I watch every minute of every match see my summary below
West Ham vs Chelsea
Chelsea entered the game full of confidence after a late win over Bournemouth and being unbeaten in the last 3. Maresca made 3 changes from that game with Disasi Neto and Veiga being dropped for Adarabioyo Sancho and Fernandez, West Ham meanwhile came in from a hard earned draw against Fulham with a last minute Danny Ings equalizer, but still haven’t quite hit the ground running under new manager Lopetegui. He made two changes, the same as from halftime last time out with Paqueta and Summerville replacing Soucek and Antonio. Very early on from almost nothing a quick free kick by Chelsea in their own half caught West Ham on their heels which allowed Jackson to play a one two with Sancho and be released down the left flank. Edson Alvarez struggled to recover but closed down the angle as Jackson strided down the line and into the box. From the very tight angle on the left side Jackson managed to squeeze it through Areola’s legs who should not be allowing Jackson to score from there 0-1 (3’). West Ham were pressing up high half heartedly and getting broken through relatively easily with Jackson getting down the left flank yet again in the 11th minute this time finding a perfect pass to Palmer in the middle just inside the eighteen yard box that he struck first time just wide of the right hand post and should have made it 2-0. It was a very poor start form West Ham with Lopetegui shouting from the touchline clearly not happy with how they were playing. This coincided with a good spell in possession for Chelsea where they quite casually and patiently played out from the back in a move that spanned over 30 passes before quick one touch play in the center circle caught out Alvarez who followed the checking Nicholas Jackson who then spun him and was played in behind to space that was left by the right cb Mavropanos who stepped high to press Enzo Fernandez. In a position that we normally saw him choke last year he took one touch full speed into the box and confidently finished with the outside of his right foot into the bottom left hand corner to put Chelsea two up 19 minutes in. The only joy West Ham were getting in the first half was with Emerson getting high up the pitch down the left and having good combination play with Summerville down Chelsea’s right. Chelsea never pressed outside of their half and allowed West Ham to have the ball. They got more spells of possession after the 20th minute, but didn’t get anything definitive in the final third. In the 28th minute Chelsea were very fortunate to get away with what I thought would be given a penalty after Summerville played a quick one two with Paqueta on the edge of the box and got in behind Fofana who then grabbed his arm as he was going by and pulled him back preventing him from getting to the ball. He probably wouldn’t have got there anyway but Fofana clearly had his arm outstretched and grabbed him long enough and hard enough to quite clearly give a penalty for it. In the end the hold wasn’t quite enough for VAR to give it nor hard enough for Summerville to fall to the ground as he did and to top it all off the contact started outside the box and they could only have gotten a free kick anyway. West Ham continued to press as they had Chelsea on the back foot with a good move leading to an offside goal by Kudus. With how easily Chelsea kept breaking through the midfield and running into the channels especially now with the lead, West Ham brought on Soucek, removing one of their sixes in Guido Rodriguez in the first half (38’). The rest of the half was fairly eventless as Chelsea went into the half very comfortably 2-0 ahead without having to play too hard or showing too much quality. West Ham only really showed up to play around the 25th 0-2 down from which point the game was far more evenly matched. What was more concerning for the opposition and others was the fact that Chelsea were extremely comfortable when Palmer and the wingers barely even got on the ball. The second half started just as the start of the game did with Chelsea scoring early on the counter with a 2v2 that started with an out ball from Caicedo. Jackson picked it up and drove straight down the middle with Palmer under lapping him from the right to left before being played into the box and hitting his strike near post off the inside of the post past a stricken Areola to seal the game 0-3 (47’). West Ham finally got their first clear chance of the game a few minutes later with Wan Bissaka flicking a clever ball over the Chelsea defense from the top of the box, that had Bowen had any sort of good first touch he would have easily scored instead it let him down allowing the ball wide and the shot being straight at Sanchez who didn’t have much to do to that point. As Chelsea sat back West Ham had far more of the ball and finally became more dangerous getting shots away. The next clear chance came from a West Ham corner that Chelsea broke from with a 3v2 that Madueke was selfish from forcing Areola into a save from slightly wide when he should have passed to Palmer in the middle to hit for his second (62’). West Ham just didn’t have the desire to track back when they lost the ball and another counter led to a quick snapshot from substitute Joao Felix that hit the side netting. After a handful of opportunities on the counter that they squandered Chelsea had a clear chance for the fourth when a cross by Pedro Neto to the back post was headed back across to Nkunku who wide open inside the six yard somehow didn’t score and allowed Areola to make a full stretched save to claw it out (75’). The rest of the game fizzled out with both sides just keeping the ball lacking any real quality. In the end it was a very convincing win for Chelsea with what felt like pure domination over a very poor West Ham side that lacked any inspiration. For all the doubters and criticism he received last year Jackson has scored 21 goals in 50 games for Chelsea with 4 goals and 2 assists in 5 matches this season. Next up Chelsea face a stiff test against a very energetic and crafty Brighton side. Meanwhile for West Ham it is the first time they have ever lost their first three home matches of the season and have not looked very good early on under new manager Julen Lopetegui though that is also a result of the stiff test they have had early on playing Villa, City and Chelsea in the first 5 matches of the season. We shall see how they progress and evolve because if they don’t then the fans may start to rue forcing David Moyes out, who although may have had a very boring playing style, brought stability and a trophy to a mid table club that hadn’t had won one since 1980. Next up they stay in London for yet another derby this time against a talented Brentford squad for whom they will have to bring a few levels higher than they did today. As a last note the referee was not great and though he didn’t affect the outcome of the game there were some clear dives by Chelsea players that should have been booked.
