Yeah, and that one was actually on side. 
Bad injury today at the Hull - Chelsea game - awful clash of heads between Gary Cahill and Ryan Mason, with the latter coming off v badly [Cahill stayed on and actually scored the winner with his head]. Mason is in hospital with a fractured skull, but has been operated upon and is reported to be in a stable condition, so hopefully he can pull through and make a full recovery.
Claudio Raneri sacked at Leicester as they circle relegation zone.
I would like to mention that I was made fun of last season when I pointed out that Leicester seemed to be more lucky than good.
:smug:
Everyone who was paying attention realized that they were both lucky and playing much better than one could expect from a bunch of rejects from other premier league teams. And I say that as a long-time Leicester City FC supporter. And perceptive people all said that N’Golo Kanté was driving the whole engine, and should have been the PoY for the League.
Still, this season’s difficulties are due mostly to the fact that the players have gone massively the other way, most of them. Where before they were first to every ball, now they are indifferently second to them. Where before they took their chances when offered, now they spurn them with regularity. Where before they covered each other’s backs when mistakes were made, now they stand around and watch to see what’s going to happen. It’s as if they are determined to make the greatest possible contrast between last season and this.
Playing the way they’ve played, they would run the risk of relegation from the Championship, let alone the Premiership. 
As for Ranieri, well, let’s just say that he’s not been able to shake things up, and statistics seem to show that you have a much better chance of shaking up a team in a relegation battle if you ditch the manager. But he deserved a better response from the players this season.
Let’s also not discount that playing in Europe this season probably had a massive effect on the fitness of the players (and not coincidentally, not playing in Europe makes Chelsea this season look far more refreshed)
They’ve played poorly from well before they started the Champions League pool play. :dubious:
They have two main problems:
-
Vardy and Mahrez aren’t as good as they looked; teams (not managed by Pep Guardiola) know how to handle them now. Set the back line deeper, and Vardy can’t run behind and latch onto the ball. Play Mahrez 2 on 1 anytime he gets the ball, and he’s hopeless, since he will insist upon trying to imitate Messi and dribble through both defending players, losing the ball in the process.
-
The loss of N’Golo Kanté means that they have had to apportion his amazing defensive genius to the team as a whole, and haven’t quite ever figured out how to best do that. If Huth and Morgan have to do it, they are too slow to recover; last season they simple held back and, on the off chance Kanté didn’t stop the threat, they would simply boot the ball into row Z and reset the defense. Simpson and Fuchs hate tracking back to deal with outside threats, and are used to being able to back off them and let Kanté snuff them out; now they simply back off and let the opposition school them. Albrighton and Mahrez (or Musa, if they play him wide instead) are not used to having to run back and defend wide; the second Swansea goal was a classic example of this, as Albrighton watched the Swansea winger run past him without starting to run after him for a couple seconds. Finally, Ndidi and Mendy have been horrible at trying to fill Kanté’s shoes in the holding midfield role, and when Danny Drinkwater does it, it takes him out of his role last year feeding Okazaki, Vardy and Mahrez. I watched Ndidi stand in the penalty area against Swansea and literally watch the ball passed wide, then back over his head behind him to the wide-open white-shirted opponent, who promptly took the gift and lashed the ball into the net. The look on Ndidi’s face was like the stereotypical deer in the headlights.
Now, one might blame Ranieri for this lack of tactical nous. But frankly, I blame the players, who have had ample opportunity to step up their game and get it right. And, as they demonstrated Wednesday against Sevilla, they have the ability to do it right, when challenged. But they are simply not playing with that same spark, that same desire, that same hunger that they played with from the moment that '14-'15 looked like toast. If they don’t wake up, they will find out that they will be playing in the Championship, and all those lovely offers they turned down at the start of the season will be but a wistful memory.
And today, they finally showed up and played like they did last season.
LCFC 3 - 1 LFC Klopp didn’t look very pleased. 
Good on ya Foxes! Keep Liverpool away from points! That should be every team’s motto. 
