Another trip to Villa, another banana peel for Mikel Arteta. I think most people- regardless of personal affiliation- will agree that Arsenal have been head and shoulders better than the rest of the Prem League this season.
They defend well and possess a multi-faceted attack that can hit on multiple fronts. So, how are they only two points above City in the league standings? Arsenal dominated the early exchanges at Villa Park, probing with little penetration. Saka huffed and puffed down that right-hand side while Ebrahim Eze had arguably his worst game in an Arsenal shirt. Villa hung in there and got their just desserts, with big-game specialist Matty Cash popping up with the 36th minute opener. Arteta was proactive at the break, yanking the ineffectual Eze while throwing Trossard into the mix. The rejuvenated Belgian changed the complexion of the match, creating a few moments of chaos before equalizing in the 52nd minute, sweeping the ball home after a goalmouth scramble. The stage was seemingly poised for yet more late Gunners heroics.
But Arteta fell into his old self-destructive patterns, retreating into the 1-1 draw to protect the lead. He must stop treating these Premier League away matches like they are Champions League ties. Over the course of the season, discretion will not me the better part of valor. They invited pressure and Villa gladly obliged, with Buendia thumping home a 95th minute winner after some indecisive Arsenal defending (one wonders what the injured pair of Saliba and Gabriel would have thought of Arsenal’s inability to clear their lines). This isn’t the time for panic. But it is a timely reminder that leagues are not won with cautious pragmatism these days. The loss was magnified by City’s resounding 3-0 win against Sunderland, a result capped off by one of the greatest assists in Prem League history, as Cherki’s rabona-style cross was met by the oncoming head of Phil Foden. And lest we forget, Villa also find themselves in the mix, just one point behind Guardiola’s Citizens. Interesting times indeed.
Bayern dominate German farmer’s league
There must be something wrong with the depth of German football. Either that, or this Bayern Munich side is really that good. Bayern absolutely sauntered to victory this week, obliterating a decent VFB Stuttgart side 5-0 away from home. It’s essentially the equivalent of one of the Prem League title contenders rocking up at St James Park and toasting Newcastle 5-0. Die Roten broke the deadlock in the early stages, with Konrad Leimar finishing off after some nifty wing play from French dynamo Olise. But the game stagnated from that point on, with Vagnoman marking Diaz out the game as Stuttgart defended manfully. But Kompany had one major trick up his sleeve, bringing on the talismanic Harry Kane after an hour. The England captain had far too much creative nous for the tiring Stuttgart side, scoring a breathless half-hour hat-trick to put the result far beyond doubt (Stanisic ). Bayern have rebounded well from that humbling at the Emirates, winning three successive matches to reassert their domestic dominance.
Barca the great entertainers while Real falter
Hansi Flick made a raft of changes to his Barca lineup for their trip to Real Betis, with Lamine Yamal setting up in the no.10 role to accommodate the exciting Roony Bardghji. And at times they looked a little disjointed, glad to reduce the affair to a bit of a basketball match. But who cares when you so many matchwinners. Ferran Torres has copped a bit of flak from some sectors of the Barca support, criticized for a perceived lack of consistency. But he responded in resounding fashion, scoring an excellent first-half hat-trick that exemplified his predatory instincts. He scored Barca’s opener, rounding off a wonderfully intricate team move that harkened back to the days of Xaviesta. He volleyed home the 2nd from close range before getting a touch of luck for Barca’s 4th, completing his hat-trick after his long-range effort took a wicked deflection. But that moment almost perfectly summed up El Tiburon: if you never try, you never know. Barca conceded two late goals, but the result was beyond doubt at that point.
Oh, to be a fly on the wall in the Real dressing room last night. Xabi Alonso is feeling the pressure after plummeting to a dismal 2-0 home defeat to Celta Vigo (the first victory for the visitors against Los Blancos in 22 attempts). Real now sit four points behind bitter rivals Barca as they prepare to host a resurgent Man City in midweek European action. Real had their opportunities last night, with Mbappe and Arda Guler missing gilt-edged opportunities. But it was the visitors who took a shock lead, as Celta sub Williot Swedberg flicked home cleverly just seven minutes after the break. Things then started to take a turn towards the absurd, with Fran Garcia receiving his marching orders after being shown two quickfire yellow cards. Real were ultimately reduced to nine men in the dying moments of the match, with Carreras booked for dissent before being ejected due to abusive language. Celta punished hapless nine-man Madrid, with Swedberg adding a late 2nd to compound Alonso’s misery. It’s amazing how quickly all that positive Leverkusen juju has dissipated.
Hojlund powers Napoli to the top of the table (for now)
This year’s Scudetto race is turning into something very special, with the top four sides separated by just four points. If Milan were to win in Torino tonight, it would mean that three sides will have led the Serie A standings during this round of fixtures. Inter Milan temporarily jumped into pole position on Saturday, thrashing Como 4-0 in a statement win (that Martinez-Thuram strike partnership appears to be regaining momentum). Defending champs Napoli regained the top spot last night, grinding out a hard-fought 2-1 victory at home to Spalletti’s unpredictable Juve side. Rasmus Hojlund was the surprise hero, netting a brace to power the Partenopei to victory (his first club goals since early October). In other news, Gasperini’s Roma surrendered more ground in the Scudetto race, slumping to a dismal 1-0 defeat at potential relegation-fodder Caligari.
Player of the Week- Harry Kane
I’m really starting to run out of superlatives for the English No.9 (who scored this weekend while fellow goal-scoring titans Haaland and Mbappe fired blanks). Kane came on around the hour malr with Bayern leading just 1-0 against an aggressive Stuttgart side. He quickly tipped the balance of the game in Bayern’s favour, hitting a rasping drive into the bottom corner in the 66th minute. Kane
cooly converted an 80th minute penalty before completing his hat-trick with two minutes remaining in regulation time, adroitly flicking the ball goalwards from an Olise cutback .
