After three losses in a week Manchester United and Jose Mourinho is reeling.
In their defeats to Manchester City last weekend, Feyenoord in midweek Europa League action and to Watford on Sunday, one thing is clear: the midfield is the main problem area.
In United’s 3-1 defeat at Watford on Sunday the Red Devils’ two central midfielders Marouane Fellaini and Paul Pogba both failed to track runners on each of Watford’s opening two goals and then Fellaini gave away a penalty kick for Watford’s third. It was a horrendous afternoon for them and their woes were intensified by the general mess that is United’s midfield.
With Wayne Rooney playing in the No.10 role, United lack cohesion and most importantly balance between their three central players. Neither Fellaini or Pogba are adept at doing the dirty work in the engine room well and Mourinho has to find the right combination in the middle of the pitch to get the best out of his stuttering team.
After the game Mourinho failed to criticize either Pogba or Fellaini publicly. Instead he turned on 21-year-old left back Luke Shaw for his role in the build up to Watford’s second goal.
Mourinho admitted his players must deal with the pressure of a bad situation better, but so must he. Sunday’s defeat marked the first time he’s lost three competitive games consecutively in a single season since he was in charge at FC Porto in the 2001-02 season. The meltdown usually arrives for him in his third season at other clubs but after just three months in charge at Old Trafford things are already getting a little out of hand.
Continuing to play Fellaini and Pogba together in a midfield tandem will not work and will result in more defeats. Fellaini is hit and miss in this holding role, while Pogba just isn’t disciplined enough defensively to dovetail with a player who has had a handful of games in the deeper position. The balance isn’t correct and it is throwing everything off.
Take the second goal in the highlights above as a perfect example of all that is wrong with that midfield partnership. When Nordin Amrabat has the ball, Pogba points to Fellaini to take the run of Roberto Pereyra even though he is closer to him. That leaves a huge gap for Pereyra to pull the ball back into and Juan Camilo Zuniga then ran in-behind Pogba to finish and seal the win for the Hornets.
That’s just looking at the defensive side of things in midfield…
Going forward Rooney’s presence is stifling United’s midfielders and even Zlatan Ibrahimovic from being at their best. Rooney, 30, is clogging up the central attacking area which is attracting too many defenders towards him and isn’t allowing Ibrahimovic to drop deep and start attacks. The veteran Swedish striker is so good at doing that but he was isolated up front against Watford and is growing increasingly frustrated.
Rooney’s form should be worrying for Mourinho too. When he first arrived at United this summer, Mourinho pigeonholed himself when stating that Rooney would always be a No.9 or No.10 in his eyes and never a deeper midfield player as he was under Louis Van Gaal for the second half of last season. Rooney’s form is way short of where it should be and despite brief glimpses with a cross against Southampton, a run and cross against Hull and a close-range header against Bournemouth, United’s skipper doesn’t warrant a start anymore.
Those calling for Rooney to be moved into a deeper role in midfield should save their breath. Mourinho won’t do it. His words early in his reign at Old Trafford effectively said “Rooney, I’ll play you up front but if you don’t score goals, you know what will happen.” Rooney has scored once in five games and that was on the opening day of the season. Mourinho now has the perfect excuse to drop him, which is perhaps what he wanted to do all along.
If United are to get the best out of all of their best talents, this is how they should line up in the games to come.
—– De Gea —–
— Valencia — Bailly — Blind — Shaw —
—– Herrera —–
— Martial — Pogba — Mkhitaryan — Rashford —
—- Ibrahimovic —-
With that lineup United have a chance to keep the ball in midfield and it gives Pogba less defensive responsibilities and the chance to combine and run past Ibrahimovic. Pogba’s best attributes are charging in on goal in the final third, or smashing shots from distance or curling inch-perfect passes into the feet of a Marcus Rashford or a Zlatan. You have the most expensive player in the world at your disposal. Why would you not play to his strengths?
