Arsenal
Considering we were 10 points behind Spurs a couple of weeks back, with many starting to question Emery’s ability, a combination of faltering competition and an upturn in form has suddenly made for a surprisingly positive mood. Now there’s a chance to not just achieve a top-four finish, but also to restore the natural order in north London.
More of this please … Ainsley Maitland-Niles; Emery putting his best available XI on the park instead of paying the likes of Özil £350k a week to shine the bench with his backside; opportunities for Aubameyang to don his superhero mask; and clips of the snagging woes at Spurs’ new White Elephant arena.
Less of this please … Unintelligible post-match press conferences from our manager; fickle Gooners being far too quick to question his competence; killjoy Latvian refs who can’t take a joke; interminable international breaks potentially putting a spanner in the works just when we have a prime opportunity to leapfrog Spurs; and less cause for smug scousers – and those irritating “Quad” headlines.
Predictions… We will finish 3rd. The top four: 1 Man City; 2 Liverpool; 3 Arsenal; 4 Man United. Going down: 18 Cardiff; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
Bernard Azulay GoonersDiary.co.uk @GoonerN5
Bournemouth
It feels like the team has been staggering towards safety. The win at Huddersfield put us on our way but it’s been hard work, not helped by a lot of injuries in what’s felt like a long season. Forty points can’t come soon enough. The home performances have been tremendous but on the road we haven’t improved this season or at least found the consistency to give us more wins. That’s the challenge for next season.
More of this please … Clean sheets. If we’re going to improve, that’s what needs to happen. We’ve been a bit gung-ho at times and I’d like to see us control games better and to get the back four having a good understanding. Also, more of David Brooks – surely the value signing of the season, and a candidate for young player of the year.
Less of this please … Former players coming back to haunt us. Matt Ritchie hit a superb injury-time equaliser against us for Newcastle: a properly painful moment for all Bournemouth fans. Also, any chance we could have a season with no cruciate ligament injuries?
Predictions… We will finish 11th. The top four 1 Liverpool; 2 Man City; 3 Tottenham; 4 Man United. Going down: 18 Cardiff; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
Peter Bell AFCBchimes.blogspot.co.uk @CherryChimes
Brighton
Well, what a difference three weeks makes… With no league wins since 29 December it was beginning to look a bit dodgy. But then we beat Huddersfield at the start of March, a week later put in an outstanding performance to defeat Palace at Selhurst Park – which reminded us that actually this team are well-organised, talented and committed – and then came our robbery of a win at Millwall thanks to Chris Hughton’s brilliant decision to bring on goalscorers Solly March and Jürgen Locadia. The whole team just refused to give up. So now we’re going to Wembley. We’re not safe yet, though, and with seven games in April it will be tough, but the feeling is that we have the squad to survive.
More of this please … Yves Bissouma dance routines when we win, please. And it was great to see our marvellous chairman, Tony Bloom, still twirling his scarf with delight in an otherwise empty Barry Kitchener stand at the Den, while being serenaded by our marvellous fans.
Less of this please … Criticism of Hughton for being cautious. He’s done a great job with players such as March and Lewis Dunk who have thrived under him, and we’re so lucky to have him. But we do need to find more consistency.
Predictions… We will finish 15th. The top four: 1 Liverpool; 2 Man City; 3 Arsenal; 4 Tottenham. Going down: 18 Burnley; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
Steph Fincham Observer reader
Burnley
What’s the mood here? Concerned. Just a month ago we beat Spurs and looked to be heading for mid-table, but four successive defeats since have left our Premier League future hanging by a thread. There’s very little positivity about the place – it all but disappeared with those last four results. We’re now the team out of form and are desperate to get a win to start pushing us away from that bottom three. I still think another couple of wins will do it – but where are they going to come from?
More of this please … A packed Turf Moor for home games and full away ends when we’re on the road. The team needs us right now. I’d also like to see us getting the ball down more and playing. We saw the result of that with our goal against Leicester. We can’t go gung-ho, and we certainly need work doing defensively, but we have to win games now. Leicester last weekend, down to 10 men, were very defensive, but hopefully other teams will give us more space.
