Emile Smith Rowe emerges as a key man for Arsenal; Kelechi Iheanacho's hat-trick against Sheffield United shows the striker is more than capable of leading Leicester's line; Brighton's veteran players could prove key to keeping Graham Potter's side in the Premier League this season
Monday 15 March 2021 23:52, UK
A 1-0 win against Wolves might not have seemed like a huge breakthrough for Liverpool just over a year ago, but their victory on Monday was another small step forward after a horrendous run of results.
The foundations were already there during their 2-0 win against RB Leipzig in the Champions League last-16 second leg, finding the net for the first time in two games and keeping a clean sheet.
This was then replicated at Molineux as Jurgen Klopp named an unchanged side, whether by necessity or design. Diogo Jota haunted his former side and the build-up to the goal was the free-flowing attacking football we have come to expect from Liverpool.
Mane looked particularly sharp, but Liverpool did not have their first shot on target until Jota scored in the second minute of first-half injury time. They improved after the break, ending with four shots on target from 12 overall.
Credit too must also go to young centre-back pairing Ozan Kabak and Nat Phillips. The last three games in which they've started together, Liverpool have won and kept a clean sheet.
Both players made a joint-high six clearances, with Kabak making three interceptions and Phillips also blocked three times. As Jamie Carragher pointed out on Monday Night Football, they covered one another when needed to help keep Wolves at bay.
Are they the long-term solution for Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip? No, but they are improving with every game. Were there nervy moments? Absolutely, with Alisson looking a touch short on confidence.
But it is another edge towards a return to form for Liverpool, who now have a three-week break before their next Premier League game on April 4 away to Arsenal, live on Sky Sports. It will give Klopp much-needed time on the training ground to help his side end a turbulent season strongly.
Charlotte Marsh
Reports in the Sunday papers suggested Manchester United were all set to hand manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer a new £9m-a-year contract at Old Trafford - surprised?
Well, if you are, then just remember that since United's sticky start to the season which saw them suffer three defeats in their opening six games, the Norwegian has since lost just one of his next 23 Premier League games, including 14 victories, the latest of which came against West Ham on Sunday night.
Yes, United remain a whopping 14 points behind champions-elect Man City at the top of the table, albeit with a game in hand on their city rivals, but that should not disguise the fact that under Solskjaer, they have dramatically improved this campaign.
And with one or two more key additions to their squad next season - reports on Sunday also suggested United's new technical team of John Murtough and Darren Fletcher will hold a transfer summit with Solskjaer this week to nail down their targets for the summer - expect to see the 20-time champions putting in a far more convincing title challenge next campaign.
Richard Morgan
While it's too early to mention Emile Smith Rowe as a contender for England's Euro 2020 squad, the youngster is fast emerging as a major player for Arsenal. And it doesn't seem to matter where he plays.
"I think he had a magnificent performance again as well," said Mikel Arteta after Arsenal's deserved win over Tottenham. "I think he shows not only quality but his personality, his intelligence on the pitch, his energy. He gives us something different."
Arteta's reaction might have also included a touch of relief because recent preference to redeploy Smith Rowe from the left was somewhat curious - in part because it was done to accommodate Martin Odegaard, who is only on-loan from Real Madrid, and partly because Smith Rowe is a natural number ten. But the teenager is also deceptively quick, two-footed, and, judging on Sunday afternoon, utterly ruthless. His demolition of Matt Doherty was pivotal in the Gunners claiming the ascendency and Smith Rowe's tally of four chances created was more than all of Tottenham's players managed combined.
Was it a coincidence that Arsenal only faltered when Smith Rowe was subbed off after 77 minutes? "We managed those 10 minutes really, really badly," reflected Arteta. "We put ourselves in trouble and we gave them hope. After that [the red card for Lamela], you should have 200 passes in the opponent's half. That's the biggest lesson." Then it should also not go overlooked that Smith Rowe had, with 97 per cent, the best passing accuracy of any player on show.
England can wait, but Smith Rowe isn't just the future of Arsenal, he's an essential part of their present.
Pete Gill
"We were really bad," Jose Mourinho observed regarding his team's first-half performance at Arsenal. That was a lenient assessment.
Spurs were wretched for at least 70 minutes, embarrassingly so in a game of such importance both in terms of their league position and what it means to their fans. They mustered just one shot on goal during that period, albeit the one they did muster was a thing of pure, unrivalled, genius from Erik Lamela.
But he blotted his copybook when he lost control and got himself sent off for two yellow cards in the space of a few crazy minutes. With Lamela heading for the showers, it was expected Spurs' chances of grabbing anything was going with him. Strangely, not so.
