Premier League Roundup: Week 4
The Premier League season got back on track Saturday following the international break and was headlined by the highly anticipated Manchester derby.
United and City entered the weekend's marquee match up both atop the league table, each with 9 points from their first 3 games. First year managers Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola also got the opportunity to rehash their own personal rivalry from when they were the head men at Real Madrid and Barcelona, respectively. City started the scoring early as Kevin De Bruyne found the back of the net from the top of the box in the 15th minute after freezing United keeper David De Gea with a look off. City doubled their first half lead when Nigerian teenage phenom Kelechi Iheanacho, in place of suspended Sergio Aguero, buried a Kevin De Bruyne rebound off the post in the 36th minute. United were able to pull within 1 in the 42nd minute as Zlatan buried a rebound with an acrobatic scissor kick to give life to the Old Trafford faithful. However, the second half, while entertaining and pacy, mustered no goals for either side and the 2-1 halftime lead by City stood deservedly strong as the final whistle blew. At the end of the weekend it is Manchester City that stands supreme in both the city of Manchester and the league.
Elsewhere in Northwest England, Liverpool put together their finest performance of the young season in a 4-1 thrashing of defending league champions Leicester. In their home debut, the Reds came out strong as Roberto Firmino used adept touch to handle a James Milner pass and side step his defender at the top of the box before blasting a low shot past Leicester keeper Kasper Schmeichel in the 13th minute to open the scoring. Sadio Mane added to Liverpool's lead in the 31st minute with a cocky first-touch chip over Schmeichel off a clever back heeled pass from Daniel Sturridge on the counter. Just 7 minutes later, Jamie Vardy brought the Foxes within 1 after Lucas Leiva, playing center back, inexplicably passed the ball in front of the Liverpool net to a waiting Vardy who confidently capitalized on the defensive miscue. Despite heading into halftime with the 2-1 lead and possession dominance, Reds' supporters still felt anxious about the outcome of the match. After witnessing multiple Liverpool late game implosions over the past several seasons, fans had a legitimate reason to worry. However, Adam Lallana was quick to alleviate this concern as he blasted a top corner rip past Schmeichel off of a beautiful Georginio Wijnaldum no-look layoff pass in the 56th minute to give Liverpool the 3-1 lead. Feeding off the home crowd in the recently renovated Main Stand at Anfield, Liverpool controlled play the rest of the match before a late counter and miscalculated Kasper Schmeichel challenge led to a second goal from Roberto Firmino to stretch their lead to 4-1 and lock up the 3 points. Leicester are still trying to find their sea legs this season, and seem to be struggling with a bit of a league title hangover. Meanwhile, Liverpool's early season gauntlet continues on Friday as they travel to London to battle with Antonio Conte's in-form Chelsea side.
Arsenal were able to salvage 3 points out of their match with struggling Southampton on Saturday after a controversial penalty was awarded to them in 90'+4 minute. It looked like the game would end in a much needed draw for the Saints until a phantom foul in the box against Olivier Giroud set up Santi Carzola's penalty conversion and 2-1 Gunners win. After looking at the footage there is clearly no foul on the play, but referees are forced to make these decisions based on their own, often skewed, vantage point and it appears that Olivier Giroud has been taking acting classes this off-season. Arsenal picked up their second straight league win to rise to 7th in the table, while Southampton continues to struggle and now sits in 18th with only 2 points earned this year.
Stoke City continued their free fall into oblivion on Saturday as the Potters were humiliated 4-0 at home by Spurs. Spurs supporters have been anxiously waiting for this type of offensive onslaught and Son Heung-Min (2 goals), Delle Alli, and Harry Kane finally obliged. Spurs dissected the poor Stoke defense and managed shots on goal to Stoke's 2. Mark Hughes and the Potters will continue to try and find an answer to their early poor run of form against Crystal Palace on Sunday, while Spurs looks to continue their offensive acumen against equally miserable Sunderland after their midweek Champion's League clash with Monaco.
West Ham also continued their own downward slide on Saturday, falling 4-2 to Watford. The Hammers blew a 2-0 first half lead, after a brace from co Golden Boot leader Michail Antonio. After falling behind 2-0, Watford battled back with 2 goals after the 41st minute to draw even before the half. In the second half, West Ham looked puzzled while their opponents blew past them on the counter en route to 2 more goals and a final 4-2 score line. Michail Antonio continues to be the only bright spot for Slavan Bilic's side, who are quickly falling down the league table. They will hope to find some respite in their next match against a so far unimpressive West Brom team.
In perhaps the most surprising of the weekend, top of table Chelsea fought back to earn a draw against under performing Swansea City on Sunday. The Blues saw their early 1-0 lead, courtesy of Diego Costa, evaporate in a three minute span in the second half to find themselves trailing in the 63rd minute. Gylfi Sigurdsson struck in the 59th minute before Leroy Fer converted a penalty in the 62nd to take the lead from the London giants. However, determined to keep pace with their Manchester rivals, Antonio Conte's team once again turned to Diego Costa for late game heroics. The divisive Brazilian-Spanish striker delivered the eventual equalizer in the 81st minute to salvage the point for the Londoners, while also denying the Swans their upset bid and much needed 3 points. Chelsea's back line was inconsistent at best on Sunday, and they will need to find a quick fix without the service of John Terry, as they have a quick turn around before they host a hot Liverpool team on Friday.
The 4th weekend of the Premier League was capped off with Everton's 3-0 victory at Sunderland. Romelu Lukaku was the match hero as he scored a hat trick during an 11 minute span in the second half in only his first goals for Everton since last March. The Toffees have started the season in surprisingly great form, having not lost a match so far, even without the scoring services of Lukaku. But look for their current run of form to continue if they can continue to feed the big Belgian in the box. Ronald Koeman has his Everton side believing they can compete for a top 4 finish, and if they can continue to get performances like this out of Lukaku they will still be in this conversation come May.
