Monday 2nd March 2026
Ugly or beautiful?
That was the question posed by many media sites following PL leaders Arsenal’s 2-1 win at home to London rivals Chelsea yesterday. All 3 goals were scored from corners, something for which the Gunners have become synonymous this season as they recorded their 16th goal from corners in the PL. It is certainly a strength, something worked on extensively on the training ground and they have been very successful with it. Does it make for attractive football? No. Does it win football matches? Yes. Everyone will have their own view on it but I think the biggest issue is the stretching of the limits on legitimacy with the subtle pushes and blocks that do not bring a whistle from the referee but clearly advantage the team taking the corner. Arsenal’s north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur had a goal disallowed for a push against the Gunners last week that would have pulled them level at 2-2 with the match back in the balance. This week they conceded to Fulham despite a push by Raul Jimenez being crucial in allowing Harry Wilson to score. The push did not breach the threshold for a foul was the official reason. Fine margins indeed and seemingly very subjective. At the end of the day Arsenal will not care how people view them if they go on to lift the PL trophy for the first time since 2004. They would probably simply shrug it off as sour grapes by the other clubs. They would probably be right. Every club would be happy to employ the same tactic if they could perform it to the level that Arsenal do currently. I do find it frustrating but ultimately it is down to the opposition to work out how to stop it being so successful.
The win allowed Arsenal to re-establish their 5 point lead over Manchester City at the top of the PL table after City won 1-0 away to Leeds United the previous day. We are now entering the final 10 weeks of the season. City have a game in hand and the two still have to meet at the Etihad Stadium over the weekend of April 18th/19th. Looking at the respective run ins, I still fancy Arsenal to break their drought but both are still involved in 4 competitions so that may still have an impact going forward.
Behind the top two, Manchester United have moved into 3rd place following their come-from-behind 2-1 win at home to Crystal Palace, aided by a penalty and red card shown to Palace defender Maxence Lacroix. The red card was shown for denial of a goal scoring opportunity. Another subjective call which I did not agree with personally. Yes, a penalty but not a red card. Matheus Cunha’s swan dive was worthy of a yellow card as well for me just for the level of embarrassment. Aston Villa are now down to 4th place after a shock 2-0 reverse away to bottom club Wolverhampton Wanderers. Have Villa run out of steam? Difficult to tell but they will be happy that 5th place should once again provide CL football next season having been overtaken by United and with Liverpool now breathing down their necks after their 5-2 win at home to relegation threatened West Ham United. Villa have a huge match on Wednesday at home to 6th placed Chelsea. Win that and they can start to breathe a little more easily again for a top 5 finish. Defeat would make it very much game on for the Blues and the chasing pack.
Brentford lead that chasing pack after an extraordinary 4-3 win away to Burnley. The Bees flew into a 3 goal lead early on before seemingly switching off, allowing their hosts to pull level at 3-3 and then have a ridiculous offside decision go against them that would have seen them take the lead at 4-3. Brentford then re-took the lead themselves but even then there was time for Burnley to find the net once again before another tight call also went against them to deny them even a point. I am not sure a win would be enough to save them but the defeat puts another nail in their PL coffin. Behind the Bees are Everton, Fulham, AFC Bournemouth, Brighton & Hove Albion, Sunderland, Newcastle United and Crystal Palace, all within reach of a potential Europa League or Conference League qualifying spot if they can put together a good finish to the season. The fact they sit mid-table at this stage suggests that all are inconsistent which may mean we can expect a mixed finish for them all but an opportunity is certainly there for any club that can put together a strong run-in.
The relegation picture did not change over the weekend with bottom club Wolves the only side to pick up any points. Their win did mean that they have now surpassed Derby County’s lowest ever points total in a top flight season but relegation remains an almost certainty. Likewise, Burnley are looking like they will continue their yo-yo existence by making another immediate return to the Championship. Who will go with those two remains undecided. West Ham United remain in the final relegation spot on 25 points, 2 behind Nottingham Forest and 4 behind Tottenham Hotspur with Leeds United a further 2 points better off. I think Leeds will be safe given their home form and Tottenham will have enough to survive for me. That leaves the drop between Forest and West Ham. Neither have especially inviting run-ins but Forest look to have the harder of the two on paper. Thankfully for them, football is played on grass! Nervy times for all those involved.
Premier League Prediction Competition 2024-25 – Session 6, Week 5 (of 5)
Martin took the final POTW prize of the session with 40 points, one ahead of Peter. It was his second of the session.
Overall, I was leading going into the final week of the session but a truly pathetic return of just 8 points saw me finish 5th in the end. Martin came through to take the Session 6 title with John F claiming the runners up spot ahead of Nick and Stefan. A close run session that shows it is not over until it is over.
Session 7 starts tomorrow night where we have a full set of midweek PL fixtures. Don’t forget those predictions!
Prizes are very modest currently due to modest entry. If anyone has friends, family, work colleagues etc… who may be interested in taking part, please pass on an invitation to them. More competitors means bigger prizes.
PLEASE INVITE ANYONE YOU KNOW WHO MAY BE INTERESTED IN TAKING PART.
CONTACT ME AT… contact.sytykf@gmail.com
Season: 2025-26 - Session: 7
| Pos | Person | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Helen Bold | 23 |
| 2nd | Steve Leach | 21 |
| 3rd | John Faulkner | 18 |
| 4th | John Spencer | 16 |
| 5th | Peter Gillespy | 15 |
| 6th | Stefan Perry | 13 |
| 7th= | Guy Hitch | 12 |
| 7th= | Nick King | 12 |
| 9th | Martin Wilson | 11 |
| 10th | Vince Hemsley | 9 |
| 11th | Tony Kenley | 3 |
Season: 2025-26 - Match Week 29 - Results
Tuesday 3rd March
| Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|
| AFC Bournemouth | 0 - 0 | Brentford |
| Everton | 2 - 0 | Burnley |
| Leeds United | 0 - 1 | Sunderland |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2 - 1 | Liverpool |
| Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|
| Aston Villa | 1 - 4 | Chelsea |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 - 1 | Arsenal |
| Fulham | 0 - 1 | West Ham United |
| Manchester City | 2 - 2 | Nottingham Forest |
| Newcastle United | 2 - 1 | Manchester United |
| Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|
| Tottenham Hotspur | 1 - 3 | Crystal Palace |
Season: 2025-26 - Match Week 30 - Next Fixtures
Saturday 14th March
| Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|
| Burnley | 15:00 | AFC Bournemouth |
| Sunderland | 15:00 | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| Arsenal | 17:30 | Everton |
| Chelsea | 17:30 | Newcastle United |
| West Ham United | 20:00 | Manchester City |
| Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|
| Crystal Palace | 14:00 | Leeds United |
| Manchester United | 14:00 | Aston Villa |
| Nottingham Forest | 14:00 | Fulham |
| Liverpool | 16:30 | Tottenham Hotspur |
| Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|
| Brentford | 20:00 | Wolverhampton Wanderers |
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