The Premier League season of 2016/17 has started with a bang, as was expected by pundits and hoped for by fans. Many clubs also brought in high profile managers in hopes of picking up the Premier League crown. After seven game weeks, the league takes a break as players are released during the international break and we take the opportunity to look back and present to you the five most memorable matches so far.
It was a tough call since we’ve witnessed so many good games between the most historic clubs, then the Manchester or the London derbies, and not to forget the humiliation of the defending Champions Leicester City by Manchester United and Liverpool. But these are what we think are the highlights until now.
#1 Arsenal 3-4 Liverpool
The first match of the opening week’s games promised us renewed excitement of a new season and an Arsenal vs Liverpool fixture only raised the ante. It did not fail expectation, and on the contrary, it was a testimony to Liverpool’s progress under Jurgen Klopp as the Scousers came out of The Emirates upbeat and victorious after a long time.
Theo Walcott missed a penalty early in the match but made up for it only moments later when Arsenal subdued Liverpool's counter attack and instead, launched their own leaving their defence meekly sobbing. Walcott made full use of this opportunity for the goal set up by Alex Iwobi and has established himself on the right flank ever since.
However, Liverpool took the turn to respond and when they did, they left the visiting fans overwhelmed. Equalising just before the first half whistle was blown, Liverpool came back stronger and thumped three more goals.
Philippe Coutinho opened the scoring with a swerving free kick that found its destination at the top left corner. In the second half, he added another with a neat one-touch finish while Adam Lallana and Sadio Mane appeared to be scoring for fun.
In the 62nd minute, when everyone thought the game wasn’t about Arsenal anymore with the scoreline at 1-4, Arsene Wenger introduced Santi Cazorla who almost added a new twist by setting up two goals. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain contested Mane's earlier individual goal and Calum Chambers netted a header off Cazorla’s free kick. Although this ensured nervousness in the final 15 minutes, Liverpool held on for the win.
#2 Chelsea 1-2 Liverpool
Stamford Bridge fell and dropped all points for the first time this season under new manager Antonio Conte as Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool proved too strong for them. This was Liverpool’s second biggest result of the campaign, once again while playing away from home so that made it all the more memorable for the Scousers.
Liverpool hit the Blues hard right through the start of the match and scored over their weaknesses. Dejan Lovren did justice to Philippe Coutinho's visionary cross that was received by him completely unmarked and eventually finished it at the back of the net exposing Chelsea’s defensive frailties.
Later in the first half, Jordan Henderson stunned the hosts with a remarkable shot from way outside the box. Thibaut Courtois was helpless as the ball flew into the top corner to give Liverpool a 2-0 lead.
Diego Costa pulled down the deficit by scoring a desperate goal by desperate measures but as it turned out, that was all Chelsea could do and Liverpool held on for the three points.
#3 Manchester United 1-2 Manchester City
You simply cannot rule out a Manchester derby out of any list of memorable Premier League matches and this season there were more reasons than usual to watch the clash as It was a test of two high-profile managers Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola. Also, both teams battled out for the top spot going into the game tied on same points, having won three out of three opening fixtures, and only being separated by goal difference.
The game was, as anticipated, a tense affair in which Guardiola’s Manchester City took the lead and doubled it to send the hosts into a frenzy. Kevin De Bruyne spearheaded their attack and launched two venomous strikes, one that found the back of the net and the other rebounded off the post, only to be tapped in by ever well positioned Kelechi Iheanacho.
The Red Devils took their time to find their rhythm but were constantly menacing and in the first half itself, scored a goal courtesy of Zlatan Ibrahimovic's agility. However, the game that had turned on its head during the first half remained as tense throughout, and unfortunately for Manchester United, so did the scoreline.
In retrospect, Mourinho knows they had their chances when Ibrahimovic missed an open goal and Marcus Rashford’s goal was disallowed.
#4 Arsenal 3-0 Chelsea
Arsenal thrashed Chelsea and broke the jinx against their London rivals in a thumping victory that gave The Gunners more reasons than just the derby to celebrate. The fans saw their team play out not just their philosophy of flair football but also delivered three points with three well-taken goals.
Add the clean sheet and defensive solidity to this performance, and not many would argue that this was the most complete team effort in the Premier League so far.
Alexis Sanchez, Theo Walcott and Mesut Ozil combined like they had pre-meditated their show and scored goals involving terrific chips, deceiving movement, fast counter attacks that completely flabbergasted the Blues.
Talking of Chelsea, the only lines I’d reserve for them are about their pathetic defence that raised questions over Antonio Conte’s transfers and the Gary Cahill-David Luiz combination for starters.
#5 Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 Manchester City
The latest big match before the international break gave us a shock as Manchester City were dominated by Tottenham Hotspur. The win saw Spurs close the gap to the league leaders to a point’s difference.
Manchester City conceded the lead for the first time this season when Aleksander Kolarov scored an own goal. Spurs took full advantage of this, hanging on to their defensive strengths while also adding another goal as a result of their youthful pressing.
Dele Alli scored the second goal that was created by the in-form Heung-Min Son. They could have scored more and the score should have been 3-0, but then we probably would have missed the ludicrous argument between Son and Eric Lamela over who takes the penalty. Eventually, Lamela did take the shot and he missed!
However, far more entertaining feeds were provided by Manchester City goalkeeper Claudio Bravo whose audacity and comic errors were highly trolled at White Hart Lane.
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