The Premier League | 5th round preview

After the first 4 rounds in The Premier League, we can better see who will fight for the title and who will look for avoiding relegation. For sure, the matches have never been more competitive. And I am sure that until the very last round nothing will be decided for each team in the division. 40 games are already in the history and there have been some surprising results, but that’s not unusual for The Premier League.

To begin with, The Derby of Manchester was described as the “most expensive” one, as there were on the pitch the most expensive football players in the world. The Citizens showed they will be the favourites for winning the title, after recording a 2-1 victory at Old Trafford. But, the season is long enough and Mourinho has lots to work on, in order to outsmart Pep Guardiola and lift the Premier League trophy. Kevin De Bruyne showed a magnificent performance. He scored the first goal of the game in the 15th minute, after showing brilliant individual skills. Then, he hit the post, before Iheanacho sent the ball into the net in the 35th minute. The hosts could only score one goal – Zlatan Ibrahimovic tucked the ball away 3 minutes before the half time whistle. Guardiola was criticized a lot for his decision to get rid of Joe Hart, because his replacement Bravo had a nightmare debut against Man United, making lots of mistakes in goal.

To continue with, Arsenal struggled a lot against Southampton at home. The Saints opened the score in the 18th minute, when Tadic took a free-kick, hit the bar and made Petr Cech score an own goal. But, Koscielny proved his great eye for goals, scoring with a scissors kick in the 30th minute. Santi Cazorla brought the victory for The Gunners in the last minute of the game, after scoring from a controversial penalty. Arsene Wenger said after the match that he finally has an experienced enough team. So, the French manager believes The Gunners can compete for the title in The Premier League.

Romelu Lukaku finally showed his real face. The forward scored a hat-trick for Everton against Sunderland and helped The Toffees to collect 10 points after 4 rounds. Ronald Koeman’s players will surely fight for a place in The Top 4! Just on the opposite, Sunderland still haven’t recorded a victory. They have only won 1 point, after a draw against Southampton. David Moyes’ players have a lot to improve. But, you all know that Sunderland become much stronger at the end of the season. If the history repeats, The Black Cats will fight for avoiding relegation until the very last round of the competition!

Hull City recorded a draw against Burnley in the previous round. The Tigers were very lucky, because they equalized in the added time of the game. Robert Snodgrass is the man in form for Hull City. He scored his second of the season from a free-kick. Snodgrass also proved his skills in the qualifying match for Scotland against Malta, when he scored a hat-trick!

Leicester City were totally “destroyed” by Liverpool! The Champions didn’t show anything from last season’s performance. Their only goal of the game was due to an embarrassing Leiva’s error. Now, with the beginning of The Champions League, The Foxes are expected to have serious problems in The Premier League. They can even fight for avoiding relegation at the end of the season! In the other matches of the 4th round, Chelsea took a point against Swansea, after Diego Costa’s great performance in attack, while Crystal Palace took 3 precious points in their visit to Middlesbrough. Watford made a real miracle, turning things around against West Ham – from 2-0 down, to 4-2 up! Bournemouth beat West Brom 1-0 with a late Wilson’s back-heel goal. Tottenham Hotspur showed the most convincing performance, beating Stoke City 4-0 at The Britannia Stadium.

The schedule of the 5th round:

• Chelsea vs. Liverpool 16.09.2016 – 20:00
• Hull City vs. Arsenal 17.09.2016 – 15:00
• Leicester City vs. Burnley 17.09.2016 – 15:00
• Manchester City vs. AFC Bournemouth 17.09.2016 – 15:00
• West Bromwich Albion vs. West Ham United 17.09.2016 – 15:00
• Everton vs. Middlesbrough 17.09.2016 – 17:30
• Watford vs. Manchester United 18.09.2016 – 12:00
• Crystal Palace vs. Stoke City 18.09.2016 – 14:15
• Southampton vs. Swansea City 18.09.2016 – 14:15
• Tottenham Hotspur vs. Sunderland 18.09.2016 – 16:30

José Mourinho was my coach when he was assistant to Bobby Robson. Our last meeting in Madrid with Barcelona was not easy for us, but we met each other two or three weeks ago at a Premier League managers get-together and we spoke with each other, and with Ronald Koeman and Tony Pulis. So everything was OK. The rivalry between us is more in the media. I respect them a lot.Pep Guardiola