EPL 2013/14 Mega Thread - Previews, Reviews and General Discussion/Banter

[timmyparso]

Keep it going Big Tom.. ;D

Anyone know how serious Rooneys shin injury is?
Its him or BA on the bench this week

Cracked shin from a training tackle, apparently will be OK this Saturday and for Englands qualifiers.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/manchester-united/10351746/Wayne-Rooney-will-be-fit-for-Englands-World-Cup-qualifiers-says-Manchester-United-manager-David-Moyes.html

[T Dog]

Thanks TP.. ;D

[Tominator]

GAMEWEEK SEVEN PREVIEW


Manchester City v Everton
This will be an interesting game. City have been very Jekyll-and-Hyde this sesaon while Everton have been solid and remain the only side yet to be defeated. Romelu Lukaku the loanee has been immense in his first two appearances, while the attacking prowess of full backs Baines and Coleman down the flanks has been on display. The home ground advantage will help City, so I'm predicting they'll respond from last week and get up. But do not be surprised if Everton manage to snatch a draw or even a win.

KEY PLAYER: Romelu Lukaku

MY TIP: 2-1 to Manchester City - but don't be surprised if it's a draw



Cardiff v Newcastle
Another interesting game. Cardiff have been good against quality sides - Tottenham and Man City - when playing at home, so that should help them against Newcastle. The Toon have been very patchy themselves, so will look to take all three points, with Ben Arfa, Remy and Cisse will all need to contribute. Very tough game to predict though, could seriously be anything  :-\

KEY PLAYER: Loic Remy

MY TIP: 1-1 draw



Fulham v Stoke
Another hard game to call. Fulham had their hearts broken by a last-gasp strike to Jordan Mutch from Cardiff last weekend, so will look to atone for that. Stoke were disappointing last week to bring them back down to Earth, after a better-than-expected start. Could very easily be a nil-all draw, but I'll say 1-1.

KEY PLAYER: Asmir Begovic

MY TIP: 1-1 draw



Hull v Aston Villa
I'll say it again - this game could be anything. Amazingly, Villa are yet to lose a game without star striker Christian Benteke (they were 0-0 at Norwich when he went off), who will be absent again. Hull are without their best player so far this season in Robbie Brady, due to a hernia operation, so they will need to find goals from other sources. The likes of Graham and Aluko will really need to step up. But Hull at home is a tough trip for away sides, so Villa will need to be on their game, though they should be buoyed by beating City last week in a thriller.

KEY PLAYER: Andres Weimann

MY TIP: 2-1 to Aston Villa



Liverpool v Crystal Palace
The first game where I am confident in predicting a winner. The Suarez-Sturridge combination could very well have a field day here, and it could get ugly. I personally hope it doesn't - as I have neither in my fantasy team (yet)! Liverpool should continue their good start, but Palace will need to play out of their skin, and hope Liverpool are off their guard, if they are to take anything from Anfield.

KEY PLAYER: Daniel Sturridge

MY TIP: 3-0 to Liverpool (could be more)



Sunderland v Manchester United
This is a danger game for David Moyes an dhis United men. Their form of late has been so unconvincing, but they should comfortably come away with three points from this game - if they don't, the alarm bells will be well and truly ringing. RVP should start after recovering from injury, while I highly doubt they'll rest Evra and Vidic again. Sunderland have shown glimpses of form in games this season, but have been too patchy and only have 1 point to show for it, and that is unlikely to change as United SHOULD win easy.

KEY PLAYER: Wayne Rooney

MY TIP: 2-0 to Manchester United



Norwich v Chelsea
All eyes will be on Mourinho's team selections to see if Juan Mata starts. He came on in the second half last week and earned Chelsea a draw at Tottenham, and his quality is undeniable, so if given the chance he should make an impact. Norwich did well to win last week, however I cannot see the same heroics this time around - but stranger things have happened.

KEY PLAYER: Juan Mata

MY TIP: 2-0 to Chelsea



Southampton v Swansea
Two sides that are on the up meet in a Super Sunday clash. One is very defensive and the other is very attacking. Swansea have had a pretty tough start to the season, and this continues with a tricky trip to Southampton. The Saints are generally very hard to score against at home, so a lot of the Swans' attacks will revolve around Michu and Bony, who is starting to come into great form. Swansea will be a bit more vulnerable defensively without Ashley Williams, but I highly doubt this will be a high-scoring affair. Could be a 1-0'er but more likely 1-1. 