With 10-men, Mourinho's side started to play. They had twice as many shots in the last 14 minutes as they managed in the previous 76 as Harry Kane and Lucas Moura almost took full advantage of an almighty Arsenal wobble. It raised the question of why did it take Tottenham so long to play without any shackles?
Mourinho pointed towards his "big players hiding" as a reason for their early slumber but the truth probably lies closer to the door of the manager, who once again set up his Tottenham team without much adventure. When they play like this, they are a tough watch and a million miles away from even challenging for a top four spot. Spurs stay seventh in the Premier League table. And that just simply isn't good enough.
Lewis Jones
There would have been a touch of concern after injury to James Justin, James Maddison and Harvey Barnes. Maddison and Barnes in particular are vital to Leicester's creativity, but their absence seems to have paved the way for Iheanacho to finally come into his own.
The striker has never really fulfilled the promise he showed at Manchester City at Leicester. But over the last few months, Iheanacho has threatened to come into his own. He did well for Leicester during the Europa League group stages, deservedly earning minutes in the Premier League and that trust from Brendan Rodgers is finally starting to pay dividends.
Against a fragile Sheffield United, Iheanacho unleashed his bubbling talent, netting his first Premier League hat-trick and scoring in three successive top-flight games for the first time in his career. He was visibly emotional after his third goal, and later told Sky Sports: "I don't know how to express this, I've been waiting for this day to come. I'm grateful to God, my team-mates and my manager for helping me grow."
He has been valiantly aided by Jamie Vardy too, who is showing another side to his game after bearing most of the responsibility up front. He superbly set-up Iheanacho for his first two goals and it was his cross that was turned home by Ethan Ampadu for Leicester's fifth.
The attacking pair have now scored 23 goals between Jamie Vardy (13) and Kelechi Iheanacho (11) in their 23 Premier League starts together at Leicester. Credit too must also go to the returning Ayoze Perez, who was also on the scoresheet and impressed on Sunday.
The 5-0 win has consolidated Leicester's spot in the top four and Iheanacho has stepped into those scoring shoes as Vardy struggles with his own form. If he can rediscover his touch, the Foxes will be an even greater threat in the final nine games of the season.
Charlotte Marsh
It had been a turbulent 24 hours before Sheffield United faced Leicester. Just before 9pm on Saturday, it was announced that Chris Wilder had departed the club and U23 manager Paul Heckingbottom would be taking charge until the end of the season.
Yes, Sheffield United are at the bottom of the table for a reason. They have fallen short in too many games under Wilder, but have only been beaten by one or two goals - until Sunday afternoon.
The Blades looked bereft of confidence at the back against a confident Leicester attack. Ethan Amapdu and Kean Bryan in particular made far too many mistakes and despite the number of goals conceded, have Aaron Ramsdale to thank that it wasn't more.
In Heckingbottom's three changes, two of those came up front with Oliver Burke and Billy Sharp leading the line. But Sheffield United had just one shot in the entire game, which came from Burke, and Kasper Schmeichel did not have a save to make.
During Wilder's tenure, Sheffield United never lost by a three-goal margin and only conceded 5+ goals once in his 227 games during a 5-4 defeat in the Sky Bet Championship in November 2017.
But less than 90 minutes into the post-Wilder era, the Blades had already let five goals in with Heckingbottom becoming only the third manager in Premier League history to lose by 5+ goals in his first game in charge, after Alan Smith in 1994 (Crystal Palace 1-6 Liverpool) and Roberto Di Matteo in 2010 (West Brom 0-6 Chelsea).
The 5-0 defeat is also Sheffield United's heaviest defeat in any competition since September 2008 (0-6 v Arsenal, League Cup) and their heaviest league defeat since April 2000 (0-5 v Blackburn).
While Premier League survival was always going to be a huge ask for Heckingbottom, Blades fans will want their side to go out swinging. But if they play like they did on Sunday, it will end up being a whimper.
Charlotte Marsh
Keeping Danny Welbeck and Adam Lallana fit will play a major part in Brighton's hopes for the rest of the season. The first time they have started a game was Sunday's win at Southampton, but these once England regulars have nothing to prove.
It was no surprise that when it all came together for a Brighton side who scored more than one goal in a game for the first time in 11 matches, both were at the heart of it. Lallana's half-turn and pass, Welbeck's deft first-time assist, and Leandro Trossard's emphatic finish.
They are a class above many of the players around them, but there is a reason they are playing for a side fighting relegation, and it has very little to do with their ability. Lallana in particular was singled out by Graham Potter after the game, hailing his "incredible quality and incredible courage" on the ball.
Three points at St Mary's has eased relegation fears, moving Brighton three points ahead of Fulham, but with 10 games to go, keeping these two fit and fighting can still give them hope of more than just limping over the finish line again.
Ron Walker
