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[Tominator]

GAMEWEEK 1 WRAP


I'll do this when I get time to, not sure how often that will be but might turn this into a preview/review thread if people don't wanna post predictions any more. Let me know if you like this or not




Liverpool 1-0 Stoke

Liverpool came away with the three points, and rightfully so, but they did it the hard way. Could easily have piled on another 2 or 3 goals but could only manage the one, albeit a good strike from Daniel Sturridge. Asmir Begovic and Simon Mignolet showed exactly why they were arguably last two season's standout keepers, with Begovic making an astonishing 10 saves and Mignolet 5, including a vital double save right at the death from Jonathon Walters' penalty. When (or if) Liverpool get Luis Suarez back, they will become a much better side, but I personally don't think they are as bad as everybody says they are. Sturridge, Phillipe Coutinho can form a damaging combination with Sturridge, while new signing Iago Aspas could prove to be a good foil as well. Stoke need to find another good midfielder or forward as well, because they do look a little bit inept at times in front of goal. And maybe a new penalty taker too as Walters has missed 3 of his last 5 penalties 



West Bromich Albion 0-1 Southampton

Am yet to see the highlights for this one but from what I can gather, it was a cracking game. Luke Shaw is a starlet at left back while Dejan Lovren and Victor Wanyama are both looking like great signings for the Saints. This team is going places and look set for a solid stay in the PL for the short term at the very least. Controversial striker Pablo Osvaldo is on his way from Roma - that is only going to add to their depth. Southampton were the much better side though and deserved the three points, even though the penalty was a very rough call as contact appeared minimal. West Brom didn't create many chances however, but you do feel for them for losing in such dramatic circumstances



West Ham 2-0 Cardiff City

Cardiff performed admirably for their first EPL game but in the end the quality of the Hammers' midfielders just proved too good. Joe Cole and Kevin Nolan both got on the scoresheet but Cardiff never really threatened. Cardiff will need to add to their list if they want to stay in the PL, but while they didn't threaten they weren't utterly terrible, and will definitely progress as the season goes on. 2-0 is probably a fair result given the balance of play



Arsenal 1-3 Aston Villa

Wow. Who saw this coming? For Arsenal, the team that is yet to spend one cent of their 70 million transfer budget, things could not have gone worse. If not for striker Christian Benteke, Villa would have been relegated last season. And that man Benteke scored twice, from penalties (one from a follow-up), while new boy Antonio Luna also scored. Villa came away very convincing winners while Arsenal were booed off by their own fans. With Laurent Koscielny red-carded and suspended, and wide-backs Bacary Sagna and Kieran Gibbs injured, Arsenal's defence is resembling a bomb site. Think I'll ditch Per Mertesacker from my FPL team   It will be very interesting to see if Wenger manages to make any signings (out of desperation) before Arsenal's next game at Fulham. Things will get diabolical if they lose that one



Sunderland 0-1 Fulham

The Cottagers got off to a good start with three points against the Black Cats. A host of new signings took the field for the first time under Pablo di Canio's very different team, symbolic of the Italian's extroverted managing. Besides Pajtim Kasami's header, it was far from a riveting game (for the neutral supporter), but Fulham will be very happy to come away with a win, in a game that they didn't really dominate



Norwich 2-2 Everton

Match of the round for mine. Two attacking teams with two respected managers, a draw was a fair result but had fans on the edges of their seats. Came to life in the second half with four goals scored in 20-odd minutes. These two teams will definitely push for top 7 finishes, and should make the top half comfortably. Seamus Coleman and Ross Barkley excelled for the Toffees, both are players to watch this season. For Norwich, Nathan Redmond and Ricky van Wolfswinkel were two of the stars, while a defensive reshuffle saw Steven Whittaker grab an assist and a superb goal from Right Back. Let's not forget that Norwich had three of their best players in Gary Hooper, Seb Bassong and Robert Snodgrass all out injured, due to return over the next couple of weeks. Great game for two teams with big aspirations



