We saw another handful of fun games in the Premier League last night as we began the always-chaotic December schedule. Up and down the top flight we saw teams giving it their all to really kickstart this tough month, and the same will occur over the next few days – so if you want to put a bet down on some of those upcoming games, make sure you head to the betting page.
Today we’re going to be highlighting the performances of two clubs who, after their first few outings this season, were in a pretty tough spot. Manchester United and Chelsea have both historically been known as consistent title challengers and they’ll be hoping that their results this weekend will take them a step closer to that reality once again.
West Ham 1-3 Manchester United
It’s somewhat bizarre to think that the Hammers were considered to be the favourites by some heading into this clash but in the first half, they really did prove why that was the case. They went 1-0 up late in the half but in all truth, it could’ve been far, far worse than that. West Ham had a parade of attempts that could’ve and probably should’ve been finished off, but they weren’t quite able to take full advantage when they had the chance.
United, on the flip side, were on fine finishing form and dug deep to pull a huge comeback out of the bag. They knew that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had his back against the wall and they fought as hard as they possibly could for their manager. The Red Devils now reside in the top four and even though they want to eventually shoot for much higher than that, they’re starting to develop the one thing that most critics have said they’ve been lacking over the last few years – heart.
Chelsea 3-1 Leeds
Leeds United are not a team you want to take lightly because if you do, they will punish you. Chelsea have been on an absolutely incredible run of form but Leeds didn’t care about that, and instead of being fearful of what the Blues can bring to the table, they produced a few moments of magic themselves. Patrick Bamford latched onto a nice through ball to round the keeper and open the scoring, forcing Chelsea into a position whereby they had to really go at Marcelo Bielsa’s side.
After Olivier Giroud’s equaliser the tide was quite clearly beginning to turn and we’re not so sure Leeds were able to recover after that. Frank Lampard’s men are just so completely and utterly relentless and that style allowed them to shine as they have done all season long. They’re now back in top spot in the league table and even though they aren’t 100% guaranteed to stay there with Tottenham and Liverpool still to play this weekend, they can be incredibly proud of the spot they find themselves in with 11 games gone. They’re efficient, they’re well-balanced and they have manufactured this maturity that will be huge for their development.
