Premier League: 5 talking points from the weekend action

"Football Ticket Pad takes a look at this weekends main talking points from the Premier League which includes a twist in the title race, return to form of an England striker, plus the battle for survival as Sunderland and Newcastle secure wins."
Published by
18th Apr 2016

Jon Moss: The referee’s individual performance is what caught the attention in a dramatic 2-2 draw between Leicester City and West Ham United at the King Power Stadium on Sunday which included a sending off and two penalties.

 

Moss controversially sent off Jamie Vardy for a second bookable offence when he was deemed to have dived in an attempt to win a penalty after being involved in a tangle of legs with West Ham’s Angelo Ogbonna shortly before the hour mark with Leicester leading 1-0.

In the final ten minutes, Moss then awarded West Ham a soft penalty to level the scores before awarding Leicester a penalty themselves in the 95th minute to secure a point after Aaron Cresswell appeared to have given the hammers all three points with his late strike.

Moss remained the talking point after he waved away two more far convincing penalty appeals in what was a day to forget for the referee from the North-East.

 

Relegation battle: Sunderland and Newcastle United both secured vital three points to close the gap on Norwich in 17th place.

Sunderland convincingly beat Norwich 3-0 at Carrow Road with goals from Fabio Borini, Jermain Defoe and Duncan Watmore to keep alive their survival hopes in the weekend’s early kick off and close the gap to one point with a game in hand on their weekend opponents.

Rafael Benitez also managed to secure a much needed first victory in charge after brushing aside Swansea 3-0 at St-James’ Park. Newcastle remain three points adrift of Norwich but also have one game in hand as the three clubs battle to regain their Premier League status.

 

Daniel Sturridge: The Liverpool striker returned to the starting line-up at the weekend and marked his return with a winning goal against Bournemouth.

The frontman put in a Man of the Match display with an improvised back-heel assist for Roberto Firmino’s opener, before hitting the woodwork twice and scoring himself as he stormed back into Jurgen Klopp’s plans after being troubled with injuries this season.

His performance no doubt illustrated his quality and importance to the side who have missed his presence for large parts this season. His display at the weekend will be a welcome boost for Liverpool and England as he edges close to full fitness.

 

Sergio Aguero: The Argentine scored a scintillating hat-trick as he helped Manchester City brush aside Chelsea 3-0 at Stamford Bridge in a complete team display to remain in touching distance of Tottenham Hotspur in second place.

Aguero now has 26 goals in 41 games this season after being dogged with injuries this campaign.

The City frontman capped off two counter attacking moves either side of half-time before completing his hat-trick with a coolly taken spot kick late on to heap more misery on what has been a disappointing season for Chelsea.

 

Aston Villa: Their 1-0 defeat to Manchester United on Saturday sealed their fate as they were relegated from the Premier League with four games to go to cap a disastrous campaign.

The managerless Villa have had a terrible season with only three wins to their name and relegation comes as no surprise to the club who lost their Premier League status after a 28 year stay.

Villa payed the price for failing to replace the likes of Christian Benteke, Fabian Delph and Ron Vlaar in the summer transfer market. Then manager, Reme Garde, was not given any funds to strengthen his side in January and have since been staring down the barrel of relegation.

Aston Villa will look to put this season behind them and return back to the top flight as quickly as possible. However, it is far more easier said than done.