Leicester
Expectations are hard to rationalise as a Leicester fan – mid-table in the top flight is a “natural” position for the club, but given the platform we had in 2016 and the backing we have, it’s leaving a lingering sense of disappointment. Yesterday was special, though. 5/10
Stars/flops Nampalys Mendy looks a different player to the one who made his short-lived debut back in 2016. James Maddison has taken to the division like a duck to water but two other relatively new signings, Kelechi Iheanacho and Rachid Ghezzal continue to underwhelm.
Happy with the manager? A tricky one. Puel is quite clearly a decent enough manager whose conduct in the wake of the helicopter crash at the King Power deserves the highest praise. But the style of football has been, more often than not, an absolute chore to watch. It’s arduous, restrained and passive – everything a Leicester side shouldn’t be. 10/10 as a role model; 4/10 as a manager.
Favourite moment of the 2018 calendar year The stunning tributes our club, our city and our county paid to Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, Kaveporn Punpare, Nursara Suknamai, Eric Swaffer and Izabela Roza Lechowicz during our match against Burnley. There has never been a darker moment at our club – but there’s also never been a moment when I was more proud to be part of it.
• Chris Whiting TheChrisWhitingShow.wordpress.com @ChrisRWhiting
Liverpool
Up at the top of the league at Christmas, into the knockout rounds of the Champions League, tight at the back, brilliant up front. For all those reasons, it has to be 10/10.
Stars/flops The entire team have been stars, but if we’re singling people out … Van Dijk’s presence has totally transformed us – is there a cooler, calmer, better centre-half anywhere? Joe Gomez alongside him has been immense, and signing Alisson was the most important decision of the summer. Andy Robertson just gets better and better, and Fabinho is already impressing after only a few games – Klopp getting it right again, introducing him gradually.
Happy with the manager? 10/10, for all the above. And for his celebration against Everton. He can afford to have a quiet time in the transfer window next month: it’s hard to see that we need to do much spending, especially with Oxlade-Chamberlain to come back and Lallana to get fully fit. Klopp did our business in the summer, and made a fine job of it.
Moment of 2018 The brilliant ride we had getting to the Champions League final. That said, beating the Blues in the 96th minute just after they set off flares to celebrate a draw was special.
• Steph Jones Observer reader
Manchester City
What more could we ask for? Leaving the Palace game aside, we’re in the title race, we have Schalke to beat to make the last eight of the Champions League and we face Burton in the Carabao Cup semis. All in all, it’s a pretty good time to be a City fan. And it’s made even better by Kevin De Bruyne’s return from injury. 9/10
Stars/flops It’s hard to pick out individuals – the collective has functioned so well, with such strength in depth that performance levels rarely drop, regardless of Pep’s rotation. A few have shone, though: Sterling is now our most important, consistent attacking player, despite the amount of vitriol he’s had to deal with; Laporte has also built on last season’s form; and both of the Silvas deserve a mention, too. They were absolutely majestic for the first three months of the season.
Happy with the manager? Of course. The team feels even better, and more balanced, than last season – and being in a genuine title fight with Liverpool is a challenge he’ll thrive on. My only gripe is that he’s not played Foden nearly enough. I haven’t seen a young player look so obviously ready for top-flight football since Daniel Sturridge. 9.5/10
Moment of 2018 Gabriel Jesus’s added-time goal at Southampton in May which secured the 100-point record.
• Lloyd Scragg NinetyThreeTwenty.com @lloyd_scragg
Manchester United
José’s exit was inevitable. The football was turgid, the dressing room toxic and the atmosphere at Old Trafford sterile. Replacing him won’t be an overnight fix, though – we’re clearly miles behind City and Liverpool, and we have a yes-man CEO who believes he’s adding most value when he’s securing new official noodle and tractor partners. 3/10
Stars/flops Martial has been in a rich vein of form: hopefully he’ll go on to build on his impressive goals to games tally. Pogba is the obvious flop. When your manager describes you as a virus, you know something is seriously wrong. I honestly thought when he came back after the World Cup that he would knuckle down. He should follow José out of the door, and take his poisonous sycophants with him.
