PREMIER LEAGUE REVIEW WEEK 35 (PART 2): SAKHO FAILS DRUG TEST; ULLOA BRACE; SUNDERLAND JOY

In this week’s Premier League review Mamadou Sakho is in hot water after failing a drugs test, Leicester shows that they’re not a one-man ‘Jamie Vardy’ band, and Sunderland climb out of the bottom three.

How on earth are Leicester City sitting at the top of the Premier League?

It will be the subject of Ted Talks, business seminars, and even Hollywood movies.

I don’t know all of the secrets, but I do know one. Claudio Ranieri, the man the English media christened ‘Tinkerman’ during his time at Chelsea, has hardly had to field a changed side.

All that went to pot this weekend after Jamie Vardy watched his team from the stands after being sent off in the draw at against West Ham.

Was Leicester City a one-man ‘Jamie Vardy’ band?

Leicester came into the tie knowing that a win would put them eight points clear of Spurs and place the pressure right back on the crew from White Hart Lane as they prepared to face West Brom on Monday night. There are only 12 points left to play for.

If Leicester City does win the Premier League, it will hit the British bookies for £10m. Betfred owner Fred Done has already paid out £1.1m in Leicester Premier League winning bets. Ladbrokes are looking down the barrel of a £3m pain in the head after 47 people thought Leicester were worth a shot at pre-season odds of 5,000-1. They are currently 1/5 at Bodog.

With Vardy requiring a pair of binoculars to watch this one, it was down to Leonardo Ulloa to fill in and fill in he did. The Argentine scored twice in the 30th and 60th minute, either side of a 10th minute Riyad Mahrez opener, and an 85th minute Marc Albrighton sealer.

The victory means Leicester are now guaranteed second place. But they aren’t going to be happy with that; not now. They have come too far. Four more games to go and the fairytale will be complete.

And, no, they are not a one man ‘Jamie Vardy’ band.

Sunderland Climb Out of the Bottom Three; Mamadou Sakho Fails Drugs Test

Having scored two goals in the past fortnight, you would have expected Mamadou Sakho to have been a dead cert to start their Premier League match against Newcastle.

He was nowhere to be seen.

With Liverpool preparing to face Villareal in a two-legged Europa League Semi-Final that will make or break Jurgen Klopp’s first season in charge, the last thing he needed was a scandal, but that’s what’s been dumped on his lap after the French centre-half failed a drugs test.

The 26-year old was tested by UEFA officials after Liverpool’s triumph over Man Utd in an earlier round of the Europa League on 17 March. His yellow stuff contained some naughty boy stuff. He has until Tuesday to complete a ‘B’ sample. BBC Radio 5 Live Senior Football Reporter Ian Dennis is quoted as saying that Sakho failed for a type of fat burner.

His Liverpool teammate Kolo Toure was handed a 10-month ban when playing for Man City after being found guilty of a similar mishap. If Sakho receives the same punishment, he won’t just miss that Europa League Semi Final but the Euro 2016 Championships.

After 30-minutes of their game against Newcastle, it didn’t look like they would miss the big Frenchman. Daniel Sturridge and Adam Lallana scoring one a piece to take Liverpool into the half time interval in a commanding position.

It wasn’t the return to Anfield that former boss Rafa Benitez was hoping for. And maybe the fire in his belly that comes with playing against a former club roared out of his mouth during the half-time team talk. Something changed. Newcastle, who were on a nine-match losing streak away from St James Park, managed to find goals through Papiss Cisse and Jack Colback to come away with another vital point. It was a draw that ended Liverpool’s run of four consecutive wins in all competitions.

With Newcastle drawing at Anfield, Sunderland knew that a point at Arsenal would be enough to see them clamber out of the bottom three on goal difference.

Big Sam Allardyce has never been relegated from the Premier League, and he knew victory in the remaining five games would ensure that sterling run would continue. They came into the match on a high after trouncing Norwich 3-0 but were acutely aware that it was their first victory in seven games despite some valiant performances.

