Chelsea and Man United maintain 100 per cent record
Antonio Conte’s Chelsea looked a much-improved side than what they were last season, in their 3-0 win over Burnley. The Blues have won all their matches under Conte and now sit at the top of the table after three weeks.
Eden Hazard, like many Chelsea players, looks to have forgotten last season’s turmoils and has gotten off to a flyer. The Belgian opened the scoring with a sublime finish to score his second goal of the campaign. Willian doubled Chelsea’s lead just before half-time when his shot rifled past Tom Heaton in the Burnley goal.
Chelsea looked comfortable for the remainder of the game and sealed the victory by adding a third in the final minutes, thanks to Victor Moses’ tap-in from Pedro’s cross.
On the other hand, Manchester United left it late to ensure that they started the season with three wins out of three. A spirited performance from Hull City went in vain when young Marcus Rashford scored the game’s only goal in stoppage time to secure three points for his side.
The win gave United fans a nostalgic treat, to the times when late goals were the team’s speciality. Despite constant resilience from the Hull backline, the Tigers failed to maintain their own 100 per cent start to the season.
Spurs and Liverpool share the spoils
Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool side travelled to North London to take on Tottenham in what was a thrilling 1-1 draw. The visitors started the better of the two and had numerous chances to open the scoring, only for Michel Vorm’s heroics to deny them.
The Dutch stopper who is filling in for the injured Hugo Lloris was in top-form throughout the 90 minutes. It took a penalty just before the break for Liverpool to take the lead as James Milner made no mistake in slotting past Vorm.
Spurs managed to conjure up a bit more threat in the second half and they got their reward when Danny Rose squeezed the ball past Simon Mignolet to level the scores. Both teams pushed for the winner but it will be the Reds who must be more disappointed of the two teams after failing to make their chances count.
No shortage of penalties this season
Apart from the penalty at white Hart Lane, there were five other games that saw penalties being awarded.
Crystal Palace’s Yohan Cabaye missed his penalty in his side’s 1-1 draw with Bournemouth. Both teams registered their first points of the season, thanks to goals from Joshua King and an equaliser from Scott Dann, deep into the stoppage time.
Everton were also guilty of missing a penalty but can count themselves lucky as Leighton Baines saw his penalty saved by Shay Given, only to rebound off the post onto the keeper and into the back of the net. The Toffees needed just that one goal to see out the victory against Stoke City as they continue their fine form.
Riyad Mahrez was another guilty party who missed his penalty as Lukasz Fabianski denied the Algerian. No harm was done though as the Champions secured their first win by beating Swansea 2-1. Jamie Vardy broke the deadlock when he volleyed home to score his first of the season.
Wes Morgan added another in the second half before Leroy Fer grabbed a consolation inside the last 10 minutes.
Sunderland were the benefactors of another penalty in their 1-1 draw with Southampton. Jermaine Defoe won and scored the penalty for them in the 80th minute as the Black Cats looked to see out their first win of the season.
It wasn’t meant to be for David Moyes though as Jay Rodriguez scored a late equaliser, thanks to a howler from young Sunderland keeper Jordan Pickford.
Arsenal won their first game of the season in their 3-1 victory away at Watford. The Gunners opened the scoring through a Santi Carzola penalty and raced away to a 3-0 lead thanks to goals from Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, inside the opening 45 minutes itself. Watford did grab one back when new signing Roberto Pereyra scored on his debut for the Hornets.
A not so spicy Sunday
Dull draw at The Hawthorns
Middlesbrough and Wet Brom played out a drab goalless draw in Sunday’s opening game. Neither team managed to create any real chances, leaving both keepers virtually untested. The draw seemed to be a fair result as both managers appeared to have settled for a point a piece.
The Baggies moved up into the top half of the table, while Middlesbrough are now one of only six teams who have yet to lose a game. Aitor Karanka will hope that his side can continue their run as they settle to life in the Premier League after a six-year absence.
City romp home “home advantage”
It seemed a normal day at the office for Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City who raced to a quick-fire 2-0 lead against West Ham. The Sky Blues started the game very strongly, playing some amazing football in the process. Raheem Sterling continued his fine form this season by opening the scoring with an easy finish, following a slick passing move. Fernandinho doubled City’s lead with a thunderous header from a Kevin De Bruyne free-kick.
But a depleted Hammers side fought back in the second half and were rewarded when Michail Antonio headed in to reduce the deficit and give his side some hope. West Ham saw a few outside chances go begging before Raheem Sterling ensured his side of the three points with a cool finish in the final minutes to give Guardiola’s side a 3-1 victory
Results
Saturday:
Tottenham 1-1 Liverpool
Chelsea 3- 0 Burnley
Crystal Palace 1-1 Bournemouth
Everton 1-0 Stoke City
Leicester City 2-1 Swansea City
Southampton 1-1 Sunderland
Watford 1-3 Arsenal
Hull City 0-1 Manchester United
Sunday:
West Brom 0-0 Middlesbrough
Manchester City 2-1 West Ham United