Happy with the manager? With Ole Gunnar as an interim, hopefully there’s some kind of structured plan in place for a long-term successor. In the short term I think he needs a strong assistant, though: it’d be highly beneficial, and entertaining, if he brought Roy Keane in.
Moment of 2018 3-1 down at Anfield, Fellaini majestically took the ball on his chest between two defenders, turned and fired a shot that knocked a steward on his arse by the corner flag. It properly summed up our year.
• Shaun O’Donnell Observer reader
Newcastle
A miserable start after another underwhelming summer in the transfer market – we really looked strong contenders for the drop. But the clouds parted in November and we’re now playing with more vigour. The fighting spirit that kept us up last year is starting to show. We have a long way to go, but there’s hope. 6/10
Stars/flops We were forced to rummage around the bargain bucket again in the summer, but Rafa managed to fish out a couple of gems in defenders Fabian Schär and Federico Fernández, who’ve provided some extra backbone. But Kenedy is our biggest flop: a skilful player whose decision-making – not to mention his penalty taking – is questionable at best.
Happy with the manager? Yet again, Rafa is proving our most important asset. We’re not exactly blowing teams away, but he knows how to get the best from the squad at his disposal. Unlike many former Newcastle bosses, he can actually improve players: you only have to watch Salomón Rondón prowling around the box to realise that. 7/10
Moment of 2018 No contest. After being mocked by Sunderland fans for losing our Premier League status at the end of 2015-16, watching their slide into League One raised a chuckle or two.
• Richard & David Holmes Observer readers
Southampton
After squeezing our way to safety in May, the consensus was that we’d got away with it, but that we’d learn lessons. A full pre-season with Mark Hughes shaping the squad the way he wanted would mean we’d hit the ground running. Yeah, about that … There are very promising signs from Ralph Hasenhüttl, but we’re starting from a very low base. 2/10 so far, representing the number of league wins at St Mary’s in the last 12 months.
Stars/flops Pierre Højbjerg and Alex McCarthy have been decent, and Danny Ings gives us more cutting edge. As for flops – before his customary goal against Arsenal Charlie Austin had had a stinker of a season (the nadir being just 16 effortless touches at Fulham), while Wesley Hoedt has been a defensive calamity waiting to happen.
Happy with the manager? I like the cut of Hasenhüttl’s jib so far. Naturally if he makes big progress he won’t be our manager for long, but better to lose staff because they’re good rather than having to pay them to leave, I guess. 0/10 for Hughes, 8/10 so far for Hasenhüttl.
Moment of 2018 Two from my month in Russia: Eric Dier’s penalty to beat Colombia and Kieran Trippier’s free-kick in the semi. Things I don’t think I ever thought I’d witness as an England fan. An extraordinary summer.
• Steve Grant SaintsWeb.co.uk @SteveGrant1983
Tottenham
Our best-ever points tally at this stage of a Premier League season, and a Champions League last-16 place, is as much as most Spurs fans would have hoped for. Given we (famously) didn’t make any pre-season signings and are still playing “home” games at the increasingly loathed national stadium, it’s positively miraculous. As for a rating: just because we haven’t quite hit our straps yet, and because of Wembley, 8/10.
Stars/flops With a number of key players suffering World Cup fatigue, Érik Lamela, Lucas Moura and Harry Winks all stepped up, but it’s Moussa Sissoko who’s been the surprise standout. What he lacks in subtlety he makes up for with strength, and there are no longer groans when he appears on the teamsheet. “Wake me up before you go-go/Who needs Bale when you’ve got Sissoko.” No flops as such, but Hugo Lloris briefly threatened to go from hero to zero after his drink-driving conviction.
Happy with the manager? Top three for the past three seasons, he’s played a blinder. It’s easy to see why Poch is in demand but he’s unlikely to allow the speculation to unsettle him. And with that magnificent new stadium finally becoming a reality, don’t be surprised if he’s still here next season. 10/10.
