It was all as close as the croppings on Romelu Lukaku’s hair until late. By then Swansea were trailing 1-0 and were forced to throw men forward. It’s at that point when United went for the jugular. Perhaps this team is for real and week one was an indication, not aberration, for United. Where United were poor last year were in moments when they were down or conceding stupid goals. Credit to Mourinho, he acknowledged this in his post game interview saying that this team has yet to respond to adversity. After a few games like that I will judge where they could realistically finish. Too early.
Southampton should have easily dispatched of The Hammers after they went 2-0 up against a 10 man West Ham. Arnautovic is a man completely unchanged at his new club and it may end up affecting his career. In only his second game for West Ham he is sent off for a karate chop retaliation. I thought that West Ham would be much better this year than in years past and i still think they will be. They have a man in Hernandez who has made a career off of poaching and demonstrated those skills in this game. If not for a controversial penalty for the slightest of aerial duels West Ham would have completed the comeback.
In a shaky affair that Michael J Fox could relate to Liverpool somehow dispatched Crystal Palace at Anfield. It wasn’t without moments of real doubt however as Benteke missed an open net and Liverpool missed many late chances. They got their goal but pulling away proved difficult. I see this win as a positive though. Liverpool didn’t play well and this is exactly the type of game they have lost the past few years. If they can turn these games that they don’t play well into wins then they have a decent chance at top 4 again.
It was a game in which it all seemed to go wrong for Arsenal. They dominated a first half in which they had a decent shout for a penalty. Stoke then found their goal as they came into the game from their new signing Jesé. Later Lacazette found the back of the net but was found to be maybe 2 mm offside. A rainy night in Stoke was then capped off by a most unusual incident as Giroud missed an unmarked header. Arsenal Fan TV went off but for me I can see them turning it around next week against Liverpool.
Huddersfield capped off a game that had as much quality as a Championship match. In the only watchable moment of the game Mooy “the new Jonjo Shelvey” scored a long curler. There were 5 total shots in the first half and at one point i swear they were just hoofing the ball from end to end. I haven’t been to church in 14 years but I swear on Sunday morning I was half considering finding Christ rather than watch this crucification of my patience.
I wouldn’t want to play my home matches at Wembley. It’s an event for every team that comes to play you. It’s also a burden to pack that thing out each week. Chelsea certainly felt up for it. Marcus Alonso scored a brace in a game in which either side really could have won, each hitting the bar. Not sure how to feel about Chelsea yet this season and as for Tottenham I could see a hangover of finishing second two years in a row.
I think it says a lot that Everton are competing with City now. They have been completely blown away in the past. Did they get lucky with a bullshit yellow? Sure, Kyle Walker should not have been sent off. But City pushed and pushed and really got lucky with the deflection and Sterling goal. Klaasen’s late clearance was clutch and shows the quality the team has now. Rooney seems to have rediscovered his motivation for the game. If Everton can string some games together against teams higher than them they may surprise people.
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