail Antonio one of the most underrated strikers in the Premier League?
Michail Antonio netted his second goal since his return from injury in West Ham's 2-1 win over West Brom on Tuesday night increase his tally to 5 for the season. With 8 goals after lockdown last season plus the 5 he has this season, is he one of the most underrated strikers in the Premier League? Antonio was a winger when arrived from Nottingham Forest in 2015 for just £7 million and has played in a variety of positions such as full back, wing back, winger and now centre forward. He's appears to be a making a name for himself at centre forward by scoring goals and leading the line like one which is what you expect from a player in that position. I never rated him at centre forward before but after his recent success in that position, I think he's made that position his own by playing like on in scoring goals and using the pace and strength he has. As he hasn't received many plaudits since playing well in that position, it won't be long till he does if continues doing what he's doing.
Is time running out for Frank Lampard at Chelsea?
Chelsea are in a bad run of form at the moment with just 2 wins from 6 games with Frank Lampard's job as manager already under pressure. So is time running out for the club legend as manager? Lampard did a good job last season with the young players as he lead Chelsea to 4th place and an FA Cup final without bringing in any players due to the transfer ban. The pressure was off him that season because of the situation they were in and after spending a lot of money during the summer, the pressure has been on him this season to deliver because of the players he brought in. Lampard signed a lot of players in the summer and he has struggled to fit them all into his best team which is usually the case when you sign a big number of players for your club. Eduoard Mendy, Thiago Silva and Hakim Ziyech have been the standouts whilst Timo Werner and Kai Havertz haven't hit top form yet. With Werner and Havertz being their big money signings, they should be doing better than their current form suggests because of how much they cost and the quality of players they're supposed to be. With all the summer signings not performing, it's lead to the manager being under pressure because he's the one who made the signings and if the underperforming ones continue to underperform, Lampard could be sacked as Chelsea's owner is not afraid to press the button.
Is Leicester's current squad better than the one that won in title in 2016?
Leicester put themselves right in the mix for the title race by beating Chelsea 2-0 on Tuesday night which took them to the top of the table until Man City and Man United picked up wins on Wednesday over Aston Villa and Fulham respectively. They've picked up a similar amount of points than they did at this stage of the season where they won the title and this got me asking if their current squad is better than the squad that won the title. Leicester's current squad has more potential than the squad back when they won the title because most of the players are young and talented plus they've proven themselves to be top players. Leicester's title winning squad had players who no one really heard of and they made themselves known by winning the title. No one heard of players like Riyad Mahrez and N'Golo Kante before the foxes won the title and those two made themselves known by being key players in that title winning season before getting their big moves to Man City and Chelsea respectively. James Maddison and Harvey Barnes are two young talents who have proven themselves in this league and have made themselves known by proving themselves unlike most of the title winning squad before they won the title. Jamie Vardy, Kasper Schmeichel, Christian Fuchs and Wes Morgan are the only players in the current squad who were in the title winning squad and their experience will be helpful for the younger players in the current squad as they look to play a part this season. We'll have a better idea at the end of the season to see if this current Leicester squad is better than the one that won the title.
Will the title race be between the two Manchester clubs?
Man United and Man City currently occupy the top two places in the Premier League with United being top and two points clear of their city rivals. With Liverpool dropping points and the two Manchester clubs in good form, could the title race be between the two Manchester clubs? Both United and City have in great form since Christmas and have looked like title contenders by playing well, winning games and wining them when they're not at their best. Winning when not at your best was the case for them both on Wednesday as United came from behind to beat Fulham and City had to work hard and leave it late to beat Aston Villa. Teams who go on to win the title win games ugly and that is what United did under Ferguson and it is what Liverpool did several times last season. Both sides have also played well to put themselves in this position with City playing like we know they can whilst being solid defensively and United playing the attacking the football we haven't seen for a number of years. If both of them can continue doing what they're doing and Liverpool continue to struggle, we could have a repeat of the 2011/12 season where they both went head to head for the title.
Are Newcastle walking into a relegation battle?
Newcastle's winless run extended to nine games as they lost 2-0 to Aston Villa yesterday which was their fifth loss on the spin. With the Magpies now 16th in the Premier League; Are they walking into a relegation battle? They may be seven points above the drop zone, but Newcastle could well be in the mix for relegation if their form doesn't improve and if the teams below pick up more points. Brighton and Fulham who are in 17th and 18th respectively play each other in midweek and the result in that game could drag Newcastle into the relegation mix because a Brighton win would put them 17th with the Seagulls being one point behind them and a Fulham win or draw could drag the Magpies into it if they lose to Leeds in their next game. This is because a win for Fulham would put Newcastle 3 points clear of safety and a defeat for them in their next two game would put them in the bottom three if Fulham won their next two because Fulham have a better goal difference. A draw for Fulham against Brighton would put Newcastle six clear of the drop zone and if Newcastle lost their next game, they would move into the relegation zone as Fulham again have a better goal difference. If Newcastle don't win any of their next few games, they could be dragged in and especially if Fulham and Brighton pick up points.
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