In the end, a goalless draw will be viewed as a win for Big Sam and his Sunderland side. Arsenal may be stuttering, but they are still a formidable outfit. Jack Wilshere managed to get six minutes on the park, his first since last season’s FA Cup Final.

Champions League Watch

Man Utd now have Arsenal in their crosshairs after their neighbours Man City handed out a third four-goal hammering in a row for Mark Hughes’s Stoke side. The victory lifts them into third place on goal difference, five points clear of Man Utd (although the FA Cup finalists have a game in hand).

It was a time for youth to shine as Kelechi Iheanacho scored twice, and was the man hacked down by Ryan Shawcross in the box allowing Sergio Aguero to score his 23rd Premier League goal of the season. He is now one behind Harry Kane in the chase for the golden boot. Brazilian midfielder Fernando scored the other goal as Man City head into their Champions League clash against Real Madrid in fine form.

Here are the rest of the results:

Results

Man City 4 v 0 Stoke

Aston Villa 2 v 4 Southampton

Bournemouth 1 v 4 Chelsea

Liverpool 2 v 2 Newcastle

Sunderland 0 v 0 Arsenal

Leicester 4 v 0 Swansea

To Be Played (Mon 25 Apr)

Spurs v West Brom

Premier League Title Winning Odds (Courtesy of Bodog)

Leicester -500

Spurs +325

Premier League Standings

1st. Leicester – 76 pts.

2nd. Spurs – 68 pts.

3rd. Man City – 64 pts.

4th. Arsenal – 64 pts.

5th. Man Utd – 59 pts.

6th. West Ham – 56 pts.

7th. Liverpool – 55 pts

8th. Southampton – 54 pts.

9th. Chelsea – 47 pts.

10th. Stoke – 47 pts.

11th. Everton – 41 pts.

12th. Watford – 41 pts.

13th. Bournemouth – 41 pts.

14th. West Brom – 40 pts.

15th. Swansea – 40 pts.

16th. Crystal Palace – 39 pts.

17th. Sunderland – 31 pts.

18th. Norwich – 31 pts.

19th. Newcastle – 30 pts.

20th. Aston Villa  – 16 pts.

Liverpool seek Europa win over United after domestic woe

Liverpool full back Nathaniel Clyne is eager to end Manchester United's Europa League campaign after losing both Premier League matches against their arch rivals for a second successive season.

English football's most successful clubs meet for the first time in Europe Thursday in the first leg of their last-16 clash at Anfield, with Liverpool aiming for revenge after a 1-0 home loss in January and 3-1 defeat at Old Trafford in September.

"I think we owe them from the Premier League games, which we probably should have got more out of. But we have time now to put things right and progress through the cup," Clyne told British media.

"We need to take it to them, especially in the first leg when we're at home. Try to get some goals but also keep a clean sheet, which is the most important thing. We don't want them to get an away goal, and that's what we want to try and do."

Lallana could be the ace up Klopp's sleeve at Liverpool

Supporters may not fully appreciate the 27-year-old midfielder's contribution to the team since his move from Southampton, but the Reds boss and his backroom staff certainly do.

Sift through the details of Liverpool's most explosive performances of the season and you'll continuously spot Adam Lallana among the club's starters.

In both Premier League dissections of Manchester City, he was irrepressible. When the Reds rocked Jose Mourinho's Chelsea on the Blues' own turf, he delivered his industrious best.

At St. Mary's Stadium, as Liverpool scorched his former side, Southampton, he again proved to be a fundamental part of the Reds' fluidity. And when Jurgen Klopp's glasses were broken in celebratory scenes at Carrow Road, it was his cameo that sparked and sealed a 5-4 comeback against Norwich City, leading to imagery that has been tattooed onto the memory.



Lallana was not involved in the Valentine's Day massacre of Aston Villa because of a calf problem and, under the German, he has only been denied a place in the first XI through injury or a necessity to be kept fresh owing to fixture congestion.

At Melwood, he is viewed as one of Klopp's "go-to guys" — a player the manager extensively trusts to execute his tactics effectively and help to ensure that the team carries out his characteristically full-throttle football. 

