2025/26 Premier League Roundup: Gameweek 26

Crystal Palace 2-3 Burnley

A stunning first-half comeback earned Burnley their first win since October over a shambolic Crystal Palace! After just 17 minutes, Crystal Palace already had the lead as Jorgen Strand Larsen netted his first goal for the club! In the 33rd minute, Palace’s lead was doubled as Strand Larsen scored again! However, in the 40th minute, Burnley were able to get one goal back thanks to a great finish by Hannibal Mejbri, before Jaidon Anthony equalised just 4 minutes later! I know it was accidental, but this goal really should’ve been ruled out for an earlier handball! Anyway, in additional time at the end of the first half, Jefferson Lerma scored an own goal to remarkably send Burnley into the break ahead! In the second half, Daichi Kamada had a great chance to score, but he somehow failed to hit the target from close range, before Martin Dubravka pulled off a big save right at the end of the game to keep Ismaila Sarr’s deflected volley out! In the end, what are Crystal Palace doing?! The Eagles stay 13th in the table, and they will take on Zrinjski Mostar in the Conference League next Thursday before they’ll host Wolves in their next league game! As for Burnley, maybe, just maybe! The Clarets remain inside the Relegation Zone (in 19th), and they’ll host Mansfield in the FA Cup today before they head to Chelsea next Saturday!

Chelsea 2-2 Leeds

Despite being 2 in front, Chelsea weren’t able to hold on to the victory as Leeds United battled back to earn another important point! After 24 minutes, Chelsea found themselves in front as Joao Pedro finished smartly! Pedro then had another chance to score, but this time he failed to hit the target, before Chelsea were awarded a penalty in the second half after Pedro was stupidly fouled by Jaka Bijol! Cole Palmer then stepped up and scored to double the hosts’ lead in the 58th minute! However, after Moises Caicedo decided to foul Jayden Bogle, Lukas Nmecha smashed one home from 12 yards to get Leeds back in the game just 9 minutes after seemingly being out of it! Then, just 6 minutes later, after a mess at the back, Noah Okafor was able to tap the ball into an empty net to get this game back on level terms at 2-each! Joao Pedro then came close to scoring late on as his headed effort landed on top of the net, before Cole Palmer pulled off one of the all-time misses right at the death! How did he not score?! In the end, this is a disappointing result for Chelsea! The Blues stay 5th in the league, and their next couple of games sees them take on Hull and Burnley! As for Leeds United, they’re doing really well! The Whites rise to 15th in the table, and they take on Birmingham in the FA Cup tomorrow before they “remain” in the midlands to take on Aston Villa in their next league game!

Manchester City 3-0 Fulham

After 24 minutes, Manchester City found themselves in front as Antoine Semenyo tapped home after Sander Berge’s accidental back pass! Harry Wilson then forced a decent save out of Gianluigi Donnarumma, before Nico O’Reilly made it 2-0 with a brilliantly dinked finish! Then, in the 39th minute, Erling Haaland added a third with a really nice finish, before Raul Jimenez failed to pick out Emile Smith Rowe (for what would’ve been a simple tap-in)! Overall, this was as simple and straightforward as Manchester City would’ve been hoping for! City remain second in the league, and they’ll host Salford and Newcastle in their next two games! As for Fulham, they’ll just want to move on from this game! The Cottagers drop to 12th in the table, and their next two games sees them play away at both Stoke and Sunderland!

