Premier League: Gallagher stars as Chelsea earn turnaround win over Palace
A crucial brace from Conor Gallagher and a late Enzo Fernandez strike ensured Chelsea claimed a turnaround 3-1 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
From Mourinho's startling skipper to Klopp's unnecessary tinkering, we have it all covered!
The English Premier League never fails to disappoint as each week there are a few eye-catching headlines that just prove that England’s top-flight is the most entertaining football league in the world.
The Statesman lists the major talking points from Gameweek 32 below, which created quite a flutter:
Simply put, a player who manages to score 23 goals in a season (And there are six games remaining) despite being just 23, deserves to be playing for a team that are serious title-contenders or at least in the race for the European spots. Diego Costa (Chelsea), Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur), Sergio Aguero (Manchester City) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Manchester United) are all playing for clubs that will finish in the top five or have qualified for a continental competition next season.
Everton, under Ronald Koeman, have impressed in patches this season but largely, flattered to deceive.
And after Lukaku’s brace in Everton’s thrilling win over champions Leicester, the signs point toward the burly Belgian shifting base to a ‘top’ club in the summer.
Arsenal lack a quality striker, so will Chelsea if Costa decides to pack his bags for China and should Zlatan not sign a contract extension, United will have a vacancy as well.
There is no shortage of potential suitors for the Belgian and Everton best get braced for a bidding war.
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United managed to score three goals in a Premier League game and even won, yet the big news from their comprehensive win over Sunderland was the fact that Jose Mourinho chose to captain Marouane Fellaini. No, it wasn't April 1st! The Belgian has always been a divisive figure among the United faithful and while the criticism he suffers is uncalled for, the decision to hand him the armband was a bold one, which fortunately paid off for Mourinho. All of United’s old-hands were injured, which perhaps explains why Fellaini got the armband and now he has a 100% winning record as a captain, having won one game out of one.
While Liverpool managed to come from behind to win against Stoke, they did require two notable changes at half-time. Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino both came on at half time to replace youngsters Ben Woodburn and Trent Alexander-Arnold. Liverpool aren't competing in Europe or any other cup competition, which begs the question, why start the youngsters at a venue Liverpool haven't enjoyed much success in the past? While the Brazilians ensured a 2-1 victory, the changes would not have done wonders for the Woodburn and Alexander-Arnold’s confidence.
Barely a week after their remarkable triumph over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, the Eagles proved that result was no flash in the pan with a comprehensive win over Arsenal on Monday.
Much has been made of Arsenal’s listless performance against Palace, but not enough credit has been handed to the Eagles for their remarkable result. They had a simple game-plan which they stuck to throughout, defending with numbers and hit them on the counter. It worked beautifully with Wilfried Zaha and Yohan Cabaye, in particular, shining throughout.
While Sunderland were pushing United for the majority of the first half, Sebastian Larsson’s dismissal minutes before half-time did leave them with an unenviable task of playing against the visitors with a man short. And they didn't make things easier for themselves as the second half began, allowing Henrikh Mkhitaryan to add to Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s opener, effectively sealing the result. Having played 31 games, the bottom-ranked Black Cats have just 20 points and Hull City, who are 17th, are a considerable 10 points ahead of them. Even if you factor in the extra game Hull have played, Sunderland best start prepares for the Championship.
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