With Liverpool facing Manchester United in a European fixture for the first time Thursday, it would be a surprise if Lallana is not in the starting XI for the two-legged tussle.



The Europa League last-16 affair will be tense and taxing, and Klopp is sure to stick with the 27-year-old, who is able to do what is required in and out of possession. 

Lallana may not be labeled one of Liverpool's best players, but he makes those who are operate better. He may not be filled with 40-yard passes and outside-of-the-boot assists, but he can intelligently and effectively press opponents. It may not be as sexy, but it's as important.

Often the things he offers cannot be quantified, nor do they attract attention: creating angles for combination play, switching the tempo of the action when needed, putting in impressive defensive shifts and opening up passing lanes.


Lallana can function in different positions and systems and equally implement Klopp's demands. He is a constant source of encouragement and is vocal on and off the pitch, which has impressed the Liverpool boss.

"He's a great, great player," Klopp said, "and, for our game, very, very important because he is a real lively, energetic player. He loves pressing and counterpressing."

It is not just the 48-year-old who has appreciated Lallana's talent of improving the collective. Before Klopp, Brendan Rodgers detailed how the versatile midfielder, who has progressed from League One to the top tier, "has a tactical awareness to adapt to what is required of him and to put the team above his personal ambitions."

At Southampton, Mauricio Pochettino referenced his delight at managing "such a very talented, special player." The esteemed Argentine, now in the Tottenham dugout, believed that if Lallana "had a Brazilian nationality, a Spanish nationality, if he were another Mata, Oscar, Hazard, or any of these type of players," he would garner more plaudits.



The backroom teams that have worked with Lallana see beyond the Vine-worthy moments. They look deeper than the flair and note his function. The Spurs boss still keeps in touch with him and feels that he is "one of the best players in England."

Liverpool paid 25 million euros ($27M) for the Saints academy graduate and that figure is often used as the asterisk against any of his performances, but his coaches cannot put a price on the awareness and industry that he offers.

Can Lallana produce more goals and assists? Absolutely. But that is not the essence of his game — he has only netted double figures once in all competitions while in the Premier League. Philippe Coutinho, widely considered to be Liverpool's standout star, has had a hand in 12 goals this season and Lallana has been involved in one fewer.

If there is one problem surrounding the England international, it is his injury problems — he has endured five different setbacks over the past two campaigns — but, on a personal level, those will be small annoyances given that he grew up fearing that his football career would never materialize.



During his scholarship at Southampton, Lallana was diagnosed with a ulcerative colitis — the same condition suffered by Darren Fletcher, though a milder version. He also required keyhole surgery to cure an irregular heartbeat.

Lallana has always maintained that he feels lucky to still be in the game, but the managers who have fielded him will insist that they are the fortunate ones.

There are some players of whom supporters will always want to see more and that is understandable, but it's unfair to accuse Lallana of contributing less than he actually has.

Mellor: why Klopp may reunite Coutinho, Lallana and Firmino for Watford

But Reds' main problems seem to be at the back rather than up front.

Liverpool's Roberto Firmino and Philippe Coutinho celebrate after Manchester City's Eliaquim Mangala scored an own during the Barclays Premier League match at the Etihad Stadium, Manchester.

It will be interesting to see how Jurgen Klopp sets his front line up on Sunday at Watford.

Does he keep Benteke in there leading the line, or will he revert to using the front trio of Coutinho, Firmino and Lallana again now that the little Brazilian is back fit?

We all saw what they did at Manchester City a few weeks ago and I just think Jurgen might want to go with them again for this one.

But to be honest, the main problems seem to be at the back, rather than up front, when we are trying to defend corners & set pieces.

They were two very disappointing goals for us to concede to West Brom last week. If Simon Mignolet comes then he has to get the ball - and for the second one Martin Skrtel lost his man and we got caught out again.

I know a lot’s been said since about West Brom’s style - or lack of it - and we saw just what I had expected from them. But there is no right or wrong way to play football and while frustrating to watch, Tony Pulis does get results so we can’t complain.