KEY PLAYER: Wilfried Bony

MY TIP: 1-1 draw



West Ham v Tottenham
West Ham have been very good defensively for most games this season, but they will have to be at their best to keep a CS against a red-hot Spurs side. Gylfi Sigurdsson has been in great form while Eriksen, Lamela and Paulinho should set up a majority of their attacks again. The Hammers were disappointing at Hull last week but will need to lift if they are to beat Tottenham, which seems very unlikely, but their keeper in Jussi Jaaskelainen has sparkled this season and will need to do so again.

KEY PLAYER: Jussi Jaaskelainen

MY TIP: 2-0 to Tottenham



West Bromich Albion v Arsenal
If Tottenham are red-hot, their cross-town rivals Arsenal are white-hot. Arsenal are in the best form they've been in for a long time, and the likes of Ramsey, Ozil and Giroud will look to sparkle again. I'm unaware if Theo Walcott is back but if he is then Arsenal will benefit greatly. West Brom will definitely be buoyed by beating Manchester United last week, but their task this week does not get any easier. They'll need Amalfitano, Sinclair and Sessegnon to do well, who have undoubtably helped their side since all signing on deadline day, but Arsenal should be too good.

KEY PLAYER: Aaron Ramsey

MY TIP: 2-1 to Arsenal

[Tominator]

This would be an absolutely bizarre transfer if this goes ahead - but I guess it shows that Kagawa really does not fit in to David Moyes' plans.

I thought United needed an attacking midfielder - isn't Kagawa just that???

http://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/434104/Manchester-United-ready-to-swap-Shinji-Kagawa-to-sign-Neven-Subotic-from-Dortmund

"MANCHESTER UNITED are lining up a sensational swap deal that would see Shinji Kagawa return to Borussia Dortmund in return for Serbian defender Neven Subotic."

[Vinny]

Very nice as usual T!

The big game for me is the very first, City & Everton.

Got Zabaleta, Lukaku, Coleman and Barkley.

Of those Ive decided to play Barkely, Zabaleta and Lukaku. Benching Coleman.

Hoping for a high scoring game so Lukaku and Barkley can make up for Zab.

[Tominator]

this is a horrendous week for tipping

The first four games could go absolutely anywhere, and SOT-SWA isn't an easy one to pick either

[My Chumps]

Feel free to come to Liverpool Shinji ;)


Moyes must be a racist. It's the only explanation!

[Master Q]

Just discovered this thread now - a good one too!

Watching MC - Eve atm, 1-1, 2 goals in 2 minutes.

Love the way the English pronounce Lukaku  :P

[My Chumps]

Excellent win by the Liverpuddliens! YNWA LIVERRRPOOOOOOOOLLL

#atouchdrunk

[Tominator]

GAMEWEEK SEVEN REVIEW


Manchester City 3-1 Everton

Good game to start the round. Everton started the game well and took the advantage in the 16th minute, when Romelu Lukaku - who else? - scored to put the Toffees in front. City hit back barely a minute later through Alvaro Negredo, and from there the game opened up. Sergio Aguero missed two very gettable chances, before the often-arrogant Matjia Nastasic clearly fouled Lukaku in the box, but the penalty was not given. In injury time during the first half, Aguero shot from a tight angle and managed to score, giving City the lead. James Milner earned a yellow card on Half Time and it should have been red for a wild challenge on James McCarthy. After half-time, City began to dominate, however could not kill the game off. Pablo Zabaleta earned a penalty for the home side, going down under minimal contact from Seamus Coleman (it beggers beliefs that Zab could earn a penalty when Lukaku didn't), and City converted from Aguero's kick - well it was actually an own goal from Tim Howard, as the ball bounced off the post, onto Howard's het and back into the net. City could not score again after that but they had already sealed the victory.



