Barclays Premier League Table: Updated 2015 EPL Outlook After Week 27 Results

Week 27’s Saturday matches were hardly the best advert for the beauty of Premier League football, but there were some big results at both ends of the table.

Manchester United moved up to third with a hard-fought win against 10-man Sunderland at Old Trafford, with Wayne Rooney netting his first and second goals of 2015.

Meanwhile, Tim Sherwood recorded back-to-back defeats as manager of Aston Villa, as his side went down 1-0 at Newcastle United despite putting together a spirited performance.

Here’s a look at the full results from a day of fiercely contested, tight fixtures, together with the latest Premier League table:

Date	Match
Saturday, Feburary 28	West Ham United 1-3 Crystal Palace
Saturday, Feburary 28	Burnley 0-1 Swansea City
Saturday, Feburary 28	Manchester United 2-0 Sunderland
Saturday, Feburary 28	Newcastle United 1-0 Aston Villa
Saturday, Feburary 28	Stoke City 1-0 Hull City
Saturday, Feburary 28	West Brom 1-0 Southampton
Sunday, March 1	Liverpool vs. Manchester City
Sunday, March 1	Arsenal vs. Everton

Position	Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Goal Difference	Points
1	Chelsea	26	18	6	2	56	22	+34	60
2	Manchester City	26	16	7	3	56	25	+31	55
3	Manchester United	27	14	8	5	46	26	+20	50
4	Arsenal	26	14	6	6	49	29	+20	48
5	Southampton	27	14	4	9	38	20	+18	46
6	Liverpool	26	13	6	7	38	29	+9	45
7	Tottenham Hotspur	26	13	5	8	41	36	+5	44
8	Swansea City	27	11	7	9	31	34	-3	40
9	West Ham United	27	10	9	8	39	33	+6	39
10	Stoke City	27	11	6	10	31	34	-3	39
11	Newcastle United	27	9	8	10	32	42	-10	35
12	Crystal Palace	27	7	9	11	31	38	-7	30
13	West Bromwich Albion	27	7	9	11	25	34	-9	30
14	Everton	26	6	10	10	33	37	-4	28
15	Hull City	27	6	8	13	25	36	-11	26
16	Sunderland	27	4	13	10	22	38	-16	25
17	Queens Park Rangers	26	6	4	16	27	45	-18	22
18	Burnley	27	4	10	13	25	45	-20	22
19	Aston Villa	27	5	7	15	13	37	-24	22
20	Leicester City	26	4	6	16	24	42	-18	18

Manchester United Up to Third Despite Unconvincing Display

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Something isn’t right about Manchester United this season.

The attacking spark that used to make them the best team in the world to watch has gone, even though they’re blessed with some of the most lethal forwards around.

Performances are flat, matches are dull and fans are understandably losing patience.

Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

Even the cries of “attack, attack, attack!” from the 75,000 inside Old Trafford wasn’t enough to get the Red Devils pushing for goals. Instead, they needed a big slice of fortune.

After John O’Shea hauled down Radamel Falcao in the box on 65 minutes, Rooney stepped up to give United an undeserved lead, but there was more drama to it than that.

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Referee Roger East sent Wes Brown off in an apparent case of mistaken identity, which is incredibly hard to get one’s head around.

The Manchester United fans, some a long way away in the top tier, knew that Brown wasn’t the offender, as former footballer James Scowcroft revealed:

Either way, Rooney’s goal and Sunderland being reduced to 10 men ruined the strong foundation the Black Cats had built at Old Trafford, and the result was never in doubt from then on.

The skipper then nodded home from close range to double his side’s lead, bringing up his 11th goal of the season and setting a new record in the process, per OptaJoe:

The debate now rather starts itself.

Rooney was sent up front just after scoring his opener and was far more impressive in that role having started the match in midfield.

Throughout the first half, the Englishman was picking the ball up in and around the centre circle and trying to dictate play—adopting a, sort of, Michael Carrick-approach.

Sure, Rooney is the type of player who can play anywhere, but you have to unleash him up front to get the best out of him.

It’s as simple as that.

He proved as much with his second goal, being in the right place at the right time to gobble up the chance after Costel Pantilimon fumbled an Adnan Januzaj effort.

United need a goalscorer. They have Robin van Persie and Radamel Falcao, of course, but their performances have been dire of late.

Falcao in particular has demonstrated reputation-defying incompetence up front, putting together some dismal displays.

Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

He played a big part in the penalty with a sublime touch, but was otherwise a little non-existent during the match.

Once Rooney was introduced to the forward role, though, United got their edge back.

Louis van Gaal now has to make a decision—keep playing Rooney out of position and struggle against poor sides, or take his leash off and reap the benefits.

Gary Lineker believes the solution is simple:

A win’s a win, though, and Van Gaal revealed after the match that he’s satisfied with his team’s display—per Sky Sports:

"

First half could be better but second half we have controlled the match. Scored goals, created chances and we didn’t give any chances away. We have played this system against Chelsea and Man City and Palace. At that time the balance was not so well as today. You can’t always play in this system. This is dependable on a lot of aspects in your team but also the opponent. Every player needs confidence and when you score two goals it lifts his [Rooney’s] confidence. I was also happy Falcao did that wonderful action because he prepared the penalty.

"

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

So, will the boss’ system change?

United have a very tough March to negotiate, starting away at Newcastle United before welcoming Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur to Old Trafford and closing with a trip to Anfield.

Whether or not Rooney will be put in his preferred position remains to be seen, but it could well prove a wise choice by Van Gaal.

Meanwhile, Southampton lost ground in the race for the top four with a disappointing 1-0 defeat to West Bromwich Albion.

Rui Vieira/Associated Press

Saido Berahino gave the Baggies the lead just two minutes into the match, and Tony Pulis’ men set up camp and held on from then in.

That means Saints slip down the table to fifth, with both Spurs and Liverpool able to leapfrog them if they win their respective games in hand.

At the bottom of the table, Crystal Palace edged ever closer to safety with an impressive 3-1 win away at West Ham United, while Burnley’s 1-0 defeat to Swansea City saw them remain in the relegation zone.

Kirsty Wigglesworth/Associated Press

Stoke City overcame Hull City in an uninspiring match at the Britannia, while Papiss Cisse’s goal kept Aston Villa in trouble at the bottom.

On Sunday in the Premier League, Liverpool take on Manchester City before Arsenal showdown with Everton, and here’s hoping that those two games serve up more drama than Saturday’s could muster.