Aston Villa vs Wolves
Villa came into the game in full flow with 3-2 come from behind victory over Everton last week and Ollie Watkins in amongst the goals yet again. Following that up they opened their Champions league campaign with a comfortable victory over Young Boys on Tuesday. Emery only made one change from that midweek matchup with Diego Carlos coming in for Bogarde. Wolves on the other hand are in the exact opposite situation with only 1 point on the board after yet another defeat last time out 1-2 to Newcastle and being knocked out of the EFL cup by Brighton midweek. They have the squad quality to climb themselves out of the early hole but with only 1 win in their last 14 premier league matches Gary O’ Neil may be under pressure. He made no changes from the team that started last week against Newcastle.
The game started with boht sides prodding back and forth early with no creativity in the final third. Ollie Watkins was extremely lucky to escape with what should have been a certain booking after a lunging slide tackle straight through the back of Cuhna that didn’t get any of the ball (14’). The referee was right there and inexplicably didn’t book him, possibly because of the extra theatrics of Cuhna rolling on the ground. The first half chance of the game came from a Cuhna corner on the right hand side that was swung into the crowded top of the six yard box that Lemina got a head to but unfortunately hit Onana’s shoulder deflecting it straight to Martinez (18’). Then from nowhere a mistake by Diego Carlos playing a terrible ball out while playing from the back allowed Cuhna to intercept, take a touch and smash past Martinez hitting the left hand post and in 0-1 (25’). Wolves played with extra confidence on the ball after the goal and when they got in possession were finding interlinking play and open spaces. A dangerous cross was put back into the box and Ait Nouri’s volley from 10 yards out was blocked just enough by Diego Carlos to agonizingly push the ball just past the post (31’). The next 10 minutes Villa had all of the possession but struggled to break down the Wolves defensive block. Wolves did get one chance with Larsen sent through on a ball that he took into the area on the right hand side but slowed down which allowed Diego Carlos to close the angle down before the shot was forced straight at Martinez (42’). Wolves from there proceeded to control and boss the last 8 minutes of the half with some blocked shots and half chances that didn’t pan out. A brilliant first half for Wolves who for 2 weeks in a row have come out well and today bossed the game really stifling Villa. A very disappointing half for Villa who were a little sluggish and lacking in ideas and Emery made two changes at the half with one if not both for possible injuries in Digne and McGinn. They were replaced by the more dynamic and attacking Maatsen and Bailey. Cuhna looked like the star centerpiece for Wolves and their x factor that gave them that little spark of creativity when needed. Then yet again the referee Tim Robinson with a lack of consistency after giving Wolves 3 cards in the first half for hard challenges he missed a clear one yet again against Villa with Onana chopping down Andre very poorly and high, followed up by another one trying to stop a counter somehow avoiding a booking. Villa did come out with more energy and urgency pressing higher up the pitch and winning the ball. The game was finely poised as it went back and forth for the first 15 minutes of the second half. The frustration started to show as the minutes passed without any chances for Villa. Emery made two more changes in the 61st minute moving to two strikers in a 4-4-2. As they pushed more players forward the pressure was piling on as Watkins’s header was cleared off the line by Mosquera (68’). Wolves started to miss some easy passes that prevented them from counter attacking and the defense was starting to bend. The breakthrough finally came with a Wolves challenge 30 yards out ricocheting off a couple players before falling straight to Rogers who took a touch towards goal before sliding it to the right side to Ollie Watkins who himself was lucky as the shot deflected off the sliding Dawson past a helpless Johnston 1-1 (73’).Immediately after that from the kickoff Mosquera the cb for Wolves was forced off on a stretcher with what looked like a very bad leg injury causing a big stoppage in play and forcing Wolves into a substitution to Santiago Bueno playing his first minutes of the season in the premier league. Wolves were just hanging on defending with everything unable to get out of the half. All that pressure in the end proved too much for the Wolves defense as a second ball from a cleared corner was put back in by Tielmans with Captain Lemina falling asleep on the back post for half a second allowing Konsa to volley home. 2-1 (88’). Wolves tried to push forward for the equalizer which left them open at the back which allowed Maatsen from the halfway line to play Rogers into the edge of the box behind the Wolves defense who then squared perfectly to Jhon Duran to tap in 3-1 (94’). Despite being pinned back for 30 minutes Wolves were able to get to the final third and be dangerous, nearly getting one back but in the end the quality of Aston Villa was too much, breaking the flood gates open. For Wolves it was a brilliant sixty minutes but after taking off the target striker Larsen in the 65th minute Wolves were pushed back and forced to sit deep. For Gary O’Neil the criticism will be piling on but it requires some perspective as they have almost certainly had the hardest opening fixture list having already played Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle, and Villa in their first 5 games followed up by Liverpool next week who will provide yet another sturdy test. They will be looking forward to the fixture list from the start of November to the end of December with 9 much more winnable games. Despite only having 1 point and being bottom of the table we will only really know their level after Christmas. For Aston Villa it is now 6 wins from 7 in all competitions and they will be looking to continue their good form against newly promoted Ipswich. As a note another poor refereeing match that probably didn’t affect the game as a whole which was nice but did seem to ramp up the intensity with him seemingly favoring Villa players and not booking them on a couple of occasions he should have.
Fulham vs Newcastle
Fulham came into the match solidly mid-table (12th) after a win was snatched away from them last time out by stoppage time equalizer from Danny Ings in a game they really dominated. Manager Marco Silva fielded an unchanged team from last time out hoping to capitalize on the momentum of the good play they had last week. Newcastle came in after a come from behind victory against Wolves that maintained their unbeaten record to start the year with the highest points tally they have ever had to start a campaign despite not really hitting their stride on the pitch just yet. Eddie Howe made four changes from last time out Harvey Barnes, Willock, Trippier and Kelly starting on the wing, in midfield, and both sides of the cb’s respectively.
