Five Lessons We Have Learnt from The EPL So Far

 It's the league we all love but in no such season has it started in such a frantic manner. Ladies and gentlemen welcome to the English premier league 2020/21 season.

It has been a scintillating first five Match days with goals , shock results and as usual VAR controversy.

I try to make sense of it all and pick out what we have learnt so far. Well let's get to it .

      

1. EVERY MATCH IS UNPREDICTABLE.

Think you can predict games as you did last season well think again. This season has proven to be a headache for not only the bookies but also the betting man . There has been a flurry of so surprising results that the normal friendly bet with your pal has become a risk . Not for the money maybe but for banter and Bragging rights.

Two results stand out so far . Liverpool horrific showing at Villa park and United's humiliation at Old Trafford.

Aston Villa 7-2 Liverpool was the final score. Yes that's right for the first time in history the defending Premier League champions got a seven goal thumping at the hands of last season's relegation battlers. Only downside to this is that still no fans in the stadium to witness this.

Manchester united also got 6 goals against an in form Tottenham Hotspur side . This without Putting too much words is shocking.

Other notable results were Mancity 2-5 Leicester city and Tottenham losing a 3 goal lead to draw 3 -3 against West Ham. This is why the English Premier League is so exciting.

Enjoy the games guys but keep off the betting.

  

2. Defending is now Extinct.

Premier League this season has averaged 3.58goals/match in 48 games . We witnessed the first 0-0 draw in the West Brom vs Burnley game but apart from that it's been all goals.

Goals are again why we watch the beautiful game but it is also worthy to point out a good number of them could have been prevented. With teams now playing out from the back there are bound to be mistakes. Also majority of the teams lack the quality of players to play those sort of tactics but I'm not complaining who doesn't like goals?

An average of 19℅ of goals are scored between 81th - 90th minutes . While at the same time 13℅ of them from 0- 10th minute. Clearly a lack of concentration. As things stand there's no sign of the goals reducing so grab your popcorn guys because it's going to be one goal-fest of a season.

    

 3.Title Race is wide open - at the moment.

Everyone's pick for the title at the beginning of the season was Liverpool or Manchester city. Seemingly neither side have started as anticipated with both showing worrying signs in defense.

Liverpool's problems were compound by an injury to Virgil Van Dijk . It is expected that he will be out for 6-8 months. Already they have conceded 13 goals with him in the side ,the most in the league, so there's little to be optimistic about.

Manchester city on the other hand have not been as prolific in front of goal as we were accustomed to. Pep also has spoken about how he does not have a full squad to choose from which may have hampered their start. With Aguero back and Kevin De Bruyne along with Gabriel Jesus expected to be back soon , there's more optimism from the blue corner of Manchester.

Notable mentions to Everton and Aston Villa, the latter the only remaining team with a one hundred percent win rate . Expecting Aston Villa to challenge may be a longshot but they should have a great season ahead. Everton on the other hand have a world class manager at the helm and with his squad of players rule them out at your own peril.

Tottenham Hotspur are also not to be ruled out. With 15 goals scored so far they are the premier league highest goal scorers. They boast the lethal duo of Harry Kane and Son Heung Min. Son leads the goalscorers chart with 7 while Kane with 7 assists so far has the most in the league. Switched roles.

Chelsea have had a slow start but as their last title winning side in 2016 proved , a change of system could aid a title charge. Frank Lampard now has a fully fit squad and it will be intriguing to see what he can achieve with them.

The pack of United Arsenal and Leicester are not far behind but to sustain a title charge might not be in their reach at the moment.

I'm not ruling out any title surprises as 2020 has taught us and I would not be bemused with one.

4. Promoted Teams are in Big Trouble but Leeds are a Nightmare to play against.

It is fair to say that the promoted duo of West Brom and Fulham have struggled for Points so far but Leeds have taken to the league like fish to water.

 

Fulham sit 20th on the table with 1 point from the opening 5 games of the season . It's been a torrid time at Cravan Cottage . With the joy of promotion still fresh Fulham were brought right back to earth with a crushing 3-0 defeat to Arsenal on the opening day. Since then defensively they have improved conceding just 2 goals in the last 2 games . Further up the pitch they have struggled to provide star striker Mitrovic with chances. His penalty miss further compounded his recent misery.

For these two sides one feels it's going to be a battle right till the end to avoid the drop.

Then Leeds and Bielsa. Coming into the premier league with a big reputation people were keen to see how Bielsa would adapt to the premier league. Matchday one provided a thrilling game against Liverpool . Despite their 4-3 defeat much was to be admired about the team. Bielsa ball, or murder ball as they call it over at Elland road has been a revelation. They make you so uncomfortable on the ball . This is further added to by the fact that they create 1 vs 1 situations all over the pitch. This is a type of football not many are accustomed to.

Despite impressing so much one feels that Leeds could even do better. Such is how much they have impressed. Their expansive type of football makes them susceptible to frequent mistakes at the back and counter attacks.That's seen in the frequent penalties they have conceded. In front of goal also they create so many chances and despite Patrick Bamford's best efforts one feels that a better striker would score more. Bamford on the other hand provides a lot of balance on the side laying out chances for Jack Harrison and Helder Costa. One thing is guaranteed when Leeds play .... entertainment.

5. Second Season Syndrome at Sheffield United ?

Pundits, fans and players all alike were showering Chris Wilder and Sheffield United lots of praise last season. And rightfully so. The blades took the premier league by storm with their Overlapping Center backs. It was a new style that made a lot of teams struggle to play against them. But this is the premier league.... evolving is the name of the game. Which somewhat Chris Wilder has failed to do.

Now sitting 19th on the log with just 1 point Sheffield are in danger of being victims of their own success . The famed second season syndrome is well and truly on display at the moment.

They have struggled to put away Chances created and their key men from last season have not performed so far. John Egan, Chris Basham , lundstrum , fleck ,Stevens ...the list goes on and on . Most of them performed so well that they were a mainstay in most if not Majority of people's fantasy squads . But if there's one man you can trust to guide them through this rough patch it's Chris Wilder. It's only early times so I wouldn't write them off but with the quality of opposition having improved it is not unfair to say they're in for a relegation dogfight.

There's so many things to pick out from the first five games that I can't fit them all here. It's safe to say goals and shock results will be the norm this season.

If you're a betting man I'll assure you of a couple of things.Manchester United will frustrate You.Same goes for arsenal . Never bet on 0-0 draws and never put your money on Chelsea to keep a clean sheet. Adios!