Matchday 17 saw a number of significant results as Chelsea continued their victory march and the Manchester clubs got back into the reckoning after a difficult couple of months. Arsenal seem to have deflated considerably and after a 14-match unbeaten streak, faced back to back defeats against Everton and Manchester City within a few days.
Liverpool notched up a late win against Everton in the highly-anticipated Merseyside Derby which saw them then move up to the 2nd in the table after temporarily being displaced by Manchester City for a day.
Let us take a look at the top 3 talking points from the weekend.
CHELSEA TITLE ELECT?
It is now 11-matches without a loss or a draw for Antonio Conte-led Chelsea. We are now seeing a typical solid Chelsea team but what will be worrying for their rivals is the fact that Conte seems to have made them better and meaner. He has set his team up in a 3-4-3 formation and the players have fit in like a glove.
The Blues were steamrolling their opponents initially in their winning streak but have had to dig in and grind out results in their last 3 matches. And this week’s win against Crystal Palace was something similar. The London club seems determined this year and are already 6 points ahead of the chasing pack. At this rate, it will take something extraordinary to stop them.
SHOULD PEP GUARDIOLA CURB THE EXPERIMENTS TO AN EXTENT?
There was a lot of chatter surrounding Pep Guardiola’s decision to tinker with his formation and personnel which left is team visibly confused and bereft of solidity and cohesiveness. The 3-man at the back formula did not suit them and the players were found wanting on several occasions.
Since then, he seems to have reverted to a back four and a holding midfielder in front the backline. Wins against Watford and Arsenal highlight the fact that he might be better off focusing on the mentality and work-rate rather than overtly changing the formation.
ARSENAL STUTTERING AGAIN
Arsenal escaped with two draws and a win from the quiet November period, where traditionally they have been having a torrid time. But after a couple of convincing wins, they have now lost 2 on the bounce.
In both the matches, they have squandered a lead and gone on to lose the match. In face of added aggression and pressure from Everton and City, they wilted badly and were found wanting on all fronts.