Less of this please … Interviews with players who just keep telling us how we need to get Turf Moor back to being a fortress. Since the end of January 2017 we’ve won only 13 of 40 at home. We’re not a strong home team at this level.
Predictions… We will finish: 17th. The top four 1 Man City; 2 Liverpool; 3 Arsenal; 4 Tottenham. Going down: 18 Cardiff; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
Tony Scholes UpTheClarets.com @UTCdotcom
Cardiff
We’re the only club in the bottom three with an obvious chance of survival, and I’d say we’re pretty hopeful. Supporters are still going to games thinking we can win and stay up. Huddersfield and Fulham know they’re down – we don’t, we’re still fighting, so we stay positive.
More of this please … Results going our way. If we’re going to do it, we’ll need some favours from other sides. But most importantly we’re going to need more of the fighting spirit that we know Neil Warnock can inspire from his players – and we need the fans to maintain the passion that they’ve been showing all season. The crowd has been behind the club all the way, even at those times when things have been pretty terrible on the pitch. The spirit is definitely there: we have nothing to lose now, we have to go for it.
Less of this please … We’ve shown too much respect to the top six sides: we haven’t taken a point from them. I’d like to see less acceptance that we can’t get anything from these games. Others sides have – Newcastle beat Manchester City, Burnley beat Tottenham – so less of the assumption that we are beaten before we kick off when facing the “big clubs”.
Predictions… We will finish: 17th. The top four: 1 Man City; 2 Liverpool; 3 Arsenal; 4 Man United. Going down: 18 Burnley; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
Michael Morris CardiffCity-mad.co.uk @cardiffcitymad
Chelsea
We’re feeling about as far from positive as you can get. We were promised such riches – free-flowing attacking football, the mythical “Sarriball” – but what we got was boring, predictable dross. And as bad as the football has been, the manager’s stubbornness is even worse. On the whole, Chelsea fans have always been a patient and positive lot – and there are a still a handful that are repeating the mantra of “trust the method”. But the vast majority know it’s time to admit this has been a big mistake and move on.
More of this please … The owner. Abramovich has been notable by his absence and, though the reasons aren’t football related, it doesn’t bode well. If he’d been around, would the current state of affairs have been allowed to carry on? Certainly better managers have been sacked for less. I’d just like to see fans enjoying the Chelsea experience again – most of us are still going out of habit, wincing our way through 90 minutes then heading straight to the pub to make us forget.
Less of this please … Pointless passes; Sarri dressed like a car park attendant chewing on a cigarette butt; our mascots playing air guitar to 90s soft rock (yes, really); and vegan pies. It used to be that you bought a pie and knew it contained vague meat in a gloop. We knew where we were with that. Now it’s all butternut squash, tofu and spinach …
Predictions… We will finish: 6th. The top four: 1 Man City; 2 Liverpool; 3 Tottenham; 4 Man United. Going down: 18 Burnley; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
Trizia Fiorellino ChelseaSupportersGroup.net
Crystal Palace
There’s a growing sense of unrest. A record of three home wins all season makes a mockery of the “Fortress Selhurst” tag and, if it wasn’t for our away form, we’d be even closer to the relegation zone. The perception is that we’ve underachieved with a very expensive squad – even though a couple of key injuries haven’t helped.
More of this please … Our away form is essential to saving this season: that has to be maintained or it could all go wrong. Also, more noise from the home and away crowds, who’ve excelled as always; and more focus on the future. Securing the Academy site on a long-term lease bodes well for the years ahead.
Less of this please … Roy Hodgson’s reticence. His failure to react after we equalised in the FA Cup quarter-final highlighted one of our key issues: poor in-game management. Brighton, Chelsea, Bournemouth, Watford – in all of these league games we’ve drawn level but failed to build. And on a broader note, I’d like to see Gareth Southgate rethink his baffling omission of Aaron Wan-Bissaka from the senior England setup. That needs to change fast before DR Congo convince him to swap allegiances, just as Ivory Coast did with Wilfried Zaha.
