EPL Matchday 6: Seven Major Takeaways

Another weekend of Premier League action has come and gone, and with matchday 7 rapidly approaching, we must look back at the action that was matchday 6. We have a combination of some absolutely stunning games, as well as some absolute “snoozefests,” however let’s look at six takeaways from matchday 6 in the Premier League.

Crystal Palace are a lost cause

Not even Jose Mourinho could save Palace from this spiraling season. They are the first team in English league football history to lost their first six games and not score a single goal during those six contests. What’s even worse now is that they lose Christian Benteke for at least six weeks with a knee injury. This leaves Freddie Lapado, who signed for Palace from non-league team Margate during the summer. Palace pray that Lapado has a Jamie Vardy 15/16 season, or they re-sign Marouane Chamakh; but either way, they are going down in May.

Are Leicester and Stoke in trouble?

It’s very early days here, and Leicester are coming off a very hard fought game against Liverpool. Philippe Coutinho was superb, but the Craig Shakespeare fairytale isn’t playing out on stage like it should be. Yes, Leicester lost Danny Drinkwater but they have the players to be up at the pointy end. They just need two games to get fired up. As for Stoke, our perennial “mid-table battlers” are a little bit closer to the deep end than they want to be. Mark Hughes needs a few more goals to be wrapping up the net, otherwise the deep end might swell up pretty soon.

Sloppy but Effective for United

It wasn’t pretty by any stretch of the imagination, but once again it was Romelu Lukaku who sealed the deal for the Red Devils as they took three points away from home. An easier fixture will be nice for the Red Devils after last week, and they get that in a home game against Crystal Palace. Could United pull a “City” and smack Palace for five? Fantasy players will be licking their lips, with Lukaku a damn good nod for captain this week.

Points are Points, No Matter how Boring it is

Remember that “snoozefest” I mentioned earlier? Yeah, Burnley and Huddersfield played one of those out. It wasn’t the worst quality match by any stretch of the imagination, but nothing really grabbed my attention for this match. A few of the Huddersfield fans weren’t happy with the coverage they got on Match of the Day, but at the end of the day they would be happy with a point away from home. As for Burnley, their solid season continues as they stick in the top ten. Nothing special, just solid football at Turf Moor.

Arsenal at Home = LaCazette scores

Alexandre LaCazette just become the first Arsenal player to score in each of his first three home games, as Arsenal spoiled Gareth Barry’s 633rd game in the Premier League. That game makes Barry the all-time leader in appearances in the Premier League. A classic number nine goal, following in on a shot that hit the bar, and then sealing the win with a penalty kick. It seems that as long as Arsene Wenger just plays him at home, Arsenal should be in good shape to come out on top. He just needs to do the same away from home too.

The Forgotten Man Fires

Oumar Niasse. Unless you’re an Everton fan, or a Hull City fan, you will not have heard a single peep about him until last weekend. The rumors continue to swirl around about him not even having a proper club tracksuit, so he wore his own to the game over the weekend. The man who hadn’t played for Everton since the final game of the 15/16 season may have saved Ronald Koeman’s job, as he knocked in two goals in a five-minute span, after being brought on as the final substitution, to bring the bread home against a stubborn Bournemouth. Now, about that tracksuit…

Philippe Coutinho…Enough said

Coutinho is easily one of the best players in the world, and he showed it as Liverpool got the points away from home at Leicester. He scored one, assisted another and just showed that he, along with Firmino, Salah and Sane, will run riot in the Premier League if they get even a sniff of a chance. His free kick on the 23rd minute was just incredible, and no goalkeeper in the world would be able to save that. It very nearly all came to nothing, but Simon Mignolet made up for his blemish with a saved penalty. Liverpool surely will try and hold off on selling him if possible… or will we see Coutinho vs Liverpool part 2 next summer? For the sake of reds fans, I hope he stays.

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