Tottenham 1-2 Newcastle

Another loss, this time to Newcastle United, was enough for Thomas Frank to be sacked by Tottenham Hotspur! After 44 minutes, Newcastle thought they had the lead through Joe Willock, only for the goal to be ruled out for what is a horrific offside decision! I will be the first person to point out all of the decisions that have gone Newcastle’s way this year, but this is an appalling one that’s gone against them! However, in the 5th minute of additional time at the end of the first half, Newcastle were able to get themselves into the break in front as Malick Thiaw tapped home on the rebound! In the second half, Mathys Tel had a decent opportunity which he failed to keep down, before Tottenham were back on level terms in the 64th minute through Archie Gray! However, just 4 minutes later, Jacob Ramsey finished well to restore Newcastle’s advantage! In the end, it’s been a disaster for Thomas Frank as Tottenham Hotspur Manager! Spurs drop to 16th in the table, and their next game is critical as they’ll host Arsenal next time out (next Sunday)! As for Newcastle United, boy did they need this result! The Magpies rise to 10th place, and they have big games upcoming against both Aston Villa (FA Cup) and Qarabag FK (Champions League) before they face Manchester City in their next league game!

Everton 1-2 Bournemouth

After a terrible spill by Djordje Petrovic, Thierno Barry was gifted an incredible opportunity to give Everton the lead, but he shockingly missed the target completely! After Petrovic then made up for that earlier error by tipping Iliman Ndiaye’s effort onto the post, Everton were awarded a penalty after Rayan fouled Jarrad Branthwaite! It was Ndiaye who then stepped up and scored to give Everton the lead after 42 minutes! In the second half, Barry had another great chance to score, but this time his effort was blocked brilliantly by Alex Jimenez, before Bournemouth found themselves back on level terms in the 61st minute as Rayan made up for his earlier error! What a fantastic cross by Adrien Truffert! Then, just 3 minutes later, it was 2-1 as Amine Adli completed Bournemouth’s comeback after some questionable positioning by Jordan Pickford! And then, to make matters worse, Jake O’Brien was shown a straight red card to finish off a horror 10 minutes for Everton! In the end, this is a big blow for Everton! The Toffees stay 8th in the league, and their next game is at home against Manchester United in 10 days’ time! As for AFC Bournemouth, this is a big win for them! The Cherries rise to 9th in the table, and they’ll head to West Ham next time out!

Brentford 1-1 Arsenal

Arsenal’s lead at the top was cut down to 4 points by a Brentford side who knows that they probably should’ve won this game! Igor Thiago had a great chance to give Brentford the lead in the first half, but his effort was kept out well by David Raya, before Arsenal had the lead in the 61st minute through Noni Madueke! It really felt like this goal came from nothing, but fair play to Madueke! However, after initially missing a sitter a few minutes before, Brentford were back on level terms in the 71st minute courtesy of a Keane Lewis-Potter header! This game is literally about headers! Thiago then found himself in on goal, but his lack of urgency opened the door for Cristhian Mosquera to pull out a massive tackle, before Thiago blasted another chance high and wide! And then, deep in stoppage time, Caoimhin Kelleher pulled out a massive save to deny Gabriel Martinelli a late winner! In the end, Brentford had more than enough chances to win this game! The Bees stay 7th in the table, and they head to Macclesfield for a big FA Cup clash on Monday before they host Brighton in their next league game! As for Arsenal, this isn’t an ideal result for them, but at least they didn’t lose! The Gunners remain top of the league (now by 4 points), and they host Wigan next time out before league games away at both Wolves and Tottenham!

West Ham 1-1 Manchester United

A 96th-minute equaliser resulted in neither West Ham United nor Manchester United leaving the game particularly happy! Luke Shaw came close early on; his effort was blocked brilliantly on the line by Aaron Wan-Bissaka, before West Ham were able to get themselves in front just 5 minutes into the second half courtesy of Tomas Soucek! Casemiro then thought he’d equalised for Manchester United, but his goal was rightly ruled out for offside, before Leny Yoro pulled off a key block to deny Adama Traore! And then, after Joshua Zirkzee missed a golden chance deep in stoppage time, Manchester United would have their equalising goal in the 96th minute through Benjamin Sesko! In the end, it’s another heart-breaking late goal that West Ham United have to deal with quickly! The Hammers stay inside the Relegation Zone (in 18th), and they’ll take on Burton and Bournemouth over their next two games! As for Manchester United, their unbeaten run remains! United remain 4th in the league, and they’ll head to Everton next time out!