Pogba struggled against Man City, Feyenoord and Watford but looked better against the Hornets when he could surge forward as he hit the bar and lashed other efforts over. With Ander Herrera in a holding role you also have a player who can connect passes and keep United moving forward. They simply aren’t keeping the ball enough and are giving it away in key areas in front of their back four which allows other teams to counter quickly.
Think of how Pogba flourished at Juventus. Who was alongside him most of the time? Andrea Pirlo. I’m not saying Herrera is near that level, but the same principle would suit United’s midfield best and give them balance. With Henrikh Mkhitaryan alongside Pogba breaking from midfield, you also have the leading assist man from the Bundesliga last season. When Mkhitaryan is fit, he has to play centrally. He is much more effective in a No.10 role than he was in his ghastly first half display out wide against Manchester City. Mkhitaryan is also much more effective than Rooney in that central role.
Mourinho has often gone with brutish central midfielders in his teams to break opponents down. He doesn’t have to do that at United. With Eric Bailly stepping out of defense to win balls, Herrera can use the ball to connect things together.
Rooney is the odd man out and until his form improves or Mourinho can find a better formula for his midfield struggles, it should remain that way. Getting the best out of big summers signings Pogba and Mkhitaryan has to be the priority if United are going to turnaround this worrying run of defeats.
It is still early in the season but Mourinho is struggling to fine tune this team packed with expensive stars. Sound familiar? For most United fans this is already getting a little too similar to Louis van Gaal’s time in charge.
We all know how that ended…
MERSEYSIDE RISING
A few miles across the north west of England, Liverpool and Everton are flying high.
Jurgen Klopp‘s Liverpool have beaten Arsenal, Leicester City and now Chelsea to have 10 points from their opening five games and although Everton’s schedule of games has been far kinder, Ronald Koeman has led the Toffees to their best-ever start in the PL with four wins from five and 13 points from a possible 15 to sit just first-place behind Manchester City.
Under the “Friday Night Lights” at Stamford Bridge, Klopp’s Liverpool put in a complete display. Thanks to an early Dejan Lovren goal after a mix-up at the back from Chelsea and Jordan Henderson‘s wonder goal they were 2-0 up in the first half. Klopp’s side then sat back and soaked up pressure, looking more mature than they did last season when they probably would’ve gone for it and flooded forward at every opportunity. This team is maturing and even after Diego Costa pulled one back for Chelsea, the excellent Georginio Wijnaldum and Henderson in central midfield sat in and broke up the play masterfully to grind out the win.
It was a marquee win for Klopp against Antonio Conte and showed his side has more strings to their bow than just full-throttle attacking.
Yes, it is early days but can Klopp and Liverpool challenge for the title? Here’s what he thought when asked that after the game at Stamford Bridge on Friday.
“I am really not interested in what people think. I had the same question the game we won here 3-1 last time against Chelsea. My answer was ‘are you crazy?’” Klopp laughed. “Everything is good, we have 10 points that is fantastic. I am really happy after these difficult fixtures but the season is not over, we have to play football. We know we can play football and we are convinced in our quality, that is all the truth. In the end we have to prove it every week.”
As for Everton, they suddenly look much more solid defensively and Idrissa Gueye looks like the buy of the season so far, cleaning up everything in midfield and starting attacks for the Toffees. Such is the plethora of attacking options in Koeman’s squad, talk of a title push is in the air around Goodison. That was also firmly swatted away by Koeman who also isn’t cray-cray.
“Normally we can’t win the title – Leicester last season is an exception,” Koeman said. “You have the EFL Cup and the FA Cup – that’s important for most of the teams. If I tell you we will fight for the title, most people will say ‘the man is crazy’. The big teams have much more quality.”
Still, it’s fun for fans of Liverpool and Everton to have a much more positive start to a season than they’ve had in the past two campaigns.
Below are my thoughts on Liverpool’s win at Chelsea live pitch-side at Stamford Bridge on Friday. Enjoy.