The first well worked move of the game led to an offside goal by Joelinton. Just 44 seconds after that Fulham went down the other end and Traore’s cross found Jimenez’s chest at the penalty spot who brilliantly controlled, spun and volleyed to the bottom right hand corner past an outstretched Pope (5’). Fulham continued to push forward sensing blood and less than a minute later Smith Rowe smacked the bar. A quick free kick allowed Iwobi to play a brilliant ball from inside his own half just over Burn into the box that Jimenez got onto but was denied brilliantly by Pope who came out and closed down well (14’). Fulham were far more direct and dangerous on the ball than Newcastle who struggled to keep the ball similar to their first half performance against Bournemouth. Then from a throw in their own half Fulham managed to switch the field and break quickly on the left with good play between Iwobi and Smith Rowe who received the 1-2 inside the box and toe poked it through Burn’s leg for the 2-0 lead (22’). Pope may have been caught out by how quickly the shot was taken but he should have saved it as he tried to scoop the ball away but could only get a touch to it with his hand not being strong enough as the ball trickled into the net. Newcastle looked very poor and fragile in defense as Traore got down the right side again before playing back to Lukic whose cross fell perfectly to Jimenez who skyed his half volley over the bar. Fulham were content to sit back and counter with 2-0 lead as Newcastle finally got a sustained spell on the ball 30 minutes in. It really felt like Newcastle were chasing ghosts while defending with Fulham constantly finding space and channels of attack. On the other hand Newcastle were lacking enthusiasm and urgency which was most visible in Anthony Gordon who had an awful first half lacking any quality and looking like he didn’t want to be there. Newcastle somehow had over 60% possession in the first half but were barely ever in the final third and only had an xG of .11. Eddie Howe responded by taking off lb Kelly and and midfielder Willock for Hall and Murphy while Marco Silva surprisingly made a change taking off Sasa Lukic for Sander Berge. Straight from the second half kickoff Murphy combined well with Joelinton and Isak to get at the Fulham defense in a 3v2 playing in Barnes who took a touch and finished through the legs of Tete and in off Leno’s left hand post. Only 22 seconds in and the match really turned up as Newcastle found a way back into the game. Fulham really should have put the game to bed in the 52nd minute as Traore did brilliantly with another brilliant run down the right hand side muscling off Joelinton before lifting a slow looping ball to the back post that Iwobi had the entire goal to hit into from 5 yards out but somehow managed to hit an outstretched limb of Pope on the line. It was honestly harder to miss than score and somehow he did. The game was far more level in the second half with Newcastle raising their level and being much better in getting to the final third though they struggled to create any clear chances until the 70th minute. A counter attack that started from inside their own box with Gordon playing Isak and Barnes before getting to the edge of the box and turning Joachim Anderson inside out before striking straight at the oncoming Leno. In probably the match defining moment immediately afterwards Leno was on the ball as Fulham were spread out trying to play out from the back and Newcastle high pressed with Schar winning the ball from the Leno short ball before somehow shooting five yards wide from 12 yards out. He could have passed to Isak for a tap in but the greediness pushed him to take a snapshot that he fired wide of the near post. The game started to get stretched after that with both sides getting into the box but Newcastle missing the final ball while Fulham had the chances and shots. As the game ticked on into stoppage time a poor giveaway by Guimares from the left hand side just outside his own box straight to Reiss Nelson wide open at the top of the box who unlike Schar finished calmly past pope and the two defenders on the line to seal the game for a Fulham side that thoroughly outplayed Newcastle 3-1 (93’).
Leicester vs Everton
Leicester came into the match with 2 draws and 2 losses after a hard fought draw against Palace last time out. The only change for Leicester was Oliver Skip dropped to the bench, replaced by Bilal El Khannouss. Meanwhile for Everton they were still yet to get any points on the board with a couple of roller coaster performances against Villa and Bournemouth where they were 2-0 up before losing 3-2. Dyche made four changes to his side that has been uncharacteristically giving up at least 3 goals a game this season. In a big game for two winless sides at the bottom end of the table it already felt like a relegation battle.
The first chance of the game came from fantastic work by Mcneil down the left hand side skipping past a couple players and playing Ndiaye down the line who found a brilliant left footed cross to the back post to a wide open Lindstrom who had to score but could only put his volley wide (4’). Leicester’s first corner led to a free header for Ndidi just outside the crowded six yard box but he almost jumped too high as the ball hit off his shoulder before going over (9’). Then a minute later down the other side a cleared free kick got re worked around with Leicester slightly out of formation allowing Ashley Young to play an inch perfect pass to Ndiaye who ran by Justin and touched by Winks before finishing off the inside of the near post past Hermansens’ outstretched right hand (12’). Yet again for the third week in a row Everton started well and scored first which has been a rarity under Sean Dyche for the year and a half he has been there. Both sides were fairly even as the sunshine at the start of the game gave way building into a torrential downpour with both keepers saving the shots straight at them comfortably. Pickford then nearly got caught out, while trying to palm away a dangerous cross from a tight angle he hit it straight off the crossbar and it bounced on the line with everyone looking at the referee to see if it had gone in (35’). The downpour really disrupted the visibility which was followed by hail which really opened up the play for the final 10 minutes. Then the referee at the end of the half made two absolutely terrible calls calling fouls against Everton who were in promising positions to go on and score. Then just to top it off at the very end of the half the referee blew the whistle when Dwight Mcneil was in behind the Leicester defense and had an open path to score a goal. After being thrust in as a rb last week and being taken advantage of by Villa, Garner did very well in the first half. The second half started with continued torrential downpour and the pitch deemed good enough to continue. Even with all these high quality cameras nowadays that can filter out most of the rain, at times it was difficult for me to see the players on the far side of the pitch. The game went back and forth for the first 15 minutes with the only clear opportunity coming off a throw in that Lindstrom did brilliantly with his first touch to get in behind. Unfortunately for Everton he took a little too long while trying to square it to Ndiaye allowing Justin to come in to block the pass. Had he gone for a shot he was at quite close range to possibly score himself (60’). Leicester started to push more men forward and Everton got on the counter in a 3v3 with Calvert Lewin getting a strike that was hit low and across forcing what felt like the first real save for Hermansen (64’). With the game being more open in the second half Mavididi got more opportunities to get at Garner who was being exposed playing out of position. Leicester then after not creating anything all half played a corner in from the left hand side to the top of the six yard box with four players challenging for the ball that deflected and fell down kindly in the box in front of Mavididi who spun and smashed the ball into the ground that Dwight Mcneil couldn’t header out 1-1 (73’). It was well deserved as Leicester did rally in the second half piling on the pressure. It was a very scrappy and intense final 15 minutes with a couple of blocked shots but no other chances. In the end a very hard earned draw for both sides was a fair result. Everton finally got their first point on the board and Leicester now with three draws in 5 matches. For the conditions it was a very entertaining game and next up Leicester face a daunting task going to the Emirates to face an Arsenal side coming off a hard earned draw against Man City and will be looking to enact some revenge for the perceived biased calls against them this year. Meanwhile for Everton next up they face Crystal Palace who they will be looking to take points off of.
