GW6: The Gaffer's Verdict

Right, GW6 and the football gods had me by the short and curlies.

Let's start with what I nailed, because credit where it's due. Bournemouth over Southampton, 2-0 on the nose for the result, scoreline within touching distance. Three points in the bin and I called it from a mile off. Saints are a pub team in Premier League clobber, simple as. Iraola's lot are organised, hungry, and they smelled blood before kick-off. Didn't need a crystal ball for that one, just a working pair of eyes. Same goes for United getting done at home by Spurs. Ten Hag's mob have been a slow car crash for weeks now and I said as much. The only thing I got wrong was thinking United would even turn up enough to score. They didn't. Embarrassing.

Now the bad. The proper bad. Chelsea 2-2 Brighton was my big shout and Maresca's boys went and stuck four past the Seagulls. I had this one circled as the banker of the round, thought Brighton's high line would do them in but assumed Chelsea would gift one back like they always do. Turns out the Blues had their shooting boots on and I had egg on my face. Forgot to factor in that Cole Palmer is operating on a different frequency to the rest of us right now.

“Saints are a pub team in Premier League clobber, simple as.”

The rest? A bin fire if I'm honest. Newcastle and City sharing the spoils when I had City edging it, fair enough, draw on Tyneside is never daft. Brentford and West Ham 1-1 when I fancied the Bees, that one stings because Lopetegui's West Ham are about as threatening as a wet flannel and I still couldn't call it. Forest and Fulham, Everton and Palace, Ipswich and Villa. Three draws I didn't see, results that flipped my coupon into the shredder.

Nine points overall. Nine. That's a relegation form score and I know it. Worse than last week, worse than the week before. I've been backing the wrong horses and the form book has gone out the window. The Prem's gone proper mental this season, no team is safe, no result is nailed on, and muggins here is still picking like it's 2019.

GW7 I'm going back to basics. Pen, paper, form guide, no fancy hunches. Back to graft.

The Gaffer's out.