GOAL US looks at Salah's goalscoring record, Palmer's goalscoring troubles, and the success of Man United's loan army
It is a strange Premier League season. With nine games to go, everything feels wrapped up. Liverpool have a 12 point lead atop the table, and will almost certainly win the title. Arsenal are steady in second. The bottom three – Ipswich, Leicester and Southampton – are all pretty much certain to go down.
In a league usually so jam-packed full of jeopardy, the major storylines – who wins and who loses – are sorted out two months to go.
That does not mean that there's a lack of intrigue, however. Liverpool may have this whole thing in their grasp, but Mo Salah has some individual accolades to chase – and perhaps a new contract to sign. Other big players, too, have a lot on the line, with Chelsea's Cole Palmer needing to find some form with a new England manager to impress.
And in the dugout, there are coaches facing their own troubles. Ruben Amorim's start at Man United couldn't have been worse, while self-proclaimed serial winner Ange Postecoglou is failing to deliver on his own moniker.
GOAL US looks at all of those plot points and more in Premier League Primer, a weekly rundown of what to watch from an American perspective in England's top flight.
Getty ImagesMo Salah on the brink of history (again)
The Premier League goal contributions record has remained elusive for some time now. Thierry Henry's mark of 44 goals plus assists – set in the 2003-04 season – was viewed as untouchable, as 24 goals and 20 assists seemed unattainable.
Then Erling Haaland went and almost beat it, scoring 36 and assisting eight in his first season in the Premier League, setting the single-season goal record en route.
But Salah, in a contract year, is on the verge of beating both. He has equaled the mark and with nine games to go, would have to go through something of an unprecedented cold spell for it to fall apart. He has found the net 27 times, and set up 17. So 50 goal contributions seems well within reach. Continue his current clip of 1.54 goal contributions per 90 minutes, and 60 is even feasible.
A Merseyside Derby would make a fine platform to break the mark – Everton visit Anfield at 3 p.m. ET on Wednesday – especially after Liverpool's struggles in the reverse fixture last month.
Advertisement(C)Getty ImagesIs Cole Palmer too freezing?
We were told that he was cold. Cole Palmer enjoyed an immense 2023-24 campaign, scoring 22 and assisting 11 to carry a fairly awful Chelsea team into European football. And in the early days of this year, it seemed that he might do much of the same.
His strong start had the Blues in title contention. So much for that. Palmer hasn't scored a Premier League goal for two months, and hasn't assisted since March 2. Chelsea, meanwhile, have slumped from second to fourth, and now face a fight to return to the Champions League.
On Thursday, Chelsea play Tottenham at 3 p.m. ET at Stamford Bridge. Spurs are always an odd matchup for them. Traditionally a meaningless fixture, the duel has become something of a derby in recent years – not in the least due to the famous "battle of the bridge" in 2016, in which Spurs were denied of a title charge thanks to a 2-2 draw.
This is a particularly poor Tottenham side, too, with Ange Postecoglu seemingly unlikely to keep his job beyond the end of the season. Three points would be massive for Palmer and Co.
Getty Images SportWhat next for Big Ange?
At the start of the season, Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou affirmed his confidence that Spurs would win a trophy this year.
"I don't win things," he said in a news conference, presumably with a gruff sigh and a 'mate' thrown in. "I always win things in my second year. Nothing's changed."
Well, things might just have. Spurs were never likely to win the Premier League, but their domestic campaign has been nothing short of an unmitigated disaster. Injuries have played a massive role, with the North London club forced to play much of the season without a recognized senior center back.
This team should be good enough going forward, though, to be better than a meager 14th. What has been missing in the narrative of the campaign, though, is Son's remarkable drop off. After scoring 17 goals last year, he has managed just seven this campaign.
Sure, he tends to be dependent on the fitness around him, and the fluidity of a healthy team should serve him better. But he will need to find some form – and push for double digits – if Spurs are to avoid embarrassment against Chelsea.
Getty Images SportRuben Amorim, Man United and the curse of the loanee
The transfer market always ticks along. It's how professional football works, players routinely going from one club to another in the merry-go-round of sports. What is less common, though, is the concept of the high profile loan. Players on big wages tend to stay put, either forced to play by virtue of their contract or rotting on the bench.
Man United, who play at Nottingham Forest at 3 p.m. ET on Tuesday, have become specialists in financial mismanagement of late, and have inadvertently given a Premier League rival a massive boost. Marcus Rashford has been excellent since he joined Aston Villa at the end of January, and scored his first two goals for the Birmingham club in the FA Cup against Preston last weekend.
It would seem to be the continuation of a worrying trendy for Ruben Amorim, who has also seen forgotten man Antony find form at Real Betis after leaving on a temporary deal. The manager, for his part, has insisted that United-controlled players performing anywhere can only be a good thing.
There is, admittedly, some truth to that. But it might be nice to see them finding the net for their parent club, too.
