Premier League strikes and misses. Chelsea demonstrates maturity while Arsenal's defense is a hallmark of champions

title challenge being led by Arsenal's defence

This should have been an unpleasant ending for Mikel Arteta's Arsenal, with Manchester United desperately trying to equalize in front of a crowded Old Trafford after trailing by a goal. One mistake may cost them dearly, as their title hopes are at stake.

They never really seemed to be in the mood to give up their 1-0 lead on Sunday afternoon. This Arsenal team has a serenity about it as opposed to the fervor of the previous one. Its foundation is the Premier League's best defensive record, especially while playing away from home.

Brittleness can be shown on the road, which is why Arsenal is still holding out hope that Tottenham will do them a favor when they play Manchester City on Tuesday and win the title. Arsenal has shown its best performance while traveling.

In their last away match of the Premier League season, this was their eleventh clean sheet. While no other side in the competition has managed more than four, City has only managed to muster six thus far. They stand out from the others in a clear way.

Clearly, continuity has been beneficial. This season, William Saliba has started every Premier League game at Old Trafford. He is without a doubt the player of the match. Of those 34 games, Gabriel has partnered with him in defense 33 times. They have excelled beyond measure.

 
Regardless of what occurs in the upcoming week, Arsenal has the top Premier League defense, even though it might not be enough. No team has conceded less than the eventual champions in any of the previous four seasons. Arsenal needs to hope that keeps happening.

Are Chelsea beginning to act more responsibly?

There have been far too many "back to square ones" for Chelsea. Three straight league victories were followed by a 4-1 loss to Liverpool. They lost 5-0 to Arsenal last month to counterbalance their 6-0 victory over Everton.

When Callum Hudson-Odoi put Nottingham Forest ahead 2-1, it appeared as though the Blues were in for another defeat. The £5 million player was overshadowing players like Mykahilo Mudryk and Raheem Sterling, whose home crowd was chanting "what a waste of money" as Forest seized the lead.

Nevertheless, following the match, Mauricio Pochettino stated, "The last few months, the team has showing this capacity to be strong in our mind and be more mature."

Chelsea's retaliation was a forceful reaction to the narratives they have encountered throughout the season.

When needed, Sterling and Nicolas Jackson are available. Despite his wounds, Reece James is a capable performer. With an assist and a beautiful pass for James to set up Jackson's winning goal, Moises Caicedo had the appearance of a player worth £115 million.

Chelsea has only dropped a league match in the last three months, and their 5-0 setback to Arsenal suddenly seems like a one-off. Who knows where Pochettino's 20 extra games this season would end up. Indeed, who knows where they're headed as a European slot gets closer?

Reminder of the summer window for Fulham as goals dry up

It appeared for a while that Fulham would be alright without Aleksandr Mitrovic. Given the unwelcome loss of their talisman last summer, both Marco Silva and owner Shahid Khan have emphasized how remarkable another mid-table season has been.

After nine games without a loss starting in early April, it appeared for a while that the Cottagers would even surpass the previous season's total.

However, warning signs are now beginning to sound.

Fulham's goals have decreased after Rodrigo Muniz's four goals in March earned him the Premier League player of the month award.

They have only scored five points in four of their last six games. Though not inherently depressing, the season is coming to an end on a note of warning.

Against Manchester City, it took over an hour to register even a shot, and it was their lone attempt. Maybe it's forgiveable against one of the top teams in the world.

However, a week earlier, it was an equally grim 0-0 at Fulham.

Muniz still appears to be a rough diamond with the potential to create a few more purple patches in the upcoming season. However, Fulham require more.

It's difficult to replace a striker of Mitrovic's caliber, so this summer is the time to find a solution if Silva's suggestion is to go to Europe the following season.

Spurs are back to winning ways ahead of their matchup with Manchester City.

Prior to their match against Burnley on Saturday, Tottenham was under a great deal of pressure. Following four heartbreaking Premier League losses in a row, a victory and strong play were required.

They also possessed both. Given that their own Premier League fate was at stake, Burnley's matchup with Spurs in the first half was expected, but the hosts quickly took the lead thanks to their better talent.

