After an international break about as welcome as a selfie with a suspected hijacker, the Premier League returns at the weekend in all its bountiful glory with a round of fixtures more appetizing than a fillet steak on a bed of fillet steaks.
International weeks are all about smiling dutifully and nodding sagely when someone in the pub is eulogising a bit too frenziedly over the merits of Iceland’s back four—often despite being neither Icelandic nor liking football.
Essentially, it’s the sporting equivalent of being presented with photographs of a friend’s baby. Easy enough to coo in all the right places while surreptitiously glancing at your watch and wondering when the night will get going.
In four days, England went from UEFA European Championship winners elect to probably just making up the numbers in France. By midday on Wednesday, all Serge Gainsbourg records had been returned to their dusty sleeves until the summer. A nation stopped dreaming, as thoughts turned to domestic duties and the Premier League.Front-runners Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur both have just seven matches to play. Between now and May 15, they each have to get through another 630 minutes of football, or 10-and-a-half hours if you’d prefer. To put that into context, what’s left constitutes about the same amount of time as a flight from London to San Francisco. The Premier League season is just one long journey away, three films back-to-back, from its conclusion.
By the time Leicester host Southampton on Sunday, they may hold just a two-point advantage over Spurs, who play a day earlier at Liverpool in what looks to be the weekend’s standout fixture.
Leicester City vs. Southampton, Sunday at 1.30 p.m. BST
Mark Twain once said: "All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence, and then success is sure."
Jamie Vardy’s two fine goals in as many matches for England, against Germany and the Netherlands respectively, should take care of the latter.
In a recent interview with the Guardian, when quizzed on the pressures of the title race, Vardy countered: "People keep asking me if I’m watching our rivals’ games in the Premier League but I’m usually on my PlayStation.
"If I had been watching, it would have been on an illegal stream, so I don’t even know why they are asking me."
Guess that’s the former put to bed too.
There were few bigger winners over the international interlude than Leicester City. Vardy reported for England duty on the back of going five games without a goal. He returned to the Midlands with Roy Hodgson whispering sweet nothings into his ear. A place in England’s 23 for France that was written in pencil has been gone over in pen.
The last of his 21 goals for the season came in defeat at Arsenal back on Valentine’s Day, and he's registered just four in his last 15 league games. In truth, there’s not been too much wrong with his overall play in this relative lean period. Vardy is that rare breed of striker who genuinely would take collective glory over personal accolades. Most frontmen are so selfish they owe themselves a fiver.
Vardy’s post-match interview after England’s defeat to the Netherlands, despite his goal, was so miserably abrupt his mum banned him from his PlayStation for a whole week. He’s clearly not a fan of losing.
Still, if Vardy can get back on the goal trail after recent jittery performances have seen Leicester win their last three matches 1-0 (it’s come to this, picking at Claudio Ranieri’s side for not winning by enough goals), the title race could effectively be over by the time a tricky final run-in against Manchester United (a), Everton (h) and Chelsea (a) gets underway.
It wasn’t just Vardy of the Leicester contingent who proved his international chops over the past fortnight. Danny Drinkwater replicated the pugnacious promptings that earned him his call-up to ensure he left Wembley with a bottle of champagne courtesy of a man-of-the-match display against the Netherlands.
His partner in crime, N’Golo Kante, marked his debut for France with a goal in a 4-2 win over Russia. What this injection of confidence will do for Leicester, when legs are feeling more tired than they have ever felt before, should not be underestimated.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s backing, in a wide-ranging interview with Sky Sports, won’t have gone unheard either. Well, Vardy might not have heard, but the rest of Leicester will have sat up and taken notice of the Scot's words:
Leicester have got the edge, they’ve got that togetherness.
The consistency has been there all season. Leicester have got the bit between their teeth, they’ve been the best team without question throughout the season and they deserve to win it.
I don't see any nerves and that's down to the manager, he's brought a calming influence. It's fantastic, they are a breath of fresh air and it's great for the game.
Southampton make the trip to the league leaders just four points shy of Manchester City in fourth. What looked at one point to be turning into a difficult second season for Ronald Koeman at St Mary’s has in fact only seen the Dutchman’s stock rise.
Prior to the international hiatus, Southampton came from two goals down to beat Liverpool at St Mary’s.
The Saints are still something of a Jeykll and Hyde outfit; against Liverpool, they were both were in the same game. It will be Southampton’s robust win at Stoke City in their most recent away game that will cause Ranieri most consternation, though—certainly more than the rousing comeback it took to beat Jurgen Klopp’s men.
For all that, Southampton are a side with a largely indifferent away form. More importantly, they only know one way to play: openly. Only Norwich City have conceded more goals on the counter-attack all season than Southampton. If Vardy can replicate his England form, he might just have a field day in behind Saints’ high back line.
Liverpool vs. Tottenham Hotspur, Saturday at 5.30 p.m. BST
It is not just Leicester’s players who have returned to their club side in optimum spirits. England’s win over Germany in Berlin saw Dele Alli put in a performance of such precocious pure talent that even the most hyperbolic of write-ups seemed restrained.
