2025-26 Premier League

[cusefan88]

Thomas Frank doing the damn thing with Spurs. Massive away win at City.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Thomas Frank doing the damn thing with Spurs. Massive away win at City.

City were so sloppy with their passes.

And boy, did Tottenham sell out on the press - 9 guys in the City half! That's nuts!

Spurs look pretty solid defensively. Frank is a heck of a manager.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Arsenal in the process of grinding out another win vs. Leeds, up 2-0 approaching half time.

Odegaard has not looked sharp, and was taken off before half time.

Madueke came alive on his less-familiar left wing after about 20 minutes.

Gyokeres has not shown very much so far. They have a ways to go to get to their best.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Arsenal in the process of grinding out another win vs. Leeds, up 2-0 approaching half time.

Odegaard has not looked sharp, and was taken off before half time.

Madueke came alive on his less-familiar left wing after about 20 minutes.

Gyokeres has not shown very much so far. They have a ways to go to get to their best.

Arsenal started the 2nd half very well, with Gyorekes getting his first goal with a strong individual move across the box, though 2 defenders, to make it 3. Then Saka pulled his hamstring, and is out.

Odegaard has a shoulder injury, but wasn't playing well anyway.

Going into Liverpool next week, I would imagine Madueke at right wing, Eze at left wing, and maybe you consider moving Trossard into more of a 10 position. I could see that. This shows the importance of their recent signings.

And as I'm typing, an Arsenal corner bounces in for a 4th goal.
Done and dusted, with over 30 minutes to go, despite losing 2 to injury. That's mental toughness. But Leeds isn't the toughest opponent.

 

[OrangeFoo]

City were so sloppy with their passes.

And boy, did Tottenham sell out on the press - 9 guys in the City half! That's nuts!

Spurs look pretty solid defensively. Frank is a heck of a manager.

Crazy turnaround from last year where their coach basically rolled the ball out on D said pick a guy to cover. Coaching matters.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Crazy turnaround from last year where their coach basically rolled the ball out on D said pick a guy to cover. Coaching matters.

Frank is certainly a much better defensive coach than Ange.

But he did have a plan - he wanted a high defensive line, and he had the fastest defender in the Premier at Center Back, so it worked for a while.

Ange's bigger problem was his stubbornness. It was clear by midseason that they were getting killed on set pieces, and he was dismissive of bringing in a specialist assistant, and he got killed by the media for that.

The other big problem was that when they had a bunch of injuries, he refused to modify his approach. It was his intention to instill his approach into his team's DNA, and he was not one to adapt to different challenges.

But Van De Ven was hurt for a while. So was the other defender, Christian Romero, out for about 3 months during the winter. He also had a bunch of injuries in midfield.

That's why he got fired, IMO. He didn't change his tactics to try to stay in games, when his best players were out injured. Sometimes you have to take a step back, and he refused to do it.

 

[cusefan88]

Arsenal started the 2nd half very well, with Gyorekes getting his first goal with a strong individual move across the box, though 2 defenders, to make it 3. Then Saka pulled his hamstring, and is out.

Odegaard has a shoulder injury, but wasn't playing well anyway.

Going into Liverpool next week, I would imagine Madueke at right wing, Eze at left wing, and maybe you consider moving Trossard into more of a 10 position. I could see that. This shows the importance of their recent signings.

And as I'm typing, an Arsenal corner bounces in for a 4th goal.
Done and dusted, with over 30 minute to goal, despite losing 2 to injury. That's mental toughness. But Leeds isn't the toughest opponent.

It's probably too big of a spot for him but Nwaneri can also play the CAM spot.

I could see the front six be:
Zubimendi Rice Eze
Nwaneri Gyokeres Madueke

Or if Martinelli is still there Madueke on the right with Gab on the left.

 

[IthacaMatt]

It's probably too big of a spot for him but Nwaneri can also play the CAM spot.

I could see the front six be:
Zubimendi Rice Eze
Nwaneri Gyokeres Madueke

Or if Martinelli is still there Madueke on the right with Gab on the left.

Yes, you're absolutely right. In fact, they tried him there today, didn't they?

 

[cusefan88]

Yes, you're absolutely right. In fact, they tried him there today, didn't they?

It was fluid but Nwaneri came on for Odergaard.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Everton was electric at their home opener. The stadium looks amazing, right on the river there in Liverpool. A real beauty.

