EPL

Thrifty Man Utd and carefree Arsenal – Premier League's 2023 New Year's resolutions

By Sports Desk January 01, 2023

New Year's resolutions are easy to set but far less easy to keep.

But in order to enjoy a prosperous 2023, it will be vital for some to change their ways in the 12 months ahead.

That does not apply to everyone, and Premier League champions Manchester City will be sitting comfortably, even with ground to make up in the title race.

For those hoping to match Pep Guardiola's men, however, Stats Perform has identified some goals for 2023...
 

Save more money – Manchester United

The January sales make it difficult to save at this time of year, and Erik ten Hag has already outlined his desire to see a new striker brought in before the end of the month.

But if United reflect on past years, they might acknowledge that simply spending huge amounts is not a fix for their problems on the field.

In theory, Cristiano Ronaldo's departure has left a hole, except he was not in Ten Hag's first team anyway. The United manager might be better served making good use of Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial rather than rushing to buy a player unlikely to be drastically better at great cost.

Exercise more – Chelsea

A cold January provides plenty of excuses not to head out for a run, but Chelsea would love to be able to put their key men to work. Instead, they have too often been injured.

N'Golo Kante remains out, and Reece James and Ben Chilwell have missed a huge chunk of the season. James returned this week but lasted little over 50 minutes before feeling another knee injury, while Wesley Fofana is also out again.

Chelsea will spend in January, but their hopes of recovering a Champions League charge will depend on being able to have existing players back fit again.

Learn a new skill – Darwin Nunez

Liverpool also have persistent injury problems, with Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota still on the sidelines, but they should still have more than enough to really push for a top-four finish.

While the signing of Cody Gakpo helps in that regard, Liverpool's season might be shaped by Nunez's ability to score consistently at this level.

Nunez is among the Premier League's most prolific shooters but has repeatedly squandered big chances. That goalscoring knack is not easy to learn, yet Liverpool need their big pre-season signing to do exactly that.

Live life to the fullest – Arsenal

Arsenal fans have spent years complaining about their team, with no league title since 2004 and no hope of a title challenge since 2016.

They are now sitting pretty at the top of the table heading into 2023, so it is time to enjoy it. There is no guarantee the Gunners will be able to hold off City – or Newcastle United – but this has already been a season to remember.

Even if Mikel Arteta's men slip away and merely secure a return to Champions League football, supporters must recognise this for the successful campaign it is.

Get organised – Tottenham

If rivals Spurs are to join Arsenal in Europe's elite club competition next season, they simply must become more organised – not something you would necessarily associate with an Antonio Conte side.

Rather than post-Christmas clutter, Tottenham's biggest issue is their defence, repeatedly conceding cheap goals that give Harry Kane and Co. a mountain to climb.

The quality of Kane, Son Heung-min and the rest ensures Spurs remain in the mix regardless, but there is too much competition this season for Spurs not to be punished if they continue with these defensive lapses.

Travel more – Newcastle United

Newcastle have emerged as surprise contenders this season – contenders for what exactly we and they are not yet sure.

But for all the optimistic talk of a title surge or Champions League qualification, Newcastle simply must secure European football now to continue their progress.

Although it is an aim that might have appeared optimistic at the start of the season, the Magpies cannot miss out from this commanding position, needing to be travelling Europe to keep Bruno Guimaraes and Sven Botman and attract similarly exciting talents.

Related items

  • Coventry City 1-2 Ipswich Town: Burgess puts Tractor Boys on brink of promotion Coventry City 1-2 Ipswich Town: Burgess puts Tractor Boys on brink of promotion

    Ipswich Town took a huge step to Premier League promotion after Cameron Burgess snatched a second-half winner in Tuesday's 2-1 victory over Coventry City.

    Kieran McKenna's side require just one point from their final Championship game against League One-bound Huddersfield Town to go up, after a decisive victory at the Coventry Building Society Arena.

    Kieffer Moore blasted in an eighth-minute opener for the visitors after Wes Burns' crafty cutback pass, easing the pressure on Ipswich and dampening the top-two hopes of third-placed Leeds United.

    Haji Wright levelled in the second half, only for Burgess to squeeze a winning goal past Bradley Collins five minutes later, putting Ipswich on the brink of top-flight football for the first time since their relegation in 2002.

    A draw against Huddersfield, who are 23rd and three points adrift of safety, would secure promotion at Portman Road, marking just the fourth instance of back-to-back promotions in the Premier League era.

    Having managed to climb out of League One, McKenna's entertaining side would join Watford, rivals Norwich City and Southampton as the only sides to achieve the feat.

    Data Debrief: Ipswich end winless run at perfect time

    Prior to this game, only five teams had won fewer points in the Championship than Ipswich's six since the beginning of April (W1 D3 L1).

    Yet McKenna's men refused to let their top-flight push derail as the Tractor Boys ended a four-game winless run to move within touching distance of history.

  • Al Ittihad 1-2 Al Hilal: Holders into King's Cup final Al Ittihad 1-2 Al Hilal: Holders into King's Cup final

    Al Hilal overcame Sergej Milinkovic-Savic's red card as Saud Abdulhamid's late goal sealed a 2-1 victory over Al Ittihad in the King's Cup semi-finals.

    Without Karim Benzema, Al Ittihad ultimately lacked the firepower to make their numerical advantage count in Tuesday's clash.

    Former Lazio midfielder, who joined Al Hilal as part of their spending spree last year, received a straight red card in the 42nd minute.

    Al Ittihad's Abderrazzaq Hamed-Allah cancelled out Micheal's opener, but Abdulhamid popped up with the winner in the 81st minute.

    Al Hilal are 10-time King's Cup winners, having won their 10th title last season.

    The Saudi Pro League leaders, who are still without the injured Neymar, will now face either Al Khaleej or Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr in the final at the end of May.

    Data Debrief: Malcom in the middle

    Al Hilal might be missing their star Brazilian Neymar, but his compatriot Malcom is delivering when it comes to playmaking.

    The former Zenit attacker set up both of Al Hilal's goals, creating three chances in total and registering a pass accuracy of 92.6 per cent, better than any of his team-mates.

  • Former Spain boss Del Bosque to oversee RFEF Former Spain boss Del Bosque to oversee RFEF

    Former Spain boss Vicente del Bosque will oversee a new committee supervising the RFEF.

    Spain, which is due to be one of six host countries for the 2030 World Cup, announced the creation of a special committee until the federation holds elections to replace Luis Rubiales.

    That is despite Pedro Rocha having this week been appointed as Rubiales' replacement, though he himself is under investigation amid a corruption probe.

    Rubiales was dismissed following his unsolicited kiss on Jenni Hermoso during the Women's World Cup trophy ceremony in 2023.

    The federation's former president was then arrested in early April as part of a corruption investigation.

    Del Bosque led Spain to three consecutive trophies, winning the European Championships in 2008 and 2012, while also leading the team to their first World Cup success in 2010.

    Prior to his time with the national team, he also won two Champions Leagues and two LaLiga titles while in charge of Real Madrid, where he made over 400 appearances as a player. 

© 2023 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.