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Winners and Losers from Premier League Matchweek 30
April 5, 2021
After what felt like an eternity, the Premier League was back from the international break and gave us an entertaining weekend of matches.
Manchester City edged closer to wrapping up the Premier League title—and that's about as much clarity as we got over the course of the matchweek. The UEFA Champions League places remain up for grabs, there's lots of pride to play for in mid-table, and the relegation battle is in full swing. And fan favorite Sam Allardyce had quite a day at Stamford Bridge, which we will get into later.
The run-in is well and truly here.
Let's take a closer look at some of the storylines to emerge this weekend, starting with the pinnacle of aesthetically pleasing football and the reigning PFA Players' Player of the Year.
Winner: Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester City
We all need to take a moment and realize that watching Kevin De Bruyne play at this level is as good as it gets from a central midfielder. He is without question the best in the world, and his performances for Manchester City this and most every season continue to amaze.
He was sublime against Leicester City on Saturday, controlling the tempo of the match, passing through and around the Foxes' typically capable midfield duo of Youri Tielemans and Wilfred Ndidi and doing things like this:
Absolutely criminal.
His through ball for City's second was the pass of the season. It should be put in a museum. KDB is the definitive winner of not only this matchweek but the entire season thus far.
Losers: Mikel Arteta, Jose Mourinho, Thomas Tuchel
The three London-based Big Six managers are grouped together because, well, between them they managed one point and a whole heap of disappointment.
Arteta and Arsenal seemed out of their depth against a resurgent Liverpool side that dominated possession (it had 64 percent of the ball), attempts (16-3) and pretty much everything else in Saturday's 3-0 win at the Emirates Stadium.
Mourinho's Tottenham Hotspur sputtered to another wholly disappointing draw with Newcastle United wherein a brace from Harry Kane wasn't enough to see off the league's 17th-place side. Uninspired and lethargic, Mourinho, who had choice words following the match, was not pleased by more dropped points thanks to Arsenal loanee Joe Willock, of all players.
And Tuchel, where to begin? At least his first loss as Chelsea manager was an entertaining one. Part self-destruction (see Thiago Silva's dismissal), part-international break hangover and part-West Bromwich Albion playing like vintage Barcelona, the Blues just didn't have it on Saturday. The match made for some good highlights, though.
Winner: Sam Allardyce, West Bromwich Albion
And on the flip side of our manager happiness paradigm is one Big Sam. Coming into play this weekend, the Baggies looked like a lock to go down, sitting 10 points from safety and with a difficult contest against a new and improved Chelsea side at Stamford Bridge ahead.
Oh, how one match can change everything!
Allardyce's side was fantastic and scored some stunning goals in a 5-2 victory that could turn around Albion's season and should, at the very least, give it reason for hope. The deficit to Newcastle in 17th is down to eight points, and a decent batch of upcoming fixtures (vs. Southampton, at Leicester, at Aston Villa, vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers) could be a boost if Allardyce wants to save yet another club from the drop.
Loser: Jamie Vardy, Leicester City
It's been touched upon that Jamie Vardy may be coming down to earth after a dry spell by his standards. Going into Saturday's huge match with Manchester City, one Leicester could be tipped to get a result from given its performance against the Citizens earlier in the year, you thought it would be set up for Vardy to make some noise.
He loves a goal against Pep Guardiola's Citizens.
It was not to be, however, as Vardy looked off the pace and was rarely involved in Saturday's match, which extended his scoreless streak to six Premier League games. Still, credit to City center backs Aymeric Laporte and Ruben Dias, who were fantastic.
Winner: Diogo Jota, Liverpool
Things you love to see: The return of the Premier League after an international break, a delicious full English breakfast prepared with meticulous care and a young star successfully make the jump up the ladder to a bigger club.
Sure, Liverpool has had a season to forget (the champions sit in sixth, three points out of the Champions League places), but Jota has been a true bright spot for Jurgen Klopp's Reds. Since making the $57 million switch from Wolves in September, Jota has scored an impressive eight goals in only 13 appearances for the Merseyside club. Injury troubles have slowed things down, but it seems that whenever he is on the pitch, good things happen.
Two goals against Arsenal, including another headed tally, are evidence of this.
Shane Evans manages B/R Football content within the Bleacher Report app. For more, follow him on Twitter at @shanevans.