2019-2020 EPL Discussion Thread

[Jezza]

Weekend Matches:

Saturday December 7 2019:
Everton v Chelsea - 12:30
AFC Bournemouth v Liverpool - 15:00
Tottenham Hotspur v Burnley - 15:00
Watford v Crystal Palace - 15:00
Manchester City v Manchester United - 17:30

Sunday December 8 2019:
Aston Villa v Leicester City - 14:00
Newcastle United v Southampton - 14:00
Norwich City v Sheffield United - 14:00
Brighton & Hove Albion v Wolverhampton Wanderers - 16:30

Monday December 9 2019:
West Ham United v Arsenal - 20:00

All local times.

[K]

[K]

J. Wilson on football tribalism, but he could be speaking about any sport:

"There is a dispiriting term begun to be popularised in political blogging: “footballification”. It is used to describe the tribal nature of modern Britain politics, the way that activists and, increasingly, journalists rally behind their side whatever the situation. Critical thought is rare, there’s simply a reflex that says...

Nobody acknowledges that their side might, on this occasion, have got it wrong. Nuance disappears and politics increasingly become pointless braying behind a flag. The idea that politicians or pundits might actually step back and consider an issue, might seek a workable compromise, has come to feel absurdly idealistic and the result is many of our leaders and the commentariat either being nakedly hypocritical or engaging in ludicrous rhetorical gymnastics to justify holding two apparently contradictory positions simultaneously.

But what’s galling is that this new tribalism is seen as being characteristic of football. And these days, of course, it is. Whether it’s Manchester City fans defending Abu Dhabi’s legal system, Liverpool fans blindly supporting Luis Suárez in the Patrice Évra affair or Sunderland fans insisting Ricky Álvarez would be a good signing, the inclination to rally behind the shirt is strong. Any critic must be an enemy (“Why can’t you be positive? Why are you talking him down?” Because I’ve seen him play) and so must be crushed.

Perhaps that tendency has always been there and has just been made more prominent by the way social media makes it so straightforward to berate opponents. But the tribalism feels more entrenched now."

https://www.theblizzard.co.uk/article/editors-note-34

[K]

Son Heung-min's sensational solo goal:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhJpUpZvA3A
[starts 1:32; ends 2:11]


'... Son took the headlines with a superb effort that started just outside his own area and saw the South Korean slalom through half the opposition before slotting home from inside the box.
...

"Sonny stole the show today," said Kane, who is not often overshadowed in front of goal. "An unbelievable goal, a great counter-attack. All he wants to do is work hard and play for the team. He has great quality and works hard for the team."'

(Reuters)

[K]

"Liverpool took a giant step towards their first title since 1990 on Saturday when their 3-0 win at Bournemouth combined with Manchester United's 2-1 victory at Manchester City to leave the champions 14 points adrift of the Premier League leaders.

With second-placed Leicester, who play on Sunday, 11 points behind Liverpool, Juergen Klopp's side are quoted as odds-on to finally secure the silverware..."

(Reuters)


FiveThirtyEight's predictions (Dec 7, 2:25pm.) -- win EPL:

Liverpool 85%
Man. City 12%
Leicester 2%

The rest <1%.

[K]

Bookies' odds:

Liverpool ~82%
Man. City ~13%
Leicester ~5%

[Jezza]

Latest Results:

Saturday December 7 2019:
Everton 3-1 Chelsea
AFC Bournemouth 0-3 Liverpool
Tottenham Hotspur 5-0 Burnley
Watford 0-0 Crystal Palace
Manchester City 1-2 Manchester United

Sunday December 8 2019:
Aston Villa 1-4 Leicester City
Newcastle United 2-1 Southampton
Norwich City 1-2 Sheffield United
Brighton & Hove Albion 2-2 Wolverhampton Wanderers

Monday December 9 2019:
West Ham United 1-3 Arsenal

The Ladder:
1. Liverpool 46 - Played 16
2. Leicester 38 - Played 16
3. Man City 32 - Played 16
4. Chelsea 29 - Played 16
----------------------
5. Man Utd 24 - Played 16
6. Wolves 24 - Played 16
7. Tottenham 23 - Played 16
8. Sheffield Utd 22 - Played 16
9. Arsenal 22 - Played 16
10. Crystal Palace 22 - Played 16
11. Newcastle 22 - Played 16
12. Brighton 19 - Played 16
13. Burnley 18 - Played 16
14. Everton 17 - Played 16
15. Bournemouth 16 - Played 16
16. West Ham 16 - Played 16
17. Aston Villa 15 - Played 16
-----------------------
18. Southampton 15 - Played 16
19. Norwich 11 - Played 16
20. Watford 9 - Played 16

[Jezza]

Weekend Matches:

Saturday December 14 2019:
Liverpool v Watford - 12:30
Burnley v Newcastle United - 15:00
Chelsea v AFC Bournemouth - 15:00
Leicester City v Norwich City - 15:00
Sheffield United v Aston Villa - 15:00
Southampton v West Ham United - 17:30

Sunday December 15 2019:
Manchester United v Everton - 14:00
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Tottenham Hotspur - 14:00
Arsenal v Manchester City - 16:30

Monday December 16 2019:
Crystal Palace v Brighton & Hove Albion - 20:00

All local times.