DE BRUYNE DIFFERENT CLASS
Following the Manchester derby I wrote that Kevin de Bruyne was the difference between the two teams. The Belgian forward continues to be the difference-maker for Manchester City as they brushed aside Bournemouth 4-0 at the weekend to stay top and perfect in the Premier League with 15 points from 15.
De Bruyne, 25, sent a cheeky free kick under the wall for City’s first, led a lightning-quick counter attack for their second and slotted in Ilkay Gundogan with a masterful pass for City’s fourth.
With Sergio Aguero out suspended, De Bruyne is stepping up big time in a central attacking role just behind Kelechi Iheanacho (who continues to score and now has 10 goals with just 14 shots on target in the PL).
“Messi is on a table on his own. No-one else is allowed. But the table beside, Kevin can sit there,” Guardiola said. “Kevin is an outstanding player, he is a player at another level. He understands the game, he is physically strong, he helps us out a lot defensively, aggressive without the ball and with the ball it is clear. He knows absolutely everything, he sees absolutely everything and in front of goal he makes assists and scores goals. We are so, so lucky that we have Kevin with us.”
Hard to disagree with any of that. City, but especially De Bruyne, are on a different level to start the season.
NEW HERO FOR LEICESTER
Islam Slimani is the new hero in Leicester.
The Algerian striker, 28, scored twice on his Premier League debut as the Foxes beat Burnley 3-0 at the King Power Stadium on Saturday to cap off a memorable weekend for Claudio Ranieri‘s side.
Last Tuesday they beat Club Brugge 3-0 in their first-ever UEFA Champions League game and now they’ve shown they can handle midweek UCL games away from home and deal with the bread and butter of winning games in the PL at the weekend. Leicester may not win the title this season but they look set to have a real good go at finishing in the top four.
Slimani’s goals could prove vital because whenever Jamie Vardy‘s goals dried up last season they struggled. Shinji Okazaki and Leonardo Ulloa scored some vital goals but had just 11 between them in the league and their new striker gives them a different option with his aerial ability well suited to Leicester’s direct style of play. Slimani’s stats at Sporting Lisbon speak for themselves with the bruising Algerian scoring 57 goals in 109 games in all competitions. He also has 23 goals in 44 games for Algeria and seems like the perfect foil for Vardy as the duo combined well against Burnley in the little and large roles.
9 – Islam Slimani has scored nine headed goals in league competition in 2016 (seven for Sporting Lisbon, two for Leicester City). Update.
Tougher tests will arrive for Leicester, most notably their trip to Old Trafford to play a wounded Man United this Saturday (Watch live, 7:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN and online via NBC Sports), but Ranieri’s side have rebounded well after some early season wobbles with defeats at Hull City and Liverpool.
The fairytale lives on.
Premier League Playback comes out every week as PST’s Lead Writer and Editor takes an alternative look at all the action from the weekend. Read the full archive, here.
Arsenal rising star Folarin Balogun held talks with U.S. Soccer last week and now he is set to discuss his international future with England.
Balogun visited Orlando, Florida during the March international break and the USMNT eligible striker being interested in committing his international future to the USA caused quite the stir.
The England U21 forward missed their March camp due to a small injury and he then posted a photo on social media which showed he was near to the USMNT’s training camp in Florida and he has was around Orlando for the USMNT’s 1-0 win against El Salvador there.
Now, England U21 boss Lee Carsley has revealed that the Three Lions setup will hold talks with Balogun about his future next week, as they will travel to Reims in France where he is currently on loan from Arsenal.
“He’s going to have to make a decision, so all we can do is tell him how much we rate him. The rest is down to him,” Carsley said via the London Evening Standard. Balogun has scored seven goals in 13 U21 games for England.
However, USMNT interim head coach Anthony Hudson last week confirmed that Balogun and U.S. Soccer had held talks over his future.
