Leicester’s incredible title chase is nearing the final hurdle, Arsenal finally have midfield solidity, a free kick is as good as a penalty when Dimitri Payet is on the pitch and should Wayne Rooney even start for Manchester United?
1) Leicester are approaching the final hurdle
Another day, another 1-0 victory for Leicester City. Seven points clear with six matches remaining for Claudio Ranieri’s side, who edged closer to the Premier League title thanks to Wes Morgan’s header against Southampton. Perhaps it is time for Messrs Pochettino and Wenger to trot out the Devon Loch line, used so famously by Sir Alex Ferguson, as Leicester threaten to make an anticlimax out of the most dramatic of seasons. Not many would care if they did, and they aren’t far away at all now. However, in racing parlance they have probably not yet jumped the last hurdle, despite their healthy lead at the top of the table. It was a fourth 1-0 win in succession, leaving them within touching distance of a Champions League qualification place. Once again, they did not have it all their own way but demonstrated remarkable resolve to see off another difficult challenge. A penny for the thoughts of the Leicester fan who cashed out a 5,000-1 wager on the Foxes winning the title. He won £72,000 in March but would have earned £250,000 had he held out and Leicester do too. Their remaining matches are against Sunderland, West Ham, Swansea, Manchester United, Everton and Chelsea. All tough games, but few would bet against them now, with Tottenham’s run in also tricky.
2) Klopp’s opinion on Sturridge ‘the only one that counts’
Striker
Daniel Sturridge
- Appearances
- 8
- Goals
- 4
- Shots
- 20
- Shots on target
- 55%
- Offsides
- 1
Honours were even at Anfield except in the contest between two England strikers vying for inclusion in Roy Hodgson’s plans for the European Championship. In truth, there was no contest as Harry Kane eclipsed Daniel Sturridge’s contribution to a captivating game – and not only by scoring his 22nd Premier League goal of the season. Kane’s final touch and awareness may have eluded him with Tottenham in promising situations but his work rate was prodigious throughout, his willingness to shoulder responsibility evident. Sturridge, by contrast, had one of those days when you suspect the Liverpool forward is going to remain on the margins from the start. He could have no complaint about being withdrawn in the 72nd minute by Jürgen Klopp yet did not disguise his disappointment at the decision as he trudged off, having a heated exchange with a supporter behind the dugout when he eventually got there. “I think that’s completely normal, especially with the quality of Daniel Sturridge,” insisted the Liverpool manager. “He has to think ‘leave me on the pitch and I can decide the game.’ That’s true but we needed ways behind the line. We needed Divock’s physical strength, so I changed. I could have changed Adam Lallana and gone with two strikers but in my opinion, and only my opinion counts, it didn’t make sense, so that’s it. I saw that he was not happy because I’m not blind but that’s not a problem because if he came off and celebrated something would be really wrong. I like this – as long as he doesn’t come off the pitch and do something really strange like kicking me from behind.”
3) Versatile Payet swerves usual route
Slaven Bilic thought that Dimitri Payet was going to bend it. So did Wayne Hennessey in the Crystal Palace goal. Everyone inside Upton Park thought that he was going to bend it. Instead, having scored a brilliant free kick for France last week, Payet demonstrated his versatility with a dead ball by hitting this one with dip and swerve, the ball wobbling through the air and leaving Hennessey rooted to the spot. For a moment, it looked like it was flying over the bar – and then it crept inside the top left corner. “When he hit it as it went over the wall I thought that one’s going into row Z, I swear to God,” Damien Delaney said. “I think even someone in the wall shouted ‘See ya’ to Payet. I think Wayne probably thought it as well. But again Payet’s like Sako, whatever they put on it, got it down in time and it was a hell of a free-kick – not much anyone can do about that. I think we were unfortunate to be 2-1 down but it is what it is.” A free-kick in Payet territory is as good as a penalty at the moment – the French marvel has scored five in 2016.
4) Pellegrini insists Mangala’s the man for City
If Manchester City have any chance of beating Paris Saint-Germain in theirChampions League quarter-final then much will rely on their ability to blunt the French champions’ attack. The travails of Martín Demichelis and Vincent Kompany’s absence mean the spotlight will fall on Nicolás Otamendi and his partner Eliaquim Mangala, who will return to his home city needing a big performance. After a comfortable afternoon against Bournemouth, Manuel Pellegrini insisted that the £42m Frenchman’s status as the second most expensive defender in history – behind PSG’s David Luiz – has not made a difference to his adjustment to the Premier League. “Well, if you have the statistics then you will see every time Mangala plays then we win,” he even claimed. It was a curious statement but one that is worth investigating. Pellegrini was certainly right about the start of the season, with City winning the first five games Mangala started. Since then, however, they have won six from 11 in the Premier League, losing three times to West Ham, Arsenal and Manchester United. Hardly invincible. “In a few games this season he has made mistakes, which is very awful to concede, but if you review his overall performances, he is a very good player,” Pellegrini added. “He is a very good defender.” That statement will also be tested by Zlatan Ibrahimovic at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday night.
5) Arsenal have finally found midfield solidity
Back in pre-season, when Arsène Wenger bought Petr Cech but no outfield players to reinforce his squad, there was something particularly ominous about the absence of an incoming defensive midfielder. It was an obvious position to address. Francis Coquelin had manfully demonstrated the importance of his position, and it was logical to have someone else to share that load (either alongside him or as an alternative). Inevitably, central midfield turned out to be a problem area this season. Losing Coquelin and Santi Cazorla to long injuries, missing virtually an entire season of Jack Wilshere, trying to get by with Aaron Ramsey when he can’t resist drifting forward, and discovering that Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Flamini were not reliable enough in reserve emphatically emphasised the awkward midfield-shaped hole. Mohamed Elneny arrived in January and had to wait a few weeks to make an impression, but now that he has settled into the team and established a rapport with Coquelin, Arsenal have a solidity in the middle that they have sorely lacked for the past few months. The Egyptian is mobile and likes to move the ball quickly, and dovetails well with the firmer tackling of his partner. Both are able to sit back and press forward. Wenger is keen on the balance they can bring when they play in tandem. It differs from what he calls the “perfect pair” of Coquelin and Cazorla. “Then Coquelin concentrated more on defending and Cazorla more on attacking. Now both of Coquelin and Elneny share the jobs so they balance. They are more similar, but as long as we have the four attackers in front of them, we need players who defend in defensive midfield.” League results have improved since they were paired up - a draw at Tottenham followed by victories at Everton and now against Watford. Arguably, a bolstered defensive midfield should have happened a while ago, but better late than never.
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