New disappointments for the Premier League big names: Liverpool slowed down at Nottingham and Manchester City joined at the end of the match at Brentford. The difficult season continues for the Reds and the Citizens…
The English big names continue to disappoint this season in the Premier League. Liverpool, leader with a 6-point lead, was held to a 1-1 draw at the surprise Nottingham Forest on Tuesday. A draw which nevertheless allows the Reds to retain their leadership position. For their part, Manchester City thought they had done the hard part by leading 2-0 at Brentford, but the Cityzens were finally caught at 2-2 in the final seconds. An evening to forget for the two behemoths of the English championship.
Liverpool slowed down by a surprising Nottingham
Leader with 6 points ahead of its surprise runner-up Nottingham Forest (2nd), Liverpool hoped to consolidate its position at the top of the Premier League this Tuesday. But nothing went as planned for Jürgen Klopp’s men. Taken by the throat from the start by a goal from Chris Wood in the 8th minute, the Reds had to chase the score for a large part of the match. We had to wait for Diogo Jota to come on in the 66th minute to see Liverpool equalize straight away, just 22 seconds after his entry! The Portuguese, barely arriving on the field, took advantage of a corner to catapult the ball into the back of the net and put the two teams back on level terms. Liverpool will push until the end to snatch victory but the score will remain there, 1-1.
A zero result which suits the affairs of Nottingham Forest, promoted this season and a real revelation at the start of the financial year. The teammates of former Rennais Moussa Niakhaté maintain their invincibility at home (6 wins, 1 draw) and their runner-up place, 6 lengths behind Liverpool. A hell of a performance.
Manchester City scuttles at Brentford
At the same time, Manchester City hoped to take advantage of Liverpool’s misstep to return to 4 points from the lead, in the event of success at Brentford. And it all started perfectly for Pep Guardiola’s men with a quick double from Phil Foden (66th, 78th), allowing them to lead 2-0 with a quarter of an hour to go. This was without counting on the self-sacrifice of the Bees who didn’t give up.
Brentford first came back to 2-1 through Yoane Wissa in the 82nd minute, before Christian Norgaard’s incredible equalizer in added time (90+2). A cruel scenario for City who conceded the draw 2-2 and remained stuck in 6th place in the standings. With this new setback, the Cityzens see their title chances become a little further away.
An evening to forget for the Premier League big names
For Liverpool as for Manchester City, this 21st day of the Premier League will have a bitter taste. Held in check by teams in the second half of the table, the two English ogres performed very poorly. If the Reds remain in control with a 6-point lead, the gap could have been greater without this draw conceded in Nottingham.
As for City, this new misstep keeps them 12 points from the lead and greatly jeopardizes their title chances. With only 9 victories in 19 matches, the Skyblues are going through their worst season since the arrival of Pep Guardiola on the bench. We will have to pull ourselves together quickly or risk seeing leader Liverpool disappear for good and let a third consecutive Premier League title slip away. There is still a long way to go until May…
