Five things we learned in the Premier League
LONDON: Manchester City turned on the style yet again as Sergio Aguero powered the leaders’ rout of Bournemouth.
Arsenal and Liverpool served up a festive feast, but their six-goal thriller revealed defensive flaws.
Tottenham’s Harry Kane has a goal-scoring milestone in his sights, while Manchester United suffered more frustration.
Here are five things we learned from the Premier League this weekend: Prior to Manchester City’s home game with Bournemouth, reports emerged that Sergio Aguero is unhappy playing under manager Pep Guardiola and is seeking a way out of the club. Aguero was left on the bench for City’s recent 2-1 win over Manchester United and showed a fit of pique when he was substituted during their 4-1 defeat of Tottenham Hotspur. But there were no signs of discontent against Bournemouth as he scored twice in a 4-0 win to take his tally of goals at the Etihad Stadium to 101. The Argentina striker also set up a goal for Raheem Sterling and earned glowing praise from Guardiola, who described him as a “legend.”
Arsenal and Liverpool served up a festive feast in their 3-3 draw at the Emirates Stadium, but while the game was a thrilling contest, it also served to illustrate why neither side is in title contention. After going 2-0 up, Liverpool capitulated by conceding three goals in five minutes, with the idling Joe Gomez at fault for the first and weak-wristed goalkeeper Simon Mignolet culpable for the second. Arsenal had been virtual bystanders in the first half, but after they had got their noses in front, their own frailties returned to the surface as Petr Cech could only palm Roberto Firmino’s shot into his own net. The two teams have shared 27 goals in their past five league meetings — great for neutrals, but fatal for their title aspirations.
While Tottenham’s expected title challenge has failed to materialize, Harry Kane’s unquenchable thirst for goals ensures Mauricio Pochettino’s side remain a force to be reckoned with. Kane’s seventh treble in 2017 secured a 3-0 win at Burnley and in the process took the England forward to the brink of an impressive milestone. Kane has 36 league goals in the calendar year — a record he now shares with Alan Shearer — and he will attempt to make the landmark his own against Southampton next week. “A few people have been speaking about it. I came into this game hoping I could get a couple and take it to Southampton. Let’s see what happens on Boxing Day,” Kane said.
With seconds left at the King Power Stadium, Manchester United were on the verge of a restorative victory but Jose Mourinho’s mood was about to take a turn for the worse. Already tetchy after United’s embarrassing League Cup quarter-final defeat at second-tier Bristol City in midweek, Mourinho hit the roof as his side allowed Harry Maguire to give 10-man Leicester a late equalizer. The sloppy marking that allowed Maguire to score came hot on the heels of a series of wasted United chances. With his team now 13 points behind leaders City, Mourinho lashed out at his players. “We were punished by our mistakes. It was an easy match to win, we did everything to win but we missed big chances. Childish loss of possession, so easy. Childish in their box and childish in our box,” he ranted.
Everton have succumbed to some heavy defeats this season — 4-0 at Manchester United, 5-2 at home to Arsenal, 4-1 at Southampton — but since Sam Allardyce’s appointment as manager, they have become a very different prospect. The Merseyside club took their run of games without defeat since Allardyce’s appointment to five with a gritty 0-0 draw against champions Chelsea, and they have conceded only two goals in that sequence. With Wayne Rooney absent through illness, Everton failed to muster a single attempt on target, but in defense — at least — they have clearly turned a corner.