Barclays Premier League Table: Updated 2015 EPL Review After Week 18 Results
Manchester City cruised to a 4-1 win over Sunderland in Week 18, closing the gap to Premier League leaders Leicester City to just three points following the Foxes' 1-0 loss against Liverpool.
Manchester United dropped their fourth match in a row, losing at Stoke City, 2-0, and Chelsea couldn't get interim manager Guus Hiddink's second tenure off to a winning start, drawing with Watford, 2-2. In the late match, Arsenal wasted the chance to go top of the standings, losing 4-0 against Southampton.
Here's a look at the full results from Boxing Day:
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| Stoke City | 2-0 | Manchester United |
| Aston Villa | 1-1 | West Ham United |
| Crystal Palace | 0-0 | Bournemouth |
| Chelsea | 2-2 | Watford |
| Liverpool | 1-0 | Leicester City |
| Manchester City | 4-1 | Sunderland |
| Swansea City | 1-0 | West Bromwich Albion |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 3-0 | Norwich City |
| Newcastle United | 0-1 | Everton |
| Southampton | 4-0 | Arsenal |
The current Premier League standings:
| 1 | Leicester City | 18 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 12 | 38 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 18 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 13 | 36 |
| 3 | Manchester City | 18 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 17 | 35 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 18 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 17 | 32 |
| 5 | Crystal Palace | 18 | 9 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 30 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 18 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 29 |
| 7 | Watford | 18 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 29 |
| 8 | Liverpool | 18 | 7 | 6 | 5 | -1 | 27 |
| 9 | Everton | 18 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 8 | 26 |
| 10 | West Ham United | 18 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 26 |
| 11 | Stoke City | 18 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 26 |
| 12 | Southampton | 18 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 24 |
| 13 | West Bromwich Albion | 18 | 5 | 5 | 8 | -7 | 20 |
| 14 | Bournemouth | 18 | 5 | 5 | 8 | -10 | 20 |
| 15 | Chelsea | 18 | 5 | 4 | 9 | -6 | 19 |
| 16 | Swansea City | 18 | 4 | 6 | 8 | -8 | 18 |
| 17 | Norwich City | 18 | 4 | 5 | 9 | -12 | 17 |
| 18 | Newcastle United | 18 | 4 | 5 | 9 | -14 | 17 |
| 19 | Sunderland | 18 | 3 | 3 | 12 | -18 | 12 |
| 20 | Aston Villa | 18 | 1 | 5 | 12 | -17 | 8 |
Review
Shane Long bagged a brace in Southampton's 4-0 win over Arsenal, who put together a thoroughly underwhelming performance just one week after beating Manchester City.
TV personality Piers Morgan couldn't believe it:
Cuco Martina opened the score with a wonderful effort from long range, taking advantage of some dreadful defending, a recurring theme throughout the match. Jose Miguel Fonte also found the net against the Gunners.
The loss means Arsenal remain in second place, just one point ahead of City.
Manchester City's home form has been just fine this season, and manager Manuel Pellegrini's men underlined that with a 4-1 win over Sunderland on Saturday. Midfielder Kevin de Bruyne once again powered the Citizens with two assists and a goal, while striker Wilfried Bony missed a penalty late.
Bony and midfielders Yaya Toure and Raheem Sterling completed the scoring for the hosts, and forward Fabio Borini pulled one back for the Black Cats in the second half.
Not everything went right for the Citizens, however. Captain Vincent Kompany celebrated his return from injury against Sunderland, but the celebrations were cut short when he left the pitch less than 10 minutes after coming on. One has to wonder why Pellegrini took the risk of handing him some minutes in a match City were clearly dominating without him.
City's away form has been spotty at best this season, but at the Etihad Stadium, the club has been phenomenal, via Squawka Football:
The win sees City make up some ground on Leicester City, who suffered their second loss of the season against Liverpool. Striker Christian Benteke scored the only goal at Anfield, a smart side-footed finish midway through the second half.
Benteke started the match on the bench, but an injury to youngster Divock Origi forced manager Jurgen Klopp's hand. The former Aston Villa man came up big to score the winning goal, although he also produced one of the worst misses of the season in controversial fashion.
Late in the match, the Reds countered with numbers and had several players beyond the goalkeeper in Leicester's half. The ball was played to the Belgian, who was several feet beyond the goalkeeper with just one defender between him and the goal. For some reason, the flag stayed down, to the amusement of ESPN FC's Michael Caley:
"To be fair to the linesman, Benteke was only about 10-15 yards offside and you really need to give the benefit of the doubt to the attacker.
— Michael Caley (@MC_of_A) December 26, 2015"
Benteke's miss was almost overshadowed by that of Oscar, who could have given Chelsea a late lead over Watford. Tied at two goals each, the Brazilian lined up to take a penalty but slipped in his run-up, lifting the ball several feet over Heurelho Gomes' goal.
Sam Wallace of the Daily Telegraph put it this way:
Striker Diego Costa bagged a brace, but Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo also found the net to ensure the Hornets' strong form continued. Chelsea put together a solid performance, playing a more attacking brand of football than they did under former manager Jose Mourinho, but many of the squad's issues were once again on show.
Defensive errors were aplenty, and midfielder Cesc Fabregas still looks nothing like the elite playmaker that dominated the Premier League last season. Costa's upturn in form is a promising sign, however, and Eden Hazard made a positive impact off the bench.
It's too early to make any statements on Hiddink's impact, although we can talk about his sense of humour, via ESPN FC's Liam Twomey:
Manchester United's dreadful stretch of form continued with a 2-0 loss against Stoke City, the club's fourth straight losing effort across all competitions. Forwards Bojan Krkic and Marko Arnautovic both scored in the first half, and the hosts easily controlled the pace of the match from there.
The loss sees the Red Devils drop out of the top five, with Tottenham Hotspur beating Norwich City, 3-0, and Crystal Palace managing a scoreless draw against Bournemouth. Spurs in particular have looked strong of late and could widen the gap quickly if United's poor form continues.
Per Daniel Taylor of the Guardian, Red Devils manager Louis van Gaal didn't shy away from making any bold statements after the loss:
Forward Harry Kane scored twice and midfielder Thomas Carroll added a late third to secure the three points for Spurs, who sit just three points behind Manchester City in the standings.
Aston Villa and West Ham United drew, 1-1, in Birmingham, England, and Swansea City finally snapped their winless streak, beating West Bromwich Albion, 1-0. Meanwhile, Tom Cleverley scored a very late goal, as Everton beat Newcastle United 1-0.
