Newcastle finally stop the losing streak
Yes! After a disappointing and embarrassing 3-0 home defeat to Watford, we somehow managed to steal a point away against West Brom to stop our four-game losing streak. Rafa is still somehow sticking with Joselu up front, regular readers of this column will know what I think about that, but managed to haul him off with enough time for Mitrovic to come on and make a positive impact in our late fight-back. Hopefully, this point stops the rot and gives the team some confidence and momentum, although we’ve got Chelsea at the weekend, so that may have to wait until next week.
Spurs slip up again
Spurs were supposed to be the next big thing, the title was their destiny, it was only a matter of time. Maybe not. Another timid draw against lowly West Brom at Wembley led Mauricio Pochettino to label their game at Leicester a ‘must win’. They lost. Their chances of winning the title look to already be out of the window and Arsenal are ahead of them in the table now, a Spurs fans’ nightmare. With Dele Alli among others casting wishful glances away, if they don’t start winning things soon, the long-term project may be over sooner than Spurs wished.
It looks like the title is heading to Manchester
One way or the other, it seems the league trophy is going to be residing in Manchester come the end of the season. City seem unbeatable, and even if they do slip up, the most likely team to take advantage of that is Man United. It should be a battle royal for the rest of the season, and the Mourinho/Guardiola relationship could become fiery again if it gets close between the sides.
Relegation battle is going to be tight
With the demise of Premier League regulars Everton and West Ham this season, the battle for relegation is going to be extremely close come May. West Brom look to have Alan Pardew in as manager, which is a good appointment, but any of the sides in the bottom eight places could go down. Everton fans must be getting seriously worried, they need a new manager fast. Moyes’ appointment at West Ham could turn things around, although don’t count on it.