Liverpool vs Bournemouth
Liverpool came into the match with a solid midweek win against AC Milan and were looking to get back on track after the shocking 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest last time out. Kellher started in goal due to the injury to Alisson and Nunez got the start up front after Jota was preferred to start the year. Bournemouth came into the game looking to rebound from a tough one nil loss to Chelsea late on last time out with Iraola making 3 changes from last week with Kepa Huijsen and Araujo coming in.
Bournemouth nearly caught Liverpool on a counter early with a goal that was just offside (5’). Liverpool then a few minutes later broke well down the left hand side with Robertson playing to Luis Diaz who went past Araujo to the inside and fired a vicious shot that Kepa got fingertips to tip over the bar. Then a long ball from Kepa bounced around before falling to Mcallister who half volleyed it from the halfway line 40 yards into the path of Mo Salah who with 1 touch was in 1v1, but tried to go near post and Kepa saved well down to his left (12’). The pressure kept mounting as Bournemouth were unable to play out from the back and Salah played a perfect ball into Nunez who took it down well and turned but fired his shot straight at Kepa (15’). Then in the 20th minute Kelleher nearly got caught on the ball and the ensuing block allowed Evanilson to play in Semenyo who was closed down very well for the shot to be blocked for a corner. Luis Diaz then brilliantly dribbled by 3 players and got to the goal line and opted to shoot straight at Kepa but should have squared it for Nunez or Salah to tap in (23’). All the possession paid off for Liverpool with Konate playing a 60 yard long ball over the top to Luis Diaz who controlled brilliantly around Kepa who had no business wandering outside the box, and hit home past Araujo on the line 1-0 (26’). Then two minutes later Luis Diaz got his second with Liverpool easily breaking Bournemouth’s high press and Trent driving at the defense in a 5v4. As Trent got to the box the defense started collapsing towards the middle allowing a simple pass across to Diaz who took a touch and smashed past the onrushing Kepa 2-0 (28’). LIverpool then off the kickoff switched off for the 3rd time this match and allowed a well worked move from the right to the left for Evanilson to get a clear shot off that was saved comfortably by Kelliher, Bournemouth then got a couple more shooting opportunities as Liverpool were giving up plenty of space for them to play. But as they squandered them Liverpool broke through the high press yet again with a brilliant flick by Darwin Nunez onto Salah who put him in down the right flank into a 3v3 situation. He then called his own number and beat Zabarnyi to the inside before curling a brilliant left footed strike into the side netting past an outstretched Kepa 3-0 (37’). To me it didn’t even feel like Bouremouth played badly other than the first goal and that Liverpool were just absolute class and finished their chances. Salah then scuffed another chance straight at Kepa that he would expect himself to score. After the third goal Bournemouth finally had the wind taken out of them and the game fell into a kind of lull as they tried to just hold on till half time. If you only looked at the scoreline and stats you would think Liverpool dominated the game, but it didn’t feel that way as they were clinical in front of goal and constantly beat the press while Bournemouth were also getting chances but were not clinical. At the half Iraola brought on Ouattara for Kluivert. Liverpool started the second half slow just like the first and gave up a few early shooting opportunities that came to nothing. When Liverpool got on the ball they were able to break so easily it was almost like the defenders weren’t there and they were on the training pitch. However because the pace was slowed down so much they seemed to lose a little quality and overplayed in the final third. As they started to relax Bournemouth got a couple good chances with Kellher making a couple good saves and a deflection crashing off the bar. In the end Liverpool did all the work in the first half and got yet another clean sheet conceding only 1 goal in five matches with the Arne Slot era very much underway and looking good. Next up Liverpool have Wolves who are on a torrid run and dealing with some injury problems at the back. For Bournemouth a tough game where they didn’t take advantage of Liverpool’s first half mistakes and got punished for theirs. Next up they play Southampton who they will be looking to take 3 points from.
