Welcome welcome! This will be the shortest introduction yet since there is an immense amount I must cover today. Thus, we shall begin now!
Kevin de Bruyne is back! After undergoing hamstring surgery, resulting from ongoing issues, the Premier League’s most creative and dynamic player returned to the pitch for the first time since August 2023. Before his entrance, the fans began chanting de Bruyne’s name, as he made his much-anticipated return. The pace of the game and electric atmosphere made it very enjoyable. The underdogs in the matchup, Newcastle United, found themselves ahead 2-1 with 15 minutes left, after being down 1-0 for the first quarter of the game. However, de Bruyne had other plans for his injury debut; he scored the tying goal in the 74th minute and assisted Oscar Bobb’s game winner in the 91st minute. Manchester City won 3-2 and are now second place in the league.
It would be wrong to talk about Manchester City without mentioning the team that they’re currently chasing down: Liverpool. With all of the chaos going on in the Premier League rankings, especially over the last few weeks, Liverpool have steered clear and moved five points ahead at the top of the table. With a commanding 4-0 victory of Bournemouth, a team slipping towards relegation, Liverpool have brought calmness and control to a volatile league. That 4-0 victory, and several previous victories have been fueled by recent transfer Darwin Nunez, whom I’ve introduced in a previous post. As I mentioned last week, Liverpool’s star lefty, Mohammed Salah, has also come to life recently. If Liverpool maintains their current form, it will be a very difficult task for any team to dethrone them. Their defense has been stellar, and their offense is the most dangerous yet.
Last week, all the craze was about Aston Villa, and their hard-earned top-five spot in the rankings. This week, it has transformed into a question about their level of consistency. Villa tied Everton 0-0, despite out possessing them 69%-31% and outshooting them 5-2. Tying Everton, a team on the verge of relegation, is a major bump in the road for Villa, who need to stay in striking distance of other teams, such as Liverpool, if they wish to raise the trophy this year. Although Aston Villa has the necessary tools to win the Premier League, their success is now most dependent on whether they use them properly each week. It takes a quality team AND consistency to win the Premier League, and from what we’ve seen, Aston Villa only has the quality.
It seems that with each passing week, my predictions for who will win the Premier League, get less and less accurate. Some teams go from outstanding performances to absolute train-wrecks, while others find crafty way to wins, even though they have no chance of winning the league. My guess for this year’s champion is as good as yours.
See you a couple weeks! Current Premier League Table.
As a Liverpool fan (not that I’m a huge soccer fan, my Dad loves Liverpool so therefore, I do too), I was excited to read your post. I don’t keep up with soccer but I have quite a few jerseys (especially of Liverpool). I enjoy the way you write! I can really feel your passion through it!
Its great to be back reading another banger post from you as usual, Will! I thought that Kevin de Bruyne’s comeback for Manchester City was nothing short of spectacular. The questions that face questions Aston Villa, however, I did think was an interesting twist. I truly love the Premier League’s unpredictable nature makes predicting the champion a thrilling challenge for all. Thanks for an amazing blog post buddy Will, keep it up!
Kevin de Bruyne is another name I remember being heavily mentioned during the segment two weeks ago. I learned about how key he is as a player and how much fans and Manchester City were awaiting his return. It’s always so hard to predict a champion in any league as there’s always so many ebs and flows throughout the season. It seems like this season may be all Liverpool’s if no one can catch up. It’ll be interesting to see who ultimately wins the league!