Five key stats from Week 17 in the Premier League - Featuring record-breaking striker

During week 17 of the 2013-14 Premier League season, in which Cardiff City’s owner Vincent Tan made it absolutely clear that he knows nothing about football, we were treated to 30 goals, sensational individual performances and a new league leader – until tonight at least.

Let’s get things rolling with an outline of the weekend’s results.

Results At A Glance

Liverpool welcomed Cardiff City to Anfield with open arms in Saturday’s early kick-off, however the Bluebirds departed for South Wales dejected following the final whistle. A certain Luis Suárez was once again the star of the show, scoring two stunning goals in the home side’s 3-1 win, meaning that the prolific Uruguayan has now scored 29 goals in 26 Premier League matches throughout 2013.

Over at The Hawthorns, and managed by caretaker manager Keith Downing, West Bromwich Albion settled for a 1-1 draw against Steve Bruce’s Hull City thanks to Matej Vydra’s late equaliser.

The joyous festive spirit was nowhere to be found at the Stadium of Light as Sunderland played out an uninspiring 0-0 draw with Norwich City. With time running out Wes Brown was shown a straight red card, bringing the Black Cats’ total of red cards to five for the season. The result means that Sunderland find themselves floundering at the foot of the table, four points from safety.

Stoke City and Aston Villa could only manage 65% and 63% pass completion respectively during Stoke’s 2-1 home victory. With no team eager to take control of the match, Villa resorted to sticking their foot in, picking up the most cards (5) from the weekend’s action via 17 fouls.

A tame performance in front of goal at Old Trafford saw West Ham United launch four shots at David de Gea with an accuracy of 25%. Although, having said that, the Hammers did manage to find the back of the net via Carlton Cole’s boot, but it was ultimately too little too late as United strolled to all three points.

Manchester City climbed to second place in the league with a 4-2 away victory at Craven Cottage, while Newcastle United grabbed a healthy 3-0 win themselves away to Crystal Palace. The Magpies have lost one match from their last eight fixtures, whereas Palace seem to be hitching a ride on a downwards slope once more.

Finally, Tim Sherwood steered Tottenham Hotspur to a thoroughly entertaining 3-2 victory at St. Mary’s. Southampton certainly played their part in the spectacle by scoring two well-worked goals, however it was a revitalised Emmanuel Adebayor who stole the show. The Togo international won two tackles, two clearances, six headers and one interception, but more importantly the ex-Arsenal player scored two crucial goals.

Tactical Titbits

Tim Sherwood gave us a suggestion of his preferred formation during Tottenham Hotspur’s 2-1 loss to West Ham United in the Capital One Cup quarter-final on Wednesday, however not many expected him to deploy the same formation against a possession oriented Southampton at St. Mary’s. How wrong we were.

Not only did Sherwood deploy the 4-4-2 formation, but he went with an imaginative midfield quartet of Gylfi Sigurðsson, Mousa Dembélé, Christian Eriksen and Erik Lamela, with Emmanuel Adebayor partnering Roberto Soldado in attack. Adebayor and Soldado aren’t known for their relentless pressing, tracking back and general harassment of opposition defenders, so Sherwood’s tactical strategy certainly raised some eyebrows.

It was an all-out attacking approach from Tottenham; a risky decision when facing the opposition’s 4-2-3-1 formation – outnumbered in central midfield, 3 v 2. Indeed, it only took 13 minutes for Adam Lallana to open the scoring. The 25-year-old midfield roamed into the available space in front of Spurs’ defence – defensive protection that’s not naturally available when utilising a 4-4-2 – span past Vlad Chiriche? and rifled the ball into the bottom corner.

Lallana was a constant menace throughout the attacking third.Tottenham looked menacing when advancing towards Southampton’s goal; an attacking potency that was absent at times under André Villas-Boas’ management. The 4-4-2 allows the strikers to find each other within close proximity, receiving the ball, turning and running at defenders with the knowledge that a passing option is frequently available should they need it. Indeed, Adebayor and Soldado connected superbly, with the latter supplying an inch perfect cross for his striker partner to score from close range shortly after 24 minutes.

A final word regarding Southampton’s struggles when facing the 4-4-2 formation.

José Mourinho switched to this particular formation at half-time during Chelsea’s 3-1 victory over the Saints on 1 December, pushing Demba Ba alongside Fernando Torres in a two-pronged attack. The tactical tweak nullified Mauricio Pochettino’s penchant for playing out from the back, which in turn restricted the ability to control the game. The same problem arose here and could be something worth observing in Southampton’s upcoming fixtures.

Success Story

Luis Suárez became the first player to score 10 Premier League goals in a calendar month during Liverpool’s 3-1 home victory against Cardiff City, surpassing the previous record held by Mark Viduka (8) for Leeds United in 2003. Which record will the devilish Uruguayan break next?

Hapless Horrors

Sunderland are destined to be bottom of the Premier League on Christmas Day following their drab and abject 0-0 draw against Norwich City at the Stadium of Light.

Throughout the previous 21 Premier League season, only West Bromwich Albion (2004-05) have managed to escape the clutches of the relegation zone after being bottom on 25 December.

Stat of the Weekend

Erik Pieters completed just 10 passes (40%) from an attempted 25 versus Aston Villa – the lowest pass completion percentage of any player to have played the full 90 minutes. Nevertheless, Stoke City claimed three points with a 2-1 victory.