Conventional wisdom suggests that the Premier League table begins to take shape once the first 10 matches have been played.
A glance at the standings after that landmark was reached at the weekend would suggest that the maxim rings true: title contenders Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United are all in the top four, with Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool just a few points behind and newly-promoted sides Watford, Norwich City and Bournemouth down in the bottom half.
The two major surprises can be found at either end of the table, with West Ham United flying high in third and Chelsea languishing in 15th place.
The pair of expectation-confounders met at Upton Park on Saturday, with the reaction to West Ham's 2-1 victory dominated by discussions of the champions' meltdown and Jose Mourinho's banishment to the directors' box.
While Chelsea were poor and continue to look a pale imitation of the side that won the title so convincingly last term, Slaven Bilic’s outfit deserve great credit for another excellent performance and result.
Many questioned the logic of West Ham replacing Sam Allardyce – a safe pair of hands who almost guarantees top-flight survival – with the unproven Bilic in the summer, particularly with the retention of Premier League status so vital a year before the move to London’s 54,000-capacity Olympic Stadium.
A faction of the club’s supporters were accused of delusion and a lack of gratitude when they openly pined for the rediscovery of the “West Ham way” last season. Under Bilic, however, the current team has demonstrated that entertaining football and positive results need not be treated as mutually exclusive.
It has certainly been a remarkable start to the campaign, with Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea all vanquished by a side who are clinical on the counter-attack.
Only six teams – Crystal Palace, Newcastle United, Sunderland, Leicester City, Watford and West Bromwich Albion – have averaged less possession than West Ham (48 per cent) this term. Bilic is happy to cede control of the ball to the opposition before instructing his players to spring forward when it changes hands, something that makes them extremely dangerous to play against.
It is also the primary reason for West Ham’s difficulties against the likes of Bournemouth and Leicester, fixtures in which they were forced to try and break down a deep defensive unit rather than attack the space left behind by a team who pushes up the pitch and looks to dominate possession.
The most pleasing thing for Bilic, however, must be the amount of options at his disposal, something that should theoretically give West Ham the chance to play in different ways as the season progresses.
The recent return to fitness of targetman Andy Carroll, for example, has allowed Bilic to change his approach during matches: the 6ft 4ins striker made the difference after coming off the bench against Palace two weeks ago and Chelsea on Saturday, with West Ham opting to play longer balls in his direction.
Going forward, they can also call upon the speed and skill of Victor Moses, the creativity of Manuel Lanzini and Mauro Zarate, the guile and trickery of Dimitri Payet and Diafra Sakho, one of the league’s most all-round central strikers.
In midfield, the powerful and athletic Cheikhou Kouyate is an excellent foil for Mark Noble’s tidy passing. Ryan Cresswell and Carl Jenkinson provide quality at full-back, meanwhile, and Winston Reid, James Collins, James Tomkins and Angelo Ogbonna represents an excellent pool of centre-halves.
West Ham’s strength in depth is such that the likes of Alex Song, Enner Valencia and Michail Antonio have not yet started a game this season.
Despite all that, a place in the top four remains highly unlikely, even with Chelsea in crisis and Liverpool continuing to struggle.
For now, though, Bilic and his charges can simply enjoy their lofty league position. With the table starting to take shape after 10 matches, West Ham fans will relish what they see.
sports@thenational.ae
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Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The five stages of early child’s play
From Dubai-based clinical psychologist Daniella Salazar:
1. Solitary Play: This is where Infants and toddlers start to play on their own without seeming to notice the people around them. This is the beginning of play.
2. Onlooker play: This occurs where the toddler enjoys watching other people play. There doesn’t necessarily need to be any effort to begin play. They are learning how to imitate behaviours from others. This type of play may also appear in children who are more shy and introverted.
3. Parallel Play: This generally starts when children begin playing side-by-side without any interaction. Even though they aren’t physically interacting they are paying attention to each other. This is the beginning of the desire to be with other children.
4. Associative Play: At around age four or five, children become more interested in each other than in toys and begin to interact more. In this stage children start asking questions and talking about the different activities they are engaging in. They realise they have similar goals in play such as building a tower or playing with cars.
5. Social Play: In this stage children are starting to socialise more. They begin to share ideas and follow certain rules in a game. They slowly learn the definition of teamwork. They get to engage in basic social skills and interests begin to lead social interactions.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs: 2018 Chevrolet Trailblazer
Price, base / as tested Dh99,000 / Dh132,000
Engine 3.6L V6
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power 275hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 350Nm @ 3,700rpm
Fuel economy combined 12.2L / 100km
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Boston%20Strangler
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Matt%20Ruskin%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKeira%20Knightley%2C%20Carrie%20Coon%2C%20Alessandro%20Nivola%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Stage 2
1. Mathieu van der Poel (NED) Alpecin-Fenix 4:18:30
2. Tadej Pogacar (SLV) UAE Team Emirates 0:00:06
3. Primoz Roglic (SLV) Jumbo-Visma 0:00:06
4. Wilco Kelderman (NED) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:00:06
5. Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) Deceuninck-QuickStep 0:00:08
The specs: 2018 Honda City
Price, base: From Dh57,000
Engine: 1.5L, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 118hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 146Nm @ 4,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 5.8L / 100km
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League quarter-final (first-leg score):
Juventus (1) v Ajax (1), Tuesday, 11pm UAE
Match will be shown on BeIN Sports
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
A little about CVRL
Founded in 1985 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory (CVRL) is a government diagnostic centre that provides testing and research facilities to the UAE and neighbouring countries.
One of its main goals is to provide permanent treatment solutions for veterinary related diseases.
The taxidermy centre was established 12 years ago and is headed by Dr Ulrich Wernery.
The specs
Engine: 5.0-litre V8
Power: 480hp at 7,250rpm
Torque: 566Nm at 4,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: L/100km
Price: Dh306,495
On sale: now
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The advice provided in our columns does not constitute legal advice and is provided for information only. Readers are encouraged to seek independent legal advice.
