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winners
Marco Silva finally makes a statement
Silva was named to bridge the gap between Everton and the Big Six. We did not expect him to do this during one season – it will take time and money for Everton to be part of the top six – but in the course of individual matches of 90 minutes. The best performance of Wolves this season (unless they win the FA Cup) is to compete and beat the best clubs in the country. That's not to say that Nuno's team did not go down well from time to time, but she proved she deserved a place in the top seven on that basis.
Before Sunday, Silva had failed in this task. Everton was decent for long periods of his home game against Liverpool, but that was the exception to the rule. Before and during Silva's reign, Everton had won five of their last 68 games against the Big Six teams. This is unacceptable for an ambitious team and it has not yet improved its track record.
Sunday's win over Chelsea could be lightning in the pan. Everton was fortunate not to be late at half-time as Goodison grumbled and regretted their doubts about the lack of cohesion between the different components of the team. They also flattered to cheat more than once under Silva's rule – scoring six goals against Burnley for one.
But Everton's response after half-time and the way the atmosphere has changed at Goodison over the past 45 minutes has been significant. These are not bad players, but simply a group of people lacking self-confidence and therefore unable to click effectively. Make a good move (and buy a new center-front in the summer) and it is almost unthinkable that Silva can regain the positivity that has eluded him since the fall. He's still recovering Goodison's goodwill, but it's a start.
James Maddison and the perfect answer
A disappointing week for Maddison. The player who has created more Premier League odds than any other player this season may feel unhappy not to be included in the last senior English team, particularly because of the overabundance of his back-end.
But then, this must be considered as evidence of England's newfound strength, rather than a significant fault on the part of Maddison. Gareth Southgate is clearly a fan and will want Maddison to be unbeatable.
So, how you react to the disappointment is instructive. In difficult circumstances with Leicester City reduced to ten men, Maddison persevered and made a great free kick. Of course you're a kid.
Liverpool, still doing it
Was it pretty? Goodness no. Was it effective? Just about. Is that about enough? Damn it's true. You can win friends and admirers in the fall and winter, but earning points is all that matters in the spring when you're home from your first league title in 29 years.
This is the part of any title challenge where every misstep provokes scrutiny, and Liverpool has certainly done a great deal at Craven Cottage. This can become a vicious circle: the error brings control, the pressure increases the number of errors. And suddenly, the collapse ensues and everyone calls you, bottlers and scammers.
Win his last seven Premier League games and Liverpool can not do any more. Winning his last seven games and Liverpool will have set an astonishing goal that Manchester City could still beat. The scores, the performances and the course make no difference. Only earnings do.
Sadio Mane
Our early winner. He has scored 11 goals in his last 11 games, took over from Mohamed Salah when Liverpool needs a hero and doubles Paul Pogba's award for PFA Player of the Year. Go understand.
Leicester City and Resilience
Brendan Rodgers would never want a player to be fired, and certainly not after less than four minutes of play, but Harry Maguire's red card tested Leicester City's resistance. It is this resilience that has been so absent during the last weeks of Claude Puel's reign. Rodgers is a manager who constantly talks about his call for combat and courage through adversity. Leicester showed both shovels to Turf Moor.
The other Leicester round in the game this season was conceding goals sooner and later, and doing both against Burnley would not have been surprising given the circumstances. Instead, Rodgers saw his poster cross the finish line and impose himself away from home for the first time since the New Year.
Rodgers will now be confident that Leicester will be able to run. The attraction of taking the job in February was the sweetness of their upcoming match. To beat Bournemouth at home, Huddersfield away and Newcastle home, that's hardly feasible, and Leicester will be back in the race for seventh place. More immediately, they now have the chance to record three consecutive victories in the league for the first time since 2017.
Salomon Rondon
Newcastle has a long list of things to do from May to August, nothing more important than getting Rafael Benitez to stay. But making Rondon's loan agreement with West Brom permanent is also essential. If last season there were doubts about the attacker's stomach for a relegation fight, he evaporated at St James's Park.
Since the beginning of December, Rondon has started 16 league games and scored or badisted 11 goals. In a team that is preparing for its defensive security, these goals have been particularly crucial and this impressive record.
But Rondon is so much more than that. In the league, few attackers know better hold the ball, protect the ball and wait for the offensive midfield join the game. The arrival of Miguel Almiron to support Ayoze Perez created a front three in which Rondon plays the central role. Given the other Newcastle striker options (sorry, Joselu), he makes the difference between the Premier League and the Championship.
Karlan Grant
Now, holds an extraordinary statistic. Grant is the league's top scorer for Charlton Athletic and the league's top scorer for Huddersfield Town in the Premier League.
Grant's second goal against West Ham was absolutely beautiful. This short stay in the Premier League will do him good for a championship campaign next season.
Bournemouth vs the rest
Eddie Howe will be upset by Matt Ritchie's late equalizer, but the Bournemouth draw continued on his impressive lead. Since November 2017, Howe's team has played 20 home league games against non-Big Six teams. They won 11 wins, 9 draws and none of those 20 games.