Hull 0-0 Aston Villa

A pretty dour nil-all draw really. Both sides came into the match with good goal-scoring form, but they created and wasted chances to score goals. Without Robbie Brady, Hull were always going to find it tough, but Tom Huddlestone's long shot had to be stopped by Brad Guzan or Hull would have taken a lead. Leandro Bacuna was arguably the best player on the pitch, in the first half at least, as he danced around Hull defenders. Gabby Agbonlahor was also very prominent, and came close when his curling shot just didn't come back far enough. But both managers seemed pretty content with a nil-all draw, and frankly that's all this game deserved.



Fulham 1-0 Stoke

Pretty dour game that appeared destined for a nil-all draw. Lacked spark, and was without clearcut chances. However, there were three clear penalties that were not given in the first half alone, so some strange refereeing was without doubt the major talking point of the game. Robert Huth was an aerial threat from set pieces, sending in two powerful headers either side of half-time, both of which were cleared off the line to keep the game scoreless. But Darren Bent scored with 7 minutes remaining after rounding Asmir Begovic and Huth, and firing home. A vital win for Martin Jol's men - which may have saved his managerial career, at least for now.



Cardiff 1-2 Newcastle

Another game that relieved pressure on an under-fire manager in Alan Pardew. Loic Remy scored another double to give Newcastle a commanding two-nil lead at half-time. The first goal was an outstanding run from the middle of the ground, cutting past two defenders before firing into the bottom corner. The second, just eight minutes later, was another outstanding finish, without taking a touch, just clipping into the far bottom corner. Remy has now scored five of Newcastle's last six goals, in just three league starts. Yohan Cabaye very nearly made it 3, when his long range free kick caught David Marshall unaware and clattered off the post. Cardiff pulled one back in the second half through Peter Odemwingie, but minutes later had to rely on Marshall again to stop Moussa Sissoko from making it 3-1. Jordan Mutch had a chance to equalise late, but Tim Krul managed to parry his attempted chip shot.



Sunderland 1-2 Manchester United

Adnan Januzaj - remember the name. This kid is going to be a star, the kid that saved David Moyes' blushes once more. United did look a bit out of sorts again, going behind early on to Craig Gardner, after a defensive mix-up involving Nemanja Vidic and Phil Jones. Gardner spurned a 3-on-1 chance before Januzaj flashed wide. Emanuele Giaccherini very nearly made it 2-0 when his well-struck header was acrobatically parried by David de Gea, who knows what would have happened if that went in. Adam Johnson set up Giaccherini again, but he hit over the bar. Sunderland led the match up until about 10 minutes into the second half, when Januzaj - in his first PL start - tucked away a side-footed shot into the back of the net to equalise. Then, 8 minutes later, Januzaj doubled his tally and took the lead, when his first-time volley found the bottom corner in a text-book action. Robin van Persie should have made it 3-1 with two minutes to go, but could only fire wide when it appeared harder to miss.



Liverpool 3-1 Crystal Palace

This game had rout written all over it, and at half time it looked like that. The SAS partnership of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge was on fire once again. Suarez scored in the 13th minute before Sturridge scored four minutes later. Both of them had chances to add to their tallies but could not. Despite the scoreline, Palace went all-out attack, with Cameron Jerome and Jimmy Kebe both having half-chances. But Liverpool killed the game inside 37 minutes when Raheem Sterling was awarded a penalty, despite the contact appearing to be outside the box, and Steven Gerrard stepped up to the plate and scored. It should have been 4-0 when Moses hit the bar from very close range. Dwight Gayle pulled one back for Palace in the 76th minute, their first goal in 346 minutes, but Liverpool did not let another one in.



Southampton 2-0 Swansea

A very good win for Southampton, a very disappointing one for Swansea. Southampton were the better side in the opening 20 minutes, and were rewarded when Adam Lallana finished the good work he started with a goal. After the goal, Swansea came alive and it really became an open contest. Michu and Wilfried Bony both had big chances saved by Artur Boruc, while Nathan Dyer was extremely unlucky not to score in the 35th minute - his shot went off the post, across the face of the goal, missing the other post by a matter of millimetres before trickling out of play. After half-time, Southampton put the foot down and cemented their authority. Though Swansea created more chances, they were wasteful with the likes of Dyer, Bony and Jonjo Shelvey spurning good chances. It could have been 2-0 early in the second half, when the referee incorrectly awarded a corner, from which Victor Wanyama scored, however this goal was disallowed, as the referee (again, incorrectly) adjudged a foul from a Southampton player in the box. Boruc and Jose Fonte were impenetrable in defence, but it was Jay Rodriguez who scored late to seal the three points. Both goals could easily have been prevented had Chico Flores made more of his clearances, but you cannot blame one player for the loss. Southampton outclassed the Swans and deserved the win.