Southampton vs Ipswich
Both teams came up from the championship last year where Ipswich did the double and Southampton are only not bottom of the table due to goal difference. Ipswich sat only one spot higher in the table with 2 points from two well earned draws against Brighton and Fulham and have shown much more promise in terms of competing with Premier League teams. An early season matchup that felt like a must win for both sides
Very fast pace tempo from both sides looking to get that first win in the premier league. Southampton for the first time this season got lucky, Tuanzebe two yards from his goal line inside the eighteen yard box tried to play out instead of clearing while Southampton were fully pushed forward leading to an interception with the ball falling to Lallana on the top of the box who fired a sizzling pass onto the foot of Dibling just inside the box whose first touch took him brilliantly beyond Greaves before calmly smashing past a helpless Muric 1-0 (5’). A brilliant moment for the 18 year old who won a penalty last week and now scored his first goal ever for Southampton and only their second in the premier league this season. Ipswich were on the front foot early and especially after the goal with their first chance coming in the 12th minute with Burns playing a cross into the box from the left hand side which found Szmodics wide open on the top of the six yard box. Somehow he managed to hit it straight at Ramsdale when that seemed like the hardest thing to do. Southampton’s defense was all over the place and were massively let off the hook in what should have tied the game. Southampton’s goal really came against the run of play as they continued to be pinned back after the goal with no chance to even enter Ipswich’s final third until the 25th minute. Ipswich continued to break Southampton down with Morsey finding a long switch flicked on by Delap to Davis into the box who cut it back to Delap for a clear strike at goal that he whiffed (19’). Very contrasting styles of play with Southampton looking to play out no matter the situation while Ipswich were finding the long balls over the top and into the channels very often. After winning the ball on the halfway line from Delap the ball fell to Dibling who played a brilliant ball to Archer who split the Ipswich center backs and should have shot a touch earlier but instead rounded the keeper closing the angle on himself and being off balance before smacking the foot of the post to deny them what would have been an undeserved two nil lead (27’). Ipswich started to get frustrated after they dropped off and had a lull in momentum in the middle of the half as they seemed to run out of ideas, unable to create anything.. The next chance was a free header from a corner that O’Shea rose highest too but headed straight at Ramsdale and should have done much better with (44’). Then a minute later Hutchinson did well and found a perfect switch to Davis who on the volley forced a decent save by Ramsdale from a tight angle. After yet another cleared corner, 7 in the first half, Hutchinson picked it up and drove inside from the right hand side forcing a top class save from Ramsdale (45+2’). For Southampton they had two real attacks with two chances and scored one. They were up at the half but could have been behind, level or up by two based on the chances in the game. Yet again they tempted fate on multiple occasions giving the ball away while playing out from the back luckily enough for them Ipswich couldn’t take advantage. For Ipswich the chances were there they just needed to take one. Southampton started the second half with yet another brilliant chance with Downes turning well in midfield before sliding a ball into the box that Archer managed to get to from in between Greaves and O’Shea before cutting back but only hitting his shot straight at Muric when he had to score (49’). The game at times got stretched allowing more counters and spaces in behind. Ipswich lost the ball in midfield and a switch by Sugawara found Fernandes all by himself who took far too long and smashed his weak foot volley for a throw-in from 15 yards out (55’). Ipswich came out slow and Southampton were on top, really bossing the start of the half, actually playing well in possession with confidence for the second time this season. The game started to get fiery with a couple of hard tackles and the pressure ramping up (70’). Ipswich didn’t really do anything and were so poor all half. Southampton were pushing, trying to get the second with Brerton Diaz getting a brilliant chance just inside the box that he skied over the bar (80’). Southampton looked really comfortable striding towards their first win back in the premier league until the dying moments of the game when a cleared corner found Sam Morsy at the top of the box that took a deflection of Aribo into the top left corner leaving Ramsdale helpless 1-1 (95’). In the end both sides had to settle for a point each and Southampton didn’t take their chances allowing Ipswich to hang in the game and take advantage of their first real chance of the second half to snatch a point from the game. Ipswich will feel very happy after a shocking second half performance while for Southampton it will feel like a loss especially with an xG of 2.49 and feeling in control all second half. Next up Ipswich face a tough test in Villa while Southampton face middle of the table Bournemouth.
Tottenham vs Brentford
Tottenham came into the match with yet another disappointing defeat this time to bitter rivals Arsenal who exposed their fragility on set pieces. A lot of questions were being asked as to whether or not Tottenham were moving backwards from last season, Postecoglou kept the same starting lineup from last time out hoping to reverse their fortunes. Meanwhile for Brentford they suffered a narrow defeat to Manchester City last time out in a game where they had their chances and could have come away with some points. Thomas Frank made two changes with the injured Wissa forcing in Carvalho for his first start for the club while the injured Norgaard was replaced by 20 year old Yarmolyuk in midfield.