Swansea 1-4 Manchester United

This was the game that most neutral observers had their eyes on for various reasons, and didn't David Moyes' men deliver. Danny Welbeck got the starting berth over Wayne Rooney and managed a brace, which bodes well for United fans if Rooney does (as expected) leave the club. Interestingly, when Rooney came on, he played as more of a midfielder than and up-front striker. Robin van Persie proved why he is the best striker in the EPL with two superb goals, and secured a dominant win to start life after Fergie. Swansea were very disappointing, which may come down to their new signings not quite gelling together yet, but starting Jose Canas over Sung Yeung Ki was a bit surprising for me. Wilfried Bony scored once and should have had a second despite being subbed on at Half Time. United dominated the game but Swansea were well below their best.



Crystal Palace 0-1 Tottenham

Tottenham did enough to come away with the three points from Selhurst Park, but it was not the dominant display that many were expecting from them. They deserved the win yes, which came from Roberto Soldado's converted spot-kick, but could easily have had another two or three. For the Blue Eagles, Aussie Mile Jedinak was superb in midfield, quelling many of Tottenham's attacks and setting up several of Palace's. But in the end, Spurs' class proved too much and once their new signings gel together better, life without Bale is looking rosier than first thought.



Chelsea 2-0 Hull City

Chelsea did have one eye on their upcoming fixtures going into this game, hence why they rested Juan Mata and started Kevin de Bruyne, but had enough quality on the field to get the job done. Looked like being a rout early on with Oscar and Frank Lampard both scoring in the first 25 minutes, but to Hull's credit they didn't concede any more goals. Hull's keeper Allan McGregor was a standout saving a Lampard penalty - even the best keepers struggle to do that. Chelsea fans finally have a manager they want in Jose Mourinho and I think this will be a good thing for Chelsea's morale. A cruisy win for the Blues but a good initiation to life in the EPL for Hull, so both teams can take some positives from the game.

[elephants]

Amazing write-up, well done mate

[Tominator]

Amazing write-up, well done mate

Thanks Ele!!



So everybody knows - and so you don't get your hopes up ...

DON'T EXPECT ME TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT WRAP EVERY WEEK!!


If I can't though I will try and say maybe a "five things we learned from this GW..." or something brief

[Chelskiman]

Too late, we're all expecting it now, and we're all expecting it to be bigger and better each week!

[Tominator]

Manchester City 4-0 Newcastle

A game that Manchester City dominated from start to finish, in an ominous warning to their title rivals. Newcastle were simply outclassed by a rampant Blues side, with some intricate passing and a very attacking mindset. Yohan Cabaye was a notable absentee from the Magpies line-up, amid speculation he is on his way to Arsenal.City showed why they are equal favourites for the title, with three of their four goals coming from midfielders David Silva, Yaya Toure and Samir Nasri, in addition to Sergio Aguero's strike. Toure's free kick was world class. Goal of the day for sure. City fans will be very pleased with their side's start, while Newcastle fans will hope that their season doesn't descend into a relegation battle a la last season.

[Cicjose]

[Tominator]

please feel free to post any further predictions you have about the season guys

[My Chumps]

Didn't even see this until now
EPL Premier: Man City (as much as it hurts to say that)

Champions League Qualifiers: Chelsea, United, Tottenham

Europa League Qualifier: Liverpool

"The Bolters": Aston Villa (easy to say now, I know, but my god they've looked good in their first two games against good opposition)

"The Sliders": West Brom

Relegated Teams: Sunderland, Cardiff, Hull

Golden Boot Winner: RVP

Player with Most Assists: That guy that kicked the ball boy

Golden Glove: Mignolet! (here's hoping haha)

General thoughts for the upcoming season:
Should be a really entertaining season. Title race wide open between United, City and Chelsea. Don't think anyone else is really up to that standard, although if those Tottenham transfer rumours are true, they could challenge!
The battle for 4th and 5th should be interesting as well. Tottenham, Arsenal, Liverpool, Everton all possibilities.

