Premier League Matchweek 16 24/25
The 16th series of the Premier League 24/25 season saw some huge results including, Liverpool dropping points at home to Fulham and leaving the door open for Chelsea, Spurs running riot at St. Mary’ Stadium and Manchester United scoring a late double at the Etihad to send City and Pep into further crisis.
Liverpool vs Fulham
The 2nd game of Matchweek 16 saw Arne Slot’s top of the table Liverpool host Marco Silva’s high-flying Fulham at Anfield on Saturday afternoon. After dropping points 2 weeks ago away to Newcastle in a thrilling 3-3 draw, Liverpool got off to another shaky start when they conceded after 10 minutes. Antonee Robinson whipped the ball in from the left wing where Andreas Pereira jumped acrobatically to poke the ball past Brazilian teammate and returning Liverpool shot-stopper, Alisson. Things then went from bad to worse for the Reds when left-back Andy Robertson was given his marching orders in the 17th minute. A bad ball from Kenny Tete looked like an easy deal for the Scotsman, but he let the ball roll past him, allowing Harry Wilson to get on the end of it and eventually be brought down by Robertson. It was a clear goal-scoring opportunity resulting in a red card. At half time, the score stood at 0-1 with Liverpool left with another mountain to climb in the 2nd period.
Slot’s side made the ideal start to the next half when Cody Gakpo scored inside 2 minutes of the restart. Mohamed Salah’s whipped cross from the right wing was on the money, with Gakpo diving over at the back post to head the ball into the bottom right corner, a goal reminiscent of fellow Dutchman Robin van Persie. As 10-men Liverpool were pushing to take the lead, the Cottagers silenced Anfield when they restored their lead. Once again Robinson was in the thick of it, getting on the end of Alex Iwobi’s ball into the penalty area before lunging in to square it to Rodrigo Muniz. Muniz was lucky with his finish, the ball flicking off his right foot and over the confused Alisson in goal. After dominating the majority of the 2nd half, Liverpool found a fully deserved equaliser when Darwin Nunez found fellow striker Diogo Jota. After missing 2 months due to injury, Jota proved how crucial he is to Slot’s team when he received the ball, knocked it around the legs of Jorge Cuenca and spectacularly buried his finish into the bottom left corner. The hosts gave everything they could to try and win all three points but it was always going to be harder with just the 10 men on the turf. The full time score finished 2-2 with Liverpool dropping points in yet another Premier League thriller. They stay 1st but Chelsea is closing the gap slowly. Fulham remain 9th in the table, with the top half really close at this stage of the season.
Manchester City vs Manchester United
The next game of the Matchweek was the most anticipated, with Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City hosting their biggest rivals, Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United, at the Etihad Stadium. After a promising start to the game for the Citizens, they found a deserved opener in the 36th minute. City took their corner short where Kevin de Bruyne eventually whipped the ball in from the left wing. Josko Gvardiol rose high over the United defenders to head the ball past Andre Onana and score his 4th of the season; he is now Manchester City’s 2nd highest goal scorer of the season, playing primarily as an inverted left back. At half time the score stood at 1-0, with Amorim’s United not playing as badly as the score line indicated, stopping City from dominating possession as they so often do at the Etihad.
United came out with the same tempo as the first half, dominating possession but finally pushing into the final 3rd of the City half. Skipper Bruno Fernandes should have scored in the 73rd minute, putting a 1v1 chance against Ederson wide of the far post. Finally, in the 87th minute, Amorim’s side found a fully deserved leveller after Mathues Nunes played a horrible back pass to his goalkeeper, Ederson, leaving Amad Diallo with acres of space and loads of time isolated in the 18-yard area. Diallo was composed with the ball, taking it centrally before Nunes, in desperation to make amends for his error, sprinted back to take the United winger out, resulting in an obvious penalty. Fernandes stepped up to take the penalty and dispatched it brilliantly, slotting it into the far right, silencing the Etihad. Pep’s side then fully capitulated in the 90th minute when they conceded their 2nd in as many minutes. Centre-half Lisandro Martinez played a brilliant lobbed ball over the City back line and into the path of Amad. Amad dinked the ball over the outcoming Ederson before professionally passing the ball into the bottom right corner from a tight angle, winning the game for the Red Devils in style. City failed to equalise the game in stoppage time, with the full time score finishing 1-2. United fans will hope this is a stepping stone for Amorim as he looks to take United out of the bottom half of the table and back into European contention. They sit still 13th on 22 points. City drop out of the top 4 and into 5th place after they fail to win yet again. Pep’s side have now lost 8 of their last 11 games in all competitions and have only won 1.
Southampton vs Tottenham Hotspur
The final game played on Sunday of Matchweek 16 saw Russell Martin’s rock bottom Southampton host Ange Postecoglou’s underperforming Tottenham at St. Mary’ Stadium. Tottenham made an electric start to the game, scoring in exactly the 37th second. Djed Spence made a driving run through the Saints’ midfield before playing a brilliant ball into the path of James Maddison. Maddison didn’t even need to take a touch, running onto it before slotting the ball around keeper Alex McCarthy and into the far bottom corner. It was a brilliant finish and start to the game for Ange’s side who were in desperate need of 3 points. Tottenham made it 0-2 in the 12 minute after James Maddison’s cross from the right wing was flicked over to the back post by Southampton defender Jan Bednarek. The Pole’s header took the ball out of the paths of the other defenders and into the firing range of Spurs skipper Son Heung-Min who smashed the ball underneath McCarthy. Tottenham all but sealed the 3 points when Dejan Kulusevski scored his 4th of the season just 2 minutes later. Son crossed the ball into the 6-yard box from the right wing, in search of Dominic Solanke. Bednarek made a brilliant interception to cut the pass out, but the ball fell right into the path of Kulusevski who tapped the ball in with ease. No.4 for Spurs came in the 25th minute when Son found Pape Sarr outside the Saints’ penalty area. Sarr’s first touch was brilliant, taking him into a little bit of space before he carved out a shot through a crowd of legs, watching as it crept in at the near post. Spurs then made it 0-5 with the last kick of the half after Son played a wonderful ball with the outside of his boot into the path of Maddison who was inside the penalty area. Maddison took it to the goal line, where he chopped back and from an impossible angle, somehow smashed the ball into the top right corner. At half time, the score stood at 0-5 with Southampton left with no route back into the game.
In the 2nd half, Tottenham took their foot off the pedal, with the damage already done. Southampton had a couple of late chances to score a consolation but Fraser Forster was not going to let his clean sheet slip. The full time score finished 0-5 with Tottenham picking up a much needed win. Ange’s side jumped into 10th on the table, 1 point away from a European place. The signs are now all there for Southampton that something needs to change. The Saints sit 20th on a woeful 5 points after 16 games. It doesn’t help that Martin continues to play with his attacking minded tactics, when he would be better off sitting back and countering like most newly promoted sides have done in the past to regain their Premier League status.
Note: Martin was sacked hours after the Saints shocking showing vs Spurs.
Read the rest of Matchweek 16 at Premier League Matchweek 16 24/25 – Kickoff chronicles
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