bookd.
West Ham4 - 2Wolves
This was a really strange one. If you didn’t watch last season someone told you these two teams were in the premier league last year you would’ve laughed them off, the quality of football on display was appalling. Ball constantly being given away, stray passes and wide open defending, which made for a pretty interesting game tbh. I thought wolves were unlucky to not go ahead early on striking the bar twice, however you can’t argue with that Divine Mukasa finish, what a strike from the loanee. Bowen took the pen this time round and West Ham fans will be scratching their heads at why their captain didn’t take the penalty in the last minute against Charlton the other week, good penalty but a strange one. I thought it was tragic defending from West Ham as Munetsi grabbed one back, I thought the game was back on however a huge deflection from Mukasa and a thumping finish from Mavropanos denied wolves any chance of getting back into it. The one credit I have of wolves is Jordan James, will easily be one of the best players in the league this season, bundles of ability and knows how to crash into the box when necessary, great player. Overall a really poor game in terms of quality on display, especially from two former premier league clubs. However, good to see 6 goals, proper championship football. MOTM- Divine Mukasa
Aston Villa0 - 1Arsenal
Not as good as expected. I expected this game to be a fast paced exciting one, however I couldn’t have been more wrong, was never going to be that exciting when Arsenal are involved. The first half was a tough watch if I’m completely honest. It was a slow game with Arsenal mainly keeping the ball and moving it slowly around the backline. Apart from Emi Buendia striking the crossbar, nothing really happened. The second half livened up a bit and Arsenal unfortunately took a deserved lead when a great piece of play by Riccardo Calafiori resulted in a simple tap in for Saka. From then on it was really just a holding on job for Arsenal, and without much threat up front, a clear cut chance never really materialised for Aston Villa. Another game with 0 shots on target for them, a cause for concern. I must say Villa Park looked extremely strange with the construction ongoing in the Trinity Road stand, I wonder if that will hinder the atmosphere and Villas home performances this season? I was impressed with Jackson on his debut, in an environment where he had a lack of support, up against the best defence in the league I think he held his own really well. He skinned Gabriel once and his hold up play was quite impressive, unfortunately he didn’t get his chance in front of goal. Overall it was an underwhelming game, and as far as results go, it’s a classic 0-1 win for Arsenal. Villa shouldn’t feel too beat up about that, no shame in the performance and many new signings yet to make their debuts, onto next week.
Man United5 - 2Ipswich
Expected. I actually really enjoyed the first half. I was properly impressed with Ipswich up until half time, they brought the game to Utd and were absolutely lethal on the break. I was particularly impressed with Enciso, who was pulling the strings really well and was the best player on the pitch in the first half. They took a well deserved lead and unfortunately for Marcelino Nunez, his slip completely changed the complexity of the game. Onto the second half. I was appalled by the officiating and decision to give Uniteds second goal. Maguire evidently handballs it and VAR admit that, however because it wasn’t his goal the handball doesn’t count. It’s a handball regardless of how the ball went into the net!! Moving past that, Bruno Fernandes was excellent today, I’m disappointed that I don’t have him in my FPL as he was at his very best. As soon as the momentum hits at old Trafford you know that he’ll be the one to drag United forwards. He himself won United that game in the second half, some performance. Despite being a controversial figure it’s hard to argue he isn’t world class. A hard afternoon for Jacob Greaves, who scored an own goal, gave away a penalty and failed to clear one off the line, I can’t help but feel bad for him and I hope he can swiftly move past this. Overall, I do feel somewhat confident about Ipswich, they showed they can bring it to the big boys and unfortunately collapsed when it matters, however that first 45 I thought they were excellent! Unfortunately for them, United and Bruno in particular showed their quality was too much for newly promoted Ipswich, and deservedly won 5-2.
Tottenham0 - 2Newcastle
Not ideal at all. I woke up this morning feeling confident we were going to pick up our first points of the season, and that we were gonna show what we can really do. However- I was wrong. I was upset when I saw Savio was out of the squad. It’s just typical Tottenham to have a new player unavailable after a 15 minute cameo against a championship side midweek. Spursy. I thought first half we actually looked decent. Van Hecke with some great line breaking passes, Marmoush looking very sharp, Fernandes looking good and we almost scored twice through Van Hecke and Porro. With Marmoush, I think he looked extremely sharp and did as much as he possibly could considering who he was surrounded by (Porro in RW and Tel). I’m sure he will go on to do great things for us when surrounded by better players. I have to address tel. Since the season has started Mathys Tel has put on his best Randal Kolo Muani impression. He has been appalling. He is where possession goes to die and never fails to kill attacks and momentum, as seen when Marmoush skipped past 2 and tel just lost it. Archie Gray was very poor today, I don’t quite understand playing a RB in RW and a CM in RB when Archie Gray clearly cannot play there to a good enough standard. Onto the goals, the first goal I can accept. An inform Elanga took his goal extremely well and we were ultimately caught on the counter. The second goal however is beyond poor from a spurs perspective. How Nick Woltemade is allowed to win a free header is poor as it is, however letting the ball bounce in your box is something that CANT happen. Overall, Spurs lacked intent going forward and will surely hope to add creativity towards the end of the window with Simons having a long injury and Maddison not staying fit. Newcastle however, they looked extremely sharp and were deserving of their win, wonderful on the counter and really solid at the back, credit to Jaissle!
