Thick as Thieves

Arsenal and Chelsea have drawn against each other in their last few encounters. This is understandable considering how similar their performances have been this season.

These two London clubs have both proven to have a poor away record this season, costing them quite a few points. The Blues are 3rd on the PL table, 15 points below the leaders! However, the Gunners are even further down at 6th position, 8 points below Chelsea.

This weekend has fortunately been good for both teams, with Chelsea defeating Brighton 0-4 and Arsenal defeating Crystal Palace 4-1. Not only did both teams manage to score 4 miraculous goals, they both started scoring very early in the match; Eden Hazard scored the first Chelsea goal in the 3rd minute and the second came from William in the 6th- the same minute in which Monreal gave Arsenal the lead. How striking!

Arsenal and Chelsea will go head to head this coming Wednesday for the second leg of their League cup semi-final match. With the first left ending 0-0, it will be good to see if any of them make a break through.

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Home Run

Manchester City are completely and utterly running away with the title. In fact, they have been performing well in all competitions. At this stage, it would not be surprising if they end up winning more than one trophy at the end of the season.

Man City are sitting at the top of the table with an extremely comfortable 12-point lead. They entered the new year unbeaten in the Premier League and that continued up until their most recent game.

Liverpool was the team to finally break down the leaders, defeating them 4-3 last weekend. Although this result was helpful in raising Liverpool to third place on the Premier table, City’s position was hardly impacted due to the excessive lead they had alreadly accumulated.

This weekend, despite the resilience Newcastle, showed, Manchester City was able to defeat them 3-1 with a hat trick from Agüero. After all, it is hard to keep a compelling team down!

Manchester City are well on there way to being Premier League champions. For now, it does not seem like anyone will be able to truly slow them down.

Devastation and Delight

The Premier League giants played their fourth game of the season this Saturday, with Manchester City and Liverpool actually having to face off against each other. The results of these matches could not have all been forseen.

Liverpool, who had just signed Arsenal’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, were battered by Manchester City 5-0. They had conceded two goals in the first half and by the second, when the ex-Arsenal player was put on the pitch, they conceded another three! What a horrendous debut!

Arsenal and Chelsea both won their matches against Bournemouth and Leicester City respectively. After having lost their previous cious match 4-0 to Liverpool, the Gunners begun to repair their reputation with a 3-0 victory. The blue London giants only had to enhance their image with a 2-1 win, with the only goal they conceded being a penalty.

Although London was joyous, the same can not be said for Manchester. City had obtained an amazing win, however, Man United only managed a mere 2-2 draw with Stoke City. Although the team is still in the top two with Manchester City, it won’t be long before other teams put pressure on them. In fact, the Blues, who are now in third place, have already begun to do so.

The Champions Deliver

Chelsea faced Tottenham away from home at the Webley stadium for their second Premier League match of the season! After losing their first match, there were concerns about the Chelsea squad.

However, those worries were all put to bed by Chelsea’s victory over Spurs! Alonso gave the Blues the lead in the 24th minute of the match. Despite all efforts from the opposition, they held onto this lead until the second half.

Sadly, Chelsea broke down their own advantage when Batshuayi headed in an own goal to equalise for Spurs. At this point, it looked as if both teams would be walking away from the game with one point.

Although, that was quick to change. Alonso worked his magic once again by scoring the winning goal in the 88th minute of the game! Not only did he secure the first three points for the Blues this season, but he also made up for his teammate’s ugly mistake!

Chelsea now seem to be fully growing into this season. With how well they defended against Tottenham and their ability to return from setbacks, we can suspect alot more great things to come this season!

All But One

Both Manchester United and Liverpool were victorious in their second game of the Premier League season. However, disappointingly, the same could not be said for Arsenal.

Man United defeated Swansea 4-0 to secure their second win of the season. 3 of the goals shockingly came during and after the 80th minute. They kept going until the very end!

Liverpool, although not being able to strengthen their goal difference to the extent that Man United did, secured three points also. One goal by Mané in the 73rd minute of the match claimed a victory for Liverpool over Crystal Palace.

The same 1-0 scoreline was also present in Arsenal’s game but, sadly, for the opposite team. Jesé broke down Arsenal’s defense to score the winning goal for Stoke. It wasn’t a good day for Wenger, the Gunners or the fans.

Everybody is watching Wenger’s team and criticising every match. The pressure is already high and the season has only just begun!

Hope

Liverpool finished fourth place on the Premier League table last season. This meant that they were entered into the qualifying play-offs for the Champions League this season. In order to reach the group stages they must get past Hoffenheim.