Though Spurs' clear player of the season, Micky Van de Ven, once again pulled them out of a hole, Ange Postecoglu would have preferred the winning goal to arrive sooner than the 82nd minute.

The Spurs manager said, "Credit to the players," on Sky Sports. "After four losses, there will undoubtedly be more tension and worry during the performance. Burley had to take a shot at it. What pleases me is that the boys persevered and achieved their goal."

The statistics demonstrate that they have returned to the standard form that we are accustomed to. Only Liverpool (28) has recovered more points from losing positions in the Premier League this season than Tottenham (25), who have also scored in 36 matches.

They put on just the right performance in front of Tuesday night's big match, which will be shown live on Sky Sports and have ramifications for all of north London against title-chasing Manchester City.

Not to put too much emphasis on it, but Manchester City will provide a harder challenge than Burnley, yet a boost to confidence can work wonders. It remains to be seen if it will be sufficient to upset the Premier League title race.

Committed Burnley fight through to the finish

Even though Burnley's season came to an end with a return to the Championship, they didn't give up easily.

On Saturday, the Clarets offered their best effort yet. They truly played with the shackles off, as Vincent Kompany stated in his pre-game news conference, knowing it was a win or lose.

In fact, the figures were practically equal after a close first half. Burnley had four shots, half as many as Tottenham, but three of those were on goal. Additionally, the visitors' xG was higher.

And after the interval, they hardly embarrassed themselves either; Spurs' talent was evident. Aro Muric, the goalie, deserves special recognition for a series of excellent

However, Burnley required a lot to go their way in order to prevent a decline that had been looking likely for a while. But the club deserves recognition for their impressive showing in several games over the past two months, not only against Tottenham.

They gave themselves the best shot possible given their circumstances, and Kompany expressed optimism for the future as well as his team.

Burnley and Kompany are aware of what the Championship entails, but more crucially, they know how to win it. Next season's success is being constructed right now.

Finally, Newcastle needs to perform away from home.

For the first time in Premier League history, Newcastle fans have scored at least one goal in all 19 of their home league games, proving they got good value for their season tickets at St James' Park.

Their team had previously scored in 20 out of 21 home games in 1994/95 and 18 out of 19 in the 1995/96, 1996/97, and 2002/03 campaigns, but they have now broken the mark this term.

Their biggest sources of entertainment throughout a difficult season that has seen Eddie Howe's team beset by injuries and compete in the Champions League have been Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon, and Callum Wilson.

Their 15th-place Premier League away record has also proved to be their downfall. Newcastle still has to win both of its remaining away games against Brentford and Manchester United in order to make Europe again.

Brighton should be shaped around Enciso by De Zerbi.

Brighton was reminded by Julio Enciso of what they've lost and the reasons Roberto De Zerbi should center the team around him for the upcoming campaign.

The 20-year-old Paraquayan made his Premier League debut at Newcastle on just his fourth start of the season before being forced to miss 32 games across all competitions with a knee injury.

Since his return in February, De Zerbi has gradually eased Enciso back into action. Although he hasn't finished a match yet, his sharpness has started to return.

With his enthusiasm and inventiveness, Enciso thrived at St James' Park, where he was a key component of Brighton's most memorable moments as a striker behind Danny Welbeck.

In the last third, he showed signs of frailty as three of his five attempts went wide, and his weird dive earned him a booking. Despite this, he is still a Brighton gem who can blossom under De Zerbi.

Calvert-Lewin's attitude is still unplayable.

If Dominic Calvert-Lewin had been this fit and productive the entire season, where would Everton be?

Since his late penalty earned Everton a late point at Newcastle, he has had a completely different appearance. It's amazing what a goal can accomplish, but Sean Dyche deserves praise for his management of Calvert-Lewin's workload. He started this incredible run of five straight home wins to zero when he scored the game-winning goal in the 1-0 victory over Burnley.

Everton and Calvert-Lewin have been unstoppable ever since, defeating Sheffield United, Nottingham Forest, Liverpool, Brentford, and others without giving up a goal. There isn't a team in better form than Manchester City and Arsenal.

The powderpuff Blades were unable to handle Calvert-Lewin's pace, strength, and aggression; shortly before halftime, their displeasure reached a boiling point when Jack Robinson shoved the striker aggressively and for no apparent reason. The Everton player is almost unplayable right now. If Everton has to cash in, Calvert-Lewin won't be short of bidders because the club may hold a fire sale in the summer.

