Written By Contributer: Sean Gallagher
EPL Roundup Matchday 22: Palace-Brighton Thriller Finishes 1-1; Coutinho Makes Dream Return to Premier League; Shameless Arsenal get Match Postponed
Crazy games, controversial decisions, late drama… The Premier League had it all this past weekend! Let’s recap the captivating action you may have missed while the Eagles were getting crushed in Tampa.
Brighton v Crystal Palace (1-1)
Fans on the field! Flares being thrown! While they’re certainly not the biggest or best teams in the league, these two sides always make it interesting when they play each other. Something about this rivalry, known to some as the M23 Derby, always delivers with late goals and passion you don’t get in every game. Having won 2 of their previous 9 matches, Palace came in needing a win over their rivals to jumpstart the second half of their season. Brighton also would’ve loved a victory to inch closer to a spot in European competition.
It was all Brighton from the get go coming close to a goal within the first 10 minutes if not for a good save by Palace keeper Jack Butland. Patrick Vieira’s Crystal Palace were hanging on for dear life for much of the first 45 and conceding a penalty kick didn’t make things any better for the Eagles. In typical Brighton fashion they just couldn’t take advantage of their opportunities; the penalty was badly hit and missed by Pascal Gross. Brighton seemingly made up for the miss when Bruno Maupay awkwardly scored with his knee on the ensuing corner kick. It was more agony for the Seagulls when VAR ruled out the goal since Butland had just barely gotten his 2 hands on the ball before Maupay made contact with it.
After more missed opportunities in the second half by Brighton, Crystal Palace somehow found the breakthrough and opened up a well less-than-deserved 1-0 lead. Conor Gallagher was the one who sent the traveling Palace fans into a total frenzy after he lunged his foot into the ball impressively sent in by Jeffrey Schlupp. These are the moments we missed with no crowds last year, and you couldn’t help but get excited watching it, even as a neutral. Palace defended for their lives for the last 20 minutes and thought they were going home with all 3 points, but Brighton weren’t going away. They finally equalized thanks to an own goal by Palace defender Joachim Anderson, who could only watch as he hit a cross by Maupay into his own net. It’s the 4th game in a row between these 2 teams that has had a consequential goal in the last few minutes of the match. Something about Friday night Premier League games have been spectacular this season, and this was no exception.
Aston Villa v Manchester United (2-2)
We knew Phillipe Coutinho was potentially going to make his Aston Villa debut and Premier League return at some point in this match. What we didn’t know was how much of a difference maker he would ultimately prove to be! Manchester United fans will vividly remember the last time they saw Coutinho on an opposing team; he scored for Barcelona against them in the Champions League in 2019. This time, he brought them the same agony.
For around 70 minutes, it finally felt like Man Utd were righting the ship and were going to comfortably leave Villa Park with a win. They were gifted a goal 5 minutes in when Aston Villa’s Argentine keeper, Emi Martinez, made a shocking mistake off a shot by Bruno Fernandes. The ball went straight through his legs in a nightmarish scenario so early in the game. United have had a rough go of it lately with the traveling fans holding a banner at the beginning of the game that read “Broken and rotten from top to bottom.” This type of mistake by Villa could have been the jolt and bit of luck they needed. Steven Gerrard’s men hung around knocking on the door throughout the rest of the half.
Ralf Rangnick and company got another gift 66 minutes in, this time from Villa player Morgan Sanson whose giveaway led the way to another Bruno Fernandes goal. This is where the game should’ve been set in stone, but it’s Manchester United. So of course it wasn’t. Right after the goal Phillipe Coutinho was subbed into the game as a last ditch effort by Gerrard and it was just what his team needed. He immediately made an impact when his give and go with Chukweumeka set up a goal for Jacob Ramsey. The comeback was complete just 5 minutes later when Coutinho found himself on the end of a perfect pass by Ramsey and his finish sent the Villa fans berserk. It’s yet another collapse by Man Utd who are starting to embarrass themselves every time they’re on the pitch. Aston Villa, fresh off some new transfers, will hope to take this momentum and climb up from 13th.
Quick hits:
- We should be recalling a North London Derby which is always a fun one. Sadly, the game never happened. It says a lot that Arsenal were able to get the game postponed. Matches were initially only supposed to be canceled only if teams had a large number of Covid cases. Arsenal, having ONE positive case, took advantage of the league and got their cancellation request approved rather than call up players on their youth squad like tons of other teams have done this year. Because of irresponsibly sending players out on loan deals, a few injuries, and players being away at AFCON (which everyone knew was going to happen), they found themselves short on first team players. This is going to open the floodgates and set a horrible precedent for the schedule the rest of the year. Something tells me if a team like Norwich or Watford tried something like this, it wouldn’t have happened.
- Chelsea just had nothing against Man City on Saturday. If there was any hope that we still had a title race, it’s gone. Romelu Lukaku continued to disappoint and Kevin De Bruyne’s heroic goal extended City’s wide lead at the top of the league.
- What an exciting game between Wolves and Southampton! The Saints were so close to equalizing in the final minutes, but Wolves were able to put the game away and ascend to 8th in the table. Although it didn’t contribute to a win or draw, James Ward-Prowse’s free kick will be up there for goal of the season.
- Horrible loss for West Ham. At home against a poor team in Leeds it should’ve been a walk in the park. Instead the Hammers found themselves down 3-2 as the final whistle sounded. Jarrad Bowen will be losing sleep over his late miss that would have tied it.
- Consequential game between Newcastle and Watford. Both hoping to avoid relegation. It was yet another near-victory for Newcastle, who boasted two new transfers in Kieran Trippier and Chris Wood. Watford’s late game-tying goal meant they just barely stayed in the coveted 17th position while Newcastle hopped from 20 to 19th still looking for their 2nd win of the season.
- It’s the end of the road for Rafa Benitez as Everton manager. A hiring that seemed doomed from the start. There were many ugly moments for him this season, but losing to Norwich was the last straw that will send the Toffees searching for a new gaffer. Will it be Roberto Martinez? Wayne Rooney? Frank Lampard? Whoever it is will be in for a really tough assignment