It was glad to see the Premier League back in all its glory, after a week-long absence due to the international break. With some cracking goals, intense matches and a couple of controversial decisions, it was yet another entertaining week of football.
Manchester derby – nothing short of entertaining
The Premier league couldn’t have gotten off to a better start after a week-long absence with the Manchester derby kicking it off. A Sergio Aguero-less Manchester City made the short trip to Old Trafford in season’s first meeting between Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho.
The Citizens started off the better side and raced away to a two-goal lead inside the opening 35 minutes. Goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Kelechi Iheanacho put City 2-0 up before Zlatan Ibrahimovic reduced the deficit just before half-time, thanks to a Claudio Bravo error.
The Red Devils pushed on for an equaliser but a combination of poor finishing and resilient defending resulted in Guardiola’s team grabbing a crucial victory to maintain their 100 per cent record and stay atop the League.
Red Devils’ stars have mixed outing
Whether it was the curse of the international break or just plain complacency, Manchester United didn’t look like a side who had just splashed out 150 million pounds on transfers alone this summer. ‘The Special One’ chose to give Henrikh Mkhitaryan his first start since joining but the Armenian international endured a poor first-half, barely getting on the ball, let alone keeping it and was hacked off at the start of the second half.
Paul Pogba was another player who was invisible for nearly the entirety of the game after being well checked by the City midfield.
It would be wrong to judge them on just one game, although to any Manchester fan, the derby is so much more than just one game. With the amount of talent that the duo possess, you can count on them to bounce back quickly in the coming weeks.
The other two players that United signed this summer – Eric Bailly and Ibrahimovic on the other hands did not disappoint. The former Swedish captain got on the scoresheet yet again while young Eric Bailly’s defensive performance in the second half, kept his side in the game.
Liverpool school the Champions
Leicester City were first visitors to the newly renovated Anfield stadium and things didn’t go to plan for Claudio Ranieri’s side. A brace from Roberto Firmino and goals from Adam Lallana and Sadio Mane led the Reds to a comfortable 4-1 victory over the Foxes.
Jamie Vardy grabbed the simplest of goals at the end of the first half that proved to be nothing more than a consolation.
The score line was an understatement if anything as Jurgen Klopp’s side dominated proceedings, they looked to attack at every chance they got. Leicester didn’t look half as good as the side that claimed the title last season and will now have to work very hard to climb back into the top four.
The Foxes are currently in 16th position and have already lost twice this season, compared to the miserly thrice in the whole of last season.
Errors result in Chelsea dropping valuable points
Antonio Conte’s Chelsea looked in cruise control after being a goal up thanks to Diego Costa’s fine strike in the first-half. It seemed only a matter of time before the added another but things took a dramatic change for the worse as Swansea capitalised on defensive errors and poor refereeing to take an unexpected 2-1 lead at the Liberty Stadium.
It then took a lot of hard work from the Blues to get back into the game but they did manage to, as Costa netted his second with a brilliant overhead kick to make it 2-2. Chelsea desperately pushed for a winner but the Swans defence held strong to see out a point.
With a tough fixture list ahead, Conte will rue dropping points in a game that they should have comfortably won.
Hull continue to impress
Not many would have been expecting Hull City to be as good as they have been so far. The Tigers have only lost once this season as they avoided defeat against fellow promoted side Burnley.
Robert Snodgrass continued his fine form this season to level the scores deep into extra-time with a fantastic free-kick. They’re currently seventh in the table and will hope to further this impressive run in the coming weeks.
Leaving it late
While Hull and Chelsea grabbed late equalisers, Arsenal and Bournemouth also managed to net late winners to grab all three points.
The Gunners hosted Southampton and looked to be heading for a disappointing 1-1 draw, only for them to be awarded a penalty in stoppage time which Santi Carzola made no mistake in dispatching. The Emirates erupted as Arsene Wenger’s side claimed back-to-back victories.
Bournemouth claimed their first victory of the season as they saw off a stubborn West Brom team at home. Callum Wilson scored the winner with less than 10 minutes on the clock to give Eddie Howe’s side their first three points of the campaign.
Away wins a trend
Tottenham travelled to Stoke with all guns blazing and managed to thrash the hosts 4-0. A brace from Heung-Min Son was followed by goals from Delle Alli and Harry Kane to give Mauricio Pochettino’s side a comfortable victory.
Crystal Palace won their first game of the season when they took on Middlesbrough. New signing Christian Benteke opened the scoring early on with a trademark header before Daniel Ayala scored one of the headers of the season to level the scores.
Alan Pardew’s side were desperate for the three points and attacked the Boro goal with intent. Wilfred Zaha proved to be the match-winner as he scored moments into the second half to make it 2-1.
Watford were the most unlikely heroes of the week as they came from two goals down to win 4-2 at the London Stadium. Michail Antonio’s brace gave Slaven Bilic’s side a comfortable lead only for Odion Ighalo and Troy Deeney to level the scores just before half-time.
The Hornets then raced to a 4-2 lead less than 20 minutes into the second half and held on to grab their first three points of the campaign.
Everton were another side to grab all three points away from home by beating Sunderland 3-0 at the Stadium of Light. Romelu Lukaku scored the first hat-trick of the 2016-17 campaign to give the Toffees a well-deserved victory.
Ronald Koeman is yet to lose a game in the Premier League with Everton, having also won each of his last three games in charge of the Merseyside club.
Here are the results from all the matches of Matchweek 4.
Manchester United 1-2 Manchester City
Arsenal 2-1 Southampton
Bournemouth 1-0 West Brom
Burnley 1-1 Hull City
Middlesbrough 1-2 Crystal Palace
Stoke City 0-4 Tottenham
West Ham United 2-4 Watford
Liverpool 4-1 Leicester City
Swansea City 2-2 Chelsea
Sunderland 0-3 Everton
