'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
An action packed EPL Saturday August 22 saw 4 draws, a home win and an away win that was filled with goals. Newly promoted Bournemouth registered their first goal with three more to follow to win at the Boleyn Ground on the day.
While the Premier League saw 4 draws, there was no shortage of action as teams went all out in most games to try and earn a win but with luck, skill and determination playing their roles in equal parts, the games ended with the points shared. Three of four draws had the same scoreline 1-1 in a bizarre coincidence of sorts.
The EPL also saw it’s first round of drinks break given that the Isles have been subjected to their hottest summer yet. Amid all of that, we dive straight into our results from today.
Manchester United 0-0 Newcastle United
The early kickoff between Manchester United and Newcastle yielded no goals but loads of action as Louis van Gaal’s men dropped their first points of the season having missed numerous chances against the Magpies. The Tyneside team also had their fair share of chances, especially with Mitrovic hitting Romero’s crossbar in the second half, but neither side could capitalise on their chance creation.
Both teams will make their peace with the result, but neither will walk away happy from the tie, especially the home side who had the initiative for most of the game but made little of it.
West Ham 3-4 Bournemouth
Eddie Howe’s men arrived in the Premier League amid high praise for the attacking nature of their play and their positive approach in games. While that approach was definitely there to see in both their games in the lead up to this game, the away win not only handed Bournemouth their first ever points in the Premier League, but also their first goal and three more to follow. Consisting of those goals was Callum Wilson’s hattrick as he made history as their first player to achieve the feat in the top tier of English football.
West Ham put up a fight and always seemed on the brink of a comeback but Bournemouth did enough to ensure that they walked away with the three points on the day.
Goalscorers – West Ham:Noble, Kouyaté, Maiga; Bournemouth: Pugh, Wilson (3)
Sunderland 1-1 Swansea City
A tale of two halves in this one as Swansea put in a dominant display to take the lead in the first half through Bafetimbi Gomis. That lead though was evaporated by Jermain Defore’s goal in the second half as the Black Cats mounted a comeback of sorts but neither side had it in their locker to pull away with a win.
While the Swans are showing promise of achieving new heights under Garry Monk, Sunderland are crawling towards their results and Dick Advocaat will be under pressure to turn it around for them.
Goalscorers – Sunderland: Jermain Defoe; Swansea City: Gomis
Norwich City 1-1 Stoke City
New signing Xherdan Shaqiri only took 11 minutes in his first start for Stoke City to register an assist as he fed in Mame Biriam Diouf for the opener. The striker looked marginally offside for the goal but it stood nonetheless. Martin was on target for the Canaries as they pulled a goal back to deny Mark Hughes' side victory.
jack Butland was the real hero for the away side though as they earned a valuable away point despite Norwich coming close to grabbing all three on multiple occasions only to be denied by the English custodian.
Goalscorers – Norwich City: Martin; Stoke City: Diouf
Leicester City 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur
While both sides had their fair share of chances, Tottenham can consider themselves lucky not to have lost the game having conceded glaring chances to Claudio Ranieri's side. Spurs would then scored first through youngster Delle Alli but their lead would last for little over half a minute as Riyad Mahrez was once again on hand to level the score for the home side.
The Algerian forward has been in imperious form for Leicester scoring 4 goals in 3 games to top the EPL goal-scoring charts. His exploits also propelled the club to the top of the league at the moment.
Goalscorers – Leicester City: Mahrez; Tottenham Hotspur: Alli
Crystal Palace 2-1 Aston Villa
The Eagles stole a win in the last few minutes of the game as Sako scored his debut goal for Palace. Having taken the lead through Dann earlier, Aston Villa would then seize the initiative through Adama Traore's lung-bursting run. The former Barcelona man put in a cross at the end of his run and it would deflect off Soare to end up in the back of the net.
The result shines light on Palace’s attacking verve but they still need to address some defensive issues.
Goalscorers – Crystal Palace: Dann, Sako; Aston Villa: Souaré (OG)
