Talking points from Matchweek 4
The world’s premiere football competition is just starting out, but we’re already seeing drama and glory – just the way want it!
We take a look at Matchweek 4 and bring you all the news and updates that will help your wagers on the English Premier League.
Firmino making life difficult for Klopp
Firmino reached a century of goals for Liverpool against Bournemouth with two in their record-equalling Premier League win, adding three assists for good measure.
Regardless of the opposition, performances like this are not to be overlooked. The 30-year-old is in the final year of his Liverpool contract and no longer assured of a regular starting role with the injured Diogo Jota and suspended Darwin Núñez challenging for his place. But his importance, his quality and his entertainment value remain.
Núñez should be back in the picture for Saturday’s Merseyside derby at Everton so Klopp could have a happy headache when it comes to his team picks. If I were at the helm, I’d pick Bobby upfront to show the new signings that a starting jersey is never a guarantee.
The Gunners make it 4 from 4
It’s clear that Arsenal are a different club from the one we saw last season. In their win against Fulham, Arteta’s men became the only side to win four from four at this stage of the season.
Arteta was forced into making some changes up front. Thomas Partey and Oleksandr Zinchenko made way for Mohamed Elneny and Kieran Tierney, with all eyes on whether Arsenal would retain their early season dominance.
And they did.
It was an edgy affair but the Gunners managed to put newly-promoted Fulham away with a late winner that sent North London into raptures. They’re yet to face another big club, but it looks like Arsenal are a very serious unit this season and we love to see it.
City looking weak at the set-piece
Uncharacteristically, Man City are scoring loads of goals – but they’re conceding plenty as well. They’ve let in nine in their last six Premier League games, going back to the end of last season.
Two conceded from set-pieces delivered by Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze had Pep Guardiola concerned despite the breath-taking comeback that his side managed to pull out of the bag.
The game ended 4-2 but City looked disorganised and non-committal when it came to defending dead ball deliveries from Palace. If City weren’t as unstoppable in attack as they are, things would have ended very differently at the Etihad. A win is a win, but it was an edgy one to say the least for a team of their calibre.
Young Saints’ keeper leads the charge
Ralph Hasenhüttl signed young goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu from Manchester City and immediately gave the 20-year-old a starting jersey. Bazunu made waves on loan in League One with Portsmouth last season, and now has the responsibility of being first-choice keeper for Southampton. His heroics against Man U, and the undeniably brilliant save to deny Cristiano Ronaldo last November, have put him on the radar. Bazunu is the youngest No 1 in the Premier League and the last line of defence in a heavily inexperienced back line. Another promising young talent is Armel Bella-Kotchap, also 20, who shone at centre-back in the narrow 1-0 defeat to United.
Whilst the average age of Southampton is exceptionally low, they’re playing like a mature, composed unit that might cause a few upsets as the season progresses, especially under the leadership of their mercurial captain James Ward-Prowse.
Sterling at the double for the Blues
Whilst Thomas Tuchel has admitted that new signing Raheem Sterling is taking his time to find his feet at Chelsea, the England winger put in a match-winning performance against Leicester.
Sterling made the most of his limited opportunities at Stamford Bridge and was only denied a hat-trick by Danny Ward’s excellent save between his two well-taken goals.
But Tuchel expects there is more to come from the man who now has 111 goals from 324 Premier League appearances. “At the moment he is struggling a little bit with his confidence and his dribbling, as you can see,” said the Chelsea manager. “And we were one man down so it was not obvious that he would get a lot of chances to score. But he got three of them and he scored twice. This was super-important, not only for us but for him as an individual.”
Chelsea, still without a recognised striker leading the line, will undoubtedly be expecting more from Sterling as the season progresses.
Wolves shafted by VAR
Since the moment VAR was introduced as an official officiating metric in football, it has come under immense scrutiny. The big question remains; should there be greater consistency over referees using monitors for big decisions?
Peter Bankes showed Newcastle’s Fabian Schär a yellow card for a foul on Pedro Neto and was told not to review the passage of play in question, as the VAR had already checked for possible violent conduct. But the referee, who had a clear view of Neto’s challenge on Ryan Fraser during the build-up to Raúl Jiménez’s disallowed goal that would have made it 2-0, was then asked to look at the replay and backed his original decision and let his call stand.
Every angle of the challenge in question left no room for doubt that it was far more than a yellow card offence. If the facilities exist for referees to assess contentious moments in the game, then they should be used. Wolves have every right to feel hard-done by after both big calls went against them in a game that they could’ve dominated had they been given the calls.
Kane reaches undeniable status
In scoring the 200th and 201st league goals of his career, Harry Kane reminded us he is not just one of the best centre-forwards of his era but one of the best to ever play in England – and he’s still getting better. Sure, he’s a terrific poacher, but what makes Kane extra special is the touch, intelligence and composure that make him easily one of the most deadly players of all time from 15-22 yards – a skill illustrated perfectly in his first goal at the City Ground.
His first touch opened up the entire pitch, and his confidence to take the shot early, using the defender as a screen, meant that the keeper would be flat-footed. Not any striker can do it. Not many strikers do do it. And anybody who is of the opinion that Harry Kane is not one of the best front men in football, doesn’t and hasn’t watched enough football.
Spurs are looking strong, and Kane looks like he finally has the support he needs to take Spurs closer to the top than they have been in years.