3 Talking Points From The Premier League (Match Day 26): Chelsea Slips And Liverpool Go Marching On

Another Premier League weekend has gone by and with so much action going about it often is hard to keep a lid on certain things which are part of the game, if anything this weekend can be called as the “Referee gaffes” weekend. Jose Mourinho continued his rant about his team being victims of a bigger conspiracy than the illuminati while Ronald Koeman will feel that Kevin Friend was best pals with Brendan Rodgers after not giving at least one of three major calls in Southampton’s favour. Chelsea drew with Burnley and Manchester City took this early Easter present by demolishing a woeful Newcastle side 5-0.

The Premier League might be hitting its final stretch and here are the talking points from the 26^th week of the Premier League:

1. The race for the title swings again

Call it a conspiracy or not but Chelsea should have defeated Burnley easily, no matter what people say about the horrendous tackle by Ashley Barnes on Nemanja Matic and the reaction of Matic post the tackle, Chelsea are a better team and have better players, so beating the Ginger Mourinho should have been a cinch for the Blues. Instead they laboured, possibly by the midweek European game against PSG where they did park the bus, incorrectly, off the field.

Manchester City absolutely demolished a horrible Newcastle side but the bigger question is will Manchester City be able to cope with not only a midweek European tie against Barcelona but they face a resurgent Liverpool team at Anfield on Sunday, the title race could swing once again in Chelsea’s favour after the next weekend.

2. And the Reds go marching on on on!

A stat provides not only great reading but showcases the ability of Brendan Rodgers managerial acumen, Liverpool picked up 22 points from their first 17 games in the Premier League, from their next 9 games they have picked up 23 points. Liverpool have kept 5 away clean sheets in a row for the first time since 1985 and they seem to be doing quite well in a new formation.

Liverpool won a tough away game against Southampton, albeit with some help from a Friend, Liverpool could consider themselves lucky not to concede a couple of penalties but Coutinho’s goal was simply breath-taking and worthy of winning any game. Liverpool are now only 2 points away from a top 4 finish, they close the gap thanks to a Manchester United loss and a draw for Spurs. Liverpool do face Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea in their run of Premier League games, they also have FA Cup and Europa League commitments but with a strong defence and a goalkeeper playing in the best form of his life, Liverpool could well make it easily into the top 4 and win a trophy, quite an achievement considering the first half of the season.

3. One Van to lose another Van

The sight of Robin Van Persie leaving Swansea on crutches might have been a rather devastating blow for a team who is trying to get back into the Champions League. Louis Van Gaal’s team were poor against Swansea and their luck finally ran out as a deflected Jonjo Shelvey shot was enough to give the Swans a 2-1 win over United and helped them to their first ever double over the team, an unwanted record for a manager who was brought in to do so much for the club.

Van Gaal still has the team in the top 4 but they lead that only by one point and they have to face Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal, Everton, Chelsea and Tottenham as they close out the season. If Louis Van Gaal does not achieve the top 4, after he said he could win the league with this team, would it be time yet again to scrap this manager and get someone new?