Southampton may have been raided of much of their top talent during the summer but only the absence of a clinical edge cost them a result here against the prime culprit.
Liverpool 2-1 Southampton: Liverpool’s defensive frailties remain unresolved
Manchester United 1-2 Swansea City: Limitations of Van Gaal’s 3-5-2 exposed
The pre-season honeymoon period is over. In his first meaningful game in charge, Louis Van Gaal’s threadbare side fell to the club’s first opening day defeat at Old Trafford in Premier League history. Continue reading
Liverpool 0-2 Chelsea
Starting lineups
- Liverpool started in a 4-3-2-1 shape, with the same personnel that narrowly overcame Norwich on Easter Sunday. Both Raheem Sterling and Philippe Coutinho were looking to play between the lines behind lone striker Luis Suarez.
- Chelsea fielded a variation of the system that stymied Atletico in midweek. Mikel was the anchorman in a 4-1-4-1 on Tuesday night. Here he was joined by Nemanja Matic in a 4-4-1-1 with Frank Lampard surprisingly fielded just in front of the two, ostensibly in the number ten position.
Manchester United 4-1 Aston Villa: United profit from left flank focus against wasteful Villains
Manchester United inflicted a second consecutive 4-1 defeat on Aston Villa to relieve some of the pressure on beleaguered manager David Moyes.
Manchester United 0-3 Manchester City: United change shape three times and concede three goals
David Moyes answered the critics who pilloried him for not reacting during the defeat to Liverpool tonight. He threw three shapes of [redacted] at the wall. Unfortunately for him, none of it stuck.
Arsenal 4-1 Everton: Arsenal dominate possession before finishing Everton on the break
Arsenal progress to the unfamiliar environs of Wembley Stadium with a dominant victory over Roberto Martinez’s Everton. Continue reading
Arsenal 0-2 Bayern Munich: Holders take full advantage of extra man
Bayern Munich continued their defence of the UEFA Champions League with another deeply impressive performance and yet another clean sheet.
Manchester City 2-0 Chelsea: Pellegrini gets one over Mourinho in flawless tactical victory
Manchester City exorcised their Chelsea demons this evening with a completely dominant performance to secure progression to the FA Cup quarter finals. Continue reading
Arsenal 0-0 Manchester United: Cautious approach from both sides produces insipid deadlock
After an anomalous 2011/12 season that saw the majority of clashes between the top sides produce goalfests, this season has continued last year’s reversion to caution, with this installment of the United/Arsenal rivalry providing us with the latest confirmation of this trend. Continue reading
Liverpool 5-1 Arsenal: Déja vu for Wenger as Arsenal fall victim to Liverpool’s direct approach
Two early set-piece goals allowed Liverpool to play to their strengths with another breathtaking counter-attacking performance. Continue reading
Tactics Truck v2.0 