This has been the most exciting Premier League season in recent time. There is no one dominant team or two teams like previous seasons. Defending champions Liverpool have flaws this season, in particular, struggling to win on the road. Many teams can win the title this season. Only seven points separate first and tenth place. Who are the winners and losers in our Premier League midseason report?
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Surprise Teams
Coming into the season the teams expected to compete for the title and a Champions League berth were Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham. Everyone seemed to forget about Leicester City. Currently, they sit 2nd in the table. They and have a good football team including players like Jamie Vardy, James Maddison, Kasper Schmeichel and Youri Tielemans.
West Ham and Aston Villa have been the most surprising teams from escaping relegation to accumulating 26 points and tied with Chelsea on points. Aston Villa’s recent success has come down to captain Jack Grealish and new goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez. Arsenal was foolish to let go Martinez and he’s been a huge asset for Aston Villa.
Southampton having 29 points is more than most expected them to have. However, anyone who extensively watched the Premier League last season saw how they finished. Also, they have beat good teams like Liverpool on Monday and should have got the win against Manchester United but blew a 2-0 lead. Their striker Danny Ings missed some game are still in serious contention for a Champions League spot.
Disappointing Teams
Coming into the season Chelsea was expected to be serious title contenders after all the players they got during the offseason and the amount of money they spent. They are really struggling to get three points. Losing to Manchester City is acceptable but losing to Wolves without Raul Jimenez and losing to a then-struggling Arsenal 3-1 is unacceptable. A few weeks prior they had gone eight straight games unbeaten so they can return to that form. Perhaps this break is what Chelsea needs to turn this season around.
Arsenal has also been disappointing this season. The expectations for this team were too high and instead of qualifying for a Champions League berth, they should focus on qualifying for the Europa League. The unrealistic expectations for Arsenal once they signed Pierre- Emerick Aubameyang and Thomas Partey. Aubameyang has gotten off to a horrendous start and has not looked like the player in previous seasons. A clear mistake was choosing Bernd Leno over Emiliano Martinez. Martinez was the main reason they qualified for the Europa League after wins over Manchester City and Chelsea in the FA Cup. This team is young and it’s time to pump the breaks on them returning to their glory days. Patience is key.
Prediction for MidSeason Turnaround
I expect more of the same. The title race will come down to the final matchday. The favourites should be Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool. However, Liverpool better gets it together on the road or it will come down to two teams in Manchester.
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