Jack Grealish was up to the moment, and Everton walk away 2-0 winners over a pretty good Brighton team. A really exciting boost for Moyes' Boys. I hope they get another 2 or 3 signings before the window closes next week.

Fulham v. Man United. I'm happy to see Mason Mount finally playing well. They have a nice collection of attacking talent, but need time to develop chemistry. In this game, Fulham prevented United from getting through the midfield. United seemed to have very few touches in the Fulham end for much of the game.

Cunha, Mbeumo, Mount, these guys can play off each other.

Bruno Fernandez psyched himself out of his penalty toward the end of the first half. Fernandez backed into the ref, who was cutting behind him, and acted like the ref was trying to foul him or something. He focused on glaring at the ref for far too long, and of course skied over.

United goes ahead on an own goal, but then yields at the end to Emile Smith-Rowe, the set piece specialist who had just come on in the 74th minute.

United still needs another left back, and another central defender - young guys who can run. Harry McGuire and Luke Shaw are like Premier League players from 10 years ago. They are SO out of style now. Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp changed everything in the last 8 years or so, and most teams have caught up with their innovations. Except apparently United.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Thomas Frank's press has worked wonders in the first couple games of the season. Winners of both, and sitting in 1st place, this article from The Athletic talks about how much more effective their press could be with a good number 10, like they have been chasing.

Tottenham’s ‘aggressive press’ is working but a No 10 would unlock another level

Thomas Frank clearly wants a playmaker for Tottenham, but his team’s forward press is another great way of making chances…

www.nytimes.com

 

[IthacaMatt]

Sky Sports with an analysis of Man United's attack. The general feeling is that these guys need some time together to develop chemistry, but the way United gets over-run in midfield is going to require fixing, in order for them to really start providing goals.

Manchester United attack still a work in progress after draw at Fulham as Jack Grealish shines - Premier League hits and misses

The Sky Sports football writers analyse Sundays Premier League action as Fulham draw with Manchester United; Everton won their first game at the Hill Dickinson Stadium by beating Brighton; Crystal Palace were held by Nottingham Forest in a feisty atmosphere

www.skysports.com

 

[IthacaMatt]

The Guardian reports that Bukaya Sako's hamstring injury is not that serious. Great news for Arsenal fans!

Relief for Arsenal with Bukayo Saka’s injury not as bad as first feared

Arsenal have received a boost after it emerged that Bukayo Saka’s hamstring injury is not as significant as first feared

www.theguardian.com

 

[JDubbin]

Rio Ngumoha. 16 years old. Game winning goal 10 minutes into stoppage time in an outrageously hostile environment at Newcastle. Wow. So glad he’s a Red! You saw the signs in pre-season, but Liverpool might be an absolute gem.

 

[cusefan88]

Rio Ngumoha. 16 years old. Game winning goal 10 minutes into stoppage time in an outrageously hostile environment at Newcastle. Wow. So glad he’s a Red! You saw the signs in pre-season, but Liverpool might be an absolute gem.

Funny game when you spend all that money but the young academy starlet steals the show. Another reason why I love the beautiful game.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Newcastle deserved a point from that game.
That have the whole Isak problem, and their team just bullied Liverpool for the first 30 minutes, and should have had an early lead.
Then, to fall behind 2-0, come back and tie it up, and then lose at the death.
Oh, man, I feel so bad for those guys.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Kai Havertz of Arsenal has knee surgery today. Not an ACL. Probably out until November.

 

[cusefan88]

Kai Havertz of Arsenal has knee surgery today. Not an ACL. Probably out until November.

I didn't expect all the depth signings to be needed so soon.

Massive game on Sunday at Anfield. Considering the offensive prowess of both sides I'm expecting fireworks.

 

[IthacaMatt]

It's only the third weekend of the season, and we've already got nearly 80 guys out injured - an average of nearly 4 per team.

Now that Antonee Robinson has returned, Fulham are the only team with everyone available.

Among the top teams, Spurs are currently without 8 of their first team squad, while Arsenal are close behind, missing 6 men, mostly regular rotation guys.

Premier League Latest Injury News – Club by Club Updates

See which players are missing from every team, with our injury list guide to all 20 clubs. For more information, visit the official website of the Premier League.

www.premierleague.com

 

[IthacaMatt]

Jack Grealish does it again for Everton. David Moyes says afterwards, "He just needs some love and support." LOL

Man United and Rubin Amorin saved from being fired by Bruno Fernandez not missing the penalty this time, 7 minutes into stoppage time.

