2 February MW 22 QUICK OFF THE MARK On Tuesday night two of the fastest goals scored in the Premier League followed one another. Luton’s Elijah Adebayo set the ball rolling at Kenilworth Road within 18 seconds and Ben Brereton-Diaz wasn’t too far behind with the opener for Sheffield United at Selhurst Park that wasContinue reading “Premier League Nuggets 2023/24”
Category Archives: Chelsea
Premier League Nuggets 2023/24
26 January MW21 Part 2 SYMMETRY The five matches over the weekend yielded 18 goals with Saturday’s games involving five goals each, Sunday’s four each and Monday’s none. Arsenal’s 5-0 thrashing of Palace match not as evenly distributed as Brentford’s 3-2 victory over Forest. Substitute Gabriel Martinelli’s late brace came in added time with theContinue reading “Premier League Nuggets 2023/24”
Premier League Nuggets 2023/24
19 January MW21 EMERY’S FIRST BLANK Unai Emery’s proud/odd record of never having overseen a goalless draw in his Premier League career with either Arsenal or Villa, came to a stultifying halt at Goodison Park in his 97th match. It was the Spaniard’s 21st draw so you might say it was coming. Villa’s relatively poorContinue reading “Premier League Nuggets 2023/24”
2023/24 Premier League Nuggets
5 December MW20 GOALLESS IN STRATFORD As has been pointed out here many times, this season has seen a glut of goals. In the first nine games of MW20 there had already been 35 including the usual slugfest that is Liverpool Newcastle which ended 4-2 (not quite one of the 4-3 classics from 1996 andContinue reading “2023/24 Premier League Nuggets”
Premier League Nuggets 2023/24
24 November MW12 During the international break attention shifted towards off the pitch issues. MANAGERIAL MERRY-GO-ROUND STUCK As we near the end of November there is yet to be a managerial departure during the season (Julien Lopetegui left Wolves in the week prior to the beginning of the season). This is a rarity in theContinue reading “Premier League Nuggets 2023/24”
Premier League Nuggets 2023/24 – MW 5
22 September Week 5 TO THE BITTER END Both Tottenham and Aston Villa scored twice after the 96th minute of their matches, the latest in an increasingly long line of goals scored in 2nd half added time. There have been 18 goals scored this season after 90 minutes, 12% of overall total. Tottenham’s second goalContinue reading “Premier League Nuggets 2023/24 – MW 5”
Premier League Nuggets
As the thirtieth Premier League season is over, it is high time for some Nuggets, all 30 of them firstly club-by-club, and then some generic ones. 1. Starting with Arsenal who lost more games (13) than Brighton (11) & Palace (12) but won more (22) than Chelsea (21). 2. Next up it’s Aston Villa –Continue reading “Premier League Nuggets”
Palace’s FA Cup semi-final : a chance to celebrate
As a Palace supporter I find it difficult to contain the thrill of going to Wembley this weekend for the club’s fifth appearance in an FA Cup semi-final. While for the fans of our opponents Chelsea and the other semi-finalists, Liverpool and Manchester City, this is much more routine. It is all part and parcelContinue reading “Palace’s FA Cup semi-final : a chance to celebrate”
Is the Premier League Manager of the Month cursed?
NB This is a fuller version of the piece published in the Guardian on 7th April, with added information A myriad of myths that swirl throughout football, some of which hold credence, such as ‘The Law of the Ex’ that dictates more often than not that strikers will score against their former clubs. Another ofContinue reading “Is the Premier League Manager of the Month cursed?”
Own Goal of the season – the Richard Dunne trophy
Stats c/o premierleague.com Inspired by the prospect of the 1,000th Premier League own goal being imminent towards the end of last season I wrote several pieces on football’s brand of self-inflicted wounds. Starting with this one in February https://bit.ly/3dNMEo4, followed by Part two in March https://bit.ly/3cr5Rem and culminating with the finale in April https://bit.ly/3uWihkQ. HatsContinue reading “Own Goal of the season – the Richard Dunne trophy”
The Football Mine 