Premier League hits and misses: Man City’s wastefulness at Nottingham Forest costs them top spot – but will it cost them the title? | Football News

Man City stumble may prove costly

The pendulum swings back Arsenal’s way. The Gunners came from behind twice before scoring two goals in injury time to beat Aston Villa, a feat City were powerless to match after getting pegged back by Nottingham Forest two hours later. This will feel like a loss.

The prolific Erling Haaland went missing. Pep Guardiola, booked for confronting the fourth official over an incident involving the Norwegian striker, was unusually composed in his post-match address.

He bemoaned missed chances and was critical of poor defending for the goal conceded, but also gave a glowing review of a “brilliant” performance. His body language on the sidelines during the game said otherwise. Guardiola spent almost the entirety of the first half with his hands on his hips on the edge of his technical area – he was anxiously watching wave after wave of City attacks end in disappointment.

A week that began with so much promise – outshining Arsenal on their own patch – has ended in regret. This was the moment to seize control of the title race and City stuttered. How they might come to rue those opportunities missed.
Laura Hunter

Selles the right man to lead Saints’ survival charge

What a difference a week makes. Nathan Jones was dismissed in the wake of a disappointing 2-1 home defeat to 10-man Wolves, which prompted anger from disgruntled supporters.

That loss – a seventh from eight top-flight games under the Welshman – left Southampton four points from safety with 16 games remaining and with just four wins all season.

Ruben Selles has been tasked with uniting the struggling south-coast club and having insisted they have a squad capable of avoiding relegation, he could not have made a better start to his audition for the position on a full-time basis.

Selles feels he is as capable as any other candidate after a stunning end to a turbulent week. Failed talks with former Leeds boss Jesse Marsch now look like a blessing in disguise.

The 39-year-old Spaniard has held various coaching roles across Europe during his career, including in Greece, Azerbaijan and Denmark, but is yet to be a full-time manager.

He had a one-match stint as Saints caretaker earlier this season – a penalty shoot-out victory over League One Sheffield Wednesday in the Carabao Cup – before Jones was confirmed as successor to Ralph Hasenhuttl.

Southampton committed 24 fouls against Chelsea, the most in a Premier League game so far this season. This was a tigerish display, one that had been conspicuously lacking under both Hasenhuttl and Jones. There have been false dawns already for Saints this season, most notably after positive results at home to Chelsea and away to Manchester City.

Southampton have completed the league double against Chelsea for the first time since the 1987-88 season; there are the hallmarks of an exciting, young team.

This time, under Selles it has to act as a springboard to something more tangible. Had Southampton lost, they would have been seven points adrift of safety given the results elsewhere on a day when relegation battlers bared their teeth.

While they are still waiting for ignition at Stamford Bridge, Selles must surely now be in pole position to land the Southampton job on a permanent basis. One result doesn’t make a season, and the visit to Leeds at Elland Road next week will be an entirely different proposition.
Ben Grounds

Chelsea must get the best out of Felix

Chelsea’s wretched form has seen them win just twice from their last 14 Premier League games, with goalscoring a major issue.

They have scored just eight times in those last 14 fixtures. In fact, they have found the net just 23 times in their 23 league games, the same number they have conceded.

Graham Potter is arguably the antithesis to Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone, so it is perhaps no surprise that Joao Felix had looked so liberated prior to this personal setback at home to Southampton.

It is an irony that the best player Chelsea have got they don’t actually own. His qualities must be utilised if Potter is to get out of this particular hole.

Felix’s licence to play freely was seen at Fulham and West Ham, but he was on the periphery here.

On his debut at Craven Cottage and indeed in scoring at the London Stadium, the Portuguese still looked like he was missing a striker to play off. Felix is like Zola without his Vialli. Saturday was the turn of David Datro Fofana to audition, the raw 20-year-old Ivorian signed for £11m from Molde last month.

After 45 minutes in the FA Cup defeat at Manchester City and a 15-minute cameo against Fulham, this was his full Chelsea debut. He had played well before being replaced at half-time. What message will that send to the youngster?

There was a sense of finality about Romelu Lukaku’s move back to Inter Milan last summer on a two-year loan deal, but you just wonder if Chelsea might explore ways of bringing the Belgian back now that other pieces of the attacking jigsaw are in place.

