Man City predictably did their job on Saturday afternoon, casually dispatching a toothless West Ham side 3-0 to move into provisional top spot.
VAR plays huge role in keeping Arsenal atop the Premier League
Haaland was in T-1000 mode once again, scoring a brace to make it 25 goals in 23 games for City this season. But it was Ryan Cherki who impressed me most, weaving a magical spell with every touch of the ball (what an inspired signing he has proven to be). Arsenal had to respond at Goodison if they wanted to be top on Christmas. Everton, despite missing the likes of Dewsbury-Hall and Ndiaye, dominated the early exchanges. But a moment of madness popped that balloon, as Jake O’Brian handled in volleyball-like fashion from an Arsenal corner (as unnatural a position as you will see).
Gyokeres gleefully accepted the gift, putting his recent poor form behind him to blast Arsenal into the lead. Everton battled to get back into the game against the most frugal defence in the league. However, a reckless swipe by William Salba should have led to an Everton spot-kick. But VAR incongruously declined to award the Toffees a pen, leading Moyes into a rage that hadn’t abated by the final whistle. Still, an understrength Everton side couldn’t manage one shot on target in the match, allowing Arteta’s side to leapfrog City back into top spot. This is turning into a fascinating seesaw battle (and long may it continue). And I’m not excluding Villa, who made it ten wins in a row with a 2-1 triumph over Amorim’s resurgent Manchester United.
Juventus drop performance of the season to claw within four points of Serie A summit
With Napoli, Inter and Milan in Supercoppa action, the stage was set for either Juve or Roma to make a big move in their clash at the Allianz Arena. Luciano Spalletti’s Juve reigned supreme with a 2-1 victory, exposing Roma’s tattered defence to pull within just one point of the Giallorossi. Spalletti took some time to get his ideas across in Turin but appears to be warming to the task. He set up beautifully against Gasperini’s psychotic press, essentially mirroring their system and trusting themselves to beat their men in one-on-one duels. The Juve midfield axis of Locatelli and Thuram were composed under pressure while McKennie and Cambiaso won their personal duels in the wingback positions. Juve had too much guile in attacking areas, with the impressive Yildiz dazzling with his dribbling and neat footwork. Coiceicao was a threat all night, scoring the first before Openda tapped in the 2nd after some great work by McKennie. Roma got one back but lacked a sustained threat against a rapidly improving Juve. With four points currently separating the top five in Serie A, Spalletti seems to have found a semblance of cohesion at just the right time.
Real Madrid and Barca end year with wins
Real Madrid have been in desperate form and needed a positive end to the season to keep within touching distance of archrivals Barcelona. Xabi Alonso’s men got the job done in the end, taking down Sevilla 2-0 to temporarily close the gap on Barca to a point. But it wasn’t always pretty. Real’s raft of defensive injuries have destabilized the team, leading to fractured, disjointed efforts. Saturday was no different, as they struggled for control during the match. Bellingham opened the scoring in fine style, rising triumphantly to meet Rodrygo’s free kick in the 38th minute. Courtois was probably Real’s star man on the night, bailing Los Blancos’ ragtag defensive lineup out with five saves. Sevilla made a difficult task impossible in the 68th minute, as Marcao received a 2nd yellow card for a kamikaze tackle on Bellingham. Even then, Real couldn’t really wrestle away full control of the game. Still, they ended two goals to the good, with Mbappe slotting home from the spot after in-form Rodrygo was brought down in the box.
Barca faced a daunting task on Sunday, travelling to high-flying Villarreal in their quest to reestablish their four-point lead atop La Liga. Barca were the beneficiaries of a fast start, with lively Brazilian winger Raphinha winning a spot-kick in the 12th minute. He converted emphatically to give the Blaugrana the lead at a notoriously hostile venue. Barca kept possession for large swathes of the match but nearly shot themselves in the foot on multiple occasions, gifting away possession in the face of that intense press. Joan Garcia was up to the task, saving Barca’s skin with several brilliant 1v1 saves. Villarreal followed Sevilla’s playbook of madness, as Veiga was sent off in the 39th minute for a wild tackle on Yamal. The Spanish playmaking maestro would make Villarreal pay in the 2nd half, cooly slotting home after a pinball-esque sequence in Villarreal’s box. Barca have now won eight successive La Liga matches, setting up a lovely stress-free yuletide period.
Bayern cruise to victory while battle for 2nd place intensifies
Bayern ensured that they will go into the winter break with a near-unassailable nine-point lead atop the Bundesliga standings, thrashing Heidenheim 4-0 despite a host of absentees. Neuer and Kimmich were out through injury, Laimer was unavailable due to a yellow card suspension, Jackson is on Afcon duty and Bischof and Pavlovic were out with illness. Yet despite all that, Bayern sauntered to a 4-0 victory without having to approach 2nd gear. We are looking at a 15-point title-winning margin this year. Olise was instrumental once again, scoring once and grabbing another two assists to underline his status as the most in-form winger in world football. Harry Kane waited for the last possible moment to get his customary goal, driving in a low shot in stoppage time to record his 30th goal of the season in all competitions. In the process, he became the quickest player in Bundesliga history to register 100 G/A, requiring just 78 games to complete the feat.
Meanwhile, there has been a significant shakeup amongst the chasing pack. Leverkusen will go into this year’s winter break in ebullient mood after a rousing 3-1 comeback win at RB Leipzig. Ole Werner’s Leipzig have flattened out after an excellent start to the campaign and will probably welcome this two-week hiatus. Werner’s side started well and created several big chances before Schlager gave them the lead in the 35th minute, neatly evading several Leverkusen players before curling the ball into the corner. But this Leverkusen side feeds on adversity and responded in emphatic style, scoring two quick goals via Terrier and Schick to take a barely believable halftime lead. Die Werkself were forced to dig in during the 2nd half, repelling some concerted attacks before scoring a last-gasp 3rd on the counterattack. Elsewhere, Dortmund consolidated 2nd place in the standings with a routine 2-0 win over Mönchengladbach.
Player of the Week- Morgan Rodgers
Morgan Rodgers- like the current Aston Villa machine- looks unstoppable right now. Unai Emery’s side never had things all their own way at home to Man United, as Amorim’s side shaded chances and possession. But Villa don’t need gilt-edged chances when they have a guy like Rodgers in the team. The England international was at his electrifying best, scoring two screamers to keep Villa within striking distance of table-topping Arsenal. It’s a testament to Emery’s managerial acumen that his side is keeping pace with Arsenal and City.
