The return of Diogo Jota strengthens Liverpool’s efforts to win the title, and Fulham, led by Marco Silva, is thriving despite the exit of Joao Balinha – Radar | Football news

Welcome to Radarthe Sky Sports column in it Nick Wright It uses a mix of data and opinion to highlight the need-to-know stories from up and down the Premier League. this week:

🔴Jota enhances the slot before the Tottenham test
🔥 Fulham is thriving despite Palinha’s exit
⏲️ The development of Tierney, Zinchenko and Arsenal

Jota back offers slot options

Arne Slott was rightly praised as his tactical adjustments helped 10-man Liverpool salvage a 2-2 draw against Fulham. But it helps that he can call up Diogo Jota. “He did a very good job to score,” Thierry Henry said of his equaliser. Monday Night Football.

The goal was typical of a player with an incredible knack for finding space as Jota positioned himself between the lines in the lead-up to the opportunity before running untracked into the gap between Issa Diop and Jorge Cuenca to receive Darwin Nunez’s pass and then slot home the ball. .

Jota was on the field for only six minutes, in his first appearance in two months after suffering a muscle injury. But the 28-year-old has a habit of scoring big goals. His return to fitness – he also featured off the bench in Wednesday’s Carabao Cup win over Southampton – is a timely boost.

The fact that it was fellow substitute Nunez who helped him was further encouragement. Nunez followed up his assists with his first goal in a month when he scored the first goal in the win at St. Mary’s. The hatch will hope that signs of a corner turning.

With Federico Chiesa also returning from injury, the Liverpool manager has a full complement of strikers to choose from for the first time. Mohamed Salah, of course, continues to lead the team, scoring a total of 16 goals and making 13 assists in all competitions.

But he’s not the only one contributing, and all of them will be needed in the future. Sunday trip to Tottenham, direct Sky Sportsstarting a run of four Premier League matches in 15 days, Chelsea increased the pressure by reducing the gap to two points.

The stakes are high, even at this early stage of the season. But Liverpool now have a reliable senior player in Jota as well as the unpredictability of a whole host of strikers.

Their deep strength could be a deciding factor in the title race.

Sunday, December 22 at 4:00 pm

Departure at 4:30 pm

In Balenha, there is no problem for Silva

Fulham faces Southampton on Sunday, after collecting points from Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham during four matches without defeat. Their strong start to the season is all the more impressive considering they lost their most important player in the summer.

Joao Palinha’s exit to Bayern Munich has left a huge void, but Marco Silva’s ability to develop his squad means the Portugal international, a wrecking ball of a midfielder who has made more tackles than any other player in the Premier League in the past two seasons, has not been missed.

The signing of Sander Berge from Burnley has helped. But replacing Balenja’s exceptional defensive work required a team effort, with Sasa Lukic also shining. The pair have formed an effective partnership recently as part of an overhauled midfield.

It was Silva’s willingness to adapt that brought Pallina to the club in the first place, arriving to replace Jean-Michael Seri, a high-tech but unpretentious playmaker, as the Fulham manager accepted the need for greater physicality to survive in the Premier League. After being promoted from the Championship in 2022.

Sunday, December 22 at 1 p.m

Departure at 2:00 pm

As it turns out, they not only survived, they thrived. Southampton’s opponents on Sunday, nine points adrift of safety at the bottom of the table and without a coach after the sacking of Russell Martin, must wish they had adopted a little more pragmatism themselves.

Tierney is a reminder of Arsenal’s progress

Kieran Tierney made his first appearance for Arsenal since May 2023 in the Carabao Cup win over Crystal Palace on Wednesday night, but his time at the club is drawing to a close. The Gunners will listen to the offers presented to him in January, with his contract expiring in the summer.

He will undoubtedly have plenty of options. The left-back has struggled with injuries, but at 27 years old, he still has a lot to offer. There was a reminder of his quality in the low cross from which Raheem Sterling should have scored after half-time against Palace.

A £25m signing from Celtic just months before Mikel Arteta replaced Unai Emery as coach in 2019, Tierney has been one of Arsenal’s best players for a while; A key part of the team that won the FA Cup in 2020, albeit playing to the left of three defenders. He was seen by some as a potential leader.

But looking back on those early years under Arteta ahead of his fifth anniversary in charge was a reminder of how far the team has come. Arsenal are unrecognizable, both in terms of personnel and style of play. Tierney’s attributes are made redundant with the arrival of defender and midfielder Oleksandr Zinchenko in 2022.

Zinchenko, like Tierney, may be seen as another victim of the team’s development. Arteta’s preferred left-back is now Riccardo Calafiore, a player who has the physical stature of a centre-back as well as the technical quality to operate in midfield.

Saturday, December 21 at 5 p.m

Departure at 5:30 pm

And so it continues. Tierney is not Arsenal’s longest serving player. This is Bukayo Saka. But while Saka is synonymous with the new era, Tierney is the last link to the previous era.

Live Radar: What’s on Sky this weekend?

Arsenal Go to Crystal Palace to Saturday Night Football Fixture, with coverage starting on Sky Sports Premier League and Main event From 4.30pm before the match kicks off at 5.30pm.

Super Sunday See competitors Fulham and Southampton They go head-to-head in the early game, which begins at 2 p.m., with Tottenham and Liverpool The showdown is at 4:30 p.m. Start covering this double header Sky Sports Premier League One o’clock in the afternoon.

Read last week’s Radar column

Last week’s column focused on how to do just that Robin Amorim Manchester United could exploit Manchester City’s defensive weaknesses before they do just that at the Etihad Stadium. There was also a look at Daniel Munoz He runs into the penalty area for Crystal Palace.