Barclays Premier League Table: 2015 EPL Roundup After Week 17 Saturday Results
Chelsea were victorious in their first match following former manager Jose Mourinho's sacking, while Leicester City continued their winning ways in Week 17 of the 2015-16 Premier League season and Norwich City shocked Manchester United.
The Blues beat Sunderland 3-1, courtesy of goals from Branislav Ivanovic, Pedro and Oscar, while the Foxes beat Everton 3-2 in a thrilling match. Meanwhile, Norwich City beat United 2-1, allowing Tottenham Hotspur to leap over the Red Devils in the standings.
Here's a look at the full results from Saturday:
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| Southampton | 0-2 | Tottenham Hotspur |
| Stoke City | 1-2 | Crystal Palace |
| WBA | 1-2 | Bournemouth |
| Chelsea | 3-1 | Sunderland |
| Everton | 2-3 | Leicester City |
| Manchester United | 1-2 | Norwich City |
| Newcastle | 1-1 | Aston Villa |
The current Premier League standings:
| 1 | Leicester | 17 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 37 | 24 | +13 | 38 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 16 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 29 | 13 | +16 | 33 |
| 3 | Manchester City | 16 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 32 | 17 | +15 | 32 |
| 4 | Tottenham | 17 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 28 | 14 | +14 | 29 |
| 5 | Manchester United | 17 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 22 | 14 | +8 | 29 |
| 6 | Crystal Palace | 17 | 9 | 2 | 6 | 23 | 16 | +7 | 29 |
| 7 | Watford | 16 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 18 | 16 | +2 | 25 |
| 8 | West Ham | 16 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 25 | 21 | +4 | 24 |
| 9 | Liverpool | 16 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 20 | 19 | +1 | 24 |
| 10 | Everton | 17 | 5 | 8 | 4 | 31 | 24 | +7 | 23 |
| 11 | Stoke | 17 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 14 | 16 | -2 | 23 |
| 12 | Southampton | 17 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 21 | 21 | 0 | 21 |
| 13 | West Bromwich Albion | 17 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 17 | 23 | -6 | 20 |
| 14 | Bournemouth | 17 | 5 | 4 | 8 | 22 | 32 | -10 | 19 |
| 15 | Chelsea | 17 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 21 | 27 | -6 | 18 |
| 16 | Norwich | 17 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 20 | 29 | -9 | 17 |
| 17 | Newcastle United | 17 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 19 | 32 | -13 | 17 |
| 18 | Swansea | 16 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 15 | 24 | -9 | 14 |
| 19 | Sunderland | 17 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 18 | 33 | -15 | 12 |
| 20 | Aston Villa | 17 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 14 | 31 | -17 | 7 |
Recap
Chelsea looked remarkably solid in their first match following Mourinho's departure, but as shared by BBC Sport's Phil McNulty, the Special One's absence was keenly felt all afternoon:
There were countless banners all over the stadium, his name was chanted several times and a number of players―most notably Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa―were treated to jeers just about every time the ball came near them.
The Blues played well and took the lead through Ivanovic in the opening minutes, before Pedro doubled their advantage soon after. But the quick start did little to change the minds of the fans, which made for one of the oddest atmospheres seen inside a British stadium this season.
Oscar added a third goal from the penalty spot early in the second half, and Fabio Borini scored for the visitors.
Per the Daily Telegraph's Paul Hayward, Costa was one of the few players who failed to impress:
The Spaniard's time at the club may soon come to an end, as his relationship with the fans appears broken beyond repair.
United's slump continued with a 2-1 loss against Norwich City, a result that sees the Canaries leave the relegation zone and Spurs jump into fourth place in the standings.
TV personality Stephen Fry was one of many to congratulate the visitors:
United have now gone four straight Premier League matches without a win, and manager Louis van Gaal may soon join Jose Mourinho on the open market. The Red Devils put in an uninspired performance after a bright start, and even down by just a goal, they barely tried to push for an equaliser late on.
Their showing led to some fans chanting the name of Mourinho, and following the result, expect to hear plenty of rumours linking him with the job.
Cameron Jerome and Alexander Tettey scored for the visitors, while Anthony Martial pulled one back in the second half.
Dutch Football thought it was one of the lowest points of Van Gaal's managerial career:
"Today was probably the lowest point of Louis van Gaal career since that Netherlands defeat to Republic of Ireland in 2001.
— Dutch Football (@football_oranje) December 19, 2015"
In-form Leicester City and Everton were always going to serve up an exciting match, and the two sides didn't disappoint, with the Foxes emerging as 3-2 winners.
Riyad Mahrez scored twice from the penalty spot, and Shinji Okazaki also found the net for the visitors. Romelu Lukaku and Kevin Mirallas did so for the hosts, and Bleacher Report UK noted the former's incredible form:
But all eyes were on Leicester, whose dream season continued with another win. Per the Premier League's official Twitter account, they set another record on Saturday:
As one might expect, manager Claudio Ranieri had nothing but praise for his players, via Squawka Football:
Harry Kane and Dele Alli scored for Tottenham, who beat Southampton 2-0 and passed United in the standings thanks to a superior goal difference. Spurs sit just four points behind rivals Arsenal, who play Manchester City on Monday.
Chung-Yong Lee scored a late winner for Crystal Palace, who beat Stoke City 2-1, while West Bromwich Albion finished their 2-1 loss against AFC Bournemouth with just nine players. James McClean and Salomon Rondon both saw straight red cards, the former for a rash tackle and the latter for a perceived headbutt.
In the final match of the day, Aston Villa and Newcastle United drew 1-1.
