After being pipped to fourth place last season and denied the subsequent entry to this season’s Champions League by Aston Villa, Tottenham have now established a newfound rivalry with Unai Emery’s men – one that sees the next chapter penned on Sunday.
With the hosts missing out on fourth by two points back in May, Spurs already found themselves five behind the visitors as we headed in to the weekend and Ange Postecoglou will be fully aware that he can’t afford for that margin to get any greater.
The Form Guide
Tottenham’s last six league outings have seen them record three wins and just as many defeats. The only consistency they have of late is their ability to be painfully inconsistent and if they are to surge their way up the table, they must start stringing victories together in succession.
As for Aston Villa, they arrive in London having not lost any of their last six league outings, and perhaps more importantly, they have only suffered one league defeat since the start of the campaign – the one blot on their copybook being the 2-0 reverse at home to Arsenal in the second round of the season. Villa fans would also like to remind you that they are top of the Champions League league phase table.
The potential keys to proceedings
Tottenham’s talisman Heung-min Son has missed the last two games (all comps) but is reportedly winning the race to be fit for Sunday and although Timo Werner scored in the midweek Carabao Cup win against Manchester City, the South Korean forward is expected to join top scorer Brennan Johnson and Dominic Solanke in attack.
An attack that Emi Martínez, the now two-time Yashin Trophy winner, will look to foil in the Villa goal as the base of a very solid spine that also includes the likes of Ezri Konsa and Amadou Onana. With that spine in place, England’s Ollie Watkins will have licence to take the game to the opposition.
Who’s in and who’s out?
After suffering a hamstring injury in that midweek cup tie, Tottenham look set to be without defender Micky van de Ven for at least a couple of weeks and although bad news for the Dutchman, it does mean Romanian international Radu Drăgușin will likely get a start instead.
Villa boss Unai Emery currently has a clean bill of health and although forward Jhon Durán started in the League Cup defeat to Crystal Palace on Wednesday, he is likely to return to the role of super sub on Sunday.
Prediction
Although Tottenham’s propensity to blow hot and cold in equal measures has made any recent predictions difficult, their midweek win over Manchester City, coupled with impressive home form could prove to be the difference on Sunday.
Boosted by that progress in the Carabao Cup, Spurs will now look to return to winning ways in the Premier League and although Villa won last season’s corresponding fixture in North London, this time I expect the hosts to exact some form of revenge.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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The gulf between Barcelona and Espanyol is almost always a wide one, but even by the usual standards of this derby, Sunday’s match between these two rivals could be a complete mismatch.
While Hansi Flick’s team are currently flying having thumped Bayern Munich and Real Madrid in the last week, the Periquitos are above the relegation in LaLiga by just one point. One side of Barcelona’s divide has dreams of the title. The other, however, just wants to stay in the division.
Under Flick, Barca have become the most exhilarating attacking outfit in Spain, possibly Europe. They have scored an incredible 37 goals in just 11 league games with Flick’s high-risk, high-intensity approach getting the best out of his players.
On the flip side, Espanyol have lost five of their last six league games, conceding 14 times in the process. Keeping Barcelona at arm’s length could prove to be an impossible task.
Familiar surroundings for the visitors
Espanyol will make the 12km east on Saturday to a stadium they called home for over a decade. Montjuic was where the Periquitos played between 1997 and 2009 and it is where Barcelona are currently playing while Camp Nou is being redeveloped. It has become a home from home for Barca who have won four from four at Montjuic this season.
Barcelona haven’t lost to their city rivals in LaLiga since 2009 and there appears to be little chance that their unbeaten run will come to an end this weekend, particularly considering Espanyol have the worst away record in the division.
Key players
Robert Lewandowski is leading the Pichichi race in La Liga and will spearhead Barcelona’s attack on derby day having netted five goals in his last three games. The Polish striker has looked back to his best this season.
Lamine Yamal, Pedri and Raphinha will also be a big part of Barca’s attacking game plan. The latter’s resurgence has been one of the stories of the season so far with Flick dramatically turning around the Brazilian’s fortunes.
To stand any chance of securing a result at their old stadium, Espanyol will require goalkeeper Joan García to be in top form. Centre backs Leandro Cabrera and Marash Kumbulla might be wise to drop deep to prevent Barca from exploiting any space in behind.
Team news
Barcelona have more than their fair share of injury concerns at the moment, but Flick will be thankful that no new players have been added to the unavailable list recently.