Liverpool2 - 2Nott'm Forest
A great game. Forest looked excellent, they have a tendency to turn up at anfield and they did it yet again, whereas in the first half I thought Liverpool looked particularly poor. Gibbs white looked really good, as did James Mcatee. Isak was poor again until his goal but hopefully for him he can use that goal to increase his confidence. Overall, a great game.
Nott'm Forest
Crystal Palace1 - 4Man City
City back to normality. Despite winning last week I thought city were off it against Bournemouth, and if it wasn’t for Rayan Cherki, they would’ve ended up losing last week. Today was something you’d expect to see from City under Pep Guardiola, a real professional performance and they well deservedly smashed Crystal Palace 4-1. I’ll start off by talking about Palace. I worry for them this season. I’ve said this for a while now. You can’t keep selling and losing your best players/best ever manager and not expect things to go south. Despite city being an excellent side I thought palace looked really poor again tonight. Poor up front and even worse they’re so leaky at the back. You can’t expect to lose Guehi and Lacroix and then not to ship goals, tough season ahead for them I think. Onto City. Very convincing, Rayan Cherki has to start every single week. He is single-handedly the most entertaining player in the premier league and one of the most entertaining on the planet. Always forward thinking and the skill and technique he has is unbelievable, 2 assists last week, 2 goals this week (buzzing I have him in my FPL) a wonderful player. I thought Anderson was quietly good tonight. For the position he plays it’s easy to play well and go unnoticed and that’s what he did tonight, won the ball back well, some wonderful sprayed passes and showed city a glimpse of what they paid their money for. Normal service resumed for Erling Haaland, loves to play against palace and he enjoyed himself again tonight. 2 excellent finishes, especially the looping header, what a goal that was. Overall, a very professional classic city performance, and for palace. I worry about them big time.
Man CityTottenham5 - 1Charlton
Exactly what we needed. Was hoping that we’d get a few goals in this one, and in all honestly the first 40 minutes was dross and very worrying. We didn’t create much, Bentancur constantly going backwards, Tel miles off it again, majority of the first half was very very poor. Luckily just before half time Mikey Moore lashed one in. One thing I admire about Mikey is his perseverance to constantly run at his man, he never loses confidence despite losing the ball on various occasions, a bright future for sure. Solankes goal was nice, definitely a great option as a backup to Marmoush, knows where the goal is when he gets the chance, just needs to get himself into the right positions more often. Second half much better, great to see Big Kev get on the score sheet, an admirable player who never complains about his role as a squad player. Some bloke. Savio- that’s exactly what we’ve been looking for. Not gonna go too early as it is only Charlton however that’s exactly how you want a debut, comes on and lights it up, absolutely wonderful to watch and arguably should’ve had 2 (shoutout Ben Davies). Seriously though this made me even more excited about this lad, wonderful cameo. Special mention to Mateus Fernandes as well. Looks mustard. So calm on the ball and does the simple things so so well, will go under the radar this season but he’s looked excellent so far, have no doubt he’ll become one of our most important players, some would argue he already is. Overall, first half was poor until the quick fire double, however the second was much better, and for Savio, I can’t wait to see him on Saturday. COYS.
Tottenham
Fulham2 - 3Chelsea
A very entertaining 1st MNF of the season. I fear for Fulham this season, young inexperienced manager, average team, and an inconsistent backline. I wouldn’t have been surprised to see Chelsea score early, however 31 seconds was insane, awful defending from Jorge Cuenca however the finish from Joao Pedro was sublime. Good result for many people’s FPL teams. Fulham’s best player by a long run was 19 year old Josh King, looked lively whenever he got the ball and provided Fulham’s only real pieces of quality throughout the game. I was unimpressed with the new Real Madrid boys, particularly Palacios, who looked lost. Despite scoring I felt Garcia was bullied throughout the game, however he looked much more promising than Palacios. Onto Chelsea, they could be a real threat this season, I’d go as far as saying they’re the most likely to challenge Arsenal. The front 3 of Rogers Pedro and Palmer may be the best in the division, and they proofed exactly why tonight. Rogers looked sharp, full of ideas and topped it with a goal. Pedro looked at his best, great hold up play and a wonderful finish, and for Cole Palmer, he looked back to his old self, unbelievable performance, easily MOTM. Only criticism I have of Chelsea is the goalkeeper. Sanchez is a strange keeper, one day he’ll put in a great performance, the next he’ll make multiple huge mistakes, today was one of those days. If you want to challenge for the Title you need a top goalkeeper, we’ve seen it with Raya, Ederson and Allison in recent years. I’m sure Chelsea fans would like to see their side sign a goalie before the end of the window. Overall, a very entertaining game, however Chelsea were by far and away the better side and deserved to win.