“We’ve had a dialogue. He is out here [in Orlando] having a bit of a break and training. We’ve had some discussions. It’s now just about him enjoying the rest of his trip… It has been an opportunity for us to share about our program, and that’s it. I hope we speak again,” Hudson said.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Balogun is a man in demand as England, the USMNT and Nigeria all push for him to represent them as he continues to assess his options.
Balogun, 21, has scored 17 goals in France’s top-flight for Reims this season as his loan spell from Arsenal has gone incredibly well and only Jonathan David and Kylian Mbappe have scored more goals than him in Ligue 1 so far in 2022-23.
Internationally he is eligible to play for the USA, England and Nigeria and he has represented England’s youth teams in recent years and has previously played for the USA at U18 level.
Balogun was expected to play for the Three Lions during this international break as he is England’s main goalscoring threat at U21 level and Carsley wants him to represent them this summer at the U21 European Championships.
The talented striker used an unexpected window of opportunity to fly to Orlando to meet with U.S. Soccer reps to discuss his potential future with the USMNT. So, will he switch his international allegiance?
Arsenal teammate and USMNT’s starting goalkeeper Matt Turner had this to say when asked about Balogun.
“Yeah, he’d be a great addition to our national team. I think he’s done really well, obviously, for his club on loan, and we’ll see. The decision has to come from the heart, because it’s not necessarily an easy task always, to come and play in these CONCACAF games, and it’s a tough region at times. So for us, we’d be really grateful to have him, but his heart needs to be in it,” Turner said.
🗣 "He's been an integral part of our campaign."
Lee Carsley highlights the importance of Folarin Balogun, with his international future up in the air pic.twitter.com/jDUvjktxlC
Balogun has spoken about this topic before as Pro Soccer Talk asked him about his international future in an interview at the start of last season.
We asked Balogun if other Arsenal academy graduates like Yunus Musah and Bukayo Saka being in similar situations has led to them discussing how they made their decision on which country to represent and if that would help him to decide who he plays for internationally.
“I haven’t spoken to any of them about the nationality situation,” Balogun said. “Even from just the way I’ve known them, it is not something they have put a lot of pressure on themselves about. I think it is a decision that comes naturally to them.
“I think I’m going to do the same and hopefully something will just come to me and then I will make a decision… I don’t want to put too much pressure on the situation. It is just something that will just come to me.”
Maybe that feeling came to him while he was in the Orlando area with the USMNT.
He has scored 42 (yes, forty two) goals in all competitions for Man City this season.
However, Pep Guardiola and Man City now face an anxious wait as an injury to Erling Haaland is the last thing they wanted before a pivotal final few months of the season as they chase the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League treble.
Norway’s team doctor, Ola Sand, gave an update on Haaland’s injury.
“We hoped that this was just a familiarity that would carry over to Saturday, but after doing tests and examinations yesterday it became clear that he will not make it to the games against Spain and Georgia,” Sand said. “It is better that he receives medical follow-up at the club.”
Norway face Spain on Saturday and Georgia next Tuesday, so it seems like Haaland is in a race to be fit for Man City’s games after the international break.
Which games could he miss?
After the international break Man City are playing in the first game of the weekend as they host Liverpool on Saturday, Apr. 1 at the Etihad Stadium.
It seems like Haaland could be struggling to be fully fit for that game, and maybe even the trip to Southampton on Apr. 8, so Pep Guardiola may choose to rest him for their massive UEFA Champions League quarterfinal first leg against Bayern Munich on Apr. 11.
Given the form Haaland is in right now, it will be a blow for City if he does miss the next few games but the last thing they want is any long-term damage. Plus, it’s helpful to have the likes of World Cup winner Julian Alvarez in reserve to step in for Haaland.
Remember: you can watch all 380 Premier League games across NBC, USA Network, NBCSports.com and Peacock. We’ve got you covered.
Will Manchester City win yet another Premier League title? Can Arsenal push them all the way? Will Chelsea and Liverpool recover to finish in the top four? Can Manchester United’s new-look side surge into the title race? What about Tottenham? How will the new boys get on? Who will be the surprise package?
