Solskjaer got what was coming
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was finally sacked by Man United at the weekend following their disastrous 4-1 defeat at Watford which left them 12 points off the top. It was their fifth defeat in six league games and its fair to say that he got what was coming to him.
He was under more pressure this season than he has been in the past because of the quality of players he brought in during the summer in Sancho, Varane and Ronaldo. A lot of people including myself thought they would be challenging for the title and other major trophies because of those signings being added to their strong squad. But they've struggled to live up to the expectations placed upon them as they're already out of the title race with their place in the top four also looking in doubt.
The defeat to Liverpool was definitely the beginning of the end because of the manner of the defeat which left him on thin ice in regards to his job. He probably should've gone after that game and the same was probably said after the City game as it was another poor performance and it was before an international break. Those two defeats played a part in the decision because of how poor they were in both games and the Watford game was definitely the final nail in the coffin.
Will new managers kick start their new clubs' seasons?
The three clubs who changed managers over the international break got off to promising starts this weekend with Aston Villa winning their first game under Steven Gerrard, Norwich winning their first game under Dean Smith and Newcastle putting in a positive performances in their draw with Brentford. With these clubs not having the best of seasons and getting their new eras off to decent starts; Will their results over the weekend help kick start their seasons?
Newcastle may not have had Eddie Howe in the dugout against Brentford due to his positive COVID test, but you could already see that they're responding to his new methods. They started the game on the front foot and they kept it up for the majority of the contest. They were again poor defensively but going forward they looked promising and the performance itself is one they'll hopefully build on as they look to climb out of the relegation zone.
Norwich were on the back of a win going into Dean Smith's first game in charge of Southampton and you could say that they carried the confidence gained from their win over Brentford into their game at the weekend. That could well have been a factor for them but the main point from the game itself was that they got off to a winning start under their new manager. Smith brought in players who were out in the cold under Daniel Farke like Billy Gilmour who was arguably the best player on the pitch. The Young Scotsman will hopefully get more game time under Dean Smith and if he can keep his place, the Canaries could push themselves up the table.
Aston Villa were on the back of a five game losing streak going into Steven Gerrard's first game in charge against Brighton and you could see the impact he has had on the players since his arrival. After a below par first half, Villa looked more in the game in the second as they created more chances and got the win their performance deserved. The win will give them plenty of confidence and with players to come back from injury and suspension, Villa should have more than enough to pull themselves away from trouble.
Arsenal are still miles away from big teams
Arsenal's game against Liverpool at the weekend was their first big test since their poor start to the season and one they failed. It won't hurt them too much because of how much they've improved over the last couple of months. But in terms of where they are as a team, the result suggests that they're still miles away from the likes of City and Chelsea.
Those teams have much more quality than the Gunners and their defeat to Liverpool on Saturday showed that. The reds were devastating in attack and reasonably solid at the back as Arsenal had very few chances and struggled to cope with their forward players. The big teams usually know how to deal with players of a high calibre which is one of the reasons how they get results in those kind of games. Arsenal have very few players at that level which could be a reason why they're nowhere near them in terms of challenging at the top of the Premier League.
Kommentare