Sampah Nonsense

United Lead Cut to 3

- Trashed by SampahMan @ 2:29 AM

I just watched Manchester United in a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to Portsmouth. I have not felt so damn near a heart attack in quite a long time, but this really throws the Premiership title race wide open (fuck!). Chelsea is just 3 points away, and with 6 games left, it's really down to who has the mental strength to finish strong.

With the season just about to end in another month or so, both United and Chelsea are still battling for honors in the Premiership, FA Cup, and the Champion's League. There is a possibility that if both teams win out all their games (except the league), then they will have to meet 3 more times.

But just to focus on the Premiership, here's how I would break down each time's title chances:

Strength of Schedule:
Manchester have home games against Sheffield United (18th spot), Middlesbrough (12th), and West Ham (19th).
The away games are to Everton (6th), Manchester City (14th), and Chelsea (2nd).

Chelsea will play home games against Bolton (5th), Manchester United (1st), and Everton (6th), will having to travel to West Ham (19th), Newcastle (10th), and Arsenal (4th).

On paper, Manchester should be able to win all their home games, but certainly, all their away games will be difficult ones, with Manchester City looking to destroy United's hopes.
So, I would say, along the way, Manchester based on current form and injury problems will very likely pick up 4 wins, 1 draw (Man City), and 1 loss (Chelsea).

Chelsea would seem to have the tougher schedule, but they are on form and punching out results. I'm giving them 5 wins and 1 draw (Arsenal).

If my prediction is right, then Manchester will end up with 91 points, and Chelsea would end up with 91 points as well.

Which leads us to...

Goal Difference
Currently, with a goal difference of +52 for Man Utd, as compared to +37 for Chelsea, I would say there is a chance that United will taste Premiership victory given that I see Chelsea grinding out more 1-0s rather than 4-0s.

Other Factors
- Schedule Congestion: For now Chelsea has 2 consecutive Sunday matches after midweek games, while United has two consecutive Saturday matches after midweek games. This translates into 1 extra day of rest for Chelsea.
- Pressure: Playing on a Sunday might not be such a good thing, especially if Manchester wins their Saturday matches, Chelsea would be under pressure to win that game as well to keep in the chase.

Well, it's turning into an interesting end to the season. To tell you the truth, it will be damn cool to see Manchester United neck to neck with Chelsea in the title chase, and meeting each other in the FA Cup Final and Champion's League final as well.

Glory Man United!

Labels: football, manchester united

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