Premier League Pecking Order - Matchweek 8 (Premier League Season 2020-21)

Premier League Pecking Order- Matchweek 8 (Premier League Season 2020/21- In a Nutshell)

The pecking order is based on the performance of the Premier League teams during Matchweek; in this case, Matchweek 8. It’s not only centred around results. There were 20 teams that played in Matchweek 8. The Premier League Pecking Order starts with the 20^th team (worst performed team) on the Pecking Order and finishes with the 1^st team (best performed team) on the Pecking Order.

20- Burnley

Burnley were completely outplayed. The score may have been nil-nil, but Brighton and Hove Albion should’ve won. The man of the match was probably Burnley goalkeeper, Nick Pope, which says it all. They failed to create chances, finishing with just one shot on target from four attempts. Contrastingly, Brighton and Hove Albion had an impressive 19 shots, with just three on target.

19- Newcastle United

Newcastle United weren’t at the races. They had a total of 39.3% possession and two shots on target from four shots. The score line could have been worse than 2-nil in Southampton’s favour, because they had eight shots on target. They can thank Karl Darlow for preventing the scoreline from being embarrassing.

18- Sheffield United

Sheffield United opened the scoring in the 9^th minute. They should have continued to attack, but they sat back and allowed Chelsea to control the balance of play as well as the tempo of the game. Despite the fact that they had three shots on target from six attempts, Sheffield United played with an extremely defensive mindset. They should have been searching for a second goal, when the score was the 1-nil in their favour and did the opposite and inevitable paid the price being destroyed 4-1 from an in form Chelsea team.

17- Arsenal

Arsenal would be extremely disappointed with their display against Aston Villa. The fact that Arsenal had 58.8% possession, but just two shots on target from 13 attempts sums up their performance. They did play against a team that are in outstanding form, in Aston Villa, but there’s no excuse for the manner in which Arsenal played. They have plenty of work to do on improving their efficiency in the final third.

16- Wolves

Wolves failed to take anything from a game, despite the efforts of goalkeeper Rui Patricio who saved a penalty from Jamie Vardy of Leicester City, in the 39^th minute. Despite that Wolves deserved to lose a game in which there was just five shots on target from both teams combined! Two of the five were from Jamie Vardy’s penalty kicks! Wolves have a lot to improve on if they are to be competitive this Premier League Season.

15- Leicester City

Leicester City had just three shots on target from ten attempts, one which was from the penalty spot. Remarkably, Jamie Vardy missed a penalty in the 39^th minute, after scoring one in the 15^th minute. The difference between Leicester City and Wolves was a solitary goal. Possession was nearly evenly split between the two teams.

14- Everton

Everton opened the scoring in the 19^th minute through a clinical finish from Bernard. Instead of it boosting their morale they went into their shell. They conceded two goals in five minutes to Manchester United, in the 27^th and 32^nd minutes, courtesy of a brace from Bruno Fernandes. Remarkably, the goal scored by Bernard was Everton’s only shot on target for the game in its entirety. The fact that they had more possession than Manchester United was meaningless.

13- Fulham

Fulham played an average game. Despite that, they were always in the game. The fact that they had opportunities to score and left the game empty handed would be disappointing for them. As far as their overall performance was concerned there is some light at the end of the tunnel as opposed to earlier in the Premier League Season. They had 47% possession and three shots on target from 13 attempts. It’s not all doom and gloom for Fulham.

12- West Bromwich Albion

West Bromwich were always in the game un until conceding the only goal of the game in the 88^th minute against Tottenham. It was a game that West Bromwich Albion ca take plenty of positives from. They may have only had 41.2% possession, but they controlled parts of the game and played a decent structure and system. They had two shots on target from 12 attempts, so they need to work on their finishing.

11- West Ham

West Ham played an attacking brand of football for the majority of the game. The main reason they had to wait until the 91^st minute to score was the fact that Fulham’s goalkeeper, Alphonso Areola was in great form. It wasn’t a totally one sided game with regards to the balance of play. Regardless of being fortunate that Fulham missed a penalty in the 98^th minute and should have claimed a point, West Ham would be satisfied with their performance, but they have room for improvement, as well, based on their performance in Matchweek 8.