Brentford started quickly again, scoring within the first minute like last week, this time 23 seconds in 1 second slower than last week. The ball rolled back to the keeper from kickoff was hit long and won before finding Lewis Potter on the left wing whose cross found Mbuemo on the penalty spot who caught the volley cleanly and smashed it into the roof of the net to the right of Vicario 0-1 (1’). The shock of being 0-1 down really fired Tottenham up to get forward quickly and find the equalizer. Then as we have seen so often this season yet again another goal was conceded while trying to play out from the back. Pinnock played a terrible pass allowing Maddison to win back possession and walk into the box and really should have scored himself but was saved by Flekken right into the path of Dominic Solanke who tapped into the open net to open his Tottenham account 1-1 (7’). Just a minute later Son had a free chance to strike at goal from outside the box that was comfortably saved by Flekken. Tottenham were finding space to attack quickly and counter after winning the ball back, catching out the Brentford defense. Tottenham were much quicker in possession while trying to break down Brentford compared to City last week. Then twice more Brentford got caught trying to play out but did just well enough to recover and block shots. Brentford were reeling unable to get a foothold in the game for the 15 minutes afterwards. Tottenham looked so dangerous as if they were going to score on every attack getting into the box with balls across the box many times. Then a simple pass from Vicario to Solanke who turned his defender played Son in 1v1 but instead of taking the shot on he tried to round the keeper allowing the defenders to recover and stop the chance (26’). A poor pass from Brentford in their own half was cut out by Maddison allowing Tottenham to break quickly finding Johnson on the right hand side who ran at Collins, got around him and fired past Flekken from a tight angle to the far corner (28’). Tottenham were flying forward every time they got on the ball and Brentford just couldn’t settle despite having an even amount of possession 30 minutes in. Brentford were living dangerously, Tottenham got down the left hand side with someone getting into the box firing the ball across the box waiting for a tap in.. Compared to last week where they defended so well against City Brentford were getting picked apart with Tottenham unable to force the ball into the net for a third despite walking into the box every possession. A hopeful long ball forward that was recovered by Van de Ven was played back to Vicario who was being pressed and tried to play out nearly returning the favor back to Brentford with Vicario getting lucky that the ball fell to Mbuemo at a tight angle with two Tottenham players already on the line could only hit the desperate Vicario before being cleared to safety (40’). Another break two minutes later for Brentford gave Damsgard a brilliant chance on his left foot that he had to do far better from but could only hit straight at Vicario. The second half continued the theme of the first with brilliant interplay on the edge of the box giving Kulusevski a very good chance saved by the foot of Flekken (50’). Yet another giveaway while playing out led to yet another chance this time for Solanke who somehow managed to find a hand of Flekken from six yards out with the whole goal to aim at (53’). An absolute shocker by the referee John Brooks when Vicario quite clearly handled the ball outside the box after he completely messed up coming to claim a cross which he shouldn’t have, which he then dropped and then handled to prevent the Brentford player from getting to it (57’). It would have only been a yellow because of the players behind him and a free kick in a brilliant position for Brentford. VAR is supposedly not allowed to intervene unless it was a clear goalscoring opportunity which it wasn’t but still a very weird decision and the blame falls to the referees on the field. We have all seen the inconsistency on the calls by referees and even Thomas Frank said it likely wouldn’t have affected the outcome of the game but everyone could clearly see he handled the ball. It only further assures the belief that Vicario struggles with corners and balls into the box. Tottenham should have then compounded Brentford’s misery in the 60th minute as the game became a frenetic back and forth with Johnson getting in down the right but failing to trouble Flekken followed by Ajer doing brilliantly down the right flank and finding a perfect pass into the path of Mbuemo who should also score but only managed to force Vicario to a fairly easy save. Tottenham then followed that up with yet another break all within a minute, to play in Son between Brentford’s Center backs but was unable to get a shot off and slowed down before laying off to Johnson to his right who somehow managed to miss five feet wide of the left post from 8 yards out. It really felt like Tottenham were going to squander their chances like they did against Leicester in week 1 and be punished for it. They almost were when a short corner was worked around to Ajer who looped the ball back into the box for substitute Schade at the top of the six yard box who was the only one rising to it and headed down to the left hand side. Unfortunately for Brentford the looping ball and header lacked pace allowing Vicario to make a flying full stretched save to his right to claw the ball off the line in what seemed like it would be a certain goal (67’). Since that last chance neither side really created anything though it was very back and forth with both sides having equal possession. That was until Brentford pushed forward and got caught high with Romero playing a through ball into the path of Son who passed through Pinnock’s legs to the left to Maddison who calmly chipped over Flekken 3-1 (85’). The relief was palpable for everyone as Tottenham saw out the rest of the game fairly comfortably. In the end this match reminded me a lot of the week 1 matchup with Leicester with Tottenham not converting their chances giving Brentford more hope of finding an equalizer however this time Tottenham took enough of their chances to seal the game. It was clear that Brentford were being affected by the injuries like they were last year with 9 players out with injury and also losing Ivan Toney going into a season with their first three away matches at Anfield, Etihad and Tottenham.
Crystal Palace vs Manchester United
United came in needing a good run of form following the shaky start to the season and comfortably handling Southampton last time out was the first step. The only change made from last week was Garnacho coming in for Rashford. Palace came in with two changes from the draw with Leicester with Kamada replacing the injured Doucoure and Richards replacing Clyne at rb.
