Premier League Weekly: Christmas report card

Arsene Wenger, Manager of Arsenal (Charlie Crowhurst/Getty Images)

THE Premier League reaches its halfway mark with matches tonight and tomorrow, so just like at school, it’s only fitting that each of the 20 clubs receives a Christmas report card.

So, here is PREMIER LEAGUE WEEKLY’s assessment of how everyone has done so far.

ARSENAL: 6/10

ARSENAL missed out on the top four for the first time in 22 years last season, and they have shown little to suggest they will be back in it next May. Against the weaker teams they have generally been OK, but have suffered comprehensive losses to both Manchester clubs and Liverpool. Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez remain but have not signed no deals, so the uncertainty and drift still hangs over The Emirates.

BOURNEMOUTH: 5/10

AFTER a bad start, Bournemouth have struggled to get going. Just two wins from nine at home is not good enough and will need to improve. Ironically, the Cherries have been better defensively this season, but at the expense of their attack with Jermain Defoe only managing three goals. Eddie Howe has a good group of footballers at his disposal, but the big question over them is: Are they too nice?

BRIGHTON: 7/10

A newly promoted club that finds itself in 13^th at Christmas is on course to achieve their primary goal. Chris Hughton’s side have been as well organised as you would expect, and a clever signing like Pascal Gross has added a bit of quality in the final third. They are above board at the moment, but the smart money is on them looking over their shoulders for the rest of the campaign.

BURNLEY: 9/10

THE Christmas star performers, just behind Manchester City. Sean Dyche sold his best defender and top scorer, but has made the whole team better, which speaks volumes for his management skills. Their matches produce the fewest goals, but the Clarets are competitive against everyone and 32 points at this stage is an outstanding return. People like Nick Pope, James Tarkowski and Ashley Barnes are far from household names, but they always do a great job for their team.

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte. (John Walton/PA Wire)

CHELSEA: 7/10

I don’t think anyone expected Chelsea to retain the Premier League title, so to be in third is OK. Antonio Conte has spent the whole time moaning though, and that has been a bit tiresome. Alvaro Morata has settled in nicely and Eden Hazard has come back to form in the last couple of months after injury, but shock losses at Crystal Palace and West Ham have undermined their efforts to be higher than third.

CRYSTAL PALACE: 6/10

FOR the first seven games of the season, Crystal Palace would have been worthy of 0/10 with no goals and no points. Since then, Roy Hodgson has stabilised the ship excellently with more defensive stability and tapping in to his assets going forward, notably Wilfried Zaha. Frank De Boer was unlucky to only get four games, but maybe Palace Chairman Steve Parish deserves credit for acting decisively to rectify a bad mistake. Remarkably, Palace are currently 14^th in the table, which is more or less where they belong.

EVERTON: 6/10

EVERTON’s campaign has been a case of the good, the bad and the ugly. Considering the money spent in the summer, it was most definitely bad under Ronald Koeman. He went and things got ugly under caretaker boss David Unsworth, but Sam Allardyce has made a good impression in his first month in charge, with four wins out of five. Wayne Rooney has been in the goals and Gylfi Sigurdsson is starting to come good, so there is no reason why they won’t finish seventh – again.

HUDDERSFIELD: 8/10

THE John Smith’s Stadium has been a welcome addition on the Premier League rota. The vibrant atmosphere has spurred on David Wagner’s team and they recorded a memorable win over Manchester United and pushed Manchester City closer than many sides. There is a close bond between manager, players and supporters and that unity is making up for any deficiencies on the pitch. At this rate, the Huddersfield story will not end with relegation.

LEICESTER: 7/10

BY and large, this has been more like it from Leicester this season. Craig Shakespeare did not last too long, but Frenchman Claude Puel has made a decent start as manager and is utilising his star assets well in Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez. They missed a big chance in the Carabao Cup against Manchester City in midweek, but the Champions of 2015/16 should still be aiming to secure their eighth place position they currently occupy.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp (Nick Potts/PA Wire)

LIVERPOOL: 7/10

THERE is no team quite like Liverpool in the Premier League. Their attacking play often takes the breath away with its sheer speed and dynamism and Mohamed Salah has been a wonderful addition with his creativity weight of goals. But the defence? Let’s not talk about that too much. It still gives opponents a chance but for the neutrals, it makes nearly all of Liverpool’s matches very entertaining to watch. Bravo for that Jurgen Klopp!

