Hull City’s Marco Silva is doing a miraculous job
After getting a hiding from some areas of the British press before even fully taking charge of the Tigers, Silva has bounced back and answered his critics in imperious fashion. Since taking over, Silva has won against Bournemouth, Manchester United and Liverpool.
He has also guided Hull to a draw away from home at Old Trafford in the Premier League. In six games, the Portuguese boss has lost only twice. This is a team that is underfunded, barren and, before he came in, hugely short of confidence – Silva has done a miraculous job in lifting spirits and they are now in such good form there is a sense of optimism that they might pull off an incredible escape.
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Well done to the Hull boss for having a thick skin and already proving some ‘pundits’ wrong.
Liverpool’s season is unravelling
After the good work Jurgen Klopp did last season to lay the foundations, he is now finding himself under pressure after losses to Southampton, Wolves and Hull City. These aren’t ordinary losses, either. Southampton’s win over the Reds came in the EFL cup semi-final. While that might not be the most prestigious trophy in England, it would certainly prove to fans that Klopp can indeed win finals and that the team are going in the right direction.
Three days later Klopp had the chance to correct his mistakes. However, he failed to act upon the embarrassing performance against Southampton and Wolves rightly got the better of them.
To make it a clean sweep, Liverpool travelled down to Hull’s KCOM Stadium and were completely outplayed. Their concentration has been missing in recent weeks and they are now out of two competitions and even top four looks a stretch.
Mkhitaryan’s Magic
Manchester United went through a blip of three games in which they could not see out the opposition. Draws against Stoke, Liverpool and Hull in the Premier League have been disappointing, largely because the Red Devils created more than enough chances to win the game and squandered very important points.
It was a pivotal game against Leicester City and they showed that they could be back to playing some of their best football. Claudio Ranieri’s men were woeful, make no excuses, but the interchanging play between Juan Mata and Mkhitaryan was a beautiful sight.
The Armenian ran the show for United and scored a world-class goal to open the scoring. We are now starting to see the very best of Mkhitaryan and he will prove to be a pivotal figure if Man Utd are to progress into the latter stages of the Europa League.
Hand Chelsea the title now
There is not a team in England, possibly Europe, playing more convincing football than Antonio Conte’s team right now. The panache, elegance and conviction with which Chelsea are beating opponents is remarkable.
A small blip away from home at Tottenham caused critics to suggest that there’s still a title fight ongoing, but they seem to have gone quiet now. Chelsea’s next five games in the Premier League are Burnley (A), Swansea City (H), West Ham (A), Watford (H) and Stoke City (A).
Providing they can keep their concentration, they are not exactly the most taxing of games. Eden Hazard’s form is improving week on week and his goal against Arsenal – in which he shrugged off Arsenal’s defensive midfielder, Francis Coquelin – will be a contender for Goal of the Season.
Conte has the Blues playing with such ease and composure that is hard to quell. Sitting at the top of the table with a nine-point gap, give them the title already.
