Anfield was ecstatic, the Emirates was overjoyed, and City Ground hosted a four-goal thriller between relegation rivals Nottingham Forest and Everton. The weekend Premier League fixtures have undoubtedly provided football fans around the world with drama and banter, with results providing both climax and anti-climax situations, proving that the English top flight is the most intense league in the world. The only thing that matters is that there are a few takeaways from this weekend’s exciting games.
3 Things to Take Away from Matchday 26
It is the Business end of the Season
At this point in the season, every goal counts, every result counts, and that is why every blade of grass covered by players matters at the end of the day for their football teams. The Premier League has passed the halfway point, with teams such as Everton in 18th place with 22 points, just 5 points ahead of 13th place Wolverhampton Wanderers with 27 points, and Tottenham in 4th place, just 3 points forward of Liverpool in 5th and 4 points ahead of 6th place Newcastle. This is surely that point in the season when no one wants to lose points, both at the bottom and at the top of the table.
It is a Two-Horse Race
GLOBAL ARSENAL FANS REACTION TO REISS NELSON LAST MINUTE WINNING GOAL VS BOURNEMOUTH
(via @denzino4905 on youtube) pic.twitter.com/X2a0RcIRn4
— Doc (@karthikadhaigal) March 5, 2023
Now it has been a few hours since Liverpool’s 7-0 demolition of Manchester United who is 3rd in the table and that heavy defeat to the Red Devils has surely now given a lot more people the truth that Man united might be technically out of the title race, Manchester City and Arsenal are the only teams vying for the league title. Manchester City, the current champions, defeated Newcastle 2-0 earlier on Saturday, while Arsenal stunned Bournemouth with the game’s final kick, Reiss Nelson‘s 97th-minute left-footed volley from the edge of the box. Manchester City and Arsenal are the only teams vying for the title, and it will be a battle until the end of the season.
The form isn’t Everything
There will be insufficient justice done to the Premier League weekend if Manchester United’s devastating loss to Liverpool is not discussed well enough. Before Liverpool’s game at Anfield, Manchester United had gone 11 games unbeaten in all competitions. And while many football fans and pundits did not expect a 7-0 thrashing, United’s defeat is their joint-heaviest competitive defeat, matching those by the same score against Blackburn Rovers in April 1926, Aston Villa in December 1930, and Wolves in December 1931.
This demonstrates that in the Premier League, taking the bull by the horn in each game is more important than form. After this defeat, Manchester United will try to pick themselves up and push again, whereas Liverpool, the resurgent team, will need that win to pick up their season and try to qualify for the Champions League.
This is the time to say, “Let the season begin,” because Matchday 26 was only a prelude to a lot more drama surely.