Manchester United are now here only to be laughed at

Manchester United offer their fans and the league nothing but schadenfreude

What is the point of Manchester United? The same question can be asked of Aston Villa and Liverpool, also fading from relevance, but United are the newest, most appropriate subject. They don’t challenge for the title as they used to. They don’t entertain as they did in the Ronaldo years and before then. They no longer fight to the end, and their home fans are a mixture of daytrippers and people happy to support the Glazer family. Football is meant to be fun and entertaining, United aren’t that except for people who are enjoying watching them fail. They currently serve no function in the Premier League but to occupy the positions below the Champions League places. They are nothing more than meat in the room, and there is no sign that will change soon.

Alan Pardew gets familiar sinking feeling

When Alan Pardew gets a side on a run, it’s very difficult to stop them. Unfortunately for West Ham, Newcastle and now Crystal Palace, that works both ways. All the sides mentioned have, at times, done exceptionally well under Pardew. He almost took Newcastle to the Champions League, but also skirted relegation with some alarming, desperate drops in form. There was mitigation at Newcastle, where he was hamstrung by Mike Ashley’s approach to owning a football side, but it wasn’t the first time it happened. He turned it around for a brief period there, but was relieved for a fresh start at Palace.

Palace were relieved when he arrived. The side played with verve and threat, and raced up the table. The fans and players appeared to love him. There’s no serious sign that either of those groups have turned on him, at least not yet, but the drop down the table will be familiar to Pardew. A win against Liverpool would have been a chance to change the atmosphere, but one goalkeeping error and one iffy penalty decision, and it is the same feeling as before kick off. Palace are unlikely to be relegated this season, but Pardew desperately needs to change things for the better in time for next.

What were Arsenal celebrating for?

Arsenal celebrated their equaliser, but it is hard to discern why. To equalise with a man disadvantage is a difficult task, but to take one point instead of three really didn’t mean much. Three points behind Spurs, still, and now eight points behind Leicester. It was not a time to celebrate, but to look for a winner from the moment the ball crossed the line from Alexis Sanchez’s shot.

It’s a small thing, and probably exaggerated, but the very best, title-winning sides would equalise to bring the score to 2-2, keep their heads down and get back to the centre circle as swiftly as possible. Not Arsenal. As usual, they would rather pat themselves on the back for a minor achievement rather than drive themselves on for a significant one. Spurs will be disheartened by failing to extend their advantage over their faltering rivals, but they should take some encouragement they still have the same Arsenal mentality as ever to compete against.

Aston Villa show Manchester City how to really give up

In the last month, it has been tempting to believe that Manchester City’s players have given up. They know Pep Guardiola is coming to replace Manuel Pellegrini, a man who did not trouble himself with fighting for his position. They also know that a good section of the squad will promptly move on or be moved on. From winning the League Cup final against Liverpool on Sunday, to then barely acknowledging one another a few days later to lose 3-0 against the same opposition, this is not a team that is desperate to do all they can.

A nice medal, sure, they’ll take it. Put in the effort from one week to the next, that’s too much of a demand upon them. However, if you want to see a side that have really given up, then their opponents on Saturday were a real demonstration. Remi Garde had talked of his side feeling lost as soon as they went a goal down, and that was obvious. Their first half was a reasonable display of defensive discipline, but as soon as the first goal gave in, their concentration slipped. Players noticeably stopped tracking runners, and took no responsibility when they lost possession. OK, they know they are worse than City, but defeat was not certain until the Villa players decided it was.

Riyad Mahrez proves his worth to Leicester yet again

There was a moment when Riyad Mahrez appeared to pull his hamstring. Initially, he looked to the bench, and most observers would have started calculating how many matches he might miss over the next two to six weeks. Then they might have wondered who would be able to replace him. Leonardo Ulloa had a vital contribution against Norwich City, and Shinji Okazaki might have been able to fulfil his role to some extent. Matt King took the place of N’Golo Kante when he was briefly injured, but the team’s performance level was palpably lower. Demarai Gray has not yet properly adjusted to the step up from the Championship and Gokhan Inler will probably depart in the summer.

It was a sign that Leicester’s success has been not only utterly remarkable, but built on very, very slim resources. Without Mahrez, Leicester might suffer a blow in confidence. Not only that, they would lose their key factor in making the difference in tight games, as he did against Watford, and as Leicester will probably need in a few more matches to come. Jamie Vardy is not the player he was four months ago - Leicester absolutely need Mahrez to drag the club over the line, if they are to do it.