Moment of 2018 Son Heung-min has lit up 2018 several times, ever since hitting a screamer then shushing West Ham fans over racist taunts at the start of January. His joyful solo effort to seal the win against Chelsea was particularly special.
• Richard Barnes @barnesrichard
Watford
It’s been a lot of fun. Our performances have been better than our results suggest. We’ve played badly only once or twice and some of our football has been scintillating. We’re used to starting well, of course, but anything better than the wobbles of varying shapes and sizes of previous years will see us top half. 8/10
Stars/flops At his best, Étienne Capoue has been one of the strongest players in the side since he signed in 2015. This season he’s hit those high notes much more consistently. Roberto Pereyra has been another star, having finally had half a season free of injury, while Craig Cathcart and Ben Foster have both been tremendous. Domingos Quina, who has just broken into the side, also looks a load of fun. There haven’t been any flops.
Happy with the manager? The jury was out on Javi Gracia over the summer: he’d stabilised the side but not imposed a clear identity on his new team. That’s all changed, and Gracia has us playing thrusting football while coming across as decent, controlled and likable. 9/10
Moment of 2018 A few: the theatrical defeat of Spurs in September, with Troy Deeney at his untameable best; the efforts of our fans to honour the victims of the Leicester helicopter disaster; and the way fans marked the Rainbow Laces event. Magnificent in every respect.
• Matt Rowson BHappy.wordpress.com @mattrowson
West Ham
After a terrible start of four defeats, it got much better. We’ll call yesterday a blip. Lanzini’s injury was a big blow, but Pellegrini has started to develop an effective system. The defence still looks really suspect at times, but the board has finally spent some money and hired a manager the fans like, so there’s a more united feel. We might even get our claret carpet for the stadium if David Sullivan can find one in the sales at Romford market. 6/10
Stars/flops Declan Rice has solved the defensive midfield problem, while Anderson is starting to look like the sort of talisman we’ve been missing since Payet and Di Canio, producing the fantasy moments that Hammers fans live for. Diop and Balbuena have formed a decent defensive partnership and Fabianski has been an upgrade in goal. And credit to Robert Snodgrass, a bit of a cult hero. Flops have included Jack Wilshere, who has proved to be injury-prone — who knew?
Happy with the manager? Pellegrini impressed by staying calm after a terrible start and not compromising his tactics. He’s trying to get West Ham to think like a big club. 7/10
Moment of 2018 The chorus of Bubbles that coincided with Anderson nonchalantly sweeping home a great goal into the top corner against Palace.
• Pete May Author of Goodbye to Boleyn; HammersInTheHeart.blogspot.co.uk
Wolves
It’s been mixed: a bright start followed by a run of one point from a possible 18. But Nuno didn’t panic, made some changes and oversaw some important, impressive wins to get back on track. 7/10
Stars/flops Willy Boly has been outstanding, and people are also beginning to sit up and take notice of teenage academy product Morgan Gibbs-White. As for flops – apart from Raúl Jiménez, our forwards have struggled to make a consistent impact. Diogo Jota seems to be rediscovering his spark, though, after a pretty tough start.
Happy with the manager? He’s a wizard: the transformation of players such as Matt Doherty, Ryan Bennett and Conor Coady in the past 18 months has been astonishing. All three have more than looked the part at this level and that’s largely thanks to him. He also showed an ability to adapt the way we played following that poor run. 8/10
Moment of 2018 The aftermath of that Cardiff game in April: Neil Warnock telling Nuno in no uncertain terms where to go after his side had missed two injury-time penalties, which essentially sealed the league title for us. Other big moments: Rúben Neves hitting a wonder goal against Derby, and Eric Dier firing home the winning penalty for England in an actual penalty shootout.
• Louie Silvani ThroughTheThirds.blogspot.com; @louiesilvani4
• Part one: Arsenal to Huddersfield
