Ollie Watkins is hitting his stride at Villa and Jack Grealish is finally starting to justify his obscene price tag. This and more in this week’s Friday 5iver!
Crystal Palace wasted no time in appointing Roy Hodgson as first team manager following the bizarre dismissal predecessor, Patrick Vieira. In his first game in charge, Hodgson guided the Eagles to a come from behind victory against Leicester (who subsequently parted ways with their manager shortly after that one).
The sackings continued on Saturday, with Todd Boehly relieving Graham Potter of his duties at Chelsea (with the ex-Brighton boss rumoured to walk away with a £50 million settlement package courtesy of the ever-fiscally responsible Blues).
Just a single victory for Nottingham Forest during the previous two months has seen Steve Cooper’s men slide down the log. Despite that, Forest owner Marinakis has publicly backed Cooper – however, only time will tell how true those remarks are.
One manager that seemingly hasn’t put a foot wrong all season long is Mikel Arteta. The table toppers had a perfect March which saw their ringmaster scoop the Premier League manager of the month – his fourth for the season, moving just one behind Jurgen Klopp’s record of five in a single campaign, set in the 2019/20 season.
Anyways, let’s take a look at five players who could light up the Premier League this Easter weekend.
Everpresent Eze Key To Eagles’ Survival
Eberechi Eze could rise above the rest in the coming weeks. The Palace midfielder has been an integral cog of the South London outfit – appearing in all 29 league fixtures this term. During that period, Eze has found the back of the net four times (from 47 shots) and registered three assists (from 41 chances created. Hodgeson’s homecoming was something of a fairytale – the oldest serving manager in the land delivered their first three-point haul of 2023. I expect the Eagles to be soaring in the short term, buoyed by the new manager bounce!
What a beautifully taken freekick by Eberechi Eze 😍🔴🔵🔴🔵🔴🔵🔴🔵🔴🔵 pic.twitter.com/HHK0dDkcev
— Glad All Over (@sfield3) April 1, 2023
Sensational Saka Face Season-Defining April
A brace and an assist in their final league game of March was enough to crown Bukayo Saka the Premier League player of the month during that spell. The star earned himself some well-deserved rest and was limited to a cameo appearance off the bench, last time out. The Gunners have a season-defining April, with scheduled appointments against Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea. Watch this space.
Every single Premier League goal scored by Bukayo Saka this season so far. 🌟 pic.twitter.com/hAL6oh14jh
— afcstuff (@afcstuff) March 27, 2023
Watkins’ Goals Firing Villa Into European Contention
Ollie Watkins has fired Villa into the European spots. The 27-year-old has proven to be a reliable source of goals and is on track to be Villa’s top scorer in the league for the third consecutive season. Across his previous 10 league appearances, Watkins has returned eight goals and an assist. He has also become the first Villa player to score in 6 consecutive away league fixtures.
Ollie Watkins under Unai Emery pic.twitter.com/uenBehcWlq
— EB10 (@buendiazboyz) April 3, 2023
Grealish Starting To Repay His Transfer Fee?
Jack Grealish may be hitting his purple patch at Manchester City. The summer signing has delivered attacking returns against Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United this season – before he set up the first and netted the last of City’s four goals against Liverpool last time out. The defending champions come up against a Southampton side who are rooted to the foot of the table.
Super @JackGrealish caps a stunning performance by slotting our fourth goal! 💫 pic.twitter.com/eHgC0mqMu7
— Manchester City (@ManCity) April 1, 2023
Top Billing Philip Sets Sights On Foxes
Philip Billing could add to the Foxes’ woes this weekend. The Bournemouth dangerman has provided a steady supply of attacking returns on his travels and I expect that streak to continue this weekend. A total of five (G4 A1) attacking returns have come on the road – meaning he was directly involved in over 40% of their away goals in the Premier League. Conversely, Leicester have failed to keep a clean sheet in their previous 14 league outings.
Bournemouth score in 9 seconds 🤯
— SuperSport Football ⚽️ (@SSFootball) March 4, 2023
They line up with seven players ready to attack and Philip Billing stuns the Emirates!
What a start to the game 💥 pic.twitter.com/DVErSY6xYS