Ronald Araújo, Andreas Christensen, Marc Bernal, Marc-André ter Stegen, Ferran Torres and Eric García will also be sidelined for Saturday’s visit of Espanyol, but Barca have already shown they can cope without this contingent.
Frenkie de Jong and Dani Olmo could be in line to start having missed a number of recent matches through injury. Gavi could also see more minutes.
Fernando Calero, Edu Exposito, Jose Gragera and Naci Unuvar are all injury doubts for Espanyol, but the Periquitos will otherwise be at full strength for the Catalan derby.
Prediction
Barcelona 4-1 Espanyol. As mentioned, history suggests another Derby Day win for the league leaders.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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Just a few short days after their last meeting – a frenzied midweek Carabao Cup clash which the Reds won 3-2 – the two meet again, this time at Anfield, in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.
Despite that, this next encounter could look very different, given the changes to both lineups, and there’s every reason to imagine the Seagulls will have an eye on improving a recent record which has seen the two teams win three, draw three and lose three each of the last nine clashes between them.
Liverpool’s draughting form
It’s been nothing but excellence for Arne Slot’s team this season, with the Dutch coach having taken charge of 12 wins from 14 games since replacing Jürgen Klopp at the helm. A draw at Arsenal last time out was a reasonable result, if not the team’s finest performance, though a shock home defeat to Nottingham Forest is far from forgotten even if it was followed by eight straight wins.
For Brighton, some excellent attacking performances haven’t always been rewarded with wins: a late collapse against Wolves was shocking and yielded only a draw, though perhaps that merely equals out being torn about by Tottenham – before they in turn went Spursy and gave up three goals and three points in the second half. Two ways to view the Seagulls’ results lead to the same single conclusion: three wins in nine, two defeats in 12, wildly fun but inconsistent so far under Fabian Hürzeler.
Stars of the midweek game hoping to keep their places
Liverpool remain without first-choice goalkeeper Alisson Becker, centre-forward Diogo Jota and squad attacking options Federico Chiesa and Harvey Elliott. Kostas Tsimikas could come in at left-back and Cody Gakpo, who scored twice on Wednesday night, is pushing to start up front.
Brighton have more doubts than definite outs, with only Adam Webster, Solly March and James Milner longer-term absentees. There are fitness tests in line for Yankuba Minteh and Lewis Dunk, who might start, and João Pedro and Matt O’Riley, who probably wouldn’t for a first game back. Simon Adingra may stay in the side after a great midweek showing.
Key players
Only Cole Palmer (12) has more goals and assists than Mohamed Salah (11) this term, though it’s not exactly news to point out the Egyptian as a big threat. More notable is the excellent form being shown at the other end by stand-in goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, averaging three saves a game so far and preventing 0.38 goals per 90, not far off Alisson’s 0.45. Few games to pick stats from, to be sure, but the Irishman has been excellent.
For Brighton, look to Georginio Rutter. The £40m summer signing has been a revelation playing just off the front man, hard-working and full of clever movement, scoring two and assisting two but also top of the squad for shots per 90 (4.0) and big chances created (3). An all-round threat.
Prediction
Defensively the Reds have been mostly excellent but Brighton’s movement and speed in the final third will cause them some problems. Even so, Slot’s team look a well-oiled machine right now – so another high-scoring home victory is on the cards. A repeat of midweek and 3-2 to Liverpool is as fair a shout as any.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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Manchester City travel to the Dorset coast to play their favourite opponents this week, but is the time right for Bournemouth to upset their dismal record against the champions?
Since Bournemouth first landed in the Premier League in 2015, Manchester City have won all 15 meetings between the two clubs in all competitions, running up four goals or more in seven of those wins, and with an overall goal difference of 43-8. The history books don’t give the home side much hope of taking much from this game.
Recent H2H results
Recent form a boost for the home side
Form, if anything, is Bournemouth’s glimmer of hope, because City haven’t been playing especially well of late. An underpowered team was knocked out of the EFL Cup by Spurs in the week, and weren’t especially inspiring in either of their previous two Premier League games against Wolves and Southampton, arguably the division’s two worst teams at the moment. Bournemouth, on the other hand, arrive at this game off the back of taking four points from six against Arsenal and Aston Villa.
Key players
Evanilson is the key Bournemouth player. His 96th-minute goal at Villa Park last weekend was only his second of the season, but the club’s record signing (and Brazil international) has settled in well since his £40m signing from Porto during the summer. Manchester City, of course, have more ‘key players’ than you can shake a stick at, though their current injury problems will likely give the team a slightly unusual look.
City’s long injury list
Pep Guardiola’s claim that City are down to their last “13 players” have been a little overblown, but his team are certainly struggling with injuries at the moment. Savinho was stretchered off during the Spurs game, while Manuel Akanji pulled up injured beforehand and Joško Gvardiol required attention afterwards. Kevin De Bruyne, Jack Grealish, Jérémy Doku, Kyle Walker are all expected to be absent, alongside longer-term absentees, the Ballon d’Or winning Rodri and Oscar Bobb.
For Bournemouth, Alex Scott underwent an operation on a knee injury last week and is expected to be out for another few weeks, while goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, Luis Sinisterra and Philip Billing will all be undergoing fitness tests ahead of the match after missing last weekend’s 1-1 at Villa Park.
Prediction
There will come a point at which Bournemouth’s dismal run against Manchester City has to end, and this match could be their best opportunity to do so. They impressed against Arsenal a couple of weeks ago, and their point against Aston Villa provided further proof that they should be strong enough for a relegation fight to not be on the cards this season.
And while Guardiola may be overstating the injuries that he faces – every Premier League manager believes that his injury list is the worst – it is fair to say that City failed to impress in their last three matches. You still back City to win, but this one could be tight.
Prediction: Bournemouth 0-1 Manchester City
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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This week’s early Premier League kick-off comes from St James’ Park as 12th placed Newcastle host third placed Arsenal. In this fixture last season, the Magpies came out on top with a 1-0 victory thanks to an Anthony Gordon strike.
Eddie Howe received a major boost in the week as Gordon returned to Newcastle’s starting XI in the Carabao Cup win over Chelsea having missed the league trip to Chelsea last weekend. The North East side will be without a host of players, with the likes of Callum Wilson, Jacob Murphy, and Sven Botman on the treatment table.
Alexander Isak, who has endured multiple injury troubles throughout the campaign, hobbled off against Chelsea on Wednesday night, and Howe has stated that he hopes it’s nothing too serious.
Newcastle struggling for consistency
It’s been a tricky season for the Magpies so far who are struggling to find the back of the net, especially when Isak has been watching from the sidelines. Newcastle have averaged just one goal per game, with only four sides managing fewer strikes.
Isak shot map, Premier League 2024/25
Howe will understandably be desperate for Isak to be fit enough to face the Gunners, but the Swedish striker hasn’t been as consistent as expected in front of goal. Isak has scored just twice from an xG of 3.5, producing 21 shots in the Premier League.
Gabriel could be passed fit
Against Liverpool last time out in the Premier League, Gabriel Magalhaes limped off in the second half, adding to Mikel Arteta’s injury troubles. William Saliba missed the game due to suspension meaning the Gunners ended the game with a makeshift back four.
Martin Ødegaard hasn’t featured for Arsenal since September after picking up an ankle injury, and he could struggle to be fit enough to face Newcastle on Saturday. Before the Gunners travelled to Preston North End in the Carabao Cup during the week, Arteta confirmed that there were ‘still a few boxes to tick’ before he could play again.
Saka has taken his game to another level
The Gunners have been heavily relying on the contributions of Bukayo Saka once again this season with the England international a goalscoring and creative force in the final third. The Arsenal academy graduate has provided 10 goals and assists combined in just eight matches.
Saka passing stats, Premier League 2024/25
Arteta might be concerned that the North London outfit are already starting to fall behind in the Premier League title race after some disappointing results in recent weeks. The Gunners have won just twice in their last five fixtures and currently find themselves sitting in third place, five points behind leaders Manchester City.
Water-tight defences go head-to-head
Arsenal and Newcastle have been two of the most defensively organised sides in the Premier League this season, so we should be expecting a low-scoring affair. The Magpies will have the support of a packed-out St James’ Park behind them, and another 1-0 victory, just like last season’s fixture, wouldn’t be a surprise.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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Having won just one of their last eight matches, Manchester United finally pulled the trigger. After incessant pressure on his position, Erik ten Hag was sacked on Monday on the back of a loss to West Ham United that dropped the Red Devils down to 14th spot in the Premier League. They have moved swiftly to secure his successor, Rúben Amorim.
When he joins the club, Rúben Amorim will become the youngest head coach in Manchester United’s Premier League history. The Portuguese tactician will be under instant pressure to deliver given the form they have been in since the start of the season, which has left them with just 11 points from nine English Premier League games and winless in the Europa League.
Whether he can get the Red Devils heading back in the right direction will depend on a few aspects.
Previous Work
After a decent playing career including well over 200 appearances for Portuguese sides including the likes of Benfica and Braga, Amorim quickly jumped into the world of coaching. He hung up his boots relatively early at the age of 32, so he was quite young when he joined the coaching staff of Casa Pia in 2018. A year later, he took his first head coaching role for Braga’s reserves and was soon promoted to the first team on an interim basis.
In three months at the club, he averaged 2.38 points per game and impressed so much that Sporting CP paid a €10 million transfer fee (a world record at the time for a coach) for his services in March 2020. Sporting’s director of football, Amorim’s former teammate and friend Hugo Viana, was the key driver behind that move, and his gamble certainly paid off.
Sporting won their first Primeira Liga title in 19 years in Amorim’s first full season at the club, also lifting the League Cup to boot. They dropped off to second and fourth in the subsequent seasons but won the league again last term and have presently set a course for their first successful title defence since the 1950s.
Similarities to Ten Hag
Interestingly, Amorim has some similarities to Erik ten Hag in terms of his overall tactical approach. While the formations and structures the two coaches use are generally different, their ultimate intentions overlap a fair bit in many aspects.
Ten Hag was quite open about his desire to make Manchester United the best transition team in the world, which effectively cost him his job as he stuck to this approach too adamantly in the end. Amorim should not be that extreme as he likes to control possession much more, but he tends to set his side up in quite an expansive manner as well.
In fact, there are some structural similarities in this respect. In possession, Ten Hag’s attacking structure often resembled a 3-1-5-1 or 3-1-6 shape due to asymmetric full-back movements. In Amorim’s case, this structure is far more easily achieved from his favoured 3-4-2-1 formation, as one central midfielder pushes up alongside the wing-backs.
Out of possession, the Dutch coach faced recurring issues with his pressing setups. His press was often disjointed and easily played through, forcing him to cede possession and drop his players into a more compact block. Amorim hasn’t really faced such long-term issues as his expansive press has mostly overpowered opponents in Portugal, but he has been forced to tone things down and drop his side back against stronger opponents in Europe.
Liga Portugal, 2023/24 season
Ten Hag also had quite an impressive record at Ajax before joining Manchester United, so he faltered when it came to adjusting his tactics for a much more competitive league. Amorim will also face the same challenge, so he must be careful to not fall into the same trap.
Tactical tweaks needed
Amorim’s tactics made complete sense for Sporting’s squad and competitive contexts, but he obviously cannot copy and paste them at Manchester United.
The Red Devils have learnt the hard way under Ten Hag that a 3-1-6-adjacent attacking structure is not the right approach for them, as they kept getting cut open on the counterattack. Finding the right balance in midfield will be critical for Amorim, and he does have a good starting point with former Sporting defensive midfielder Manuel Ugarte. The Uruguayan international starred as a counterattack-killing lone number six in the Primeira Liga, but he will not have the same level of success in such a role against higher-quality Premier League attackers. So, Amorim will need his partner to stay back (as his defensive midfielders often did after Ugarte’s departure) and might want to be a tad conservative with his wing-backs as well.
The Portuguese tactician has generally made smart tweaks for big games in Europe and domestically, so Manchester United fans can reasonably hope that he will find the right solution. However, his record of just two wins in 14 meetings against Sérgio Conceição’s counterattacking Porto side suggests there should be some cause for concern as well.
The bigger issue, though, could well come on the out-of-possession side of things. As aforementioned, Amorim’s press at Sporting was very expansive. He used his front three particularly aggressively while the wing-backs naturally went up and down the flanks, leaving acres of space for just two midfielders to cover. While he could get away with that thanks to the clearly superior quality of his players relative to the average Portuguese opposition, that will not be possible in England.
The trouble is that Amorim has hardly ever shown different pressing structures in bigger games. Instead, he just asked his side to drop back into a compact mid block, which did hold quite firm in fairness. However, the tradeoff there is ceding possession and at least a degree of control to the opposition, which is not ideal for a club with high ambitions like Manchester United.
Transfers key for long-term success
Amorim will face a big challenge in the short term at least when imposing his back three system (which he is reportedly determined to stick to) on a squad designed to play a back four.
The wing back positions could be a major issue as the Portuguese tactician uses these players to add width to his attack, but many of Manchester United’s current full-backs are not best suited for such roles. Those who seem good fits have injury issues and therefore will not be immediately available. United’s lack of quality depth at centre-back will be another problem as they add a centre-back to their starting XI.
In midfield, Ugarte will be a key figure and should be ably partnered by either Kobbie Mainoo or Christian Eriksen depending on match contexts. Bruno Fernandes will likely operate in one of the attacking roles behind the striker, but he could be joined by anyone from Amad Diallo to Marcus Rashford.
Manchester United could do with some better fits in the attacking positions, but the defensive department has more pressing issues. The Red Devils backed their head coach quite heavily in the summer transfer window (which was a questionable decision), so Amorim will want to see them doing the same thing for the next couple of windows if he is to enjoy long-term success at Old Trafford.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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Ask the majority, if not all, of Liverpool fans ahead of the summer transfer window and there will have been a consensus on their two priorities: defensive midfield and a new left-sided defender.
While the Reds’ failed attempts to address the former, with the pursuit of Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi, presented an unlikely, world-class solution in Ryan Gravenberch, the same cannot be said of the latter.
Two-and-a-half months into the season and question marks around Andy Robertson‘s position as first-choice left-back are only growing.
Robertson was run ragged by Bukayo Saka in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal last weekend – including for the winger’s opener after just nine minutes – before being replaced by Kostas Tsimikas with just over an hour on the clock.
And with the Scot then one of only three players to keep his starting spot in a heavily rotated side for the 3-2 win over Brighton in the Carabao Cup fourth round three days later, there is a belief that Tsimikas has already taken his spot for the weekend’s more important fixture at Anfield.
Unlike Curtis Jones and Luis Díaz – also retained for the trip to the Amex – Robertson was the only player deployed in his natural position – in other words, not starting out of necessity – and he did so for the full 90 minutes.
While the likes of Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo were brought off, likely with a place in the side on Saturday – also against Brighton, this time in the Premier League – in mind, Robertson wore the captain’s armband throughout.
Logic and the principles of squad management suggest that the 30-year-old will be on the bench at Anfield with Tsimikas given a chance in his place.
There can be little arguing against dropping Robertson based on recent performances, and Arne Slot has shown already in his short spell in charge that he is not averse to making such swift, cutthroat decisions.
During pre-season it took mere minutes on the pitch for Slot to deduce that Wataru Endo would not be part of his regular midfield plans, while a half against Ipswich on the opening day of the season saw Jarell Quansah demoted for Ibrahima Konaté at centre-back.
Not only did Robertson struggle against Arsenal, but he was exploited by the pace and direct running of Chelsea’s Noni Madueke and Brighton’s Tariq Lamptey in other recent outings.
Though he is still only 30 and therefore relatively young compared to many of his full-back peers – Brighton’s Joel Veltman (32), Aston Villa’s Lucas Digne (31) and Nottingham Forest’s Alex Moreno (31) are all older – there is a sense that workload has caught up with Liverpool’s No. 26.
Refer back to a quote from Jürgen Klopp back in 2020, when Liverpool’s then-manager said: “Robbo and Trent, let’s say, they cannot play every season 50-something games – it would limit their careers, to be honest, even when they come through.”
Inclusive of that 2020/21 campaign, in the four full seasons since Robertson has played 170 times for Liverpool and, owing to his importance as captain, a further 35 for Scotland; an average of 51.3 appearances per season.
In terms of minutes played, Robertson has been among the top six most-used players for Liverpool in each of the five full campaigns since he claimed duties as first-choice left-back from James Milner.
Robertson season summary with Liverpool
No player clocked more minutes than the former Hull defender in 2020/21 – ironic given Klopp’s comments of preserving his fitness immediately prior and even more so given the German was explaining the role new arrival Tsimikas would play in aiding this.
It can certainly be argued that Robertson’s workload has only begun to be managed more carefully as he begins to pick up more frequent injury problems, most notably a hamstring issue that bothered him for months after first picking it up on Scotland duty in March.
Whether it has now taken its toll, or it is simply a false dawn and the No. 26 will regain top form soon enough, remains to be seen, but there are few doubts over the need to test other options.
To that end, it is noteworthy that Tsimikas was one Slot’s four most-used players throughout pre-season and has shown promising signs when called upon in the campaign proper.
The Greek was particularly impressive in the 1-0 win away to RB Leipzig in the Champions League, coming in his fourth start of the season, with his whipped delivery headed down by Mohamed Salah for Darwin Núñez‘s winning goal.
He was similarly strong in the 1-0 victory at Crystal Palace in the league, while there was a sharpness to his game in parts of the 3-1 win over AC Milan in Europe and 5-1 thrashing of West Ham in the Carabao Cup.
Tsimikas player traits
Tsimikas offers a determined quality attacking down the left flank that Robertson has not shown often under Slot, and he is behind only Salah (4.57), Díaz (4.53), Gakpo (4.48) and Alexis Mac Allister (3.42) for shot-creating actions per 90 in all competitions (3.32).
Similarly, Tsimikas is bettered only by Slot’s five regular starting attackers when it comes to goal-creating actions per 90, with his rate of 0.55 higher than Trent Alexander-Arnold (0.46) and, tellingly, Robertson (zero).
Of course, though, this is based on a considerably smaller sample size than those he is compared to – and when it comes to the 28-year-old signed from Olympiakos, the eye test is imperative.
‘Prove them wrong’, Slot can tell him, but in his four seasons and counting at the club Tsimikas has shown far from the level of consistency required to be Liverpool’s first-choice left-back.
That was evident against AC Milan in particular, with an early mistake allowing Christian Pulisic to open the scoring after just three minutes.
A steady run of games should see that improve, of course, but Slot has already acknowledged the existing pecking order having limited Tsimikas to just four starts so far this season.
Most likely is that any change to the left-hand side of his defence will be more of a stopgap than a long-term solution, with that solution almost certainly coming in the transfer market.
It will be a sad day when Liverpool do eventually replace Robertson with a younger, more durable model, and with his contract due to expire in 2026, it may come sooner rather than later.
Those fans calling for reinforcements on the left flank have already seen tough decisions made with other favourites from Klopp’s successful era such as Roberto Firmino, Fabinho and Gini Wijnaldum.
And while the hope will be that Robertson can rekindle his fortunes and keep it burning for years to come, it may be a reality those supporters have to accept once again before long.
(Images from IMAGO)
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There are a number of intriguing match-ups this weekend. It is too early to talk about season-defining but positive results for certain teams here could completely change the narrative. With that in mind, here’s what to look out for this weekend.
Title winning mentality
If Arsenal are serious title contenders, the game against Newcastle United on Saturday afternoon is a must-win.
The Gunners suffered a 2-0 defeat to Bournemouth a couple of weeks ago and then twice gave up the lead against Liverpool last weekend in a 2-2 draw.
Mikel Arteta‘s side are five points off the pace in the race for the Premier League title. They need to keep within touching distance of leaders Manchester City so they’re in a position to capitalise on any dropped points by the reigning champions.
They’re coming up against an out-of-sorts Newcastle team. The Magpies are without a win in the Premier League since September 15th.
Eddie Howe’s men did beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the Carabao Cup in midweek. And they did hold Manchester City to a draw at St James’ Park a little over a month ago. So they do have it in them to show up against the better teams.
A win in this early kick off could lift the Magpies up to eighth in the English top-flight. It would also leave them just three points behind Arsenal. It could be a season changing result for the Magpies.
The right time for Wolves?
Wolves are still winless in the Premier League. Gary O’Neil’s side did show great mental resilience last weekend to come from 2-0 down against Brighton to claim a point with just five minutes left to play.
This performance did highlight the fact the players still buy into O’Neil and his plans. They could’ve easily downed tools and played out their eighth loss of the season. Instead, they salvaged their second point of the campaign.
Wolves haven’t been as bad as results suggest. But results matter. They have the worst defence in the Premier League and are conceding, on average, 2.8 goals per 90.
They’re going to have to sort their defence out if they’re to have any chance of avoiding relegation. They host Crystal Palace in the evening game on Saturday.
The Eagles picked up their first win of the season last weekend, beating Spurs 1-0. They then followed it up with a 2-1 Carabao Cup victory over Aston Villa in midweek. So they’re in good form and will be looking to make it three wins on the bounce. It is a good opportunity for Oliver Glasner and his team to distance themselves from the relegation zone.
A results-based game
On paper, Aston Villa are having another good season while Spurs are struggling.
Unai Emery‘s side have 18 points on the board and are just five points behind league leaders Manchester City. By comparison, Spurs have picked up 13 points from nine matches. Ange Postecoglou‘s men have lost as many games as they have won (four).
Crystal Palace picked up their first win of the season against Tottenham last weekend, just one week after Postecoglou’s side had run riot against West Ham United in a 4-1 victory. It highlights how hit and miss they are as a team this season.
They hammered that idea home in midweek by beating Manchester City in the Carabao Cup while Aston Villa suffered a shock loss to Crystal Palace.
When looking at the underlying numbers, however, a different story starts to take shape.
Both teams have an Expected Points total of 16. They’re the joint-third best teams in the league so far. Villa have the results to match the performances. Spurs, at this current time, have performances but not the results.
Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s Manchester United take on Chelsea this weekend. It could be the Dutchman’s only chance to manage the Red Devils in the Premier League with Rúben Amorim expected to be appointed as the man to succeed Erik Ten Hag.
The former PSV manager took charge of United against Leicester City in the Carabao Cup, masterminding a 5-2 win over the Foxes.
It likely won’t be as straightforward for United when they host Chelsea at Old Trafford this weekend.
Chelsea have averaged 2.1 goals per 90, the second highest total in the Premier League. Key to that is Cole Palmer, the most productive player in the English top-flight this term with 12 goal involvements. If you’re going to stop Enzo Maresca and his players, you need to stop Palmer.
And United, surprisingly, have a good chance of doing this. The Red Devils have kept four clean sheets, a total that only Liverpool (five) can better.
Van Nistelrooy will want to go out on a high and getting one over a rival would be ideal.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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Mateo Retegui didn’t even speak Italian when he was first called up to the Italian national team. Born and raised in Argentina, the young striker wasn’t on the radar of most Azzurri supporters when Robert Mancini selected him for a squad in March 2023.
Having played his entire career up to that point in Argentina, few in Italy hadn’t even heard of Retegui.
They know all about him now, though. Not only is Retegui – eligible for the Azzurri through his grandfather – a regular for Italy, he is leading the Serie A scoring chart this season having netted 10 times in 10 games for Atalanta. While many questioned the Bergamo club’s summer signing of the 25-year-old, Retegui is flourishing as the next great Italian forward.
Serie A top scorers
Italy has produced more than its fair share of great forwards over the decades. Roberto Baggio, Paolo Rossi, Alessandro Del Piero, Francesco Totti, Gianluca Vialli and Christian Vieri, not to mention a few others, were all legitimate legends, but the country hasn’t had an elite level striker for a long time.
This is partly why there is so much excitement around Retegui. He is the sort of player Italy has spent the last decade looking for with Gian Piero Gasperini getting the best out of a player who scored just seven league goals for Genoa last season. The Atalanta manager has helped push Retegui to a level few believed he would ever reach.
Retegui player traits
Retegui has scored all sorts of goals for Atalanta this season. Three of his 10 league goals have come from his head. He has scored goals off both feet. He has poached inside the six-yard box and has also scored from outside the box – as he did by guiding home a finish from 18 yards out against Verona last weekend.
Gasperini has focused Retegui by adopting a 3-4-2-1 shape that sees Charles De Ketelaere and Ademola Lookman occupy the areas either side of Atalanta’s new centre forward with wing backs also positioned high to add another dimension to the attack. With Gianluca Scamacca out injured, Retegui became the new focal point.
Retegui shot map, Serie A 2024/25
While it is pertinent to note that Retegui is out-performing his Expected Goals (xG) of 6.8 in Serie A this season, that still places him among the division’s best performing players. Only Dušan Vlahović (7.4) and Moise Kean (6.8) are even close to the 25-year-old and neither have got to double figures in actual goals.
At Genoa, Retegui earned a reputation for being a hard-working, but limited player. His perceived lack of technical ability was frequently highlighted with his former employers not exactly distraught to lose a forward whose all-round game was believed to be inadequate. €28m was seen as fair value.
Under Gasperini, this perception has drastically changed. Retegui is doing a better job of linking up with the players around him, earning his place in an Atalanta side that plays a brand of modern, dynamic football. The understanding between Lookman and Retegui is particularly strong, combining for two league goals so far this season.
“He’s a great player but also a calm guy,” said Luciano Spalletti after the last international window which saw Retegui score in back-to-back UEFA Nations League games against Belgium and Israel. “He’s lethal inside the box and has learned to work more with the team. He will become a top player… he’s perfect.”
Retegui recent form for Italy
With Spalletti building for the 2026 World Cup, Retegui is expected to be a key figure for his adopted national team. Euro 2024 was a disappointment as Italy exited in the round of 16, but the Azzurri’s form since then has been encouraging with Spalletti’s team unbeaten in matches against France, Israel and Belgium. Retegui has featured in every game.
Atalanta’s business model as a club is to be a springboard in the transfer market. Indeed, La Dea have sold at least one prize asset every summer for the last few years. This summer, it was Teun Koopmeiners. Last summer, it was Rasmus Højlund. The summer before that, it was Cristian Romero.
The way Retegui is going, he might be next to draw interest from Europe’s elite, but he already appears to be in the perfect place for his development. Atalanta are playing in the Champions League this season and are once again competitive near the top end of the Serie A table. Retegui is spearheading a team on an upward trajectory.
Retegui’s career path has been unorthodox. He moved through several clubs in Argentina including Boca Juniors before making the switch to Serie A last summer. Now, he is the most prolific Italian goalscorer of his generation and is improving with every match. The long list of Azzurri legends that includes Baggio, Rossi, De Piero and co. could soon have a new name.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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Jonas is a 21 year old student who, like FotMob, hails from Norway, but unlike the frustrated Fantasy Premier League players in the office, he did something we could only dream of last season. He finished first, ahead of 11 million other managers in the 2023/24 season.
Who better then, to provide us with some expert advice each week.
The Eye Test vs. The Stats
I mentioned Rayan Aït-Nouri (listed as 4.6m in FPL) in my article ahead of Gameweek 8, but now he is even more relevant because of who Wolves face over the next few matches. The managers who bought him ahead of Gameweek 9 were rewarded with a goal, his third goal this season! He shows elite attacking threat for a defender with 0.19 xGI (Expected Goal Involvements) per 90 minutes. There are some worries that Wolves might return to a back four in terms of their defensive shape, but Aït-Nouri should continue to play pretty offensively. Although Gary O’Neil‘s side are one of the worst defensive teams in the league, on paper, I believe Aït-Nouri can provide some serious value at just 4.6m and if they happen to keep a clean sheet, we might be looking at 10+ points because of his offensive threat and bonus points. The only slight worry with him is that he is his discipline record. He’s on four yellow cards and if he gets a fifth, he will be suspended for a game.
Mohamed Salah (12.7m) delivered a double digit FPL points haul against Arsenal in Gameweek 9. The Egyptian king has delivered six such performances (10+ points) in the first nine rounds of the season, scoring 6 goals and getting 5 assists. Against the Gunners, he was the one out of Liverpool’s front three that looked closest to creating something against a tight Arsenal defence. He finished with xGI of 0.43, which is far below his season average of 0.77 per 90. Liverpool have some good fixtures coming up and there is nothing that indicates that Salah will stop performing. Many Fantasy managers may be getting frustrated with Erling Haaland (15.4m) and believe he isn’t returning on that hefty price tag. I think shifting the money into the midfield could be a very viable strategy, even if it requires at least two transfers.
Long shot
Yoane Wissa (5.9m) has been sensational this season, scoring five goals and getting one assist in just six appearances. Wissa is only owned by 3.9% of the managers due to him picking up an injury against Manchester City which left him on the sidelines for a few weeks, but now he’s back with what has now been credited as scoring a brace against Ipswich. He only played 24 minutes in Brentford’s midweek Carabao Cup game, which means he is most probably well rested ahead of Gameweek 10. His stats are also really impressive, averaging 0.93 xGI per 90 in his 406 minutes this season. A great differential I expect to perform well going forward.
Upcoming games to follow
There aren’t that many games I am really looking forward to from an FPL perspective this weekend. Arsenal play Newcastle away, with the Magpies having only managed to score once in their last three matches. William Saliba is back from suspension, but Gabriel might now be missing through injured, but nevertheless, I do expect Arsenal to perform well defensively.
Liverpool play Brighton at Anfield, and could be weakened with rumours that defensive lynchpin Lewis Dunk is out for as long as a month. As mentioned earlier, I believe Salah will be a wonderful pick this gameweek and if you own him, I would captain him.
The last game I am tracking is Southampton vs Everton. I have owned Dominic Calvert-Lewin (6.0m) for a few weeks now, something which has turned out pretty badly despite him racking up good attacking numbers. This will probably be his last chance to prove himself, and if he fails to do so I am likely binning him ahead of Gameweek 11.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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