Harry Kane’s goal won’t be one he’ll forget, either. Nor will Eric Dier tire of describing his last-gasp winner anytime soon.
Of all people, it was James Milner who perhaps best summed up the infectious fervour that is building around Alli when he pleaded with the press not to hype the 19-year-old out of all proportion before going to say, per the Guardian: "Good as he is at this moment, he can be 10 times better and he will."
That’s put out that fire, James.
Ferguson described Alli, in his interview with Sky Sports, as "probably the best young midfielder I have seen in many years, probably going back as far as Gascoigne."
If he turns up in Liverpool wearing a pair of giant plastic boobs, someone needs to stage an intervention.
Already he’s at a level where it’s not hoped he’ll influence big games; it’s expected of him. Few games will be bigger for Tottenham this season than Saturday’s teatime kick-off at Anfield. Spurs’ recent record at Anfield is dreadful.
In their last 16 trips to the red side of Merseyside, they have won just once, with Liverpool having scored at least three times in each of their last three home games against Mauricio Pochettino’s side. All of which Liverpool won.
The Argentinian will point to the fact his men have lost only one of their last six away league games, winning four, as cause of optimism. Add into the equation the unrivalled form of both Alli and Kane, telepathic at times in tandem, and it seems unlikely Tottenham will travel north with their tail between their legs. Liverpool's Keystone Cops defence is a further source of encouragement.
Pochettino insisted that any of the top seven could win still win the Premier League.
"For me, at the moment, we are competing with different teams and not only Leicester," he said, per Sky Sports. "Arsenal, Manchester City, [Manchester] United, West Ham [United] and Southampton all have the possibility because mathematically it is possible.”
Kane is set to play without his face mask for the first time since breaking his nose more in February. It’s unclear whether Pochettino will have to wear one to stop the growth of his nose.
Are Arsenal Still Realistic Title Challengers?
Arsenal supporters will point out they have an extra game to play than both Leicester and Spurs. The rest of the world will point out Arsene Wenger’s men have gone missing more times en route to their final destination than a Bermudian pilot with a trigonometry obsession.
A home game against a Watford side on three-match losing streak should be negotiated easily enough. Similar sentiments were aired when the two teams met in an FA Cup quarter-final at the Emirates Stadium in March.
Watford goalkeeper and Tottenham alumnus Heurelho Gomes hasn't been able to help himself, telling Brazilian TV (via the Guardian) that Arsenal have Bob Hope and no hope of winning a title anytime soon: "When you see Arsenal playing against big teams, they look like a small team. They don’t look like winning a title soon. We knew once we had the ball we’d be able to pass it around since Arsenal gives you too much space. They are not strong defensively."
Anything less than three points for an Arsenal, who have won just two of their last nine matches in all competitions, would see a spike in pitchfork sales in north London. In fairness, they were largely immaculate in beating Everton in their last league game.
Mesut Ozil warned there can be no more slip-ups in their final nine matches if they are to have any chance of catching Leicester.
"Looking at our season so far, we have to be honest and admit that we mucked it up ourselves," Ozil told German website Spox.com (via the Daily Mirror).
"We did not play to our potential in the games against the so-called smaller teams."
Can Manchester City Stop Their Slide on the South Coast?
The hunt for fourth place and the final UEFA Champions League spot suddenly looks to be a six-horse race, comprising snoozing incumbents Manchester City, along with West Ham United, Manchester United, Southampton, Stoke City and Liverpool.
The threat of failing to qualify for the Champions League is real for City. They have not troubled the scoresheet in three of the last four league matches and managed just six goals in their last 10 away games.
Were it not for five consecutive victories at the start of the season, this could have been a league campaign that verged into Chelsea territory for City. Trailing Leicester by 15 points in March was not on the to-do list City's board handed Manuel Pellegrini in August.
City will invariably have one eye on Wednesday's Champions League date with Paris Saint-Germain. Pep Guardiola will be urging from afar for them to concentrate on domestic affairs first and foremost.
Bournemouth welcome Manchester City to the King Power Stadium having taken nearly double the amount of points Pellegrini’s men have managed since February 1. In the seven matches since Guardiola's summer usurpation of Pellegrini was made official, City have taken just seven points. In the same period, Bournemouth have won 13 points to all but secure their Premier League safety in the most impressive of debut top-flight campaigns.
Remarkably, according to Opta, only Leicester (37) and Spurs (36) have earned more points than Bournemouth (28) since December 1.
Hammers Happy Ahead of Pardew Derby
West Ham United welcome Crystal Palace to the Boleyn Ground for the Alan Pardew derby in fine fettle, albeit in the knowledge they have often fared better this season against tougher opposition than those they are expected to roll over.
Not one of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, or Manchester United has managed to beat West Ham in the Premier League this term. Slaven Bilic’s side has taken 18 points of a possible 24 from those fixtures. The Hammers are also responsible, courtesy of their best performance of the campaign, for inflicting on Spurs one of just four defeats they have suffered in the league all season.
On the flip side, points dropped against Aston Villa, Norwich City, Sunderland, and Swansea City will be rued if Thursday nights prove to be busy ones in east London next term.