Great analysis, DSYoungEsq. Although Leicester may have had some luck during games last season, their real luck was in having almost all their players hitting their career peak at the same time (I believe - correct me if I’m wrong). And that was down to their effort, which as has been said, has been distinctly lacking this season. So I think it’s unfair to characterise their title as “lucky”. It’s an old saw because it’s true - you might ‘get lucky’ in one or two games, you don’t get lucky over 38 games.
I hope they don’t get relegated, and I’m delighted they have taken points off Liverpool. If Liverpool finish 6th, presumably Klopp will be given another chance.
Hey everyone, what time is it?
It’s ten past Ospina! Time for me to remind you all once again that Tottenham Hotspur have won a Champions League quarterfinal more recently than Arsenal have. You’re welcome!
COYS
So, the end is in sight, and some shocks are likely. Arsenal increasingly look like their run in Europe will end, which will certainly be the end of Wenger, whether he wants it or not. Leicester City increasingly look like they were totally dogging it for 2/3 of the year, and probably will make a run for the middle of the table or better, just to prove something (though exactly what will be difficult to say). Manchester United look likely to return to the Europa League, though they may squeak out 4th. The dropping teams are increasingly becoming clear; Sunderland are showing no likelihood of avoiding the drop, and 'Boro and Hull City are probables.
Oh, and Chelsea are going to win it all. Probably with a double. Who’d have thunk?
Chelsea did thisvteo
Chelsea did this two seasons ago. Mourinho screwed it up last year with his abrassive personality. Now Chelsea are back to normal.
Leicester have not really changed their game though. Makes me think Ranieri had lost the dressing room.
They have more games this year which hurts performance. They are a year older and a little less lucky, and the league has played them a few times already without, as you say, them changing much. They are a little better than their standings, but not much. I wouldn’t blame Raneri too much.
I haven’t watched Leicester enough this season to say if it looked like they weren’t playing for Ranieri, but the turnaround in results (and performances) since he left has been unarguable. I would contrast it with my hometown club, Bristol City, whose manager (Lee Johnson) has been backed to the hilt by the chairman despite a really poor run of results which left them in the relegation zone. However, it didn’t seem like the players weren’t performing, it was mainly bad luck that got them there and I think they will escape. It would be nice to see a team doing this without sacking the manager, as in my view that might help in the short term but doesn’t get you anywhere long term. Manchester United and Arsenal will be well aware of this, albeit at the other end of the table.
Speaking of which, I think United will make fourth place. They too have been unlucky in several games and that seems to be turning around now. If they can convert their games in hand to wins they will be in the top 4 and they shouldn’t drop any more points than their rivals on the run-in. It’s far from a foregone conclusion but I think they will squeeze out both Arsenal and Liverpool. Failing that, they have a good chance of winning the Europa League and qualifying that way, which will presumably cost the fourth-placed Premier League finisher their spot. Anyone know for sure? UEFA seem to keep tinkering with the rules.
I’m surprised Paddy Power haven’t paid out on Chelsea becoming champions yet (they usually do something like as a calculated-risk publicity stunt - though having had their fingers burnt by the US election, perhaps they’re a bit more conservative now. I understand they paid out early on a Hillary win).
If you would have asked me in January I would have told you that Liverpool was the second best team in England in an walk and would absolutely end up in second with City on 3rd and 4th being a fight between Spurs, Woolwich and United. It doesn’t seem that way anymore. Spurs have been bitten hard by the injury bug, but are holding on firmly to 2nd place. United are coming on, I agree, have a good shot at 4th. Part of me still says Liverpool is the better team and will keep their lead. An larger part of me wants to see Everton capitalize on their position and leap into 5th, pushing United and Arsenal to 6th and 7th. Everton are good and deserve to get a bit of recognition.
A colleague told me earlier that a pundit on a recent MOTD said “Everton are the best team outside the top six”. Well, duh - that’s why they are in 7th! The league table (at this stage of the season) doesn’t lie. It’s a cliche because it’s true. If they want more recognition than that, they will have to earn it by scoring more points than one of the top 6. Now, I agree with you that they are a good side and I’d also be happy to see them finish 6th or higher, as long as it’s not at United’s expense. But really, they’re no higher or lower than they ‘should’ be. I mean, West Brom in 8th? Credit to what Pulis has achieved there but Everton haven’t exactly had a lot of competition for that spot this season, have they?