What to Watch : Matchday 26
Ready for the weekend? I know I am.
Watching the Reds is always exciting win or lose but since our game is the last game on Sunday, let’s take a look at some of the other interesting matchups from this weekend.
Manchester City vs West Ham United
Saturday 7:30 Eastern
I know, I know. The only thing that would make you wake you up that early on a Saturday would be for a game featuring Liverpool, especially if you are on the West Coast. In case your dog wakes you up to go outside and you can’t fall back asleep, you are coming from a really late night of partying, or just a morning person in general, this one is a good one to keep an eye on.
Manchester City is looking like a team that will run away with the title and let’s face it. If any Manchester team is going to win, we would rather have City be the one. Since they can’t be stopped at the moment, might as well root for them to beat West Ham to give the Reds a chance in catching up in points for the top 4 battle. City might not be the same attacking force of the past but still have enough quality to find a way to score and get the three points. Huge game for West Ham as well. On paper, this would be a game bringing zero points. If they can convert that to one or perhaps three, it would go a long way in the chase for a Champions League spot.
Leicester City vs Arsenal
Sunday 7:00 EST
I know!!!! It is early, again! Don’t blame me for the scheduling, I want to sleep in as much as the next guy on a Sunday. This is one you do not have to set the alarm for or anything, but a good one to go along with that Sunday morning cup of coffee, arguably the best one of the week.
While Arsenal was able to save themselves in the last minutes of the game on Thursday, Leicester City made a shocking exit from the Europa League. It will be interesting to see how both teams respond to Thursday. Leicester City will look to get ahead of Manchester United this weekend especially with the latter facing Chelsea later in the day.
You never know what you will get from this Arsenal team. They have players that have the quality to create but just do not have the consistency to push up the table and got only 4 points out of their last 5 games in the league. They have a team that looks a split second away from a red card at all times and have only themselves to blame for always trying to fight losing battles with 10 players or less.
Chelsea vs Manchester United
Sunday 11:30 EST
We can almost expect United to sit back and try to hit on the counter-attack. Even with a City win that would push the gap to 13 points, I do not expect United to be the aggressive side in this game. They will know that the scoring chances will be there with their speedy forwards with perhaps a penalty or two thrown in there for good measure. Even though United played a late game on Thursday, they were able to rest their players with the tie already secured after the first game. Most of their key players only played for a half with the weekend in mind. An interesting matchup either way with Chelsea still trying to figure things out under Tuchel and United continuing their rather surprising form.
This could be painful to watch and you might need a shower after the game since a United win helps our top 4 cause. It could also be a huge morale boost for our boys knowing three points against Sheffield will get them level with Chelsea as we prepare to face them next week. I know some will not or cannot root for a United win but at least let’s go for a draw to help our cause in moving up in the standings. It is a likely result with both teams getting more draws than losses so far this season and we might not feel so guilty afterward. A win-win!