[Andrew3737]

Manchester City 4-0 Newcastle

A game that Manchester City dominated from start to finish, in an ominous warning to their title rivals. Newcastle were simply outclassed by a rampant Blues side, with some intricate passing and a very attacking mindset. Yohan Cabaye was a notable absentee from the Magpies line-up, amid speculation he is on his way to Arsenal.City showed why they are equal favourites for the title, with three of their four goals coming from midfielders David Silva, Yaya Toure and Samir Nasri, in addition to Sergio Aguero's strike. Toure's free kick was world class. Goal of the day for sure. City fans will be very pleased with their side's start, while Newcastle fans will hope that their season doesn't descend into a relegation battle a la last season.

Aguero's goal was better imo

[Tominator]

PREVIEW GAMEWEEK 2

Fulham v Arsenal
Should be a good game. Arsenal will be buoyed by their CL performance mid-week, but their defensive frailties may mean Fulham find a goal.

MY TIP: 2-1 Arsenal


Hull v Norwich
Can't see where Hull would score, didn't really look like doing it at Stamford Bridge, but that may change seeing as they have   a home ground advantage. But it won't be enough to beat Norwich, who are a much improved side from last season. Snodgrass and Bassong to return will make them even better.

MY TIP: 2-0 Norwich


Everton v West Brom
Everton looked really good last week and had some of their young kids shine. West Brom were unlucky to lose to Southampton, but didn't deserve to win, and weren't that attacking. Everton's attack-minded approach means they will score but are more prone to conceding.

MY TIP: 2-1 Everton


Newcastle v West Ham
Should be a decent game this one, between two sides aiming at mid-table finishes. West Ham were good against Cardiff, but home ground advantage may mean Newcastle do better than their appalling display last week.

MY TIP: 1-1 draw


Southampton v Sunderland
Southampton dominated last week while Sunderland looked very lacklustre. Expect new signing Osvaldo to come off the bench for the Saints.

MY TIP: 2-0 Southampton


Stoke v Crystal Palace
Should be another tight contest. Palace were good last week while Begovic was awesome against Liverpool. Won't be a goal-scoring frenzy I don't think.

MY TIP: 1-1 draw


Aston Villa v Liverpool
A lot depends on how Benteke goes. If he is really on, then Villa could snatch an upset. But Liverpool were good last week and should have enough quality to get all three points.

MY TIP: 2-1 Liverpool


Cardiff v Manchester City
City were awesome last week. No other way to describe it. An away trip to Cardiff shouldn't be too difficult, as they have more than enough goal scorers in their team. Should still do it easy.

MY TIP: 3-0 Man City


Tottenham v Swansea City
Both sides coming off big mid-week wins in the Europa League and will be keen to lift on last week's EPL performances. Should be a very attacking game, Bony and Michu being main threats for Swansea, while Soldado will be a constant danger.

MY TIP: 3-1 Tottenham


Manchester United v Chelsea
Match of the round for sure. Both sides to go full strength, Mourinho v Moyes, will be a cracker. RVP will be a big threat, but Chelsea's plethora of attacking midfielders will give them hope of at least a draw.

MY TIP: 2-2 draw



Post your predictions here too

[My Chumps]

Liverpool scoring two goals may be generous Tommy; we're terrible in front of goal

[elephants]

Liverpool scoring two goals may be generous Tommy; we're terrible in front of goal

Sturridge will bag a hat-trick

[My Chumps]

Liverpool scoring two goals may be generous Tommy; we're terrible in front of goal

Sturridge will bag a hat-trick

It's the only way!

[Jackross10]

Cardiff Beat Man City 

[My Chumps]

Liverpool scoring two goals may be generous Tommy; we're terrible in front of goal

Sturridge will bag a hat-trick

It's the only way!

What'd I tell you guys? Sturridge scores our only goal

Still good enough for the win. Best start in an incredibly long time!