Coming off the rails

The surprise result of the night has to be Manchester United thrashing of an in-form Liverpool. The score stood at 4-0 and, as anyone who watched the game would agree, it could very well have been been 6-0 or 7-0, especially after the second goal went in. A friend asked me last night, does MU play better at home or away from home - i replied that they are such a good team, home or away rarely matters. Although last night was a home game (and teams generally play better in front of their own fans), MU would still have had to play magnificently well to knock 4 past a Liverpool team that has previously not been beaten by 3 clear goals for more than year.

But for me, the real shock was Arsenal's poor draw with Aston Villa, 1-1. No direspect to Aston Villa, but this is a game that Arsenal should have wrapped up without much ado. But lately, Arsenal have given a pretty good impression of an express train coming off its rails. Henry is woefully out of form, they've been forced to play Cygan the Statue in place of an injured Keown, and they've somehow lost the width-play that they so successfully employed earlier in the season with Wiltord and Cole tearing up the flanks. A team doesn't become bad overnight, but Arsenal's current form is certainly trying to prove that rule wrong. The rot began with a loss to Blackburn, followed my a dismal dismissal from the Champions' League, and a stuttering performance against Everton which they barely won. Their next game is at home to MU (16th April) - this is certainly their last chance of redemption. Losing here would almost certainly mean the end of their season.

Tonight is a big game for Newcastle. But with everything on the line, each of the remaining 7 games Newcastle will play will be big games. Taking care of Everton will set the stage for the THE BIG ONE next Saturday when MU visits St James Park, Newcastle. This is what i feel will happen: if the Magpies despatch Everton tonight, they will be sufficiently fired up to beat MU next week who themselves will be worn out after their Champions' League game against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, Madrid. But if the Magpies lose tonight, then they will also lose the game next week against MU; if they lose tonight, the team will be substantially demoralized and a team without the added impetus of a win tonight will surely crumble against an MU that literally wiped the floor with Liverpool last night.

If Newcastle can win tonight, beat MU in 6 days time, AND Arsenal and MU draw when they play each other in a few weeks time, then i would not be surprised to see the Premier League trophy gracing the halls of St James Park come the ides of May. Now, that would be blissful indeed.