Fates Were Sealed

Results went in favor of Newcastle this weekend, so much so that the Magpies suddenly find themselves safe from relegation.  And they weren't the only ones.  Nine different sides saw their destinies decided - for good or bad - by Tuesday evening.  Also, not a bad week for the Union.

Done and Dusted

Paul Dummett's header makes it 2-0 

As we've noted before, nothing better than starting the weekend off with your side getting a good result on Friday.  In truth, Newcastle's 4-2 win over Leicester wasn't merely good, it was great.   Possible Loanee of the January Window, Joe Willock (Jesse Lingard might argue otherwise) got the Magpies an early - and deserved - lead with a goal in the 22nd minute.  But the possibility that this would be Newcastle's day became real with Paul Dummett's header goal in the 34th minute.  Certainly a point was possible and the way they were playing, Newcastle looked capable of taking all three.  Second half goals from Callum Wilson extended the lead to 4-0.  A couple of late goals for Leicester (one of course from EatANacho) made this unnecessarily close but Newcastle held on for the 4-2 win.

Clearly the efforts from Wilson and Willock were key but don't overlook the continued brilliance of Dubravka in goal.  He had seven saves, often at critical points, to ensure that the Magpies would get the win.  Also, Matt Ritchie had another solid performance.  With the win, Newcastle's magic number fell to one point, meaning that Fulham would need to win every one of their final four matches.  Dennis chided me for insisting that it was not over, pointing out that Fulham had won five all year and now needed to win four straight.  He suggested that there was something like a .13% chance this would happen.  I was forced to concede that for Fulham to win four they would need to score at least one goal a game without conceding any and given that they were averaging .74 goals per game, this was highly unlikely.  

But .13% is still non-zero so we held off celebrating for the moment.  Flash forward to Monday afternoon with Fulham hosting Burnley.  The Clarets, perhaps in a sympathetic gesture to the Toon Army (I doubt it),  took control early and had things pretty much well in hand with a 2-0 lead by half time.  I suppose the fact that a win also meant Burnley were safe from relegation might have had something to do with it.  The second half proceeded uneventfully and both Newcastle and Burnley (and others it turns out - see below) get to celebrate another year in the top division.

Since the 0-3 debacle to Brighton, which left them with 47% chance of relegation, Newcastle have 11 points from six matches, including eight points from four of the top seven teams.  They clearly stepped up to the challenge, ending the relegation threat much earlier than expected.  

Others Done and Dusted

The Fulham-Burnley result settled the fate of of five different clubs.  Fulham were consigned to relegation, ending the threats for Newcastle, Brighton, Southampton, and Burnley.  Earlier in the weekend, Crystal Palace clinched safety with a 2-0 win over Sheffield United.  Combined with their 3-1 win over Aston Villa, Man United clinched a Champions League berth when Everton tipped West Ham 1-0 (which means Lingard did not score).  Sam Allardyce's non-relegation streak was ended with West Brom's 1-3 loss to Arsenal.  And Man United's 1-2 loss to Leicester on Tuesday meant that Man City were crowned champions of the Premier League.  

With all this clinching, there are still some important spots to play for.  The last two Champions League slots are still up for grabs, as are spots in the two Europa competitions.  Leicester and Chelsea still look best positioned for the Champions League but Liverpool have a game in hand so it's not quite done.  Fifth through seventh are tight, with West Ham, Liverpool, Tottenham, Arsenal and Everton still in the hunt.

At 17 (apologies to Janis Ian)

McGlynn (2nd from left) - 16 is not is age

Suspensions, a congested schedule and generally limited depth for the Union meant that Jack McGlynn started on Saturday vs Chicago and again on Wednesday versus New England.  He wears #16 and while that could be his age, he's actually all of 17.  Didn't play like it though.  WhoScored.com gave him a solid 7.0 against Chicago; not as good Wednesday with a 6.2 but still acceptable.

The Union looked solidly in control at Chicago and the 2-0 win is a fair accounting of what I saw on the pitch.  Back home at Subaru Park, New England proved a much tougher opponent.  Though an even match throughout, the Revolution looked poised to steal a victory with an 85th minute goal from Teal Bunbury.  Fortunately, shuhBILLkoh pulled that one back in just three minutes and the 1-1 final was a totally deserved result.  Never good to draw at home but New England are hot right now, so this is not awful.  It was also in the middle of three games in nine days.

All Some To Play For

The downside of all this early clinching is that the number of matches of consequences drops dramatically.  There is the FA Cup Final featuring Chelsea vs Leicester (12:15 Saturday on ESPN+), but despite a full weekend plus mid-week fixtures, a little thin on excitement.

Take Newcastle home to Man City on Friday at 3 pm (Peacock). No really, take it.  Not much to see there.  Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa Sunday at 7 am (NBCSN)?  Southampton - Leeds Tuesday afternoon at 1 pm?  See what I mean?

Look carefully though and there are some important matches.  West Ham is at Brighton Saturday at 3 pm on Peacock.  The Hammers need a win to keep their CL hopes alive.  Tottenham hope to keep Europa League in the picture as they host Wolves on Sunday at 9:05 on NBCSN.  Liverpool will hope to get all three at West Brom (Sunday 11:30 on NBCSN).  And Everton need to take care of Sheffield United Sunday at 2 pm on Peacock.

Wait, what's this?  No matches on Monday.  First time since April 2nd (?) with no EPL, Champions League or Europa League.

Tuesday afternoon does have a good looking fixture, with Chelsea hosting Leicester at 3:15 pm.  This is a break for Liverpool in that somebody's dropping points. To be fair, there are several matches on Wednesday with consequences, including Everton-Wolves, Tottenham - Aston Villa, Crystal Palace-Arsenal, Burnley-Liverpool and West Brom - West Ham.  Okay, so I maybe overstated how many meaningless matches there are.  Maybe the matchups aren't scintillating but they are meaningful.

Will be at Subaru Park Saturday to see the Union face the Pink Cows.  That's at 7:30 on PHL-17.

Spend your day off on Monday wisely.  European Championships are coming soon.

Special Bonus BFS

As the lead GIF maker for this blog, I felt it would be criminal if we did not show off this "beauty" from Arsenal's Thomas Partay late in their victory over Chelsea. Partay is sent on his way by Lacazette only to be double teamed in the Chelsea box, decide that it was just too much running, and that he should lay down for a second. He takes the slightest nudge from Hudson-Odoi, bravely stumbles forward a few steps, then simply collapses. Truly a masterpiece that was immediately (and I mean immediately) rewarded with the appropriate yellow card.  

-Dennis