Liverpool defeated Hoffenheim 2-1 to increase their chance of competing in Europe. As the Reds played away from home, they have now bagged two away goals which could help them in the second leg.

The win was especially spectacular as they won with less possession. Plus, one of the goals Liverpool claimed was actually an own goal netted by a Hoffenheim player.

Liverpool will play Hoffenheim again, but at Anfield, on the 23rd of August. Let’s hope that their luck is just as good as it was the first time around.

It’s Unpredictable

At the start of every season, there are always a few unexpected, shocking or worrying results. Whilst some teams triumpthed in their first match, it was shocking to see that the current Premier League Champions suffered the worst fate of all.

Chelsea’s first match of the season was against Burnley and, devastatingly, they were down by 3-0 at half time after Cahill was sent off in the 14th minute. This was not what anyone expected to see from the Premier League giants.

Luckily, Morata- the new Chelsea signing- netted a goal for the Blues in the second half, inspiring hope in the team. However, Fàbregas, another Chelsea player, was sent off in the 81st minute. The Champions were down to nine men!

Despite this, David Luiz scored another goal for the Blues but a loss was still scribbled into their fate. Although Conte’s team suffered failure, their ability to score goals when at a disadvantage should open fans up to the great prospects of this season!

It was also a dismal start for Liverpool who drew 3-3 with Watford. At least they managed to secure one point from the game, which is more than can be said for others.

The strongest results actually came from the two Manchester clubs, with Manchester City defeating the newly promoted Brighton 2-0 and Manchester United crushing West Ham 4-0. Whether this is reflective of what’s to come, no one can yet tell.

An unpredictable start to the season can only suggest an unpredictable season with, perhaps, an unpredictable champion. We will all be watching and enjoying the ride!

The Premier League is Back With a Bang

Arsenal faced Leicester City in the opening match of the new Premier League season. Both teams were bouncing with energy, bringing action to the game right from the start.

Arsenal’s new signing, Lacazette, opened up the match by netting a goal in the 2nd minute! It was a shocking start to the match, but there were more surprises to come…

By the 5th minute, Leicester had equalised and Vardy soon netted the second goal for his club in the 29th. The Gunners had been quickly pushed onto the back foot; what a change!

Luckily for them, Welbeck managed to score an equaliser just before the half time whistle was blown.

However, in the second half, Vardy scored again, bringing more woes upon the Gunners. It seemed as if that was to be the final result until Wenger- the Arsenal manager- made an extremely wise decision.

Ramsey and Giroud were brought onto the pitch as substitutes and they both scored goals for Arsenal during the last ten minutes of the match! 4-3 was the scoreline! What an extraordinary turnaround!

It must be hard to be an Arsenal fan, with all the twists, turns and triumphs. What a way to welcome us all back to the Premier League!

There’s Nothing Friendly about a London Derby

Arsenal and Chelsea went head to head to compete for the FA Community Shield. As the two biggest clubs in London, the match wasn’t treated like a friendly but, rather, an intense battle to prove who is the greatest team of all!

Arsenal had already claimed the Emirates Cup last weekend, and it was clear that their thirst for trophies hadn’t ended there. They had a great start to the game, putting Chelsea on the back foot for a little while.

However, it was the Blues who claimed the first goal thanks to a successful attempt by Moses in the 46th minute! It looked as if this was going to be the vital breakthrough that would win Chelsea the cup!

That was until Pedro received a red card in the 80th minute and Chelsea were down to ten men. Arsenal immediately took advantage of this, equalising just two minutes later.

The winner of the Community Shield was then decided by a penalty shootout. After the Blues missed two penalties- one surprisingly taken by the Chelsea goalkeeper- the Gunners claimed all the glory!

With two pre-season trophies, Arsenal fans can be rest assured that the new Premier League season will provide promising results and that, in fact, Wenger might have been the right man for the job after all.

The New Season is Just Around the Corner

The Premier League season will be returning to us next month. It has been a long break, at least it feels that way, but luckily there have been a few friendly matches to keep our spirits high.

The most prominent matches are being played this weekend with Arsenal, Sevilla, Benfica and RB Leipzig competing for the Emirates Cup. Sevilla won their match against Leipzig 1-0, and the Gunners defeated Benfica 5-2 in a high intensity match. 

Four goals were scored in the first half- two from each side- and it was in the second half that the Reds truly separated themselves from their opponents, with three stunning goals!

Arsenal are set to play Sevilla tomorrow and the winner will lift the Emirates Cup. Without a doubt, a trophy for the Gunners will be a huge comfort to the fans, especially the Wenger skeptics.