Until that problem position is solved, Chelsea will be less than the sizeable sum of their parts.
Ben Grounds

Goodison magic working for Everton again

At times this season, Goodison Park has not been the most harmonious of places.

Fan protests before and after games against the running of the club from owner Farhad Moshiri and the club’s board have dominated much of the season so far, while empty seats in the Director’s box at the stadium have become a feature of Everton’s home games.

But despite all of that, there is no denying how important a factor Goodison is to the players, who secured what could be a crucial 1-0 win over relegation rivals Leeds.

We saw it at the end of last season when Everton’s home form played a huge part in them staying in the top flight. But it wasn’t something former boss Frank Lampard was able to build on and four straight home defeats in his last four games played a big part in his eventual dismissal.

However, new boss Sean Dyche is now two wins from two with two clean sheets at home, and it’s something he wants to continue to build on.

“We want to make this a tough place to come, and we are doing that with two wins and two clean sheets,” Dyche said. “Home form is a big help, we want it to become a fortress. We’re getting there but it takes time and belief. It’s a one-game-at-a-time mentality, that’s what I believe.”

Similar words have been heard before, but the platform is there to make it a reality.

Aston Villa are the visitors next week and a third straight home win would continue to build the hope that Everton can pull away from danger quicker than expected.
Oliver Yew

Could Arsenal’s magic moment turn the season?

If a stoppage-time goal is a sign of champions then how about two of them? How about three in the final third of a game that has flipped the title race once more?

After an hour at Villa Park, Arsenal were contemplating finishing three points behind Manchester City. Instead, they ended it two points clear with that game in hand remaining. This 4-2 win over Aston Villa could come to be seen as a pivotal point in the season.

Asked after his team’s game, but before City’s surprise slip against Nottingham Forest, if the comeback had restored belief, Mikel Arteta suggested that there is more belief than ever.

That makes sense. Arsenal were facing a fifth game without a win when down at half-time. They came out for the second half early, gathered themselves in a huddle and set about starting the recovery. Completing it had them ‘absolutely bouncing’, according to Arteta.

Jorginho has stepped into midfield and contributed. Ben White was brilliant on his return to the team. Gabriel Martinelli looked brighter off the bench. Arsenal have had a wobble. The hope now is that this can be the galvanising moment in their season.
Adam Bate

Emery’s anger at Villa’s approach is telling

When Aston Villa lost at home to Leicester, there were those supporters at Villa Park who felt convinced that this performance was proof of the folly of passing out from the back. The sight of players dispossessed in deep areas, gifting goals, was too much to take.

Unai Emery sees it differently and he was more troubled by the defeat to Arsenal this weekend. The score was the same, a 4-2 home defeat, and the opposition was stronger. But the manner of this loss frustrated him more because his team did not try to pass the ball.

“We were with ball possession in minute 92 and did not keep possession. We did a long ball. Gave them the ball. They attacked progressively, in the attacking third, and they scored the third goal. That is the example of the match for me. It is not what I want to build here.

“Against Leicester, we lost the ball building up easy and with bad decisions but that is the way, taking good decisions in the build-up. Today, we did not give the ball away in the build-up but we were doing long ball more times, giving them more balls that we have to keep.”

There will be difficult times ahead at Villa if they are to persist with Emery’s way. It is a more ambitious approach and places more technical demands on the players. But his obvious disappointment suggests that he will double down on his commitment to play.
Adam Bate

Wolves look like the bottom side they used to be

All you have to do is look at the shooting statistics and you will see where Wolves’ problems still lie.

Fifteen shots, 1.16 xG. Zero goals. On Bournemouth’s side, four out of their five shots were ranked at 0.09 xG or lower – but still ran out 1-0 winners.

Wolves created plenty of chances in the game, got the ball into good areas. But they are still feeling the effects of the ‘old Wolves’ that came before Julen Lopetegui’s arrival. The one that saw them sit bottom of the table.

You can also look at the substitutes that Lopetegui brought on this Saturday. Daniel Podence, Diego Costa, Raul Jimenez and Joao Gomes were all brought off the bench – but all of them looked below par and only one of them has scored since January 14.

It led to Bournemouth manager Gary O’Neil, whose side went into the Molineux clash without a win in nine games, saying that his side weren’t up against a “massive threat”.

Lopetegui needs to create more threats or, after lifting Wolves away from the relegation fight with three wins in four, they could be right back in the mix for the drop.
Sam Blitz