Norwich 1-3 Chelsea

Chelsea left it late to win it, but they outplayed Norwich for most of the game. Emboaba Oscar scored after just four minutes to put Chelsea in front, after good lead up work from Demba Ba. From there, the game ebbed and flowed, but no side could score, until Anthony Pilkington equalised for Norwich midway through the second half. The game appeared destined to be a draw, but remained exciting, thanks to Nathan Redmond lifting his Norwich side after coming on. Chelsea took the lead on 85 minutes when substitute Eden Hazard scored, but John Ruddy should have saved it. However there was absolutely nothing he could do when fellow substitute Willian scored an absolute SCREAMER from outside the box, just a minute later. The ball spilled loose and Willian latched onto it first time, curling it into the top corner, to ice the cake for Chelsea.



Tottenham 0-3 West Ham

An upset if ever there was one. In the space of 13 minutes, West Ham scored three goals, to bring Tottenham crashing back to earth. Andros Townsend started well for Tottenham, with a long drive going just wide, before setting up Paulinho, who could only flash wide as well. Tottenham dominated the first half and really should been 1-0 up, but couldn't really test Jussi Jaaskelainen. West Ham did well to remain level, and very nearly took the lead when Mark Noble's surprise free kick found Kevin Nolan, whose shot left Hugo Lloris motionless but was off-target. Tottenham continued to waste their chances in the second half when Jermain Defoe fired straight at Jaaskelainen. West Ham then made them pay, first scoring in the 66th minute through Winston Reid from a corner. Ricardo vaz Te made it 2-0 when his shot rebounded off Lloris, onto his leg and into the net. Ravel Morrison then completed the performance, scoring a solo goal to seal the most unlikely of wins.



West Bromich Albion 1-1 Arsenal

West Brom continue to play an attacking brand of football that is holding up against quality sides. They very nearly took the lead through a deflected Saido Berahino shot, but the wrong-footed Wojciech Szcesny managed to save it. Mesut Ozil teed up Kieran Gibbs who could only fire too high, but the likes of Olivier Giroud, Jack Wilshere and Ozil were beginning to influence the game. Aaron Ramsey came close but it was saved well. Just before half time, Morgan Amalfitano's cross found Claudio Yacob, to give the Baggies a surprise lead. Nicolas Anelka had two big chances early in the second-half but could not convert, and Arsenal made them pay. Despite his mid-week smoking controversy, Wilshere fired home midway through the second half to equalise for Arsenal, with his first league goal in 3 years. Billy Jones nearly put the Baggies in front again, but Szcesney saved well. Both sides had great chances to win it, but both goalkeepers pulled off some important saves to keep it a draw.

[T Dog]

Very nice again Big Tom. I am surprised and impressed by Southhapton this season. Fonte seems to have made a real difference in defence.

[My Chumps]

How good was West Ham's win  ;D

[specky92]

How good was West Ham's win  ;D

soooooo good,  ;D ;D

[Tominator]

there is definitely something going on down at Southampton

This is a team that got promoted only last season, yet look at their team

GK | Boruc
DEF | Clyne - Fonte - Lovren - Shaw
MID | Ramirez - Wanyama - Schneiderlin - Lallana
FWD | Osvaldo - Lambert


    -  Extremely solid defensively (5 Clean Sheets in 7 games)
    -  Powerful midfielders, both attackingly and defensively
    -  Two very good strikers


Add to that they have one of the best youth academy set ups in England, that has produced the likes of Bale, Walcott, Oxlade-Chamberlain, etc

This team is going places. Could very well become a force in the PL in years to come



and they play Manchester United next week, should be a cracking match

[Nige]

I called Southampton's rise in the EPL last year.  ;)