Matchweek 22 in the Premier League sees 10 games played across the weekend with the biggest clash seeing Manchester City take on Tottenham Hotspur at the Etihad. It was Mauricio Pochettino who ended Pep Guardiola’s winning run at the start of the season and there isn’t a better time for the high-flying Spurs to take on City whose title chances took a savage beating last weekend at Goodison Park as Everton handed out a 4-0 thrashing – Guardiola’s worst defeat so far.
Table toppers Chelsea take on relegation-threatened Hull City while Liverpool also play another club in the relegation zone in Swansea City. Arsenal take on Burnley while Manchester United travel to Stoke City.
Here are how the teams stand in the league going into this weekend. Chelsea will stay top of the table regardless of the result against Hull.
| # | Team | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chelsea | 30 | 52 |
| 2 | Tottenham Hotspur | 29 | 45 |
| 3 | Liverpool | 25 | 45 |
| 4 | Arsenal | 26 | 44 |
| 5 | Manchester City | 15 | 42 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 12 | 40 |
| ------- | ------------------------------ | ------ | ------ |
| 18 | Hull City | -25 | 16 |
| 19 | Sunderland | -20 | 15 |
| 20 | Swansea City | -26 | 15 |
Liverpool vs Swansea
– Swansea City have only won four games this season and a trip to Liverpool may not have come at the best time. The Welsh club have never won at Anfield in their last five visits in the Premier League.
– To make matters worse for Swans’ new boss Paul Clement, Liverpool have not been beaten in their last 17 league games at Anfield.
– Liverpool have scored the most goals in the league so far (49 goals).
Stoke City vs Manchester United
– After a slow start to the season, Jose Mourinho has got Manchester United back on track with a 12-match unbeaten run (7 wins & 5 draws). That is their best run in the league ever since Sir Alex Ferguson’s final season at Old Trafford (18 games).
– Peter Crouch is one goal away from joining the 100-goal club in the Premier League. 25 players have scored at least 100 goals in the EPL and Crouch is all set to become the 26th.
Among the active players; only Wayne Rooney, Jermain Defoe and Sergio Aguero make the list. However, the 6’7” striker holds the record for the most headed goals in the league (48 goals).
– No player has been caught offside more times than Zlatan Ibrahimovic (25 times).
Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur
– Spurs are on a six-match winning streak ever since their loss to Manchester United.
– Man City have won their last three home games which included a 2-1 win over Arsenal. However, Spurs have beaten City in their last three fixtures (all competitions).
– Gabriel Jesus looks all set to make his debut for Manchester City after he was finally registered and received international clearance. He was involved in a goal every 136 minutes for Palmeiras before moving to City.
– Kevin De Bruyne leads the league with nine assists this season. Christian Eriksen is on eight assists.
Arsenal vs Burnley
– Alexis Sanchez leads the Golden Boot race with 14 goals (tied withDiego Costa and Zlatan Ibrahimovic). However, with seven assists to boot, no other player has been involved in more goals (21 goals) than the Chilean striker this season.
– Having been benched for the early parts of the season, Olivier Giroud has scored in each of his last nine starts (11 goals).
– Burnley have not won an away fixture in the Premier League this season, losing eight of their last nine away games. The only point they earned on their travels was a 0-0 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford.
– Burnley goalkeeper Tom Heaton has made the most saves in the league so far with 87 saves.
Chelsea vs Hull City
– Chelsea have not lost to Hull City in nine games in the Premier League. Their record reads 7 wins and 2 draws with 6 clean sheets.
– After beating Swansea in their first away game of the season, Hull have not won an away fixture since (drawing one and losing the last eight away games).
– Hull’s Curtis Davies leads the league in interceptions with 81! The next best is Arsenal’s Nacho Monreal with 63.