It was a very slow patient start with United having a lot of possession. Catching Palace in a transition forward, Zirkzee played Garnacho in behind and Garnacho strode into the box slightly to the left of the goal and forced Henderson into a solid save down to his left (9’). United won a corner minutes later on the right hand side that Eriksen drove into the back post with De Ligt arriving late unmarked inside the six yard box and had to score but headed straight at Henderson who knew nothing about it (13’). Then another ball into the box bounced around falling to the feet of Martinez who did well to swivel and fire the shot but was easily saved by Henderson. Palace hardly had a touch in United’s final third 25 minutes in. Extremely patient play by United trying to force Palace to come out and press. A throw-in on the United’s right caught Palace tightly packed and a quick pass from De Ligt to Dalot allowed him to pick out the brilliant run of Garnacho in behind Munoz, who then wonderfully struck a curled strike that looked destined for the top corner before crashing off the bar. The rebound fell to Bruno very quickly and with an open net to aim at he struck the bar as well. He tried to strike it first time off the volley rather than take a touch not realizing the time and space he had. (27’). Palace was extremely lucky not to be behind for how badly they were being suffocated. Then yet another corner kick, this time by Diallo from the left found the exact same spot on the back post this time for Zirkzee who couldn’t hit the target (32’). Palace got their first real spell of possession and a free kick in United’s half in the 37th minute. United looked very comfortable for the first time in a long time but didn’t have the goal to reward them for their good play. Yet another well worked move found Bruno open on the right side at the edge of the eighteen yard box who played a wonderful low cross across the box with Lacroix getting a touch and Garnacho whiffing on the stretch that Henderson did well to save taking a studs to thigh for his trouble (42’). With their first real move of the game Palace found space that opened up in the middle for Nketiah to pick the ball up the wrong side of Mainoo and drive across the field before playing Mitchell into the touchline. Mitchell then perfectly cut the ball back to a wide open Eze 15 yards out who fired first time straight at Onana (43’). Eze had acres of space with no one around him and plenty of time to take a touch before picking his spot but instead let United off the hook with their only shot of the half. Both sides entered the half level. United played extremely well for 40 minutes but didn’t get the goal that they deserved while Palace were extremely poor and could only improve in the second half. Oliver Glasner made two changes at half with Lerma and Sarr coming on for Wharton and Mateta who were both invisible in the first half. The second half fell into a similar flow of the first with United having majority of the possession.The first chance of the second half came from Fernandes and Zirkzee playing a one two 25 yards out allowing Fernandes a strike from right on the top of the box that he fired wide using the outside of his right foot (51’). United struggled to create anything else and slowly the game opened up a little bit more. Palace worked it to Nketiah whose strike from the top of the box was saved well by Onana down to his left and the following up Sarr tried to volley home but Onana managed to haul himself off the ground to get big and block the follow up as well (64’). Palace then got a chance after Martinez slipped while covering, allowing Eze to play Sarr into the right hand side of the box who checked back and played Eze on the penalty spot who hit it first time (73’). We were all waiting for the net to bulge as Eze looked to be wheeling off to celebrate but somehow he hit it wide and was responsible for missing their two biggest chances of the night that on any other night he would have scored. United seemed to lose all rhythm after the 70th minute, unable to play through Palace and create any chances but also didn’t show any urgency in their play which was befuddling to watch. With Eriksen going off United started going long more and really lacked the creativity to break Palace down. Palace were much better in the second half and grew into the game despite still not having a lot of the ball. In the end a very disappointing draw for both sides. It was a game that had no right to remain goalless with the quality of chances both sides got but the goalkeepers were the heroes with some world class saves. A disappointing result for United who had the chances and played well but didn’t have that extra level to get past Palace. For Palace they could have snatched the win but hung on in the first half before shutting United down for the last 20 minutes and gathering a well earned point. An interesting stat for Ten Hag is that in his time in charge he has only won 2 of his 14 games in London which is not a good look.
Brighton vs Nottingham Forest
Both sides came into the match unbeaten with Brighton getting a draw against Arsenal while Forest put the only chink in the Arne Slot armor. Forest had a couple chances early with balls in behind the Brighton defense but just out of reach. Brighton’s first well worked move led to a shot / cross that went wide (9’). Then the first real moment of the game came off a Forest through ball with Gibbs White doing well getting down the right flank before cutting back a cross that was deflected forcing a coming together of Hudson Odoi and Baleba. Hudson Odoi and Baleba were both going for the ball and the referee judged that Baleba bundled Hudson Odoi over. This incident reminded of the Fulham match against West Ham with Adama Traore not getting a penalty because he was adjudged to have stuck his leg in front of the defender to create contact rather than trying to play the ball. Seeing it for the first time in the run of play it looked like a penalty. However after seeing the replay it was quite clear that Hudson Odoi didn’t go straight towards the ball and tried to stick his leg in front of Baleba, who was ahead and going to get to the ball first, creating contact and falling down. It was a fifty fifty ball and Baleba’s leg was on the ground while Hudson Odoi was in the air. As usual though the VAR referees this season, in this case Craig Pawson, have no backbone and didn’t even ask the referee to have a look and just said penalty. The amount of inconsistency from week to week is ridiculous for how popular the league is supposed to be. If this was a penalty then Fulham should have gotten theirs which would have put them 2-0 up and completely changed the outcome of that match. Instead we are all left questioning every decision with no clarity. Chris Wood then stepped up and slotted home to the bottom left 0-1 (13’). Brighton had far more of the ball but Forest were more dangerous when they won it for the following 25 minutes. The first real cross for Brighton that was put in from slightly deeper, by Van Hecke, found the head of Jack Hinshelwood who from 15 yards out brilliantly found the top right past the outstretched dive of Sels 1-1 (42’). Forrest then compound their misery with a free kick given away on the break from a perfect shooting position 7 yards outside of the eighteen yard box just left of center. With five people in the wall for Forest Sels stood in the middle of the goal and was wrong footed as Welbeck perfectly placed it to his left into the side netting 2-1 (45’). A very good half for Forest with a lucky pen that they undid with a very poor last 5. Nuno made three changes at half with Yates Williams and Silva replacing Moreno Ward-Prowse and Elanga. In the 49th minute Mitoma played into the feet of Welbeck who somehow wiggled through 3 Forest players before being denied by Sels at the last second (49’). Forest were pinned back to start the half, unable to get the ball back and were on the edge of staying in the game or being two down and out. Then from nothing simple inter play between Wood and Gibbs White caught Brighton with a high line allowing Jota Silva in behind who laid off to Sosa to pass into an empty 2-2 (70’). Immediately after that goal Forest brought on a third central defender and switched to a back five trying to ensure their solidity in defense and come away with a point. Forest gave Brighton all the onus to come at them and try and win it but really struggled to create anything with all of their crosses being dealt with easily. Then just to throw one more wrench into the game Gibbs White laid a crunching tackle by the dugouts where he clearly won the ball with the referee himself saying he won the ball and not calling a foul and signaling a throw in (82’). The Brighton bench and coaches proceeded to go absolutely livid at the referees causing their head coach Fabian Hurzeler to be sent off. Then as it started to kick off the referee Robert Jones one minute later either due to the uproar from the Brighton bench or from VAR decided to change his mind and give Gibbs-White a second yellow to send him off (83’). This in turn had the Forest coaches and players incensed and got Nuno Espirito Santo sent off. For once even the commentators weren’t biased nor tried to shield and protect the referees and questioned the call. We won’t ever know if VAR got involved or why Robert Jones changed his decision but it was stupid and incorrect and if this is how the games will continue to be refereed than there is no point in playing because defenders can’t lay in a hard tackle which means offensive players will continue to dive and pretend to be injured getting people booked for nothing with no repercussions. The remainder of the game Forest defended well in their block and Brighton were unable to create any more chances merely looping the ball into the box and hoping for the best.