Those questions will be answered from August 2022 to May 2023, with the full list of Premier League fixtures.
While below are the answers to all of the questions you have around the Premier League fixtures and everything else you need to know for the upcoming season, with full details on the Premier League TV schedule across the NBC family of channels and more.
The Premier League fixtures for the 2022-23 season were announced on Thursday June 16, 2022 at 4am ET. Below is the full schedule, as you can watch all 380 games across our NBC platforms.
The Premier League fixture computer decides who plays who and when, as teams located close to one another are usually playing at home on opposite weekends to help with policing, crowd control and transport congestion in those areas.
When will the Premier League take a break for the 2022 World Cup?
When will the 2022-23 Premier League season finish?
The final day of the season will be on Sunday, May 28, 2023.
Which teams will compete in the 2022-23 Premier League?
These are the 20 teams which will compete in the Premier League for the upcoming season:
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Brentford, Brighton and Hove Albion, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Everton, Fulham, Leeds United, Leicester City, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest, Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United, Wolverhampton Wanderers
Predictions for 2022-23 Premier League season
We made a few bold predictions ahead of the Premier League campaign, which you can read in full here. And we’ve also predicted how we think the Premier League table will look at the end of the 2022-23 campaign. I’m sure you agree wholeheartedly with these predictions…
2022-23 Premier League TV schedule
Below are the Premier League fixtures in full, with all kick offs listed at 10am ET unless otherwise stated:
2:45pm: AFC Bournemouth v Brighton
2:45pm: Leeds v Nottingham Forest
2:45pm: Leicester vs Aston Villa
3pm: Chelsea vs Liverpool
Wednesday 5 April
3pm: Man United v Brentford
3pm: West Ham v Newcastle
Matchweek 30
Saturday 8 April
7:30am: Man Utd v Everton
Aston Villa v Nottingham Forest
Brentford v Newcastle
Fulham v West Ham
Leicester v AFC Bournemouth
Spurs v Brighton
Wolves v Chelsea
12:30pm: Southampton v Man City
Sunday 9 April
9am: Leeds v Crystal Palace
11:30am: Liverpool v Arsenal
Matchweek 31
Saturday 15 April
7:30am: Aston Villa v Newcastle
Chelsea v Brighton
Everton v Fulham
Southampton v Crystal Palace
Spurs v AFC Bournemouth
Wolves v Brentford
12:30pm: Man City v Leicester
Sunday 16 April
9am: West Ham v Arsenal
11:30am: Nottingham Forest v Man Utd
Monday 17 April
3pm: Leeds v Liverpool
Matchweek 32
Friday 21 April
3pm: Arsenal v Southampton
Saturday 22 April
7:30am: Fulham v Leeds
Brentford v Aston Villa
Crystal Palace v Everton
Leicester v Wolves
Liverpool v Nottingham Forest
Sunday 23 April
9am: AFC Bournemouth v West Ham
9am: Newcastle v Spurs
Postponed due to European action
Man Utd v Chelsea
Brighton v Man City
Matchweek 33
Tuesday 25 April
2:30pm: Wolves v Crystal Palace
2:45pm: Aston Villa v Fulham
2:45pm: Leeds v Leicester
Wednesday 26 April
2:30pm: Nottingham Forest v Brighton
2:45pm: Chelsea v Brentford
2:45pm: West Ham v Liverpool
3pm: Man City v Arsenal
Thursday 27 April
2:45pm: Everton v Newcastle
2:45pm: Southampton v AFC Bournemouth
3:15pm: Spurs v Man Utd
Matchweek 34
Saturday 29 April
7:30am: Crystal Palace v West Ham
Brentford v Nottingham Forest
Brighton v Wolves
12:30pm: Arsenal v Chelsea
Sunday 30 April
9am: AFC Bournemouth v Leeds
9am: Fulham v Man City
9am: Man Utd v Aston Villa
9am: Newcastle v Southampton
11:30am: Liverpool v Spurs
Monday 1 May
3pm: Leicester v Everton
Rearranged games
Wednesday 3 May
