The balance championship race
The 0-0 draw between Manchester City and Arsenal at the Etihad has compared the Premier League title race to the most balanced ever. Currently, Liverpool is leading with 67 points, while Arsenal and Man City have 65 and 64 points respectively.
From now until the end of the season, the 3 teams above will no longer face each other directly, so the champion will be decided by the results compared to the rest of the tournament.
The current average position of the teams that Man City have to face is 10, Arsenal is also 10 and Liverpool is 10.33. And each team has its own advantages. Arsenal have the advantage of playing 1 more home match and 1 less away match. Man City has the advantage of playing tough matches at home. For Liverpool, their advantage is points.
Andre Onana stands out amid Man United's stagnation
There were not many positive points for Manchester United after the 1-1 draw with Brentford. However, in the context of the general chaos, a big change of Erik ten Hag is starting to have a positive impact.
When Man United lost 0-4 to Brentford last season, one of the reasons was that David de Gea was not playing well. Andre Onana was brought in to address that problem and endured a nightmare start to life at Old Trafford.
The Cameroonian goalkeeper is not a symbol of calmness that many goalkeepers want and will not necessarily be trusted by Man United for a long time. However, with each match, Onana is getting better and better, at least not the problem.
Onana's two excellent saves helped Man United escape defeat against Brentford. His ability to predict crosses has improved a lot compared to the beginning of the season. "Forever" was Ten Hag's comment on Onana after the match.
Danny Welbeck should leave Brighton
Danny Welbeck's contract with Brighton will expire in the summer and the striker may be considering a departure. The 33-year-old striker scored a beautiful goal against Liverpool and continuously made it difficult for the defenders.
Not stopping there, the English player also actively supported the defense to slow down Liverpool's attack. However, Welbeck is only playing as a substitute due to Joao Pedro's injury, while Evan Ferguson, who has not scored in the previous 22 matches, is on the bench.
If Welbeck wants to get more minutes, he will have to leave Amex. If he does not have a new contract or Welbeck thinks it is time to leave, there will be many attractive offers.
Kalvin Phillips disaster
Kalvin Phillips came off the bench and had a disastrous day when West Ham lost 3-4 to Newcastle.
With the score at 3-1 in favor of West Ham in the 69th minute, David Moyes decided to put Phillips on the field to replace Michail Antonio. This is an easy-to-understand decision by Moyes when The Hammers need to increase their defensive personnel to preserve the score.
However, just 6 minutes after entering the pitch, the England midfielder fouled Anthony Gordon. Phillips' disastrous performance continued in the 83rd minute when he did not closely follow, creating conditions for Isak to pass to Harvey Barnes to score the equalizer.
In the 90th minute, Phillips was easily passed by Barnes, before firing a long-range shot to seal a 4-3 victory for Newcastle. After coming on, Phillips was at fault for all three of West Ham's goals conceded.
Obviously, Pep Guardiola is right not to take advantage of Phillips at Man City. And perhaps West Ham have regretted the midfielder's decision.