It is funny hearing all these older commentators, pundits and players saying everything nowadays is a yellow card when during the time periods they played they tried to break people’s legs without any remorse. Yet another poor match from a referee this season.
Man City vs Arsenal
The biggest match of the season thus far between the two front runners for the title.
Early physicality by Arsenal, Michael Oliver already lost control of the game allowing two hard challenges early without punishment which means he had to keep that same level for the rest of the match. The first real chance of the match came from Gundogan whose first touch into the air past Gabriel gave him a clear chance on goal from a tough volley shanked wide (8’). Then one minute later Arsenal were caught with Gabriel and Saliba not marking Haaland and allowing a wide open lane for Savinho to play Haaland right between them who toe poked past Raya. It was his 100th goal for City in his 105th appearance which is absolutely nuts matching Ronaldo’s number for Real Madrid. First time this season City looked sharp from the start of the match moving the ball around well. The fast start continued with Gabriel fouling Savinho at the top of the box from which Gundogan smacked the post (15). Then in probably what could be the biggest defining moment of the season Rodri tore his ACL in an innocuous collision in the box with Partey. It was a fiery feisty physical start, very entertaining to watch and a clear sign of the two title contenders. Then after a talking to the captains by Michael Oliver City got caught as Arsenal played quickly to Martinelli down the left flank who cut back to Califiori who curled wonderfully into the top right corner curving away from Ederson 1-1 (22’). In this era of modern football where no physicality is allowed this felt like a match from the mid 2010’s and was electric. City had the majority of the ball as Arsenal defended in a compact block on the edge of their box no more than 10 yards from the center backs to the forwards. Though they had the ball they could only put crosses into the box that Arsenal handled fairly easily. Michael Oliver didn’t book anyone even for any hard challenge nor did he book Doku for kicking the ball away then he gave Trossard a yellow for the softest of all the fouls. I have seen referees give a yellow card only half the time there is a shirt pull which makes it very odd. Arsenal nearly scored off a perfectly worked corner into the box and one they probably should have with Gabriel just being put off enough to head over (37’). Rain started falling harder as the first half progressed. Arsenal got a really good spell of possession towards the 41st minute leading to a half chance for Trossard on the stretch. The last 15 to 20 minutes of the first half Arsenal started to involve some high press. Then just into the stoppage time of the first half Arsenal got yet another corner and ran the exact same play, this time Gabriel thundered it home 1-2 (45+2’). The back half of the first half had almost no fouls with steady play. Then after all that Trossard got a second yellow card for a foul, extremely harsh by Michael Oliver considering the much harder fouls to start the game. It set up for a very intense second half with the outcome really deciding the feeling of how this season would end. Ben White came on for Saka at the half as they sat in a 5-4. Arsenal slowed the game down and wasted time as much as possible and it was on the referee to book them for it which he didn’t do. Arsenal were so compact with only 5 yards from the cb to the midfield. A short corner in the 59th minute caught Arsenal scrambling with Haaland winning the header on the back post but was well saved by Raya. Arsenal did well, almost reveling in their ability to stump the City attack. City looked so static in possession unable to break down the defense. They kept having shots from outside the box that were closed down well and blocked or not on goal. Honestly it didn’t feel like City were going to score as they were frustrated seemingly never having faced an opposition working as hard as this. It honestly felt like a peak Jose Mourinho defensive performance with a couple good saves from the keeper. CIty took off their wingers and all their players were within the width of the 18 yard box so they weren’t even putting balls into the box for the final 15 minutes. In the end a short corner right at the death was played short quickly and then to Kovacic at the top of the box whose strike at goal was blocked in the six yard box but fell straight to the foot of Stones who tapped home to tie the game 2-2 with the final kick of the game (90+7’). Even with all the hard work you need a bit of luck and it fell City’s way this time. Arsenal will be proud of their performance and although it will feel like a loss it is a massive win, and a sign that City may actually be pushed to the very end this time around. But as usual CIty got away with what should have been a red card for Haaland but as usual VAR didn’t do their job because after the goal he picked up the ball and chucked it straight at Gabriel’s head which at any other time would have been punished with a red card but because it is City they always get the benefit of the doubt or willing oversight when no else does. For Arsenal they had 10 men for a half and played a day later midweek away in Italy compared to City who played at home and on Tuesday and nearly won the game which was much better than their performance from last year. What is very interesting to me is how the media is pushing the narrative that Arsenal are the villains when no one sees them that way because we all know that City are the ones who have won the league 6 out of the last 7 years with two first team squads, along with the best coach in the world with unlimited backing. The narrative is being pushed so hard even though the Arsenal team has City and other top six team rejects and a far smaller and less talented squad with far less backing. It is almost as if the media is being paid by a certain place where the owners of said team are from. For City they have to hope the Rodri loss won’t be as bad as the stats say they will be as they were lucky to get a draw today and if they don’t improve their performances will put themselves behind with a squad that is slightly older, with a few more injuries and a few less backups.