3pm: Liverpool v Fulham
3pm: Man City v West Ham
Thursday 4 May
3pm: Brighton v Man Utd
Matchweek 35
Saturday 6 May
AFC Bournemouth v Chelsea
Spurs v Crystal Palace
Wolves v Aston Villa
12:30pm: Liverpool v Brentford
Sunday 7 May
9am: Man City v Leeds* subject to possible Champions League schedule
11:30am: Newcastle v Arsenal
2pm: West Ham v Man Utd
Monday 8 May
10am: Fulham v Leicester
12:30pm: Brighton v Everton
3pm: Nottingham Forest v Southampton
Saturday 13 May
Arsenal v Brighton
Aston Villa v Spurs
Brentford v West Ham
Chelsea v Nottingham Forest
Crystal Palace v AFC Bournemouth
Everton v Man City
Leeds v Newcastle
Leicester v Liverpool
Man Utd v Wolves
Southampton v Fulham
Saturday 20 May
AFC Bournemouth v Man Utd
Brighton v Southampton
Fulham v Crystal Palace
Liverpool v Aston Villa
Man City v Chelsea
Newcastle v Leicester
Nottingham Forest v Arsenal
Spurs v Brentford
West Ham v Leeds
Wolves v Everton
Sunday 28 May
16:00 Arsenal v Wolves
16:00 Aston Villa v Brighton
16:00 Brentford v Man City
16:00 Chelsea v Newcastle
16:00 Crystal Palace v Nottingham Forest
16:00 Everton v AFC Bournemouth
16:00 Leeds v Spurs
16:00 Leicester v West Ham
16:00 Man Utd v Fulham
16:00 Southampton v Liverpool
Eight points clear at the top of the Premier League table with 10 games to go, what do Arsenal need to win their first Premier League title in 19 years?
Mikel Arteta has his young side on the cusp of a pretty remarkable and very unexpected Premier League title win.
With a solid defensive unit, perfectly balanced midfield and the likes of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard having fine campaigns in the final third, there is so much to love about this Arsenal team.
But how, and when, can Arsenal seal the Premier League title they crave? How many points do they need to gain? What are the scenarios based on their huge game against Manchester City in April?
How many points do Arsenal need to win the Premier League title?
With 10 games remaining, there are many different ways the Gunners can win the Premier League title.
In its simplest form: if Arsenal win nine of their final 10 games they will be crowned Premier League games.
The magic number for Arsenal to reach is 95 points. If they reach 95 points, Manchester City cannot catch them.
But if Man City beat Arsenal in their huge game at the Etihad on April 26 and win their game in-hand, Arsenal will need to win all nine of their other remaining game to be sure of the title. That would give them 96 points and Man City could only finish on 94.
If Arsenal drew against Man City then Man City could only finish on a maximum of 92 points. That means Arsenal would need eight wins from their remaining nine games to win the title as they would have 94 points.
If Arsenal win at Man City then Man City would only be able to reach 91 points. So, Arsenal would only have to win seven of their other nine remaining games to seal the title.
All of this proves just how massive the Manchester City vs Arsenal game on April 26 is in deciding the title winner.
When did Arsenal last win the Premier League?
They last won the Premier League title in the 2003-04 season, the famous ‘Invincibles’ campaign as they didn’t lose any of their 38 games that season.
Think Patrick Vieira, Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry, Freddie Ljungberg, Sol Campbell and Robert Pires in full flow and Arsene Wenger with a huge smile on his face on the sidelines. Magnificent.
When did Arsenal last win a trophy?
The last trophy Arsenal won was the FA Cup in the 2019-20 season, they also won the FA Community Shield in 2020.
Both of those trophies were won by current boss Mikel Arteta.
Which trophies have Arsenal won?
Here are the list of trophies the Gunners have won in their history:
