Premier League wrap – Gameweek 11

Gameweek 11 was not generous to our predictions.  There were many surprise results with Liverpool dropping points at Luton, Forest comfortably beating Villa and Newcastle’s controversial win over the... Read more
Premier League wrap - Gameweek 11

Gameweek 11 was not generous to our predictions.  There were many surprise results with Liverpool dropping points at Luton, Forest comfortably beating Villa and Newcastle’s controversial win over the Gunners.

Fulham hosted Manchester United to kick-off the round.  United showed some improvement from last week but were still not at their best.  The Cottagers were in control for large portions of the game and created very good chances, particularly in the second half.  Bruno Fernandes scored the winning goal in the 96th minute to secure an important three points for the Red Devils.  Manchester United won 1-0.

The MoneyMan and Dylan were seconds away from a correct prediction.  Bruno Fernandes ensured Oliver’s prediction of a United win came to fruition.

Brentford faced West Ham with both sides capable of a surprising performance.  Brentford went ahead early thanks to Neal Maupay.  Mohammed Kudus equalized with a moment of individual brilliance a few minutes later.  Jarrod Bowen put the Hammers in the lead in the 26th minute, Brentford were struggling.  In the second half the Bees were gifted a chance back into the game thanks to a Konstantinos Mavropanos own-goal just before the hour mark.  10 minutes later, Nathan Collins put the home-side back in front.  Brentford won 3-2.

The MoneyMan and Dylan both correctly called a Brentford win.  Oliver backed West Ham this week but it didn’t payoff.

Crystal Palace journeyed north to meet Burnley at Turf Moor.  Burnley have been terrible this season and would be hoping to turn things around against the Eagles.  Burnley dominated possession for most of the game, but it would not translate into genuine goal scoring opportunities.  Jeffrey Schlupp put Roy Hodgson’s side a goal up in the 22nd minute.  Palace dropped deeper and let Burnley control the tempo.  The home-side had 17 shots at goal but it was clear they were missing top scorer Lyle Foster.  Tyrick Mitchell sealed the win the 94th minute.  Crystal Palace won 2-0.

The MoneyMan, Oliver and Dylan all correctly predicted a Crystal Palace win.

Everton have slowly resurrected their season after a terrible start to the campaign.  Brighton have had a poor run of form, winning just two of their last 10 games in all competitions.  Vitali Mykolenko put the Toffees in the lead in the 7th minute, a moment Sean Dyche’s side were not expecting.  The hosts sat deep afterwards and let Brighton have the ball.  The Seagulls had 80 percent possession but only managed two shots on target, two less than Everton.  Ashley Young’s misfortune continued this week, scoring an own-goal just five minutes from full-time to ensure the points the shared.  The final score was 1-1.

The MoneyMan, Oliver and Dylan all incorrectly predicted a Brighton win.

Manchester City had the opportunity to reclaim the top spot when they played Bournemouth at the Etihad.  City started with intent.  Belgian winger Jeremy Doku was unplayable, providing one the best individual performances in the Premier League era.  Doku got the opening goal and then created four for the defending champions.  Manuel Akanji, Phil Foden, Nathan Ake all got a goal a piece while Bernardo Silva bagged a brace.  Luis Sinisterra got a goal back for the Cherries but the job was already done.  Manchester City won 6-1.

The MoneyMan, Oliver and Dylan all correctly predicted a Manchester City win.

Sheffield United were sitting bottom of the table and were in desperate need of points when they kicked off against Wolves.  This was far from the most exciting fixture.  There were just five shots on target throughout the 90 minutes.  Cameron Archer put the Blades ahead in the 72nd minute.  Wolves were not lying down and scored what they believed was a late equalizer when Jean-Ricner Bellegarde’s effort hit the back of the net in the 89th minute.  Wolves have been involved in more drama than any other team this season, gameweek 11 was no different.  After 10 minutes of added time, Sheffield were awarded a controversial penalty.  Oliver Norwood converted, Sheffield had their first win of the season.  Sheffield won 1-0.

The MoneyMan, Oliver and Dylan all incorrectly predicted a Wolves win.

Arguably the biggest game of the weekend, The Gunners travelled to St James Park with an eye on top spot.  This fixture was heated from the first whistle.  A physical battle filled with emotion, this was an enjoyable watch for the neutral.  Kai Havertz controversially escaped a red card in the 37th minute.  This saw three Newcastle players get booked for showing their frustration at the decision.  The second half was more heated.  Bruno Guimaraes was also lucky to escape a red after what appeared to be an intentional elbow to the back of Jorginho’s head.  In the 64th minute, the events that unfolded still have Mikel Arteta labelling the PGMOL a disgrace.  Anthony Gordon turned in an extremely controversial goal.  In the build-up the ball looked to have passed the by-line.  It was then crossed in to Joelinton, who appeared to foul Gabriel and then handball the cross back towards Anthony Gordon who looked to be in an offside position.  VAR checked the goal for nearly five minutes and proceeded to award it.  Newcastle won 1-0.

The MoneyMan and Oliver incorrectly predicted a draw while Dylan correctly predicted a Newcastle win.

Nottingham Forest had their home form put to the test when they faced Unai Emery’s formidable Aston Villa.  Fullback Ola Aina gave the hosts the perfect start with a screamer in the fifth minute.  Unexpectedly Villa dominated with the ball but like other teams this weekend, could not turn it into anything meaningful in-front of goal.  just two minutes into the second half, Emi Martinez could not keep out Orel Mangala’s long-range effort.  Nottingham Forest held on with 26 percent possession to secure three points.  Forest won 2-0.

The MoneyMan, Oliver and Dylan all incorrectly predicted an Aston Villa win.

Liverpool had the opportunity to go one point behind top-spot when they travelled to Luton.  Liverpool were not great offensively.  They created very good chances but all of their attackers seemed to have an off day.  Luton played an almost perfect game.  They sat deep and were well organized into a compact low-block.  Late into the second half, Liverpool fell for Luton’s bait and were hit hard on the counter.  Substitute Tahith Chong scored an important goal for the Hatters.  Luis Diaz made a substitute appearance and scored an emotional equalizer in the 95th minute, showing off a shirt that pleaded for the safe release of his father in Colombia.  The final score was 1-1.

The MoneyMan, Oliver and Dylan all backed a Liverpool win.  It was wrong to write-off Luton.

Spurs aimed to extend their stay at the top of the table but would face a challenge when they hosted an unpredictable Chelsea.  What occurred at The Tottenham Hotspur stadium was borderline insanity.  Romero and Udogie were lucky to not receive straight red cards early in the first half.  However justice was served when both players were given their marching orders later in the game.  Chelsea then pulled away from nine-man Spurs with Nicholas Jackson scoring a hattrick.  Chelsea won 4-1.

The MoneyMan, Oliver and Dylan all got this one wrong.

 

This was not the greatest week for our predictions with lots of surprise results throwing out the chance of a successful weekend.  Dylan came top this week with four correct predictions.  The MoneyMan and Oliver both managed three correct calls.  Oliver maintains his lead, now sitting on  60.  The MoneyMan is still in second on 59 and Dylan trails in third on 57.

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