The First International Break Has Arrived: Here's What Caught My Eye
Goddamnit… the international break is here which means no football for two-weeks. A lot has happened in only four weeks. Here’s a jumble of my thoughts on what has happened so far.
AFC Bournemouth - 15th place - 4 pts
I have to admit Bournemouth has really surprised me thus far and not in a good way. The Cherries are in 15th with only 4 points. Bournemouth’s only win came against newly-promoted Aston Villa. Losses to Manchester City and Leicester City aren’t surprising but a draw against Sheffield United was.
Bournemouth has enough talent to mount a season in which they finish mid-table. The Cherries need more goals from Callum Wilson and Josh King. Both players only have 1 goal each and Bournemouth is going to need them firing on all cylinders in order to mount a successful campaign. Plus, Ryan Fraser has only 1 assist so far. They’ll need him at his best too. Maybe he should’ve headed to Arsenal after all.
Harry Wilson has been a bright spot for the club. On loan from Liverpool, The Welsh winger has scored 2 goals including a sensational free-kick against Manchester City. Hopefully, the return, of David Brooks will add a boost, but he won’t be back until approximately October 26th according to PremierLeague.com.
HITC
So the Cherries have dropped 8 points in four games. Yes, they aren’t a top team but they have the talent to mount a successful season so hopefully a turn around is right around the corner.
Newcastle United - 14th place - 4 pts
At the beginning of the season, I thought Newcastle United was destined for relegation considering their first two performances. A 1-0 loss at home to a depleted Arsenal team followed by a 3-1 loss to Norwich City were tough looks but Newcastle bounced back with a 1-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur and a 1-1 draw against Watford. Perhaps Newcastle could’ve won against Watford but a point secured puts them out of the relegation zone.
If one thing is for sure, Newcastle needs to score more goals. With only three goals in total, how, Newcastle has 4 points is very impressive and it shows how strong the squad's defense is.
I’d like to see big-money signing, Joelinton ramp up the scoring. The $50 million dollar man has only one goal to his name so far which was the match-winner against Tottenham. Joelinton needs to find the net more frequently. Without Ayoze Perez and Rondon, Newcastle will need others to step up. Perhaps Almiron and Christian Atsu can step up in their absence.
nothingbutnewcastle.com
Sheffield United - 10th place - 5 pts
Sheffield United might be the most impressive side in the league so far. The newly-promoted side has only lost one game which came against undefeated Leicester City. The 2-1 loss to the Foxes was only made possible by a sensational strike from Harvey Barnes. Other than that, Sheffield has drawn 1-1 against Bournemouth, 2-2 against Chelsea, and they won 1-0 against Crystal Palace.
This team is awesome to watch. On Saturday at Stamford Bridge, Sheffield was down 2-0 at halftime. A game in which two mental errors led to Chelsea's goals. But Sheffield battled back and scored 2 goals of their own. The side looked unfazed about their deficit and they played solid attacking football in the second half.
Racing Post
Credit to Sheffield United. I don’t see them being relegated this season.
West Ham United - 7th place - 7 pts
Is this season finally the season in which West Ham battle for the top six? Perhaps. Club record signing Sebastian Haller can deliver such a run. The French striker was brought in from Eintracht Frankfurt for $45 million (transfermarkt.com) and he already has 3 goals to his name.
After a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Manchester City, West Ham has yet to lose a game. A draw against Brighton and Hove Albion followed by wins against Watford and Norwich has West Ham sitting in the top half of the table. Whether or not they can stay put and push for a spot in the top six remains to be seen considering how poorly they performed against one of the league's premier teams in Manchester City.
Irish Examiner
West Ham will take on Aston Villa and then Manchester United. A win against United would be quite the statement despite the clubs struggles of late. I like this West Ham team and I think they’ll be a tough out for any side this season.
Crystal Palace - 4th place - 7pts
Like Newcastle, Crystal Palace had a horrid start to the season but they’ve bounced back quite quickly. After a 0-0 draw against Everton, Palace lost to Sheffield United. After this fixture, I thought that this season would be a horrid one for Palace but they proved me wrong.
The club went on to secure a 2-1 win at Old Trafford, then they beat Aston Villa at home to make it 6 points for Palace in two straight games.
Evening Standard
Jordan Ayew, who was a no-show for Palace last season, has already netted two goals including the match-winner against Aston Villa. Ayew made three appearances for Palace last season and he netted two goals. Ayew matched last year's tally in less than a month. It’ll be interesting to see if he can keep this form up. But it’s good to see him finding the back of the net.
It should be noted that Palace is in the top four and their star man, Wilfred Zaha, has yet to record a goal or assist. It’ll be interesting to see how far this club can go with Zaha at his best.
Lastly, a massive shoutout to Patrick Van Arnholt. The Dutch full-back netted the match-winner in stoppage time at Old Trafford and he’s making a case for PFA’s team of the season with his play so far this season. The former Chelsea man has looked excellent for Palace.
Croydon Guardian
Palace will travel to White Hart Lane on the 14th to take on Spurs. A fixture that will prove to be a difficult one, but one that isn’t out of the clubs reach.
So there you have it. Those five clubs have really caught my eye so far this season. There’s a lot of clubs outside the top six this season that can mount successful seasons. There’s a lot more football to be played and anything can change but the five clubs listed above are the most interesting thus far. Let me know if you agree!
