What Did The Mid-Week Fixtures Deliver?

Crystal Palace 1 - West Ham United 0

Tony Pulis may just pull this off. He of course has the record of never seeing a team demoted, and this first win is a good step towards maintaining that record. In what was a tough fixture for both teams who were equally desperate for all 3 points. I’m sticking to my early prediction of Palace going down and now Pulis’ record going with it. Pulis has reportedly been given the go ahead to spend money in January and I hope he can put it to good use because it’s great to see Aussie Mile Jedinak playing brilliant football week in and week out in the Premier League.

Home Advantage: What does it mean and why does it exist?

When we talk about home advantage in football what are we really talking about? Does not having to travel help preparation? Are the playing conditions more familiar? Does the crowd act as a “12th man”? Is the referee bias? Or is it purely psychological both for the home team and the players who are visiting? It’s the age old question which may never have a straight answer, but I’m happy to give it a go.

A Breath of Fresh Air in the Premier League

On this day, exactly one year ago, Chelsea were sitting top of the Premier League table, one point clear of United and City who were separated only by goal difference. The Gunners were 7 points off the pace, Liverpool were down in 12th with only 2 wins under their belt, QPR and Reading were in the drop zone, a sign of things to come, and nestled in between them was Southampton.

How times have changed. And by God do I love it, which in part is my bias as a Liverpool fan, but to a much larger degree is my bias as a fan of the Premier League. In recent years the title race has been a predictable occasion with a handful of teams fighting it out. In particular the two Manchester clubs and Chelsea, with Arsenal not far behind.