Hi scorers
Before I start, I'd like to invite anyone who reads this to take part in a predictions game for all the Premiership matches. In some of my updates, I've talked about the weekends' games and then made a score prediction for each of them. The basic idea with the game is that you play against each other and score points with the predictions, the number of points you get depending on how close you are- will explain the rules. Then over the course of the season, you keep score for each week and the player with the most points wins at the end of the season and hopefully we can develop a leaderboard.
We're already 7 games in so it's a bit late to start but as this is a game I sometimes do with my mates I thought it might be a fun thing to add to the blog. The general scoring system is pretty simple, you get 3pts if you predict exactly the correct scoreline. (e.g. you predict 1-0 and the actual score is 1-0) And you get 1pt if you predict the wrong scoreline but the right result (e.g. you predict 1-0 and the actual score is 2-0).
You can send me your predictions for each week by email: sutton.thescore@gmail.com
or twitter: https://twitter.com/_thescore
or you can just comment on the blog.
You don't have to do predictions every week for the whole season obviously, but you won't get any points for the weeks you don't put in the prediction. Those are the basic rules for it, send your predictions my way if you fancy a go, and you're welcome to put a small comment on the games which I'll put in.
Let's have a look back at the weekend's games then...
Man City 3-0 Sunderland
I did predict 4-0 before the match but in all honesty, this was a big win for City. They were without a clean sheet so far this season, and that was with Vincent Kompany included in their team, who was sidelined for this one with a calf injury. It was probably important for them that Kolarov scored that free-kick inside 5 minutes- it seemed to ease the home fans down a bit who will have been agitated by their poor display against Dortmund midweek. This allowed City to get into their stride a bit and they were unlucky not to double their lead before the break, but once Aguero scored with half an hour to go coming on as a sub, there was only ever going to be one winner. Sunderland will have wanted to have made more of a game of it, but I don't see this as a particularly tellling result for their season.
Chelsea 4-1 Norwich
My 6-0 prediction was maybe a little bit over the top for this one. Yes, Chelsea are more than capable of creating chances, scoring goals and are dazzling to watch at times- as they showed today- and Norwich did concede five against Liverpool, but maybe I'd have gone
3 or 4-0 if I'd thought about it more rationally. Playing Arsenal next week, the games don't seem to be getting any easier for the Canaries and they might feel they should have beaten, rather than drawn with, the likes of QPR and West Ham at home whilst they had the chance. It could be a long old season for them. It's been a brilliant start for Chelsea, but with Tottenham and Man United coming up I'd be prepared to bet against them running away with the league at this stage.
Swansea 2-2 Reading
If this wasn't a great point for both teams, it was certainly an important one. For Swansea, they simply needed to stop the rot after losing their last three and I would have considered them relegation material if they'd lost this one. It took a bit of character for them to claim a point after being 2-0 down with 20 minutes to go, Luke Moore also seemed to make an energetic difference to them when he came on. I still think they'll need to beat Wigan next time out to distance themselves as much as possible from the relegation battle before a very tough run of games. For Reading, they can't exactly be happy with a point having been 2-0 up but a draw away from home isn't bad and they've got some winnable matches coming up- I think they might be okay this season.
West Brom 3-2 QPR
Christ, I wish Blues could play like West Brom did at times. From what I saw on Match of the Day, the whole team was lively, full of energy, always making clever runs off the ball, and could score goals. They just put their stamp on the game from the off.
Mark Hughes won't be happy with QPR's defending, although I don't like Hughes much, I do think the number of new signings he's made will take time to understand each other's games, I'm glad Fernandes has publicly backed him- it creates an atmosphere of trust and loyalty which you rarely get with foreign chairmen. I'm prepared to reserve judgement on QPR's fate, and Mark Hughes's, for a few more games.
Wigan 2-2 Everton
Another dogmatic display from Everton, to get the draw they probably deserved. Wigan showed some promise to put themselves ahead twice in the first half, Arouna Kone scoring one and setting one up to look like a real find. As the second half went on though, Everton continued to press and up the tempo, leading to the penalty. Baines was impressive from the spot once again to make it honours even which neither side will be truly happy with, but it was probably the fair result.
West Ham 1-3 Arsenal
Even after this impressive win, my honest opinion is that Arsenal won't win the title in the near future without serious investment in their defence. The quality of their forward players, particularly Cazorla and Podolski, are at a similar to level to those of city, chelsea and united but their defence still needs a leader- a vidic, a terry or a kompany- and probably a defensive midfielder, selling Alex Song and not properly replacing him wasn't Wenger's smartest move. I've got doubts about all of their goalkeepers, I don't think Gibbs is quite good enough and Sagna is aging a bit. There are so many areas that need addressing I think.
The good start West Ham have had, albeit with easier fixtures, means that they could afford to lose this one and I'd still fancy them for a lower-midtable finish this year.
Southampton 2-2 Fulham
My prediction was right! At the time of writing this I've not seen Match of the Day 2, so I don't want to say too much on the Sunday games without actually watching them, but it must have taken a bit of a steely determination from the Saints to snatch a point after going behind so late on- after being ahead for so long. They've got something of a mixed bag of games coming up now, but the draw at least carries them out of the relegation zone.
It will have been a bit of a sickener for Fulham fans to drop two points so late on, because you have to finish 5th rather than 6th or 7th to get into next season's Europa league, I get a feeling this season could be a bit of a non-non for Fulham despite their reasonable start.
Liverpool 0-0 Stoke
Not really a good enough result for Liverpool. I genuinely thought they'd turned a corner when they beat Norwich 5-2 last week but a defeat on Thursday to Udinese coupled with a disappointing draw here means Brendan Rodgers can again feel a little bit of heat emerging onto him. Mainly because the reason Liverpool finished midtable last season was because they drew too many games at home against 'average' teams, although they can be tough to break down at times, Stoke will be counted in that category and they will have been happy to come away with a point.
Tottenham 2-0 Aston Villa
Looks like I called this one right as well! Just sayin'... AVB has really got the ball rolling at White Hart Lane now and they will be one of those teams amongst Arsenal, Liverpool, Everton and maybe Newcastle, aiming for that 4th spot now. I'll need some time to think about this match, but in two weeks I could potentially see Tottenham maybe doing United and City a favour by giving Chelsea a very difficult game. For Villa, I'm grudgingly edging towards saying they'll stay up, but if they don't beat Norwich and lose to Fulham and Sunderland in their next few games then they could at least have a battle on their hands which I would look forward to seeing.
Newcastle 0-3 Manchester United
I expected this game to be a United win, but in considerably more dramatic fashion than it turned out to be. Once Patrice Evra answered a few of his critics by scoring Man United's second, it took the sting out of the game from what I'd seen on my Sky Sports Score Centre app. I did feel at that point that Newcastle had a chance, because Cisse and Ba are two players who are capable of scoring at any moment and with the Red Devil's defence not the paciest, Newcastle could get back into it if they scored early in the second half. I was wrong on that account and Tom Cleverley for me added to his England credentials by scoring United's third and giving them a slightly unexpectedly comfortable victory.
That's all for now, folks, we've got the old annoying international break next week so I'm not sure when my next update will be. Do send me in your predictions for the games on the 20th and 21st in the Premiership, and let's see if we can get a leaderboard going. I have to say, with two weeks to go, I'm going to resist the temptation to start thinking about those games now otherwise I'll peak to early- but when you want to you can either email me or tweet me, I shall follow you back if you follow me on twitter.
Gabriel
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