By Bulldog Drummond
Untold Updates and solving the mobile problem:
We’re back with our videos: do take a peek at Untold GoonerNews
It is time I think to consider once again how much value the top spending clubs of the last transfer window have got for their £££m.
As we reported earlier in the season simply spending loads and loads of money on players is not a very good way of rising up the league table. In fact, it has the opposite effect! Here are the top six spenders of last summer, followed by their current position in the league, and where they were last season.
- Manchester United £148m (currently 5th, last season 6th)
- Aston Villa £144.5m (currently 17th, last season promoted)
- Arsenal £138m (currently 10th; last season 5th)
- Manchester City £134.8m (currently 3rd, last season champions)
- Everton £118.5m (currently 11th, last season 8th)
- Tottenham Hots £101.5m (currently 6th, last season 4th)
Leaving aside Villa who were promoted last season, the only one of the top spenders of last season that has actually gone up in the league as of today, compared with the end of last season, is Manchester United who are currently one place higher than they finished in May. £148,000,000 to go up one place.
Of the rest, again excluding Villa, they are down between two and five places.
On which basis we might say that spending money in the summer is not really a very good idea. But of course if one reads the newspapers and blogs they are almost all of them demanding that more and more money is spent.
Last summer Crystal Palace bought Jordan Ayew for £3m and James McCarthy for a similar sum from Everton having finished in 12th position in the league. At the moment they are one place and one point above Arsenal in 9th, having spent £132m less.
In recent years Palace’s home form has been their weakness although at the moment they are doing better at home than away.
Home games only
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 9 | 20 | 33 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 11 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 29 | 10 | 19 | 25 |
| 3 | Leicester City | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 19 | 9 | 10 | 23 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 10 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 21 | 10 | 11 | 20 |
| 5 | Manchester United | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 20 | 10 | 10 | 19 |
| 6 | Everton | 10 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 12 | 11 | 1 | 17 |
| 7 | Brighton and Hove Albion | 11 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 15 | 12 | 3 | 16 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 10 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 16 | 14 | 2 | 16 |
| 9 | Arsenal | 11 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 17 | 17 | 0 | 16 |
| 10 | Newcastle United | 11 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 11 | 12 | -1 | 16 |
| 11 | Crystal Palace | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 15 |
Arsenal’s away form has been their problem for the last couple of years, and it is still very modest…
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 5 | 15 | 25 |
| 2 | Leicester City | 11 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 27 | 10 | 17 | 22 |
| 3 | Chelsea | 11 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 25 | 19 | 6 | 22 |
| 4 | Manchester City | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 27 | 14 | 13 | 19 |
| 5 | Sheffield United | 11 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 15 |
| 6 | Southampton | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 14 | 13 | 1 | 14 |
| 7 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 11 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 14 | 13 | 1 | 14 |
| 8 | Crystal Palace | 11 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 14 | -4 | 13 |
| 9 | Manchester United | 11 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 12 | 15 | -3 | 12 |
| 10 | West Ham United | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 13 | -4 | 12 |
| 11 | Arsenal | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 11 | 13 | -2 | 11 |
On the form basis of home v away, and given that Arsenal have managed to score two more away than Palace have at home (although letting in four more) we might perhaps hope for a draw, which has been Arsenal’s preferred result this season away from home. 1-1 would seem the most likely score.
In their last eight games Arsenal have three wins, three draws and two defeats – although we can note that two of the wins have come in the last two home games…
| Date | Game | Res |
Score | Competition |
| 09 Dec 2019 | West Ham United v Arsenal | W | 1-3 | Premier League |
| 12 Dec 2019 | Standard Liège v Arsenal | D | 2-2 | Europa League |
| 15 Dec 2019 | Arsenal v Manchester City | L | 0-3 | Premier League |
| 21 Dec 2019 | Everton v Arsenal | D | 0-0 | Premier League |
| 26 Dec 2019 | AFC Bournemouth v Arsenal | D | 1-1 | Premier League |
| 29 Dec 2019 | Arsenal v Chelsea | L | 1-2 | Premier League |
| 01 Jan 2020 | Arsenal v Manchester United | W | 2-0 | Premier League |
| 06 Jan 2020 | Arsenal v Leeds United | W | 1-0 | FA Cup |
Meanwhile Palace have had two wins, two draws and four defeats. Their victories have both come at home – over Bournemouth and West Ham.
Palace have only beaten us five times in 46 games across the years, but two of those defeats have come in the last six meetings….
| Date | Game | Res |
Score | Competition |
| 10 Apr 2017 | Crystal Palace v Arsenal | L | 3-0 | Premier League |
| 28 Dec 2017 | Crystal Palace v Arsenal | W | 2-3 | Premier League |
| 20 Jan 2018 | Arsenal v Crystal Palace | W | 4-1 | Premier League |
| 28 Oct 2018 | Crystal Palace v Arsenal | D | 2-2 | Premier League |
| 21 Apr 2019 | Arsenal v Crystal Palace | L | 2-3 | Premier League |
| 27 Oct 2019 | Arsenal v Crystal Palace | D | 2-2 | Premier League |
So there is no sort of foregone conclusion about this one.
More anon…
Am I going to be up at 5:30 am to follow the game?
It would be nice to say yes, but it isn’t likely. I wish the Gunners the best.
The combined cost of the Leeds team the other night was less than Ozil’s yearly Salary . Madness