Watford will of course also be a tough test for us too. They don’t concede many goals but they don’t score that many either, though they do play with two up front in Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo.

Watford have won their last three games and are above us in the table. So we must respect them and they’ll likely be hard for us to break down.

But for me this is an opportunity for the Reds to get back to their best so I would not approach this game with any fear.

If Coutinho, Firmino and Lallana do play and can recreate the form we saw at the Etihad in November - and if we tighten up on set pieces - then we can take the points, I’m sure.

Liverpool FC v FC Sion Europa League Match in Sions Tourbillon Stadium Switzerland. Jordan Rossiter wins the tackle

Rossiter's time will surely come

You have to feel a bit for Jordan Rossiter after suffering his second hamstring injury of the season.

With the festive period coming up and all the games we have to play in early January too, in the FA Cup and Capital One Cup, I’d have expected to see him involved in a fair amount of action.

So this is another setback for the 18-year-old but I am sure it is nothing too much to worry about.

You do get injuries as young players develop - remember he won’t have been a full time professional for long and he’s still growing and adapting to the rigours of the game.

BORDEAUX, FRANCE - SEPTEMBER 17: Jordan Rossiter (L) and Adam Lallana after his goal for Liverpool FC during the Europa League game between FC Girondins de Bordeaux and Liverpool FC at Matmut Atlantique Stadium on September 17, 2015 in Bordeaux, France. (Photo by Romain Perrocheau/Getty Images)

But I am convinced Jordan has a huge future ahead of him. That’s not just because of his ability - of course we can see he has that - but really because of his strong personality too.

He is not afraid to point out to someone much older and more experienced than him if they are doing something wrong.

We’re in an era where there are not too many big characters around perhaps. But Jordan is a local lad and a real tough, committed battler.

Clyne backs Klopp to inspire title bid

Liverpool defender Nathaniel Clyne says Jurgen Klopp's vibrant personality has infused his side with the belief they can win the Premier League this season.

Klopp's side are 11 points behind leaders Leicester City in ninth place as they prepare to face Watford at Vicarage Road on Sunday.

But England right-back Clyne believes Klopp has already made such a positive impression since replacing Brendan Rodgers as Reds boss in October that a title challenge is still a distinct possibility.

Liverpool are without a win in their last three matches in all competitions, yet morale remains high after they recovered to rescue a 2-2 draw against West Bromwich Albion last weekend thanks to Divock Origi's strike deep into stoppage time.

Klopp celebrated Origi's equaliser by leading his players over to the famous Kop end of Anfield to take a bow in front of the fans and it is that kind of spontaneous enthusiasm which has convinced Clyne that Liverpool's manager has the club on the verge of something special.

"The manager said it was the best crowd since he has been at the club and he was giving something back to them," Clyne told the Daily Telegraph.

"We didn't know it was going to happen and it took me by surprise.

"What we did there showed we could get the crowd more motivated by doing that salute. Liverpool has a big atmosphere and we know if we get that crowd going it makes us play better.

"We were under the cosh and in the last minute we equalised. It was a good moment for us."

VULNERABILITY

With Chelsea in crisis, Leicester unlikely to sustain their remarkable run and Arsenal, Manchester City and Manchester United all showing signs of vulnerability, Clyne sees no reason why Liverpool can't get involved in the title race, or at least finish in the top four.

"Can we win the title? Yeah, it's a possibility. Our target is definitely to get into the top four and we are in all the cup competitions," he added.

"We are doing really well. The league is unpredictable. It keeps everyone excited, not knowing what is going to happen."

James Milner will be sidelined on Sunday after the Liverpool midfielder felt discomfort in his calf during training, while injured duo Dejan Lovren and Daniel Sturridge are also ruled out.

Although Watford have enjoyed an impressive first season back in the top flight, they have yet to claim the scalp of one of the big guns after matches against Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United all ended in defeat.

In their first meeting with Liverpool in almost nine years, Quique Sanchez Flores' side believe they can put the record straight with a first victory over the Reds since Tommy Mooney secured a shock 1-0 success at Anfield in 1999.