Predictions… We will finish: 14th. The top four: 1 Man City; 2 Liverpool; 3 Arsenal; 4 Tottenham. Going down: 18 Burnley; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
Chris Waters PalaceTrust.org.uk @Clapham_Grand
Everton
Eleventh in the table isn’t much to shout about but the mood is still pretty positive on the whole. Marco Silva was under some real pressure in February when we were on a run of eight defeats in 11 games – but the win over Chelsea last weekend was a real boost and gave us a bit more sense of what this side could go on to achieve. Hopefully this rollercoaster of a season will end with a few more highs than lows.
More of this please… League goals from Richarlison, to add to the 12 he has managed so far; more of the air raid siren being played before Z-Cars as the players run out before every game at Goodison; and more sharp shooting from Bernard. I’m looking forward to seeing him score his first Premier League goal for Everton after a trademark jinky, tricky run.
Less of this please… 5.30pm kick-offs for away games on Saturday nights down south; Richarlison diving; and in-stadium (mostly Anfield) iPads and half-and-half scarves.
Predictions… We will finish: 8th. The top four: 1 Man City; 2 Tottenham; 3 Arsenal; 4 Chelsea. Going down: 18 Cardiff; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
Steve Jones @BlueKippercom
Fulham
It’s been desperately poor. Our hard-earned return to the top flight has been spectacularly mishandled. Last May it felt we had the ingredients for a rich fruit cake that just needed some professional icing. Instead we’ve been served a soggy omelette. And a flipping expensive one at that. Shelling out an astonishing £100m is all well and good if it’s part of a coordinated recruitment drive. But, not for the first time, we started a campaign with a below-par, unbalanced squad. Slavisa Jokanovic – who stubbornly refused to compromise his ideals – paid the price. In truth, though, it’s us, the fans, who’ve been shortchanged.
More of this please … Points! Goals. Hope. Stability. Some positive planning for next season would be welcome, too. At least there’s been a measure of pride, passion and team structure in evidence in recent games under Scott Parker.
Less of this please … Goals flying in at the wrong end. Frequent managerial changes. Yet more wholesale changes in playing staff – the revolving-door policy doesn’t work. Neither does the heavily stats-based recruitment system, which has been as successful as the interminable Brexit negotiations. Oh, and extortionate ticket pricing.
Predictions… We will finish: 19th. The top four: 1 Man City; 2 Liverpool; 3 Tottenham; 4 Man United. Going down: 18 Cardiff; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
David Lloyd Toofif.co.uk
Huddersfield
I can’t recall spirits being this low since Andy Ritchie was at the helm in League One. Our players aren’t very good – we don’t blame them for that – but since the turn of the year they’ve simply given up and that’s unacceptable. Spending your afternoons watching Steve Mounié, Aaron Mooy, Zanka and Phil Billing duck out of challenges and barely break sweat is thoroughly depressing.
More of this please … Red cards. If we can get enough men sent off in every game to have matches abandoned then at least we won’t have to sit through this absolute dross. Frankly, I’d just be happy to see some of our players trying again. Losing every week is naturally going to drain their confidence but as fans we just want to see them put a shift in from now until the end of the season.
Less of this please … Steve Mounié, Steve Mounié and Steve Mounié. Pound for pound the worst player I’ve ever seen in our shirt. And that’s saying something, considering I’ve followed this club to the pits of League Two and back. Oh, and less frame-by-frame over-analysis by pundits of innocuous tackles. Whenever there’s a controversial moment we’re subjected to endless analysis of it in slow motion. The pundit commenting on the tackle then goes on to tell us how a player, in a split-second, has made a decision to hurt an opponent or duck out of a tackle. It’s a nonsense, even more so when Graeme Souness and Martin Keown are telling us how “reprehensible” a challenge is.
Predictions… We will finish: Rock bottom. The top four: 1 Man City; 2 Liverpool; 3 Arsenal; 4 Tottenham. Going down: 18 Cardiff; 19 Fulham; 20 Huddersfield
John McNamara TerrierBlog.co.uk @TerrierBlog
