Premier League Power Rankings: Matchday 16
The power-rankings are a bit jumbled this week as Manchester City (fourth in the Premier League) leapfrog Arsenal (first) thanks to that 6-3 scoreline. Of course, as a Gooner, it’s a struggle to be objective after a loss such as the one we suffered on Saturday. Having said that, Manchester City’s home form could be just strong enough to outweigh their away struggles. Much as I would like to believe that they’ll come down to Earth at home, that might be some pie-in-the-sky thinking there.
Elsewhere, Liverpool continue to defy my doubts, hanging five goals on Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane, shouldering their way rather rudely past Chelsea and Everton in the process. I’ve expanded the rankings this week to include 5th-place Everton. After all, it seems only fair for the table to reflect those clubs contending for European competitions next year.
Notable absent despite the expansion, of course, are Manchester United and Spurs. The former have to contend with the month-long absence (and apparent transfer-request) of Robin van Persie while the latter were humiliated, and spectacularly at that, by Liverpool. At home.
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Power (previous)
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(W-D-L)
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1. Man City (2)
(LWWDW)
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6-3 at Arsenal
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10-2-4
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4 (32)
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After pulverizing Arsenal, many are anointing them the favorites to win it all. However, questions remain about their away-form, which is worse than 11th-place Aston Villa.
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At Fulham 12/21
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2. Arsenal (1)
(WWWDL)
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3-6 MCFC
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11-2-3
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1 (35)
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It was a farcical performance from one end of the pitch to the other, but the more damaging result may be the injury to Koscielny. There is some soul-searching to be done, but I’d wager we’ll see a rebound rather than an unraveling.
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Chelsea
12/23
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3. Liverpool (NA)
(DLWWW)
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5-0 at Spurs
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10-3-3
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2 (33)
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Flat-track bullies or serious contenders? It’s hard to rate Liverpool effectively, to be honest. They’ll be without Sturridge and Gerrard for a month, but it’s getting harder to ignore their potential.
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Cardiff
12/21
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4. Chelsea (4)
(WWWLW)
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2-1 Palace
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10-3-3
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3 (33)
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Another unconvincing display prevents Chelsea from climbing. Yes, they took three points again, but it was hardly convincing. Are they grinding out boring wins or maxing out their potential?
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At Arsenal 12/23
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5. Everton (3)
(DWWDW)
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4-1 Fulham
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8-7-1
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5 (31)
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Martinez has this club playing some good football at the moment, and it’s a sign of rising expectations that a 4-1 win is viewed by the Toffees faithful as a bit of a disappointment. Still the only one-loss club in the Prem.
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At Swansea
12/22
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