West Ham, despite them
A season in the microcosm. West Ham fans will have left London Stadium, but with enough lingering doubts to dampen their spirits and give them a headache. Like Peter G written this weekthey support an absurd club.
Wes Morgan
When was the last time a substitute scored 86 minutes or more after entering a Premier League match? Never, when is it?
losers
Chelsea and Maurizio Sarri
One step forward, at least one back. Chelsea may have beaten Tottenham and Fulham to give Sarri a break, but he is choked again by their underperformance. A point against the wolves at home and Everton away is not a solution to avoid serious trouble.
After the loss to Goodison, Sarri admitted he could not explain what had happened to his team after half-time. Chelsea's manager could have reasonably expected a goal lead at the break, given his chances, but the strength is not proven in the partial performances. Chelsea will collapse at the first sign of adversity. In Everton, they were hardly facing a team known for its resilience this season.
Chelsea's lack of resilience is a major problem for Sarri. Go back to the beginning of October and watch their record conceding the first goal of the match: Tottenham (a) 1-3, Leicester (m) 0-1, Tottenham (a) 0-1, Arsenal (a) 0 – 2, Bournemouth 0-4, Manchester City 0-6, Manchester United 0-2, Wolves 1-1, Everton 0-2. In nine games, when Chelsea conceded the first goal, they scored a grand total of a goal. This indicates – perhaps even proves it – mental fragility.
In attack, Chelsea became comically dependent on Eden Hazard to do everything. If he plays well, they can. If he produces a piece of magic, they can score. But they will also be very lucky not to lose Hazard in the summer, and there are enough people around him that he deserves help.
The Premier League form of Chelsea might not be very important in the context of their season. With Sparta Prague and one of the Benfica or Eintracht Frankfurt on the way to the Europa League final, this now presents itself as the easiest way to return to the Champions League.
But for Sarri, it really matters. If Hazard actually leaves, Chelsea will be subject to a summer review, baduming they find a way to buy players with a transfer ban that threatens them. It takes a leap of faith on the part of the club hierarchy to believe in Sarri's ability to turn players who already look a little stuck when they are instructed to learn his philosophy. .
Gonzalo Higuain
It just does not work. That does not have to be a damnation of all that Higuain has ever done, but the lack of movement just does not make him want to persevere, week after week, when he will not even be at Chelsea next season. He scored three goals in seven league games, including two in a 5-0 home win against a rotting Huddersfield and the other against the league's worst team.
I've talked about it as much as anything that was boring a long time ago, but Sarri must surely be worth it to try Giroud, all the more so as he managed a trick of hat a few days ago. If the argument against is that Giroud does not score often enough in the Premier League, at least Eden Hazard loves to play with him.
Burnley
Sean Dyche has a big problem on his arms. The schedule of this weekend's meeting allowed Burnley to take a big step forward, and Harry Maguire's first red card offered another advantage. Saturday at tea time, Burnley had gone back.
After the defeat of Leicester, Dyche had claimed that Maguire's dismissal had given Burnley a "psychological problem" because it was incumbent upon them to attack, but he would not expect any sympathy from him. The key to surviving the downside is to adapt to changing circumstances and make the most of the opportunities that come your way. Burnley failed on both fronts.
If it was not bad enough, Burnley did not make the most of his power play and then conceded a late goal for the league's tenth season. No Premier League team has conceded more goals in the last ten minutes of play, proof that Burnley suffers from failures of confidence or fatigue.
Burnley played more games than the three teams directly above them and the team directly below. Their last four games are at Chelsea and Everton and at home at Arsenal and Manchester City; they face wolves, Bournemouth and Cardiff before that date. The match in Cardiff at Turf Moor could decide their fate.
But the fans will be very worried about the fact that their team has already taken advantage of the lump and is now dragged into trouble again.
Sergio Rico
In June 2016, Rico played in the last 14 minutes of the Spanish friendly against South Korea. I'm going to be fooled and say that this will be the only minutes of his senior international career.
Huddersfield Town
Find new ways to lose and new ways to quickly give up any accumulated goodwill. Jan Siewert admitted that he was struggling to discuss how Huddersfield conceded three late goals. The German caught up with the misfortune that had forced him to make three substitutions before the last 20 minutes, which meant he was unable to make things move after taking West Ham's foot.
Even by the standards of the Huddersfield season, it was a miserable end. They missed many chances to seal the victory, were guilty of a rotten defense for the two goals of Javier Hernandez and put an end to a game that dominated without anything. They could possibly be relegated before the end of March.
Marko Arnautovic
On January 2, Arnautovic scored twice against Arsenal and was named Man of the Match. A few days later, it became clear that he wanted to complete his move to China. Since then, Arnautovic has played in seven Premier League matches and has contributed only once with no goals. Rumors that he could leave this summer for his lucrative move probably make sense for everyone involved, if West Ham can get a decent transfer fee. Read it.
Daniel Storey
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