Man City crumble again against Brentford, Arne Sloto’s changes save Liverpool at Nottingham Forest – Premier League hits and misses | Football news
The walls of Man City are coming down… again
Just when you think Manchester City have this match-winning thing figured out, it takes two steps away from another Premier League title.
Brentford – who went into the game with the second best home record in the league behind Liverpool – are by no means an easy place to go. But fighting as hard as Manchester City to go 2-0 up and then letting it slip through their fingers is another concern.
Far from their worst game this season, but until the 66th minute, their finish was wasteful. In fact, they could have been heavily behind had Brentford not let too many good chances pass them by at the other end.
But probably the attack was not the problem. Kevin De Bruyne rolled back the years after Phil Foden’s first-time strike with a wonderful cross, and Savinho looked lively, providing an assist and hitting the post.
In his pre-match press conference, Pep Guardiola admitted that his team’s defense has not been good enough this season. Unfortunately, the players proved him right.
Manchester City of yore would have seen a game like this. But once again, Pep and his players found the walls crumbling around them. Whether that prompts an increase in transfers in January remains to be seen, but it was another reminder of Manchester City’s struggles this season.
Charlotte Marsh
Brentford’s heroics set up Liverpool’s fightback
Brentford gave themselves the best possible confidence boost ahead of this weekend’s meeting with Liverpool with the way they held out a draw against Manchester City.
Bees have stung quite a few Premier League big-hitters since their promotion, beating all of the traditional ‘Big Six’ over the last three and a half years. It lacked that score, but exceeded it in other areas.
Brentford has always worked when it was more than the sum of its parts, firing on all cylinders. But even for a manager like Thomas Frank, that is not always sustainable and after losing their unbeaten run before Christmas, the momentum could have fizzled.
However, they again showed the resilience that has marked their stay in the top flight to bounce back against Manchester City, scoring 18 shots – more than they managed in both games combined last season – and refusing to let their heads drop despite the tide turning against them. with the score 2-0.
This was more than that. Frank said he had established ahead of the game that City were winnable and demanded his players go “toe-to-toe” with their expensive opponents.
The performance would have been encouraging regardless of the result, but the draw – and its euphoric, last-gasp nature – now provides an extra boost in preparation to face the league leaders.
Last January, Liverpool visited Gtech, they left with their tails folded. That was before Brentford started going up against the big boys in their own game. Frank’s side will love it even more this weekend.
Ron Walker
Potter rides his luck to escape
Graham Potter is already working his magic at West Ham. What Julen Lopetegui would give for such a fortuitous victory as this one. Only six touches in the opponent’s field. Three goals from three shots on goal, xG of 1.1. Potter would hope it would always be this way.
The former Brighton and Chelsea boss had three training sessions and the FA Cup defeat by Aston Villa on Friday to pass on his ideas to his new players.
Yet the Hammers, at times shambolic under Lopetegui, already look something approaching a functional, well-coached football team. They were helped by some terrible defending from Fulham, with goalkeeper Bernd Leno in particular having a night to forget.
Potter will be furious that two of Alex Iwobi’s crosses flew straight in to maintain his average of two goals conceded per game this season.
He will be aware that Fulham hit the bar twice. But he will also be encouraged by how, with the help of luck, they withstood a late barrage to claim their first home win since December 9.
Potter has promised to be ‘creative’ in his line-up selection, with his attacking options depleted by the absence of Jarrod Bowen, Niclas Fullkrug, Michail Antonio and Crysencia Summerville. It will have to be, despite promising signs that Bowen will return ahead of schedule. For now, he can toast this first step on his Hammers journey.
Ben Grounds
Wasteful Chelsea worry Maresco
Straight out of the blocks, it was Cole Palmer’s performance – a Chelsea performance – against Bournemouth.
Palmer was at his magical best, his dummy and finish giving the Blues a deserved lead. They were extremely dominant with as many as 13 shots, five of which were on goal. However, the key statistic was that they had just one goal at the break.
Nicolas Jackson is waiting for the goal. He was lively against the Cherries but lacked sharpness. Three of his seven attempts were saved by Mark Travers.
He wasn’t the only one to blame as profligacy proved costly as Bournemouth clawed their way back into the game, with Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca admitting his side’s second-half let-up was worrying.
Chelsea eventually got a get-out-of-jail-free card through James’ injury-time free-kick, but Enzo Maresca’s side are now five games without a win in the league.
It’s not a critical result in terms of their Champions League qualification hopes, but they will need to find ruthlessness in front of goal if they are to stay in the top four.
Oliver Yew
Slot has the last laugh with the change
Arne Slot was the target of Nottingham Forest fans throughout the game, even his choice of footwear was a cause for criticism. With Liverpool one down in the second half, they started chanting, ‘Arne Slot, it’s happening again’, alluding to Forest’s win at Anfield.
The Dutchman forced a smile in their direction and although he did not have the last laugh, his side forced an equalizer which maintains Liverpool’s unbeaten Premier League away record. It came about as a result of his own intervention after a bold change.
Bringing in Kostas Tsimikas in place of the struggling Andy Robertson was obvious enough, but removing Ibrahima Konate in place of Diogo Jota required some imagination. Ryan Gravenberch dropped to defense and Luis Diaz briefly played a deeper role in midfield.
The slot’s game-changing decisions have been lauded since the opening weekend, but rarely will a change pay off so quickly – both substitutions combining for a tie. He wanted to win. But this could still prove to be a valuable point for Liverpool.
Adam Bate
Murillo sums up Forest’s determination
There were some excellent performances from Nottingham Forest players against Liverpool, but Murillo was probably their pick, just ahead of goalkeeper Matz Sels, whose saves were so important.
The centre-back was like a magnet for the ball in the Forest penalty area, deflecting almost everything. His total of 18 strikes was the most of any player in any Premier League game all season.
Previous highest total? Murillo was also responsible for that, making 15 shots in Forest’s draw with Brighton in September. Breaking his own records and making his mark in the Premier League, the 22-year-old continues to improve.
Nick Wright
