EPL Table: 2018 Week 12 Standings After Sunday's Premier League Scores
November 11, 2018
Manchester City have stayed two points clear at the top of the Premier League after beating derby rivals Manchester United 3-1 at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
City won for the 10th time this season, while United stay eighth after a fourth defeat. The Red Devils are now 12 points off the pace.
Liverpool went top earlier in the day after beating Fulham 2-0 at Anfield. The result also kept the Cottagers bottom of the table.
Chelsea then wasted the chance to leapfrog City in the standings, temporarily at least, when Everton left Stamford Bridge with a point after a 0-0 draw. While Chelsea remain unbeaten, manager Maurizio Sarri will be concerned by the number of draws his side is producing instead of wins.
Arsenal failed to keep the pressure on north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur in fourth place after drawing 1-1 against Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Emirates Stadium.
Standings (matches played, wins, goal difference and points, per the league's official website)
1. Manchester City: 12, 10, +31, 32
2. Liverpool: 12, 9, +18, 30
3. Chelsea: 12, 8, +19, 28
4. Tottenham Hotspur: 12, 9, +10, 27
5. Arsenal: 12, 7, +11, 24
6. Bournemouth: 12, 6, +5, 20
7. Watford: 12, 6, +3, 20
8. Manchester United: 12, 6, -1, 20
9. Everton: 12, 5, +4, 19
10. Leicester City: 12, 5, +1, 17
11. Wolverhampton Wanderers: 12, 4, -1, 16
12. Brighton & Hove Albion: 12, 4, -5, 14
13. West Ham United: 12, 3, -4, 12
14. Newcastle United: 12, 2, -6, 9
15. Burnley: 12, 2, -13, 9
16. Crystal Palace: 12, 2, -9, 8
17. Southampton: 12, 1, -13, 8
18. Cardiff City: 12, 2, -14, 8
19. Huddersfield Town: 12, 1, -16, 7
20. Fulham: 12, 1, -20, 5
City bossed the early exchanges by passing with pace, purpose and precision. The hosts' enterprising football was rewarded in the 12th minute when the irrepressible David Silva scored after Raheem Sterling had teased a cross into the danger area.
It's fair to say the pace of play slowed considerably as the half wore on, although City always remained in control. The home side took things back up a gear three minutes into the second half when the impressive Riyad Mahrez picked out Sergio Aguero, who beat David De Gea at his near post to keep up his superb form in derby meetings:
United were handed a surprise lifeline when City goalkeeper Ederson rashly brought down substitute Romelu Lukaku. Anthony Martial slotted in the resulting penalty to put the Citizens under rare pressure.
The champions responded brilliantly by taking the sting out of any attempted comeback with steady, controlled passing. They even hit the accelerator to score a third when substitute Ilkay Gundogan was played in four minutes from time.
Liverpool were made to wait until four minutes before the end of the first half to take the lead by a surprisingly stubborn Fulham side. The goal came when Mohamed Salah broke across nearly half the length of the pitch to slot home.
There was controversy, though, as Aleksandar Mitrovic had seen a goal ruled out only seconds before. The powerhouse striker was adjudged to have been offside, even though replays appeared to show Liverpool left-back Andrew Robertson was playing him on.
Fulham's sense of injustice was compounded eight minutes after the restart when Robertson turned provider for Xherdan Shaqiri to net what proved to be the clinching goal.
Creating goals has become a happy habit for Scotland international Robertson:
The Reds weren't at their free-flowing best going forward, but they remain much tougher to break down than last season. It's a trait many title wins are built on.
Chelsea's defence wasn't the problem against Everton. Overcoming the Toffees back four was. Everton defended resolutely thanks largely to former Barcelona man Yerry Mina, who was in the thick of the action on his debut:
Chelsea went close several times, with Marcos Alonso striking the post and Jordan Pickford producing saves to deny Eden Hazard and Willian. Everton ultimately kept the door shut to earn a creditable point and damage Chelsea's title aspirations.
Arsenal dropped two points after a third straight draw at home in all competitions. The Gunners created surprisingly little despite having strikers Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette supported by Mesut Ozil.
Wolves were comfortable for most of the first half, especially after taking a deserved early lead when Raul Jimenez teed up Ivan Cavaleiro. Benfica loanee Jimenez is carving a niche as a provider this season:
Arsenal took until the 86th minute to equalise, with the goal having an element of fortune when Henrikh Mkhitaryan's cross-shot found its way into the net.
The Gunners should have been pushing for a winner, but instead it took a few splendid saves from Bernd Leno to deny Wolves all three points. Arsenal are still on a lengthy unbeaten run in all competitions, but dropping points is becoming a worrying pattern.
What's more worrying for City's title rivals is how last season's champions already look a cut above again.