Game week 1 Round up
Premier league football is back, and the first round of fixtures did not disappoint! No more meaningless friendlies (until September when the international break kicks in) and no more wondering if Haaland is a one season wonder or not (as if anyone really thought that would be the case). Best of all, there wasn’t a single 0-0 in sight, in fact only 2 sides failed to score during the first round of fixtures, which we’re hoping is a trend that extends throughout the season.
Burnley vs City was the curtain raiser and plenty was made regarding Kompany facing off against his former manager Pep, but the Championship champions came up short in their first league game back in the top flight. Man City confidently controlled the game but chances were few and far between for the most part, and despite the scoreline and possession stats this game didn’t feel like a drubbing. Pep’s side truthly didn’t look to step out of second gear but Burnley can take plenty of positives from this game and we saw glimpses of the attractive football that saw them dominate last season. There were chances for Burnley but they did lack a cutting edge to see them taken, Burnley will certainly be a team to look out for this season for exciting games.
Last year’s other title contender, Arsenal, also got their season off to a winning start although it wasn’t quite as comfortable as their Manchester counterpart. For the first 45 minutes of the game it was evident how Arteta wanted to set his team up this season, but a lot of the control of the game was lost when Timber went off injured, and with Zinchenko also being out, it left a hole in the system that wasn’t filled. Truthly it was always felt that Arsenal would win this game, even if they didn’t have the control they would have liked, and the dynamic wingers on either side both provided magic in their own right to help score both goals. Saka showed he is ready to prove to everyone that last season was now the norm and not just a purple patch. Martinelli, who in many ways does not fill the role of your traditional ‘Brazilian archetype’ winger with his fast and direct play, showed he does have that samba style when he wants to use it, with a brilliant assist to Arsenals 14 Nketiah. Forest won’t be too downhearted with this result, they set up to not take a hammering and walked away with a respectable score line, interesting to see how they shape up against other sides.
Sheffield United are almost universally tipped to go down by anyone you ask and despite the low score line, their game against Roy the Boy’ Palace did nothing to prove anyone wrong. Dominated in both chances created and possession, if they don’t manage to bring some faces through the door before the window closes, they will have more to worry about than fisty cuffs with ageing managers on the touchline.
Exciting times amongst the Cherries fan base with new manager Iraola carrying an exciting reputation with him from Spain and he has clearly impacted the team already who dominated against a light West Ham side who finally look to be spending some of their Rice money. Unfortunately for the seaside team, Moyes and West Ham are very comfortable with conceding possession and actually ended the game with a higher XG than Bournemouth (just about). Not much to take from this Hammers side until we see the new faces integrated into the side.
The last of the promoted sides Luton got their season underway with a tough fixture against Brighton who showed no mercy in their dismantling of the Hatters. There is certainly no shame in losing to this Brighton side but despite creating a few decent half chances, they will be disappointed with how open the game was, and they will be in for a long season if they approach all their games along the same lines.
Everton will be wondering how they have come away from this weekend with 0 points considering how many chances they created, but it was a similar situation last season and it’s clear they miss a real cutting edge to put teams to bed. They will be hoping Jack Harrison can’t help provide some much needed firepower if they are to avoid another relegation battle but we do get the sense that a striker is needed as well. For Fulham, they will be happy despite the performance, 3 points against a Dyche side playing at home has proven to be a tough challenge over the years, so this will be a nice fixture to tick off the list early for the Cottagers.
We had hotly tipped Newcastle vs Aston Villa to be the game of the weekend and it certainly lived up to expectations but maybe not for the reasons many predicted. The first half certainly followed the script, with both new signings Tonali and Diaby grabbing debut goals before Isak put Newcastle ahead going into the break. Isak had the look of a player who is ready to explode, we saw it in bursts last season but there is a hunger in his play that leads us to think he is ready to be the next superstar of the Premier League. The second half showed Newcastle lay down their marker to the rest of the league, notching another 3 goals in the second half to sweep away a Villa side who have caught the attention of many based on the second half of last season alongside their Summer signings. A side note for Harvey Barnes who may not have the flicks and tricks of some other flashy wingers but within this Newcastle side he will show just how effective his end product will be.
Over in London, we saw the battle of the missing strikers, Toney via suspension while Kane is more of a permanent loss (due to transferring to Bayern Munich and not a more morbid reason as that sentence may suggest!) But if anyone was worried that it would lead to a goalless fixture, those fears were put to rest pretty quickly, although the goals did halt in the second half. Both teams set up to play open and expansive football, which fortunately for the viewer gave us an exciting end to end game that really could have gone either way! It’s very early in Big Anges reign, and with a huge cash influx due to the sale of their record scorer, you would imagine we will be seeing a different Spurs side once August ends, but it does seem like they will be a lot of fun to watch this year whether they are winning or losing.
7 in a row, no not league titles won by City (quite yet) but the amount of draws Liverpool and Chelsea have successively had against each other if you include games that went to penalties. But this felt slightly different, a lot of the other games have felt underwhelming and slightly drab, whereas this was a fairly exciting affair and both sides maybe felt they could have scored more. Both sides had some impressive performances, but it was Enzo who really impressed, controlling the pace of the game and the midfield with an air of confidence normally seen in much more experienced pros. Both sides clearly needed some more in the middle of the pitch which Chelsea has acted on much to the misfortune of their scouse counterparts. Despite finishing level, there does seem a lot more optimism amongst the London fanbase on the back of the performance, but that could be partially due to how low expectations are after last season, but Liverpool may look back at a point at Stamford Bridge much more fondly as the season progresses.
Chelsea weren’t the only side that took positives despite not winning with Wolves going one step further and losing their tie at Old Trafford. Before kick off, new manager O’Niel may have snapped your hand off for a 1-0 loss, but they will be wondering how they didnt get all 3 points in a game they truly looked the better side in. Of course many will point to Onana’s superman punch late in the game and wonder how on earth a penalty wasn’t given, but if there is one positive that can be taken it is the PGMOL have issued their first apology of the season… on week 1…
Bring on Gameweek 2!