ChelseaNewcastle2 - 2LiverpoolWow, what a first main event of the season. The game started very fast, couldn’t quite believe how quick Elanga was for that first goal, almost feel quite happy for him as well considering the amount of criticism he received from the Newcastle fans last season. I was surprised by this new look Newcastle team, I had a real bad feeling for them this season with Bruno G, Tonali, Gordon and Eddie Howe all departing, however they looked bang up for it. New signing Amar Dedic looked excellent, was completely owning that right hand side and caused Kerkez an awful lot of issues, him and Elanga partnered really well. Hornicek looks like he has a bit in goal also, however it’s hard to judge a goalkeeper off one game. Yoane Wissa my personal MOTM, looked a shadow of his Brentford self last season however today he showed that quality and even more, his hold up play was immense and for a little fella he has a huge leap on him. Excellent. Onto Liverpool, I thing Cody Gakpo’s goal was excellent, it shows exactly why Roberto De Zerbi is desperate for him at Tottenham, however you have to feel following today’s performance and the reports surrounding Omar Marmoush, it’s hard to see that deal materialising. One constant for Liverpool throughout both last seasons poor showing and the sloppy start to this season is no matter how the team plays, Dominik Szobozslai will turn up, another quality performance from him. There was always gonna be a dramatic ending to this game, there always is. I was disappointed that Isak didn’t step up to take the penalty but who can blame him when Szoboszlai has the ability to do that under immense pressure. Overall, a great game to watch, Liverpool will 100% take a point, however Newcastle will be disappointed not to have won.
Newcastle
Brighton4 - 0Aston VillaBattered. There’s been a lot of concern surrounding Aston Villa throughout the summer window, they’ve sold their spine (Rogers Digne Tielemans Konsa soon to be Martinez and Watkins) and now it’s coming back to bite them. As good as a manager Unai Emery is, I said to my Dad just 2 weeks ago that I think he may be the first to leave, and by that I meant walking, not getting the sack. Today they were abysmal. New signing Joao Gomes was a catastrophe, should’ve been sent off in the first half, and finally justice was served when he kicked out in the second. Emery is now completely devoid of options, and with Champions league still to play this season as well, they could find themselves in real trouble, and it’s hard to see a way out for them. Onto Brighton- They were excellent. Similar to Brentford yesterday they are such a well drilled team, everyone knows their role and they’re an incredibly organised side, the complete opposite of Aston Villa today. De Cuyper was excellent, definitely a top fantasy pick for this season and I will not be surprised if big clubs are sniffing around him come the end of the season, Brugge know how to produce talent and Brighton know how to develop them. Overall not the most exciting watch due to the one-sided nature however some of the goals were very well worked.
Brentford3 - 0TottenhamWell. First game of the season and expectations were low considering the amount of absentees and new signings yet to come through the door. My personal mentality before the game was “take a draw” however now that seems as if it was a little far fetched. The mixed starting XI looked incredibly disorientated, sloppy passes, lack of movement and completely run around in the first half, deservedly going into the break 2-0 down. Lucas Bergvall was shameful in that first half, he has a tendency to do silly things in positions that can put the team in immense trouble, which he did multiple times throughout the first 45. Richarlison was just as poor, his inability to hold up the ball has cost spurs in the past and cost them yet again today when it led to Brentford’s 2nd goal. Second half was more of the same, looking sloppy, created few chances and gave many away, Mikey Moore missed a couple but bar that Tottenham created next to nothing. As soon as that third goal went in it was curtains, and Tottenham were lucky not to concede more. Onto the new signings: -Fernandes looked sharp off the bench, no doubt he’ll start most games - Senesi & Van Hecke looked sloppy nervous and ultimately were poor on their debuts, losing possession often. - Tonali had a tough debut, rarely receiving the ball and being dealt a difficult start having to play next to Lucas Bergvall, an automatic disadvantage. However, im sure he’ll improve. - Robertson was one of the positives, looked sharp and didn’t have a bad game at all. Overall, I’m sure that this result is not a reflection on things to come for spurs, however it truly is a nightmare start to the season. New signings can’t come quick enough and the club have to quickly move on, as that was a disaster.
Hull City2 - 0Man UnitedA very entertaining game to watch, Hull unbelievable on their return to the premier league and didn’t look out of place in the slightest. United looked very poor, their fans have been raving about Santos and Tielemans and how that was a better deal than spending on the likes of Mateus Fernandes who has looked promising in pre season for spurs. Bruno Fernandes was terrible, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him have a season similar to Salah last year, I think this will be his last season in the premier league. The Hull defence was unbelievable, special mention to Nobel Mendy who had a truly wonderful debut at the back and topped it off with a goal. Oli Mcburnie- a player who’s been away from the premier league for a while now, looked as if he never left. Bullied Maguire and Heaven all day and his hold up play was a joy to watch- a proper old school striker. Overall, a great first early kick off of the season, looking forward to many more.
Hull CityTottenham1 - 0Milton Keynes Dons
Great start to pre season. - Matty Fernandes blinder, promising. - Tonali still moulding - Hardy and Williams-Barnett very impressive.