[K]

"Premier League’s fastest players of the season so far..."

6TH: ALLAN SAINT-MAXIMIN - NEWCASTLE UNITED, 36.7KMH

=4TH: BJORN ENGELS - ASTON VILLA, 36.9KMH

=4TH KYLE WALKER - MANCHESTER CITY, 36.9KMH

3RD - PHIL FODEN - MANCHESTER CITY, 37.2KMH

2ND - SHANE LONG - SOUTHAMPTON, 37.3KMH

1ST - CAGLAR SOYUNCU - LEICESTER, 37.5KMH


[Obviously, the top speed they attain depends on the game situations. If you never get the chance for a long straight run, you're unlikely to make the list. But I'm curious to compare this with (for example) AFL. I suspect the speeds here are higher than in AFL. Certainly, I suspect EPL accelerations (e.g. time for first 10m and first 20m starting from rest) are greater than AFL accelerations.]

[K]

For comparison...

highest speeds recorded in 2019

1. Jason Johannisen: 36.40km/h v Carlton, round 13
2. Hayden Crozier: 34.56km/h v Brisbane, round eight
3. Jason Johannisen: 34.02km/h v Fremantle, round six

https://www.afl.com.au/news/133451/running-amok-your-clubs-speed-machines-and-endurance-beasts


[Again, making the list depends on opportunities... but I just want to compare AFL and EPL here, not individual footballers. The EPL top speeds are clearly higher.]

[K]

For more comparison...

Fastest Ball Carriers NFL 2019

(Rank Player Team Position Speed (mph))

1 Matt Breida SF RB 22.3
2 Cordarrelle Patterson CHI WR 22.23
3 Brandon Wilson CIN S 22.03
4 Nick Chubb CLE RB 21.95
5 Christian McCaffrey CAR RB 21.95
6 Mecole Hardman KC WR 21.87


https://nextgenstats.nfl.com/stats/top-plays/fastest-ball-carriers

[It's also shows the play type (sometimes with video too). The speeds on this list have the advantage of long plays (e.g. Wilson: 92 yd kickoff ret TD), but the disadvantage of ball in hand (the list is only for ball carriers) and of course the weight of protective gear.

Conversions: 22.3mph = 35.9km/h, 21.87mph = 35.20km/h.]

[Jezza]

Latest Results:

Saturday December 14 2019:
Liverpool 2-0 Watford
Burnley 1-0 Newcastle United
Chelsea 0-1 AFC Bournemouth
Leicester City 1-1 Norwich City
Sheffield United 2-0 Aston Villa
Southampton 0-1 West Ham United

Sunday December 15 2019:
Manchester United 1-1 Everton
Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur
Arsenal 0-3 Manchester City

Monday December 16 2019:
Crystal Palace 1-1 Brighton & Hove Albion

The Ladder:
1. Liverpool 49 - Played 17
2. Leicester 39 - Played 17
3. Man City 35 - Played 17
4. Chelsea 29 - Played 17
----------------------
5. Tottenham 26 - Played 17
6. Man Utd 25 - Played 17
7. Sheffield Utd 25 - Played 17
8. Wolves 24 - Played 17
9. Crystal Palace 23 - Played 17
10. Arsenal 22 - Played 17
11. Newcastle 22 - Played 17
12. Burnley 21 - Played 17
13. Brighton 20 - Played 17
14. Bournemouth 19 - Played 17
15. West Ham 19 - Played 17
16. Everton 18 - Played 17
17. Aston Villa 15 - Played 17
-----------------------
18. Southampton 15 - Played 17
19. Norwich 12 - Played 17
20. Watford 9 - Played 17

[Jezza]

Weekend Matches:

Saturday December 21 2019:
Everton v Arsenal - 12:30
Aston Villa v Southampton - 15:00
AFC Bournemouth v Burnley - 15:00
Brighton & Hove Albion v Sheffield United - 15:00
Newcastle United v Crystal Palace - 15:00
Norwich City v Wolverhampton Wanderers - 15:00
Manchester City v Leicester City - 17:30

Sunday December 22 2019:
Watford v Manchester United - 14:00
Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea - 16:30

All local times.

[K]

"Liverpool's Premier League fixture at West Ham United in December has been postponed due to the club's invitation to participate in the FIFA Club World Cup.

The Reds were set to meet the Hammers at the London Stadium on December 21; however, the contest will be rescheduled, the Premier League have confirmed, because of the club’s involvement in the FIFA competition."

[K]

FiveThirtyEight's predictions (Dec 16, 4:37pm.) -- win EPL:

Liverpool 84%
Man. City 15%
Leicester 1%

The rest <1%.