Sport
Tackling the £1,000,000 FreePlay6
All Premier League fare for you this week bar one. The season is already beginning to shape up nicely with the front runners in the Premier League really sending out a message to everyone else.
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I’m tackling the £1,000,000 FreePlay6. Good luck!
Watford v Arsenal
Arsene Wenger’s tenure at Arsenal is once again a hot topic of debate in football circles. Understandably so this time. There can be no legitimate reason why the Frenchman hasn’t delved heavily into the transfer kitty that the owners have made clear is available – and has been for some while. The frugality that Wenger consistently displays was laudable at one time. Now, it’s plain stupidity.
If the Gunners want to compete with the big boys then, simply put, they need to spend. Without a win in their opening two games, they sit directly above Watford on the same points but only by virtue of having scored one more goal than their hosts.
The Hornets have undergone something of a transformation over the summer and if they’re able to get a win or two under their belts, it could see things begin to fall into place. Vicarage Road isn’t the most hospitable of grounds for opponents but Arsenal can silence the home support with a long-overdue goal haul here.
It won’t be as free-flowing as Wenger would like, but a 1-2 away victory will be manna from heaven.
Everton v Stoke
The way Stoke were ripped apart by Manchester City will have hurt Mark Hughes. Not because it was against his old side, but because it limited the effectiveness of the system that the Welshman strives to use in every game.
Pep Guardiola’s side simply passed the Potters off of the park and with Ronald Koeman also schooled in the Barca way, we could well see Everton do the same.
The Toffees have been boosted by the news, confirmed by the manager, that Romelu Lukaku will stay at Goodison Park this season. His partnership with Gerard Deulofeu was one of the success stories of the last campaign and the Dutchman will be an interested spectator as and when that sparks again. In the meantime, the hosts will have to earn their three points the hard way.
The midfield battle will see the game won or lost and just that little bit of extra quality in the final third should see Everton over the line.
An absorbing encounter awaits and a Lukaku brace seals this one 2-0.
Leicester v Swansea
Two games without a win probably wasn’t the start that Claudio Ranieri had in mind for his reigning Champions, albeit his caveat to the campaign was that there was more chance of ET returning to earth than there was of the Foxes retaining their title.
No matter. The club have to kick-start their season at the King Power to see the returning of the feel good factor that underscored their unlikely triumph in 2015/16. The expectation isn’t nearly as high, but the Italian won’t want his side to go from the pinnacle of English football to the equivalent of a one-hit wonder that immediately fades into obscurity.
Swansea for their part, have and an entirely under-the-radar start to their season, and as a result can come into this game without too much pressure on their shoulders. The likelihood of being able to impose their natural game is high and the longer the game goes without a goal or two for the hosts, the more the atmosphere will benefit the visitors.
I can see this being a tight, but exciting affair but one with no winner. Any Other Draw is my selection here.
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Newcastle v Brighton
Rafael Benitez hasn’t had quite the start he would’ve hoped for this season, two wins and two losses seeing Newcastle stuck in mid-table along with five other clubs on six points.
Brighton by contrast have started this campaign as they did the last and are unbeaten in four, just two points behind early Championship leaders Huddersfield. Despite the long journey from the south coast, Chris Hughton will fancy the Seagull’s chances against a side who have been under pressure from the first whistle of the season.
The Magpies are expected to go back up at the first attempt and as Champions. Nothing else will convince the locals that Benitez is the right man to lead them back into the big time and being genuine challengers in the Premier League. That remains some way off and the Spaniard needs to inject some positivity into a team that has all of the tools at their disposal to be a success.
Patience will be key in this game because Brighton are silky smooth in possession and although they’re the away side, are likely to have the lion’s share of the ball. A vociferous local support need to get behind the players and make the atmosphere intimidating for all of the right reasons. There’s nothing worse for a player than being scared to put a foot wrong in front of his home fans.
A tough assignment but one which will enhance Benitez’s credentials. A 1-0 will do just fine here.
West Brom v Middlesbrough
The Teesiders are something of an unknown quantity at the moment, as everyone gets to grips with exactly what it is that Aitor Karanka and his charges bring to the party.
As West Brom will quickly find out, a continental style of play but with a very British edge is an intoxicating mix. And one that over the course of the season is likely to prove successful. Staying in the division will be the minimum requirement but rest assured that Jose Mourinho’s former right-hand man will be aiming higher than that. Much higher.
The Baggies can be a real force at home and although Tony Pulis’ sides don’t win marks for artistic impression, the manager always seems to be able to extract the absolutely maximum from his teams.
Alvaro Negredo knows the league well and will provide an ominous threat for the visitors, as will the raiding of Stewart Downing and Albert Adomah.
The hosts will have their work cut out to keep the score down and I predict a 0-2 victory for a team that will surprise a few people this season.
Man City v West Ham
After a stunning start to their campaign away from home last season, a win for West Ham at the Etihad, and a comprehensive one at that, really made people sit up and take notice of Slaven Bilic’s side.
They approach this one in a wholly different frame of mind however. By the time the game comes around, the Hammers will know if they’re in the Europa League proper or not, and given that their squad hasn’t managed to get quite the depth to it required over the summer – Bilic unable to attract a number of targets – the added pressure of a European campaign might be a hindrance rather than a help.
In any event, they’re up against a Man City side who’ve really hit the ground running under Pep Guardiola. Their 4-1 win away at Stoke, coming on the back of a fine performance against Steaua Bucharest, has served notice that the Catalans’ interchangeable pass and move style will be just as much a hit in England as it has been in Germany or Spain.
It’s too early to be talking about title wins and the like but on current form, they’ll take some stopping. A landslide Any Other Home Win is my last pick this week.
