The drama continues! The suspense of the Premier League title is left until the final round

Modern Express

2024-05-13 21:33Posted on the official account of Jiangsu Modern Express Media Co., Ltd

On May 13, Beijing time, a key match in the 37th round of the English Premier League was played at Old Trafford, the home of Manchester United, against Arsenal. The reason why this game has attracted much attention is because of the "double red meeting" of the two giants, and secondly, it also affects the ownership of the Premier League title this season. With Leandro Trossard's only goal of the game, Arsenal won 1-0 and won all three points. At this point, Arsenal leads the Premier League by 1 point ahead of Manchester City, who have played one game less, and the suspense of the Premier League title is left to the last round.

Manchester City still hold the initiative in the Premier League title race

Due to the large number of injured players at Manchester United, Bruno Fernandes, Maguire, Lindelof, Mason Mount, Rashford, Varane and other main players are all absent due to injury, and Casemiro continues to play as a central defender. After just 20 minutes of the game, Arsenal scored the goal. United then tried to fight back, but Arsenal withstood the pressure and waited for the opportunity to counter-attack, and the two sides exchanged attacks and defences, but the score was maintained until the end.

With Arsenal winning the game, the Premier League title suspense will continue into the final round of the league. At present, Manchester City is in second place with 85 points, but there are still two games (the final round of the Premier League and the 34th round of make-ups), but they have the initiative to win the title. Arsenal are top of the table with 86 points, but have only one game left and will have to count on arch-rivals Tottenham to hold off Manchester City if they want to win the title.

City's remaining two opponents are West Ham United and Tottenham, who will not have a hard time taking all three points from West Ham in the final round, and the last six meetings between the two teams in the Premier League have seen Manchester City hold an overwhelming advantage with five wins and one draw, and Manchester City have maintained a seven-game winning streak at home. Therefore, the key game to decide the Premier League title will be a make-up match in the 34th round of the Premier League, with Manchester City travelling to face Tottenham. At present, Tottenham is ranked 5th in the Premier League with 63 points from 36 games, and Villa is ranked 4th in the Premier League with 67 points from 36 games. Arsenal's opponent in the final round is 15th-placed Everton.

Overall, Manchester City have the initiative in the race for the Premier League title and will win the Premier League title this season if they win their final two games. A win over Tottenham in the replay could give Arsenal a chance to break Manchester City's dream of a fourth consecutive Premier League title and regain the Premier League title after 20 years in the 2003-2004 season.

Ten Hag's class is 'on the agenda' again

In recent years, Manchester United has been in a period of rebuilding, but falling out of the European zone still caught many people by surprise. If Manchester United used to be a regular in the Champions League and even the Champions League, now Manchester United can't even play in the Europa League. After this campaign, the issue of Manchester United manager Ten Hag's dismissal was "put on the agenda" again.

In his post-match interview, United boss Erik ten Hag attributed the current state of his squad mainly to injuries: "We've been talking about injuries all season and we need to have regular players in defence. You need players who have confidence in the defensive position, but the players who come out are not used to the defensive position and then the players make mistakes. We have seven potential starters unavailable, but we are still competitive against one of the best teams in the league. Ten Hag said fans are more understanding: "We have too many injuries in key positions. The fans didn't see the result they were expecting, but they understood the situation and they supported the team as a result. ”

Indeed, injuries have been one of the biggest problems plaguing United this season. However, according to British media reports, many United players have blamed Ten Hag for too many injuries this season. It has been argued that it would be a mistake for him to maintain the same training load throughout the season, even in the final stages, where the accumulated fatigue is much greater. Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney, who watched the game live, was asked if the United players fully supported Ten Hag, and Rooney said: "There are some very good players in the squad, but they are below the standard they should be. If we look at the injuries they've had, some of them are available, 100 per cent. ”

Former England international Chris Sutton has been blunt in an interview as Ten Hag's second United season has spiraled out of hand and his future is becoming increasingly uncertain at Old Trafford. Manchester United legend Paul Scholes and others have also spoken out, calling on Ten Hag's assistant Steve McClaren to take over the rest of the season.

Modern Express/Hyundai+ reporter Wang Wei

Image source: Xinhua News Agency

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