Premier League hits and misses: Chelsea lack spark from wings, Man City's change of tack doesn't sit right
Chelsea missed spark from wide areas in their defeat by Everton, while Ole Gunnar Solskjaer finds a different way to frustrate Pep Guardiola and his tame Manchester City side in Old Trafford stalemate
Sunday 13 December 2020 08:48, UK
Chelsea lack creative inspiration
Chelsea headed into their clash with Everton as the Premier League team with the most second-half goals this season. They ended the match without a single shot on target after the break at Goodison Park.
Yes, Mount may have hit the bar and then the post, but that was as close as Chelsea came to an equaliser, with the last save Jordan Pickford had to make coming in the 28th minute when denying Kurt Zouma.
One defeat will not lead Frank Lampard to pressing the panic button, particularly as it is their first defeat in the Premier League since losing to Liverpool on September 20, but the Chelsea manager will certainly be frustrated by their inability to step up the pressure late on against Everton.
Lampard admitted Chelsea missed their wingers, and that was evident. Without Hakim Ziyech they lacked that creative spark, while Christian Pulisic was not risked on Saturday night ahead of a busy schedule.
The Blues will hope to have the latter back for Tuesday's trip to Wolves, though it will likely come too soon for Ziyech.
Michael Hincks
Everton rediscover their bite
For the 2,000 supporters who were fortunate to receive a ticket in the ballot on Saturday, there was concern when Carlo Ancelotti revealed that James Rodriguez would miss the visit of Chelsea through a muscle injury. They could have been forgiven for fearing the worst against Frank Lampard's in-form side, but what ensued was a performance full of blood and thunder that mirrored those in the stands.
Gylfi Sigurdsson punished Edouard Mendy for his rash challenge on Dominic Calvert-Lewin for the game's defining moment and the Iceland international thrived in his preferred No 10 position, in Rodriguez's absence.
The Colombian could be back in midweek from his muscle problem, but Sigurdsson's six key passes will certainly leave Ancelotti was plenty to ponder ahead of the trip to Leicester.
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Everton defended from the front to earn a first home league win since the start of October with Chelsea failing to muster a shot on target after the 28th minute.
"Defensively we were really good," said Ancelotti. "We didn't give up many opportunities, just two outside of the box. I think we were really well organised with defenders and midfielders. The way the team fought was top-class."
It was in the corresponding fixture last season under caretaker manager Duncan Ferguson where the home side registered 37 tackles - the most by an Everton team in a decade.
That was 12 months ago, when the club were in the bottom three. But under different circumstances, the bite that propelled the early-season pacesetters returned and this had the feeling of another landmark result.
Ben Grounds
Solskjaer finds a way to frustrate Pep again
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer got the better of Pep Guardiola on three occasions last season, with his Man Utd side winning home and away against City in the league, and winning one leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final at the Etihad.
Guardiola will point out City's victory in the return leg of that cup tie took them to the final where they lifted silverware but nonetheless, Solskjaer has fashioned a record against the Spaniard few other coaches have managed.
On Saturday the Norwegian came up with another solution to stopping this City side, stepping away from the back three he used in last season's encounters and surprising everyone by playing Paul Pogba and Mason Greenwood wide on a midfield four, with Bruno Fernandes off Marcus Rashford.
The United players bought into the demands and discipline required of the system and got a result which settles things down after their Champions League exit.
Solskjaer is routinely questioned for his tactical nous and managerial pedigree but the repeated problems he causes for a manager of Guardiola's pedigree demands respect. Whether Solskjaer can consistently find the answers to overcome the different challenges other Premier League sides present is another matter.
But this positive result from an otherwise forgettable derby gives United a positive platform to build on during their upcoming Christmas schedule.
Peter Smith
City's change of tack not easy on the eye
City have set an attacking benchmark so high over recent years, that this very distinct change of approach doesn't quite sit right.
Pep Guardiola's side didn't lose the Manchester derby, but for large chunks of the goalless draw at Old Trafford they barely tried to win it. Their rivals for the title have all stunk out stadiums at times this season to grind out results, but when it's City, the departure from what we're used to is more startling.
Guardiola's reasoning for surrendering free-flowing attacking for defensive solidity this season is valid: City's defence have looked shaky against counter attacks for 18 months.
He's attempting to find a balance - City's goals per game and chances created per game are way down on previous seasons - but the fear at present is that it goes too far one way, and that this change of tack inhibits the talent they have.
"They look like a team that's bored a little bit," said Gary Neville on Sky Sports. Riyad Mahrez, who scored a hat-trick against Burnley a fortnight ago, had two touches in United's box. City had two shots on target in the entire game.
Guardiola seemed happy with the point, but something between this and their previous rampaging best is what he'll want.
Gerard Brand
Outlook bleak for Bilic, West Brom
Slaven Bilic's future hangs in the balance following West Brom's 2-1 loss to Newcastle at St James' Park.
The Croat guided the Baggies to promotion from the Championship in his first season in charge last year, but newspaper reports in the run-up to the weekend stated he was only one game away from the sack following a difficult start to life in the top flight.
Their latest defeat could therefore prove costly and it was certainly a difficult one to take.
West Brom pulled themselves back into the game when Darnell Furlong cancelled out Miguel Almiron's early opener soon after half-time, only for Dwight Gayle, who spent last year on loan at the Hawthorns, to head an 82nd minute Newcastle winner.
Bilic shrugged off questions about his future afterwards, instead praising his side's spirit.
"We showed the character, the mentality and the quality to some degree," he said, "the team is very much alive."
But the fact remains that West Brom have taken just six points from 12 games so far and it does not get any easier, with clashes against Liverpool, Manchester City and Arsenal to come in the next few weeks.
In truth it would be a tough task for any manager to keep them up. West Brom secured permanent deals for Matheus Pereira, Grady Diangana and some of the other loan stars of last season in the summer, but their transfer business was hardly transformative. Bilic has handed out 11 Premier League debuts this season. It remains a Championship-level squad.
And so while their manager may pay the price, West Brom's shortcomings are likely to remain. A long season lies ahead for the Baggies, regardless of who occupies the dugout.
Nick Wright
Time for Wolves to go tried and tested?
It's been a short experiment with a back four for Nuno Espirito Santo and Wolves, originally more out of necessity with the rare absence of Conor Coady, but even continuing after his return, albeit to mixed effect.
Wolves' back four did help them to a deserved win at Arsenal two games ago but since then, they have been battered in an under-par performance against a patched-up Liverpool and now beaten on home soil by Aston Villa, even if they did deserve more before Anwar El-Ghazi's last-minute penalty winner.
There's a reason they haven't deviated from a back three in the two full seasons they have been back in the Premier League - because it had worked so well. It hadn't always been pretty, but it had got the job done, and more often than not by keeping things tight at the back.
Without the goals of Raul Jimenez, that defensive stability is all the more important now - so maybe it's time to call off the experiment and revert to the old adage that if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Ron Walker