If Pardew once walked on water at Selhurst Park, he’s now in real danger of drowning. The Eagles have lost nine of their last 11 matches and won just once in 13. They were fifth on New Year’s Day and are now 16th, just seven points clear of the relegation places.
They might not win another game this season, but if nothing else, Pardrew looks to have sewn up football’s quote of the year. In paying tribute to comedian and Palace supporter Ronnie Corbett, who died on Thursday, he said, per the Associated Press (h/t the Guardian): "We’ve lost one of our smallest fans."
Ronnie Barker would have been proud of that one.
Only 3 Points Will Do for United at Old Trafford
Amid reports, via the Guardian, that Jose Mourinho has set his suitors a deadline of May to secure his services, Louis van Gaal will be acutely aware there is no more margin for error between now and the campaign’s conclusion.
A rabble-rousing victory in the Manchester derby saw Marcus Rashford score the game’s only goal to remind the club’s supporters and board that for all his follies, Van Gaal has stayed true to the club’s guiding principle (albeit perhaps as much through necessity as choice) of blooding youngsters.
The Dutchman has handed debuts to nine young players over the course of the season. Mourinho probably hasn’t managed that many over the course of his career.
Van Gaal is not the only manager under pressure. Roberto Martinez takes his Everton side to Old Trafford on Sunday with his position again under intense scrutiny. The Toffees signed off for Easter with a home performance against Arsenal that was lacklustre to the point of being abject.
Everton are closer to the bottom three than they are the top four in what has been another season of rank underachievement at Goodison Park.
Unbeaten in their last eight away matches, having scored at least three goals in each of their last three road trips, Everton are more than fair travellers. However, a trademark Martinez back four that is more porous than a paper sieve still means it is hard to see how they will improve on a record of just one win in their last 17 cracks at Old Trafford.
The performance of Romelu Lukaku will be interesting to observe. Recent murmurs from the Belgian’s camp in Derniere Heure (h/t the Manchester Evening News) suggested he fancies a summer switch to United, with even the prospect of working with Mourinho again not putting him off.
Can Potters Achieve Best Premier League Finish?
Stoke City will be confident of edging that little bit closer to the chasing pack on Saturday, courtesy of their home game with Swansea City.
As Mark Hughes’ men chase their best Premier League finish, four wins from their last six matches has moved them to within five points of fourth place. Leicester and West Ham’s exploits have seen Stoke’s fine campaign go under radar. Since November, though, only the top two have picked up more points than the Potters’ 33.
Jack Butland’s broken ankle sustained against Germany has exacerbated the pressure on an already overworked medical team. Ryan Shawcross, Shay Given, Jonathan Walters, Erik Pieters, Glen Johnson, Marc Wilson and Xherdan Shaqiri are all also ruled out for the visit of a Swansea side now pretty much safe, having won three of their last four matches to open a ten-point gap from the drop zone.
Garde's Gone, but Villa Are Still Miserable
Aston Villa start life post-Remi Garde with a home game against Chelsea that is likely to see the club’s supporters again make clear their disdain for owner Randy Lerner.
It’s a measure of the American’s popularity that Villa supporters hold the Frenchman in higher regard. Garde left Villa by mutual consent after 147 of the most miserable days known to man.
Villa won just two of 20 league games under his command, drawing six and losing 12. A win rate of 10 per cent is the lowest in the club’s history. Talk of a resurrection over Easter gave the big man upstairs a chuckle as he weighed up being 12 points adrift of safety with seven games remaining.
There’s more chance of caretaker manager Eric Black turning water into wine than keeping Villa in the Premier League.
No Room for Error in Relegation Dogfight
Villa may already be preparing for life in the Championship, but for Newcastle United, Sunderland and Norwich City, the battle to avoid joining them in the second tier could go right to the wire.
Newcastle travel to Carrow Road on Saturday to play fellow basement dwellers Norwich. It's the type of game that makes sense of why we, as a collective of football brethren, felt the need to introduce the phrase "six-pointer" into a vernacular that somehow fell short in succinctly describing a contest of such grave importance.
Manager Rafael Benitez could barely have been handed worse news in midweek than the confirmation that goalkeeper Rob Elliot injured his anterior cruciate ligament. The Republic of Ireland international suffered the injury during the friendly fixture against Slovakia on Tuesday and is out for several months.
With Tim Krul also injured, that leaves Karl Darlow as Newcastle's only alternative between the posts. Given he's still probably in counselling after his Premier League debut in the 1-0 defeat against West Bromwich Albion in December proved challenging, it's safe to say this is a headache Benitez could well have done without.
Norwich won their first game in 12 before the international break, while Newcastle have lost their last seven away matches and failed to score in five of them. This is a big one: fact.
Sunderland’s hosting of West Brom is similarly gargantuan in terms of defining the home side’s season. Sam Allardyce has cut a frustrated figure in watching the Black Cats draw their last three matches. Meanwhile, old pal Tony Pulis has proved he’d have kept the Titanic afloat after guiding the Baggies to three wins from their last six matches to take them to within three points of the top 10.
Of Sunderland’s eight remaining matches, five are at the Stadium of Light. Not one is bigger than Saturday’s.