MANCHESTER CITY: 10/10

THIS has been as close to perfect as is possible for Manchester City. Only two points dropped out of 54 in the Premier League, top of the Champions League group and through to the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup. These are special times at City. Pep Guardiola’s team are purring – the football has been outstanding and every player is having a very good season. The squad isn’t as big as people think as they could be exposed by injuries, but the key is the midfield triangle of Fernandinho, Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva, which is head and shoulders the best in England.

MANCHESTER UNITED: 8/10

With 41 points from 18 games, Manchester United would have been top in 12 of the 25 Premier League seasons. Jose Mourinho’s side is also eight points better off than last year, so that is a good step in the right direction. That is all respectable enough, but this is United, one of the world’s super clubs, and second is never acceptable. The problem is perhaps more of perception, as in drawing at Liverpool and losing to Chelsea and Manchester City, United were extremely negative, and a combination of bad results and poor football has seen the finger pointed at Mourinho.

NEWCASTLE: 5/10

AS ever, things never run smoothly on Tyneside. There was unhappiness in the summer at a lack of transfer activity, which quietened a little as Newcastle enjoyed three straight early in the campaign. But six points from the last 39 available hints at an overall lack of quality, which manager Rafa Benitez has been pointing out on a weekly basis. Whether it’s a combination of current owner Mike Ashley or the new consortium led by Amanda Staveley, Benitez must be given sufficient funds to bring in some vital reinforcements.

SOUTHAMPTON: 5/10

VERY underwhelming so far from Southampton as four wins from 18 matches is not good enough for the players at their disposal. But they have not been clinical enough or decisive enough to turn draws into wins. They are surely too good to go down, but Mauricio Pellegrino has to get more from his squad if the season is not to be totally forgettable.

Stoke City manager Mark Hughes (Daniel Hambury/PA Wire)

STOKE: 4/10

BLACK clouds hang over the Potteries and manager Mark Hughes. The fans were in open revolt during last Saturday’s 3-0 home defeat to West Ham and another loss tomorrow at home to West Brom could spell the end. Stoke have some decent players like Xherdan Shaqiri and Joe Allen, but the blend doesn’t seem quite right and their defending has been awful. Too often they don’t just lose, they get hammered.

SWANSEA CITY: 2/10

BOTTOM of the table, four points from safety and now without a manager – things can’t really get much worse for the South Wales club. The damage was done in the summer when star players Gylfi Sigurdsson and Fernando Llorente were sold and inadequately replaced. Only 10 goals from 18 games is the key statistic. But whoever the new manager is to replace Paul Clement, it will take something special to keep the Swans up.

TOTTENHAM: 5/10

THERE have been stand-out wins over Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool and Real Madrid at Wembley, but too much mediocrity around that. After challenging for the league in the last two seasons, that won’t happen this time and they will have to improve after Christmas to finish in the top four again. Harry Kane continues to score his goals, but the likes of Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli have only flickered and they badly miss the injured Toby Alderweireld in defence.

WATFORD: 6/10

MATCHES involving Watford are nothing, if not entertaining and they have reaped the reward of that positive approach. Some of the early praise handed out to new manager Marco Silva has cooled after a poor run of one point from five games, but they are still doing better than expected. After some eye-catching displays, expect Vicarage Road to be a stepping stone to better things for Brazilian forward Richarlison.

WEST BROM: 3/10

SETTING a new club record for the longest winless run in the club’s history is an indicator of how things have been for West Brom. They opened with two victories but there has been nothing since August 19. The fans’ unhappiness saw off Tony Pulis, but Alan Pardew hasn’t won any of his first four matches. The defensive shackles that were so entrenched under Pulis have not yet come off and will probably need to if Albion are to avoid the drop.

WEST HAM: 5/10

FOOTBALL’s favourite East-End soap opera club have not disappointed us in the first half of the campaign. Beginning with three straight losses on the road did not help and it was basically a matter of time after that until Slaven Bilic was sacked. David Moyes was a surprise – and lucky – choice to replace him, but seven points from the last three games hints at an upturn in fortunes. But this is West Ham we’re talking about and lose at home to Newcastle and then away at Bournemouth and the plot will thicken again.