There was plenty of drama (and goals in the Barclays Premier League this weekend.
What a weekend in the Barclay's Premier League. We're not half way through the season and yet the most recent results could shape the league for the rest of the campaign. It truly was remarkable.
For the first time in League history all 20 clubs scored at least one goal on the same weekend. An incredible 41 goals were scored in the 10 matches played. That's an average of more than four goals per match.
On Saturday, three different teams held top spot at various times during the course of the day. When the wacky day began, Chelsea, who didn't play until Sunday were top of the table. Then with Arsenal's early morning victory over Aston Villa, they vaulted ahead of the Blues. Then a couple hours later, Manchester United came up with their demoliton job of Blackburn to take No. 1 themselves.
So who are the winners and losers?
First off, pre-season favourite Chelsea are in a world of hurt for a number of reasons. Injuries have decimated this squad. John Terry and Frank Lampard may be close to returning but it could be too late. Perhaps that's crazy thinking, but consider the following: The Blues won just a single league game in the month of November and have now lost four games already while getting dumped from top spot.
More troubling perhaps is that they haven't won a Premier League game since the mysterious and confounding departure of assistant Ray Wilkins. Club chemistry is important and right now it's a bad concoction.
Chelsea's downward spiral co-incides with the rise of Manchester United. Now in first place with the unfortunate Wayne Rooney episode apparently ancient history, and with Dimitar Berbatov rising from the dead, the Red Devils suddenly appear formidable. The fact that they are still the only unbeaten team in the league is not to be underestimated. We originally looked at all those early-season draws as lost points for the Red Devils. Yes they were, but looking at it now, perhaps it was more of a case of them not dropping all three points at a time when they weren't at their best. To be fair they still have home and away matches with both Chelsea and Arsenal, including back-to-back matches with each before Christmas. But right now? Advantage Man U for sure.
As for Arsenal, Manchester City and Tottenham, they each provide an interesting proposition.
As usual, the Gunners are inconsistent but fun to watch.
Manchester City are a frustrating team. So much talent seemingly wasted by a manager who appears to be out of answers. Where would they be without Carlos Tevez, who week in and week out seems on the verge of calling it quits?
And then there's Spurs. Maybe right now the best of the bunch. But they've lost four matches as well. And now comes the news that Rafael Van der Vaart might be gone for a while with a hamstring problem. With eight goals in 14 games, he's made a huge difference to this club since coming over at the deadline. They seem to have plenty of depth so who knows.
All things considered, it's a lively race, better than anything we've seen in years.
The weekend games did not only herald a change at the top, there's an entirely fresh complexion at the other end as well. Victories by both Wolves and West Ham have kept them alive in the race to avoid relegation. Losses would have left both sides six points buried inside the drop zone. Instead, they cut that margin in half.
Yes indeed, crazy times in the Premiership and it's not even Christmas.
