Liverpool back on top, Chelsea sliding down into Premier League top half congestion

We’re now a third of the way through this already remarkable Premier League season, and while normal service has been resumed at the very top, just below there, it’s a bit of a mad scramble at the moment. Spurs, in second, and Wolves, in tenth, are separated by five (5!) points.

Chelsea sit smack dab in the middle of that range, three behind second and two ahead of tenth. That’s good enough for sixth, but Manchester City, Manchester United, and Aston Villa have 1, 2, and 3 (!) matches in hand, respectively. The latter two both play tomorrow, and should they pick up the expected three points (Villa at home to Burnley, in form Manchester United away to winless Sheffield United), they will make things even more congested.

Then again, what can we actually expect in this season?

Chelsea have lost back-to-back games after going unbeaten in 17 in all competition. Jose Mourinho’s Spurs have dropped five points in that same span by conceding late goals, including the winner to Liverpool in the 90th minute today. Manchester City dropped two points to West Brom yesterday, who subsequently sacked their manager today (Sam Allardyce in, Slaven Bilic out; sorry, Conor Gallagher).

Good thing we can still count on Arsenal to provide the laughs, with the Gunners again getting a man sent off, this time former Chelsea transfer target Gabriel Magalhaes, in their (creditable) 1-1 draw against Southampton. It’s just their second point in ten games.

Saints probably should be disappointed with that draw, as a win would’ve taken them top temporarily, for a couple hours. Leicester City missed a similar chance by losing to Everton at home, 2-0.

Our brains are wired to see patterns even where no patterns exist, but this is a Zodiac cipher-level quagmire, which might taken another 51 years to unravel.