Despite losing, Solanke outperforms England's opponent, Toney.

Ivan Toney's team prevailed in a striker competition between Dominic Solanke and himself to get a spot on the England squad for Euro 2024, but Solanke's team had a stronger argument.

Even though Three Lions coach Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink's team lost the match at the Vitality Stadium, Solanke scored his 19th Premier League goal of the year in front of him. On a different day, he would have scored a hat-trick if two contentious first-half decisions had gone his way.

The 26-year-old was up for the Golden Boot until recently and has already scored more goals in a Premier League season than any other Bournemouth player. Conversely, Toney has yet to score in 11 Premier League games, which is the longest drought he has had since joining Northampton ten years ago.

During England's March friendlies against Brazil and Belgium, which were intended to allow Gareth Southgate to experiment with players on the verge of making his final squad for this summer's tournament, Toney and Ollie Watkins were given opportunities to shine in Harry Kane's absence.

However, Solanke, who only received one cap for his nation in 2017, went unnoticed, and it's unclear why. He deserves another chance to play for his country since he has developed into a complete striker.

Without a doubt, Toney possesses amazing abilities, but Solanke is pounding on Southgate's door as he gets back into the grind of the Premier League after an extended absence. The England manager will be hard-pressed not to select him because of him.

Luton is well-positioned to immediately ascend again.

After a 3-1 loss against West Ham put Luton Town back down to the Championship, Rob Edwards cut a forlorn figure at full time, tears streaming down his cheeks as he and his players praised their supporters.

Edwards, though, was more optimistic during his post-game press conference, correctly noting how his squad, which no one thought would survive, has been able to play with most Premier League teams this year.

Edwards is correct in that his team has already demonstrated that they can compete at this level. "Some of our players have looked like Premier League players," he correctly noted. In addition, with the parachute payments on the horizon, it would be shocking if the Hatters did not immediately return to the top flight in a year.

Olise excels once more in Palace's triumph

Michael Olise once again stole the show in Crystal Palace's well-earned 3-1 victory over Wolves at Molineux, following his two goals in the team's 4-0 triumph over Manchester United on Monday night. It was entertaining to watch him lead his team to victory.

Olise set up the final goal and scored the game's first with a strike that has come to be known as his hallmark. He was always attempting to build in between. Oliver Glasner seems to have discovered a way of playing that maximizes the potential of the wide forward, which is beneficial.

At the post-game press conference, Glasner said to reporters, "I think everybody knows that he is a good player." "We also seem to have found him a very good position," He gains from other players as well. Daniel Munoz provides him room regardless of how frequently he runs."

Olise, who entered from the right side, assisted and scored in this game for the second time in five. Since Glasner took over, Olise seems to have advanced as a player, especially with the ever-vigorous Munoz and possibilities both inside and outside.

Not just the Palace shirts at Molineux agreed with the crowd. "He's just too good for you," the farewell song said. The home crowd echoed this shout in unison and then said, "You'll never see him again." Fans of Palace will hope they are mistaken.

Wolves die whimpering, but with pride

Looking back, it seems that Wolves' season lost steam after losing to Coventry in the FA Cup quarterfinal. Since then, they have only won once in ten games, and their 3-1 loss to Crystal Palace at home has proven that Gary O'Neil's team is fading away.

At Molineux, there was no shortage of perspective—despite losing, the players enthusiastically applauded as the end-of-season honors were presented on the field. Everyone knows that instead of being a fun campaign, this one could have been contentious.

The fact that O'Neil was missing just Pedro Neto and Craig Dawson is cause for concern. While the other is 34, the former is probably going to get interest from other clubs in the summer. Wolves must get stronger, but any money needed must come from sales.

This summer, a lot of other Premier League teams will have to figure out how to go better without making any investments. O'Neil's outstanding job has given him the opportunity to gradually encourage his players to grow on the training field, but it won't be simple.

Finding ways to make the opposition's passing from the back more problematic than their own will be a good place to start. More than any other team this season, Wolves have failed to win in their own defensive third 242 times. Pre-season work is quite demanding.

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