Lukaku and Barkley owe Koeman a lot, Wilshere’s Bournemouth loan has proved a damp squib and Mignolet finally proving a positive game-changer for LiverpoolThe focus so often fixes upon Wilfried Zaha at Crystal Palace but over their seven-game revival under Sam Allardyce, they have posed as much threat from the opposite flank. Andros Townsend had rather grumbled through his first seven months at Selhurst Park, unhappy to be operating from the left and only offering flashes of his quality. The past seven weeks have been more reflective of a winger with 13 England caps. “Against Arsenal, Andros shut down three Arsenal players on his own, one after the other,” Allardyce said. “He ran from the right side to the left,...
Everton and Romelu Lukaku get to shift their attention to the pitch, Liverpool face off with Manchester City, and Spurs look to push on without Harry KaneEverton-owned strikers will provide two causes for regret at Goodison Park on Saturday. Hull City miss Oumar Niasse, the on-loan centre-forward whose goals against Swansea City last week have made escaping the drop a realistic proposition, as he is ineligible to face the club that froze him out within months of arriving from Lokomotiv Moscow. That is poor timing as Marco Silva looks to create some momentum but Everton have concerns of their own. Romelu Lukaku and his family are hardly known for reticence but his clearly voiced concerns about the club’s ambition, hot...
Arsène Wenger overcomes resistance to change, Aitor Karanka wants fighters more than Stewart Downing, and José Mourinho has more pressing concerns than getting revenge at ChelseaOne of the many criticisms routinely directed at Arsène Wenger concerns his tactical conservatism and it is fair to say that he has seldom deviated from his preferred and predictable 4-2-3-1 in recent years. But on the back of a crucial drop in form Wenger has actually started the last two games with a new plan, playing 4-3-3 against Bayern Munich and Lincoln to address the malfunctioning midfield by adding an extra man. He thinks some of his midfielders, namely Aaron Ramsey and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, benefit from being in a three and perhaps it is...
Millwall and Lincoln are in the mood for further upsets, José Mourinho has a tactical teaser at Chelsea and Rangers at risk of Old Firm derby embarrassmentThe FA Cup quarter-final at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday is a fitting way for Neil Harris to celebrate two years in charge of the club he loves. Regardless of the result, the club have been upwardly mobile under Harris, the club’s all-time record goalscorer. Harris initially took caretaker charge on 10 March 2015 before assuming the full-time position a month later. Their start to this season was tricky – at the end of September they had 12 points from 10 games – but now Harris’s side are only six points off the automatic promotion...
Hull’s Harry Maguire is dreaming of England, Spurs are better placed than ever to best Arsène Wenger’s Arsenal and Aitor Karanka continues to divide opinionThe Dozen: the weekend’s best Premier League photos In a cartoon history of Arsenal’s ongoing run of springtime top-four escapology acts – the battle, above all, to stay ahead of Spurs – Arsène Wenger would probably be depicted right now wriggling furiously inside a sealed lead trunk, still rattling his padlocks but descending towards the seabed. Tottenham are six points ahead of Arsenal with 11 games to play, to Arsenal’s 12. Tighter spots have been negotiated. But as Spurs beat Everton to take their half of the weekend’s London-Merseyside derby exchange it was hard to avoid...