Chelsea didn't look great against Fulham, who were absolutely robbed by VAR in having that first goal disallowed for a non-foul in the build-up. The handball penalty call was right; and I think the announcers were right in observing that the refs were looking for a reason NOT to give it, after their earlier mistake, but couldn't find a reason to overturn it. Game over, Chelsea. Marco Silva rightly furious.

How do Spurs lose that game at home to Bournemouth? They could have been top of the table.

Leeds and Newcastle had a lot of back-and-forth, but no goals. Interesting, hard fought draw.

4 interesting games tomorrow, highlighted by Liverpool v. Arsenal. Liverpool is shipping 2 goals a game. Arsenal have the league's best defense over the last year or so, and are in form in that regard. If Arsenal didn't have so many attacking players hurt, I would favor them. But Liverpool might outscore them, 3-2, something like that.

Nottingham could crush West Ham, pushing Graham Potter toward an early exit. Nottingham has added very well to their squad in the last couple weeks. I'm going to be keeping an eye on them. I think they'll challenge for Europe, if Nuno can let go of his grudge with Edu, the sporting director. A win would do them good, to sweep that bad publicity of the last week behind them.

Unai Emery could really use a win at home against a difficult Crystal Palace team. A couple coaches who are not thrilled with where their squads are at as we enter the season.

And in the early game, could Brighten throw a scare into Man City? Neither are playing great. A draw for Brighton would be a good result, and could damage City early in this season's race for the title.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Ruben Amorin seems on the verge of a nervous breakdown at Manchester United.

Any win will do for Amorim on this Man United roller coaster of emotions

Manchester United's victory over Burnley was far from convincing, but after their nightmare in Grimsby, Ruben Amorim will take anything he can get.

www.espn.com

 

[IthacaMatt]

Terrific article in The Guardian previewing tomorrow's Liverpool v Arsenal match.
The writer talks about how you can add $300M of talent to a championship team but mess up the balance along the way - which is precisely what we're seeing right now with the Reds.

He talks about how their backline look uncomfortable with each other, and they aren't getting the right cover right now from midfield that might make things better.

In a sense, Liverpool may feel like they are catching Arsenal at a good time, with all their attacking injuries. But Arsenal probably looks at Lilverpool's defensive frailties and feels the same way.

Liverpool's backs have been poor, too, and with Frimpong already injured, they are playing guys out of position, which certainly isn't helping.

Slot’s revamped Liverpool are vulnerable in a way that they weren’t last season | Jonathan Wilson

Injury-hit Arsenal face ill-at-ease champions struggling to fit the new cogs in their hitherto well-oiled machine

www.theguardian.com

 

[IthacaMatt]

Man City's winger Rayan Cherki is going to miss 2 months with a thigh muscle injury.

William Saliba, Arsenal's big center back, went off injured against Liverpool and is expected to miss a month.

Matheus Cunha out with a hamstring for Man United. Mason Mount with an ankle injury.

 

[OrangeFoo]

With the three points taken from Arsenal yesterday and today's signings of Isak and Guehi... the season might already be effectively over barring injuries.

The time to get Liverpool was before they gelled into a functional unit and Liverpool has started out undefeated with an away trip to Newcastle and a home match against their primary competitor. I don't see anyone with the talent and depth of Liverpool...

Kerkez and Konate have looked shaky... but Guehi solves the CB problem and Kerkez actually held his own against Mamadueke (sp?) who looks like an amazing player for Arsenal. I think he will be okay. Other than that I don't see any holes in the squad... maybe a better destroyer type than Curtis Jones and Endo? That's all I got.

 

[IthacaMatt]

With the three points taken from Arsenal yesterday and today's signings of Isak and Guehi... the season might already be effectively over barring injuries.

The time to get Liverpool was before they gelled into a functional unit and Liverpool has started out undefeated with an away trip to Newcastle and a home match against their primary competitor. I don't see anyone with the talent and depth of Liverpool...

Kerkez and Konate have looked shaky... but Guehi solves the CB problem and Kerkez actually held his own against Mamadueke (sp?) who looks like an amazing player for Arsenal. I think he will be okay. Other than that I don't see any holes in the squad... maybe a better destroyer type than Curtis Jones and Endo? That's all I got.

Guehi fell through, despite an agreement on price. Not sure what happened there yet.

Generally a great window for Liverpool, but it's going to take a couple months (or more) for these new guys to blend in.