There were 38 goals in the 10 English Premier League matches played at the weekend, with Manchester City, the champions, Liverpool and Chelsea all involved in thrilling games that went to the wire. Newcastle won the clash of the Uniteds, while Arsenal reinforced their position at the top of the table.
Arsenal 2 Wolves 1
Arsenal put in a dominant first-half performance, with goals from Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard, to secure the win that extended their lead at the top to two points. Matheus Cunha’s late strike for Wolves ensured a nervous finale.
Brentford 3 Luton 1
Brentford returned to winning ways against a struggling Luton side with goals from Neal Maupay, Ben Mee and Shandon Baptiste. Jacob Brown scored Luton’s consolation.
Burnley 5 Sheffield United 0
Their biggest win in Premier League history eased some of the pressure on Vincent Kompany and lifted Burnley off the bottom of the table. Goals from Jay Rodriguez, Jacob Bruun Larsen, Zeki Amdouni, Luca Koleosho and Josh Brownhill sent Sheffield United to their 11th defeat in 14 matches, and ensured that Paul Heckingbottom is unlikely to be in the manager’s job come next weekend.
Everton 1 Nottingham Forest 0
Despite suffering the setback of a 10-point deduction for breach of Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations, Everton’s spirit and endeavour in recent weeks has been admirable. Their third win in five matches, secured by a Dwight McNeil strike, put Everton on the coattails of Luton in 17th, and ramped up the pressure on Steve Cooper, whose expensively assembled Forest side has yet to gel.
Newcastle United 1 Manchester United 0
Anthony’s Gordon’s close-range strike earned Newcastle the win against Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United, who had been the form side with five wins in their last six league outings. Newcastle, despite the crushing disappointment of the draw away to PSG in the Champions League earlier in the week, were full value for the three points, dominating from start to finish as they moved above United and to within three points of the top four.
Aston Villa 2 Bournemouth 2
Villa, riding high in fourth, set themselves up for a tasty midweek clash against Manchester City, the champions, by salvaging a draw on the south coast. A game of end-to-end football saw Bournemouth lead twice through Antoine Semenyo and Dominic Solanke. Leon Bailey’s superb curled finish and Ollie Watkins’ header in the 90th minute earned Villa a draw that kept them just a point behind City.
Chelsea 3 Brighton 2
Chelsea were on script in terms of making every game harder for themselves. They went 2-0 up early through Enzo Fernandez and Levi Colwill, only for Conor Gallagher to get sent his second yellow card on the stroke of half time. By then, Brighton had pulled a goal back through Facundo Buonanotte, but it was Chelsea that scored next. Fernandez made no mistake from the spot after James Milner had impeded Mykhailo Mudryk in the box. Joao Pedro’s strike set up a nervous finish, and Chelsea had VAR to thank after a penalty decision in the closing seconds was overturned because the ball struck Colwill’s face and not his arm.
Liverpool 4 Fulham 3
This goal-fest at Anfield took Liverpool up to second, though they left it very late after twice squandering a lead and then falling behind. Trent Alexander-Arnold’s magnificent free kick went in via the bar and Bernd Leno’s back, but Harry Wilson’s deft finish at the near post gave Fulham parity. Alexis Mac Allister’s wonder strike from distance, his first for Liverpool, restored the lead, only for Kenny Tete to show poacher’s instincts from a corner. Bobby De Cordova-Reid looked to have set up a famous upset in the 80th minute after a fantastic team move, but long-range strikes from Wataru Endo, on as a substitute, and Alexander-Arnold nearly took the roof off the Kop in the closing stages.
West Ham 1 Crystal Palace 1
A very lukewarm performance from two sides that struggled to take a grip on the game for long periods of time. Mohammed Kudus, signed from Ajax in the summer, gave West Ham an early lead, but Odsonne Edouard’s equaliser early in the second half gave Crystal Palace a share of the points.
Manchester City 3 Tottenham Hotspur 3
A scintillating game of football at the Etihad that had everything, from goals to frayed tempers and last-second drama. Son Heung-min opened the scoring for Spurs and then put the ball past his own keeper to give City parity. Phil Foden then scored for City with a superb quickfire passing move before the break, and the home side had enough chances to be out of sight. Instead, Ange Postecoglou rang the changes at half-time, and an inspired Spurs equalised through Giovani Lo Celso’s sublime finish in the 69th minute. Jack Grealish, scoring for the first time in 27 games, looked to have earned City a precious three points, but Tottenham, who have an excellent recent record at the Etihad, would not be denied. Dejan Kulusevski rose above Nathan Ake to head in a left-wing cross – via the shoulder – in the 90th minute, and a late City breakaway was thwarted by the refereeing blowing for an earlier foul, much to Pep Guardiola’s consternation.