Sunderland 0-1 Liverpool

Liverpool earned themselves a massive win to hand Sunderland AFC their first home defeat of the season! Robin Roefs made a decent first half save to push Florian Wirtz’s effort away, before Wirtz came much closer as he struck the post! Roefs was then needed again to stop Wirtz from scoring, before Sunderland were asking for a penalty after Brian Brobbey was brought down by Ibrahima Konate! I honestly don’t know how the rules work anymore! Anyway, we would finally get the first goal of the game in the 61st minute as Habib Diarra was unable to keep Virgil van Dijk’s headed effort out! Hugo Ekitike then had a couple of decent chances to extend Liverpool’s advantage, but he just wasn’t able to hit the target! In the end, Sunderland AFC didn’t really do anything here! The Black Cats drop to 11th in the table, and they’ll take on Oxford and Fulham over the next 10 days! As for Liverpool, they needed this! The Reds remain 6th in the league, and they’ll host Brighton (in the FA Cup) tonight before their next league game away at Nottingham Forest!

Aston Villa 1-0 Brighton

After James Milner made Premier League history, Emi Buendia wasn’t a million miles off giving Aston Villa the lead right heading into halftime! In the second half, Emi Martinez pulled off a great save to tip Ferdi Kadioglu’s effort onto the crossbar, before Jack Hinshelwood failed to keep his effort down! And then, in the 86th minute, Aston Villa would be gifted a winner as Jack Hinshelwood put the ball into the back of his own net! Overall, it’s a win, and that’s all that matters for Aston Villa right now! Villa remain third in the league, and they face back-to-back home games against Newcastle (in the FA Cup) and Leeds (in the Premier League)! As for Brighton and Hove Albion, I have no words for them anymore! The Seagulls stay 14th in the table, and they face Liverpool in the FA Cup tonight before they’ll head to Brentford in their next league game!

Nottingham Forest 0-0 Wolves

Two poor teams failed to score as Sean Dyche was later relieved of his duties at Nottingham Forest! Morgan Gibbs-White had a great chance to open the scoring against his former club, but he poorly headed the ball into the side-netting, before Lorenzo Lucca wasted a good opportunity to score on his home debut! In the second half, Callum Hudson-Odoi had a decent chance to score, but he could only strike the ball straight at Jose Sa, before Sa made a great save to deny Morato! And then, in additional time at the end of the game, Wolves found themselves in on goal, but Mateus Mane was unable to guide his effort past Stefan Ortega! In the end, this is such a poor result for Nottingham Forest! Forest stay 17th in the table, and they’ll head to Fenerbahçe next weekend in the Europa League before they host Liverpool in their next league game! As for Wolverhampton Wanderers, at least they didn’t lose! Wolves remain bottom of the league, and they’ll face Grimsby tomorrow ahead of two league games against Arsenal and Crystal Palace!

Premier League Table at the End of Gameweek 26

1. Arsenal: 57pts (+32)

2. Manchester City: 53pts (+30)

3. Aston Villa: 50pts (+10)

4. Manchester United: 45pts (+10)

5. Chelsea: 44pts (+17)

6. Liverpool: 42pts (+6)

7. Brentford: 40pts (+5)

8. Everton: 37pts (-1)

9. Bournemouth: 37pts (-2)

10. Newcastle: 36pts (0)

11. Sunderland: 36pts (-3)

12. Fulham: 34pts (-5)

13. Crystal Palace: 32pts (-4)

14. Brighton: 31pts (0)

15. Leeds: 30pts (-9)

16. Tottenham: 29pts (-1)

17. Nottingham Forest: 27pts (-13)

18. West Ham: 24pts (-17)

19. Burnley: 18pts (-23)

20. Wolves: 9pts (-32)