Football Today: Premier League recap, United flop again, big test for West Ham

Manchester United highlighted how far they have fallen behind the big hitters in the Premier League with a dismal display at Old Trafford yesterday.

United were second best from start to finish in the Manchester derby and can count themselves fortunate that City decided a two-goal winning margin was plenty enough.

Elsewhere in the top flight, there were wins for Crystal Palace and Norwich City, while the games at Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion were drawn.

Attention now switches to Sunday’s action, with the clash between West Ham United and Liverpool the standout fixture of the day.

United flop again

Successive home defeats against Liverpool and City have left the Red Devils struggling to keep pace with the top four.

Unfortunately for United fans the club is stuck between a rock and a hard place, with manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer seemingly in no danger of being moved on.

They missed the opportunity to snap up Antonio Conte, while other options such as Mauricio Pochettino or Erik Ten Hag are unavailable right now.

United may still sneak into a Champions League qualification place this term, but is that enough for a club of their stature?

Big test for West Ham

David Moyes has rightly received plenty of praise for the job he has done at West Ham United, with the club continuing to progress under his guidance.

However, today’s home game against Liverpool will be an accurate measure of whether they have the capability of matching the big guns.

A victory over the Reds would move West Ham up to third in the table, just three points behind leaders Chelsea.

With some of the traditional ‘Big Six’ failing to live up to expectations, the Hammers will never have a better chance of bagging a Champions League spot.

Sunday football on TV

• Venezia vs Roma –  Serie A – BT Sport
• Marseille vs Metz – Ligue 1 – BT Sport
• Dundee vs Celtic –  Scottish Premiership – Sky Sports
• Sheffield Wednesday vs Plymouth Argyle – FA Cup – ITV
• Villarreal vs Getafe – La Liga – Premier Sports
• Reims vs Monaco – Ligue 1 – BT Sport
• Arsenal vs Watford – Premier League – Sky Sports
• Sampdoria vs Bologna – Serie A – BT Sport
• Udinese vs Sassuolo – Serie A – BT Sport
• Hertha Berlin vs Bayer Leverkusen – Bundesliga – Sky Sports
• Stratford Town vs Shrewsbury Town – FA Cup – ITV
• Valencia vs Atletico Madrid – La Liga – Premier Sports
• Nice vs Montpellier – Ligue 1 – BT Sport
• Cologne vs Union Berlin – Bundesliga – Sky Sports
• West Ham United vs Liverpool – Premier League – Sky Sports
• Santa Clara vs Porto – Primeira Liga – FreeSports
• Lazio vs Salernitana – Serie A – BT Sport
• Napoli vs Verona – Serie A – BT Sport
• St Albans City vs Forest Green Rovers – FA Cup – BBC
• BBC TwoBBC iPlayerBBC Sport Website
• Osasuna vs Real Sociedad – La Liga – Premier Sports
• Real Mallorca vs Elche – La Liga – Premier Sports
• Greuther Furth vs Eintracht Frankfurt – Bundesliga – Sky Sports
• Pacos de Ferreira vs Sporting Lisbon – Primeira Liga – FreeSports
• Rennes vs Lyon – Ligue 1 – BT Sport
• AC Milan vs Inter Milan – Serie A – BT Sport
• Benfica vs SC Braga – Primeira Liga – BT Sport

One to watch

There has been plenty of fanfare surrounding Antonio Conte’s appointment at Tottenham Hotspur.

Today’s visit to Everton provides a solid yardstick for how much impact he has been able to have on the players.

Prediction

Both teams to score in the games at Leeds United and West Ham is priced at odds of around 2/1.

Read more: Tactical Analysis – Antonio Conte’s first match in charge of Tottenham Hotspur against Vitesse Arnhem.