The Hornets, who boast a stingy defence and the goal power of Nigeria striker Odion Ighalo, sit two places above Liverpool in seventh after reeling off three successive wins and Sanchez Flores made it clear he and his players won't be intimidated by their more illustrious visitors.

"Klopp is a very positive manager and he's always thinking about good, offensive football," the Spaniard said.

"He wants to learn about the Premier League and it is new for him.

"But I'm not thinking too much about the coach, I'm thinking about Adam Lallana, Emre Can, Christian Benteke. That's more important than thoughts of Jurgen Klopp."

Watford boss Quique Flores backs Jurgen Klopp to be the next Jose Mourinho

WATFORD manager Quique Sanchez Flores claims English football will miss Jose Mourinho and tipped Jurgen Klopp to be the next managerial star.\

The Spaniard, 50, spoke on the eve of their home match with Klopp’s Liverpool, hoping to maintain their bright start in the Premier League.

They were heavily tipped for relegation yet Flores has turned Watford into a smart, attacking side but hopes they remain ‘humble’.

He is looking forward to his first meeting with Klopp and said: “He’s a very positive manager and always tries to do the best for the players. He always thinks about good, attacking football.

“Now he is in a moment where he wants to learn about the Premier League, his new players and the younger players.

“It looks like he wants to learn as quickly as possible about the Premier League and English football.

“Sunday is the first time I will oppose Klopp in a match. He’s positive, he’s educated and doesn’t look like he’s under pressure.

“His philosophy is attacking – always thinking about how to score more goals.

“He is clever and will take it slowly, step by step. He wants to know about the Premier League because it is completely different to the Bundesliga.

“When he finally decides what is his first XI, finally Liverpool will go all out for the top spot.

“But I do not focus on him. I am focusing on Liverpool as a team – on the players – because managers can plan and plan but finally the players are the most important people.

“I am not thinking too much about their coach – I am thinking about Adam Lallana and about Christian Benteke – this is what is I’m thinking about. I need to think about them more than the thoughts of Jurgen Klopp.”

Flores is sad over Mourinho’s sacking. He said: “I was a little bit surprised – Jose Mourinho was one of the best managers in the last 15 years.

“The Premier League has a lot of managers of high quality and Mourinho was one of the best. It’s not good for the Premier League to lose that kind of coach.

“He will be back at some stage – he will get a new team when he is ready.

“Two years ago I spoke to Mourinho and he told me how he loved the Premier League. Now that I’m working here I can understand why he loves it.

“Maybe he will take time off for reflection. He feels passion for his profession and he will be ready to coach again.”.

Adam Lallana confident of Liverpool goals now he’s at full fitness

The midfielder will be looking to add to his tally by scoring against Watford this weekend.

Adam Lallana has told the club’s official website that he is looking to add more goals to his game now he is at full fitness at the club.

The midfielder endured a disappointing first season at Liverpool last year following his move from Southampton, with a number of niggling injuries limiting his game time.

It was a similar scenario this season as he initially struggled for fitness, but he has since improved and been one of the key players since Jurgen Klopp took charge at Anfield.

He now says he is the fittest he has ever been at the club, and is looking to add more goals to his game moving forward.

“I’ve been playing more consistently, but the big thing that has coincided is me being back to full fitness, I feel as fit as I ever have at the club,” he told liverpoolfc.com.

“I’m delighted to be fit now and contributing to the team. It’s always good to get a run of games. Any player will tell you that when you get a good run of games, you feel naturally fit.”

“I just feel good on the pitch. I want to be contributing more on the goals front – that’s something I’m working on, but I’m sure it’s only a matter of time.”

If there is one area that Lallana needs to improve in at Liverpool, it certainly is his goalscoring record.

He has so far only managed five goals in 39 Premier League appearances for the Reds, a disappointing tally for a player who plays in such a key position in the side.

With their striker’s also struggling for form this season, Jurgen Klopp needs other players to step up, and he will be hoping to see a drastic improvement from Lallana moving forward.