Premier League Pecking Order- Matchweek 2 (Premier League Season 2022/23- In a Nutshell)
The pecking order is based on the performance of the Premier League teams during the given Matchweek; on this occasion, it’s Matchweek 2. The Premier League Pecking Order starts with the 20th team (worst performed team) in the Pecking Order and finishes with the 1st team (best performed team) in the Pecking Order.
20- AFC Bournemouth
- AFC Bournemouth parked the bus, it’s as simple as that.
19- Newcastle United
- Newcastle United were fortunate that they had Nick Pope as their goalkeeper.
18- Manchester United
- Manchester United performed poorly in the opening 35 minutes, conceding four goals. Two of the goals were conceded due to errors made by goalkeeper, David de Gea.
17- Wolverhampton Wanderers
- Wolverhampton Wanderers may have had 59.6% possession, but they had one shot on target compared with three for Fulham. Wolverhampton Wanderers can thank Jose Sa, their goalkeeper, for saving a penalty from Fulham striker, Aleksandar Mitrovic.
16- Leicester City
- Leicester City may have scored from their two shots on target, one due to an own goal from Arsenal defender, William Saliba, but Leicester City conceded four goals. They have plenty of work to do defensively.
15- Everton
- Everton were poor defensively as they trailed 2-nil after 86 minutes. Thankfully they managed to get a goal back due to Aston Villa defender, Lucas Digne scoring an own goal. The coach of Everton, Frank Lampard made good substitutions, but it was too little too late.
14- Fulham
- Fulham may have had less possession than Wolverhampton Wanderers, but Fulham created more chances. They should have won the game, but Fulham striker, Aleksandar Mitrovic had a penalty saved.
13- West Ham United
- West Ham United had 56.8% possession and five shots on target from 19 shots. Unfortunately, Declan Rice had a penalty saved by Nottingham Forest goalkeeper, Dean Henderson.
12- Crystal Palace
- Crystal Palace would be disappointed that they only had 27.4% possession and seven shots compared with 24 for Liverpool. Palace should have controlled the tempo of the game, because Liverpool played with ten men for more than a third of the game.
11- Southampton
- Southampton fought back from a two-goal deficit against Leeds United to snatch a point. Southampton scored in the 72nd and 81st minute, which showed that they have plenty of character.
10- Nottingham Forest
- Nottingham Forest had six shots on target from 13 shots. Despite having 43.2% possession and conceding a penalty they had a narrow 1-nil win over West Ham United, thanks to Nottingham Forest goalkeeper, Dean Henderson saving a penalty.
9- Liverpool
- Liverpool controlled their game against Crystal Palace, as Liverpool had 72.6% possession and 24 shots. They played over a third of the game with ten men, but still controlled the balance of play.
8- Aston Villa
- Aston Villa were cruising for much of the game against Everton, as Aston Villa had 57.5% possession and were the better team. The last few minutes they nearly threw away two points as Everton made some good substitutions. Despite that, Aston Villa deserved their 2-1 win.
7- Chelsea
- Chelsea scored a goal from two of the three shots that they had on target and they also had 63.7% possession. Despite that, they wasted chances; they had 16 shots! They played in a high tempo game against Tottenham Hotspur, who were a good opposition, so Chelsea should be relatively content with a point.
6- Leeds United
- Leeds United led 2-nil until the 72nd minute when Southampton fought back. The game proved that 2-nil is the most dangerous score in football as Leeds United had to settle for a draw. Rodrigo scored a brace for them. It’s a game that they should have claimed all three points in, as they had more possession and shots on target than Southampton.
5- Tottenham Hotspur
- Tottenham Hotspur fought back to level the scores with Chelsea on two occasions. Despite having 36.3% possession, Tottenham Hotspur had more shots on target than Chelsea. Tottenham Hotspur claimed a late equaliser in the 96th minute, so at least they claimed a point from a game that they could’ve won.
4- Arsenal
- Arsenal can thank Gabriel Jesus for their 4-2 win over Leicester City as he scored two goals and also had two assists. They had seven shots on target from 19 shots.
3- Brighton and Hove Albion
- Brighton and Hove Albion did everything right, but they failed to score. They finished the game with 54.5% possession and seven shots on target from 13 shots.
2- Brentford
- Brentford performed to their optimum level in the opening 35 minutes as they scored four goals against Manchester United. Brentford did a good job in stopping Manchester United playing out from the back, by pressing high up the field, which made Manchester United panic.
1- Manchester City
- Manchester City dominated their game against AFC Bournemouth. It was one way traffic. There’s no disputing that Manchester City thoroughly deserved their 4-nil win.
Premier League Pecking Order- Matchweek 2 (Premier League Season 2022/23- Final Thoughts)
It was a tough Matchweek to predict the results in as there were five draws, which made the Pecking Order in Matchweek 2 a challenging exercise. There were two games that finished 4-nil. Despite that, there were only 28 goals scored. There were two missed penalties and plenty of talking points.