10- Tottenham

Tottenham may have had five shots from 19 attempts, but they were outplayed for parts of the game against West Bromwich Albion. It took a moment of brilliance from Tottenham striker, Harry Kane, to separate the two teams, very late in the game. They may have won the game, but there are areas of the game that has to be rectified for them to stay in the hunt for a top four finish.

9- Liverpool

Liverpool played uncharacteristically poorly against Manchester City. They may have scored the opening goal of the game, but their usual combinations failed to create enough chances to score. They had just three shots on target, one coming from the penalty spot. They may have had ten shots, but they didn’t offer much in the final third.

8- Manchester City

Manchester City took a point from a game in which there was one penalty for either team. The first penalty was scored by Mohamed Salah of Liverpool in the 13^th minute. Despite that, Manchester did well to get back into the game scoring an equaliser in the 31^st minute. They should have won the game, as Kevin De Bruyne, shot wide of the goal from the penalty spot in the 42^nd minute. They finished the game with more possession, but just two shots on target from seven shots!

7- Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace may have won the game against Leeds United in Matchweek 8 comprehensively, Crystal Palace were outplayed at times. The fact that they had just 35.2% of possession was extremely relevant as Leeds United controlled the tempo of the game for parts of it. It’s remarkable that Crystal Palace won the game 4-1, yet it can be argued that they weren’t the better team!

6- Leeds United

Leeds United conceded a goal early in the piece in the 12^th minute. They nearly replied in the 17^th minute with Patrick Bamford denied a goal for deemed being offside by the VAR. Eventually Patrick Bamford scored a deserved goal to make the deficit one goal for Leeds United in the 27^th minute. They didn’t stop attacking for the whole game, despite losing 4-1 they were arguably the better team! Remarkably, the possession was 64.8% for Leeds United and that had nine shots compared with Crystal Palace’s ten. There were positives for Leeds United, despite losing.

5- Manchester United

Manchester United started well in the first five minutes as they should have gone ahead. Then Everton controlled the game and were rewarded by scoring the first goal of the game in the 19^th minute. The goal that Manchester United conceded almost woke them up as they played some good football for the remainder of the 1^st half. In the 2^nd half they led 2-1, but were too defensive as they allowed Everton to control the balance of play. Despite only being brought on in the 82^nd minute Edinson Cavani scored in the 95^th minute!

4- Southampton

Southampton scored in the 7^th minute, which gave them confidence and the ascendancy. They didn’t rest on their laurels as the brand of football played by them was attacking and entertaining. In the final third their accuracy was impressive with a total of eight shots on targets from 15 attempts. The fact that they controlled possession with 60.7% was relevant as they didn’t waste it, their style of play was constructive.

3- Brighton and Hove Albion

Brighton and Hove Albion completely controlled the game for its entirety. There was a cross come shot that hit the bar courtesy of Burnley’s Matthew Lowton in the 4^th minute. That would have changed the whole complexion of the game had it gone on. Despite that, Brighton and Hove Albion were impressive in every aspect of the game, but they couldn’t score. They had 19 shots, with a few blocked by defenders. Despite only taking a point from the game, if they play like that, they won’t be in the relegation zone this Season.

2- Chelsea

Chelsea conceded the first goal of the game in the 9^th minute. From then on, it was all Chelsea. They played an extremely impressive brand of football. It was great to see Mateo Kovacic in the starting line up and provide an assist for the equaliser scored by Tammy Abraham in the 23^rd minute. It was great to see them continue to attack and control the balance of play. They finished with 70.1% possession. The fact that they had nine shots on target from 20 shots sums up Chelsea’s mindset and execution of the game plan.

1- Aston Villa

Aston Villa were outstanding, controlling the tempo and the balance of play against Arsenal for the majority of the game. The fact that Aston Villa had less possession, yet they had four more shots on target than Arsenal sums up the game. In a nutshell, Aston Villa were simply to efficient, organised and played in a good system and stuck to their game plan. They didn’t stop trying to score for the game in its entirety, nearly scoring early on and late in the game!