1. Harry Arter puts up hand for Ireland place
IT’S HARDLY A coincidence that Bournemouth’s recent upturn in fortune has coincided with Harry Arter’s return to full fitness.
The Ireland international put in a courageous performance on Saturday, despite having suffered a personal tragedy prior to the game, helping his side beat Man United 2-1 in the process.
Arter epitomised Bournemouth’s qualities, delivering a display that was full of endeavour and no shortage of technical excellence either.
The player’s stock is consequently still on the rise, after he helped the Cherries to a similarly impressive 1-0 defeat of Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last week.
These displays will do Arter’s chances of featuring for Ireland at the Euros no harm either. Despite Glenn Whelan and James McCarthy being firm favourites of Martin O’Neill, the Irish manager may just be tempted to place faith in Arter’s energetic, intelligent midfield play.
Having been one of the standout midfielders in the Championship last season, Arter is now proving he can make an impact at the top level — at the very least, he deserves a chance to impress in one of the Irish team’s pre-tournament friendlies.
2. Will Tottenham run out of steam?
Tottenham, in some ways, are not too dissimilar to their north-London rivals Arsenal.
There has come a point in many recent seasons where they put together a run of form that has certain people tipping them as potential top four/title contenders.
For instance, they beat Arsenal 2-1 last February, amid an impressive run that saw them claim 22 out of a possible 27 points, before their form ultimately collapsed towards the end of last season.
Similarly, today, Tottenham’s record 14-match unbeaten run in the Premier League came to an end as they were unexpectedly beaten 2-1 by Newcastle — their first league loss since the opening day of the season.
Despite appearing in control of the game and threatening to blow Newcastle away in the first half, Spurs ultimately lost their way, as the Magpies’ win saw them climb out of the bottom three and up to 15th place in the table.
Last season, despite showing promise at various points in the season, many felt Tottanham players tired conspicuously before the end of the 2014-15 campaign – Mauricio Pochettino is not always keen on rotating players, while his intense pressing style demands a lot from his side physically. And their Europa League exploits, of course, hardly help matters.
So after today’s disappointment, Spurs fans will be hoping they are not about to experience a sense of deja vu.
3. Liverpool struggle to break down stubborn West Brom
Liverpool dominated possession and territory against West Brom this afternoon, but still found it difficult against Tony Pulis’ well-organised side.
Individual errors and an obvious vulnerability from set pieces did not help the home team’s cause, as West Brom came within seconds of handing the Anfield club a second league loss on the trot.
A mixture of bad fortune and superb defending meant Liverpool had to wait until deep into injury time to find a breakthrough against a resilient Baggies outfit, with Jonas Olsson and Gareth McAuley putting in superb performances at the back for the visitors.
Yet West Brom are not the first, nor will they be the last team to come to Anfield and stick 11 men behind the ball for long periods.
Liverpool will therefore need to improve at both ends of the field if they are to maintain a serious top-four challenge for the remainder of the campaign.
4. Ozil gets disproportionate amount of criticism
Like all Premier League footballers, Mesut Özil is by no means flawless — there are times when he drifts out of games and struggles to show the talent he undoubtedly possesses
However, the degree of criticism the Arsenal midfielder tends to receive seems more than a little unfair.
His lazy demeanour invites vitriol in certain quarters, despite the German international often being at the top of Arsenal’s stats for distance covered.
David Moyes was the latest pundit to take aim at Ozil on Sky today, suggesting the “jury’s still out” on the World Cup winner.
Yet Moyes’ statement was made to look a little silly, as Ozil delivered his 13th assist of the season (the next highest on the list is Everton’s Gerard Deulofeu with seven) and help Arsenal record a comfortable 2-0 victory to go top in the process.
5. Chelsea one point above the relegation zone
It’s scarcely believable that, just over six months after winning the Premier League, Chelsea sit one point above the relegation zone with almost half the season played after this weekend’s round of action.
They have a chance to improve their current status tomorrow, of course, but face an unenviable task, as they travel to Leicester, who will return to the summit of the Premier League if they win.
Jose Mourinho has played down suggestions that his job is on the line in the coming days, while Roman Abramovich has shown uncharacteristic patience by merely retaining faith in the ‘Special One’ up until this point.
However, Chelsea have won just one and lost four of their last six Premier League matches — if that form continues over the Christmas period, then surely the Portuguese coach’s position will finally become untenable.
