• Thursday, April 25, 2024
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BusinessDay

EPL week 4 review

Darwin Nunez’s strike hands Liverpool slim win over Hammers

Liverpool takes Bournemouth to ‘9th heaven’

Liverpool dusted off their last week’s defeat to arch-rivals Manchester United with a superb response, crushing visiting Bournemouth 9-0. The Reds who were yet to record their first league win did it stylishly on Saturday with Roberto Firmino starting for the Reds, the Brazilian provided three assists and scored two.

The match witnessed its first goal in the third minute with Luiz Diaz opening the scoring with an assist from Firmino, the second goal came in the eighth minute from Harvey Elliot who received a fine pass from Firmino, and subsequent goals came in from Firmino in the 31st and 80th minutes, Alexander Arnold in the 28th minute, Van Dijk in the 45th , an own goal from Chris Mepham in 46th minute, summer signing Fabio Carvalho added to his name on the scoresheet in the 80th while Luis Diaz rounded up the route in the 85th minute.

Manchester City sees off stubborn Crystal Palace

Manchester City survived Crystal Palace’s scare on Saturday after they went down 2 goals in the first half, an own goal from John Stones in the fourth minute and a 21st-minute header from Joachim Andersen made things a bit shaky for the defending champions.

The second half began in a typical Manchester City fashion of possessive football mixed with impressive passes which paved the way in the 53rd minute when Benardo Silva reduced the goal deficit after receiving a pass from Rodri, the goal set Manchester City on a high spirit and levelled up in 62nd minute through their star striker Haaland, John Stones made amends for his first half error by assisting Haaland for his second goal in the 70th minute and in the 81st minute, the former Borussia Dortmund man rounded his hattrick with a superb finish after receiving a defence-splitting pass from Ikay Gundogan.

Read also: Sports in brief: Champions League qualifiers so far

Chelsea defeats Leicester City despite first-half red card

The Blues triumphed over visiting Foxes on Saturday in a well-contested match which saw Conor Gallagher receive a matching order. The match which began in a slow pace fashion saw the first half deprived of many actions and scoring chances from both teams.

Chelsea did most of the pressing without creating a tangible chance to test the opposition goalkeeper while Leicester sat deep down in their own half and absorbed most of the pressing while they relied on breakaways of pacy Jamie Vardy and Harvey Barnes which paved way for the Foxes when Conor Gallagher picked a second yellow card for a foul on Barnes while trying to halt a counter-attack.

The second half came to life in the 47th minute when Raheem Sterling broke the deadlock with his strike, the former Manchester City man added his second in the 63rd minute, Leicester pulled one back through Harvey Barnes in the 66th minute. The Foxes sit at the bottom of the table with just one point.

Brentford, Everton shares point at Gtech Community Stadium

Brentford conjured late magic to secure a point and deny Frank Lampard and his men their first league victory on Saturday afternoon. Everton took the lead in the first half with Anthony Gordon opening the score sheet in the 24th minute after the youngster made do of a pass from Conor Coady.

The second half resumed with Brentford’s impressive performance. They got their reward in the 84th minute when Vitaly Janelt converted a Lewis-Potter assist to secure a point for the home team, dashing Everton’s hope of what would have been a vital three away-points.

Resurgents Red Devils defeat The Saints

Manchester United continued their resurgent journey with an away win at Saint Mary’s Stadium on Saturday with a lone goal from Bruno Fernandes.

The match began in a balanced fashion with both teams failing to open the scoring in the first half but was not devoid of scoring chances.

The only goal came in the 52nd minute when a beautiful low cross from Diogo Dalot was volleyed in by an unmarked Bruno Fernandes. The win sees Manchester United climb 8th on table while Southampton sits 13th with four points.

Arsenal makes it four out of four after surviving Fulham scare

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal had to come from behind against an aggressive Fulham in Saturday’s London derby on Saturday evening.

The match began in a tense fashion which saw the aggressive approach from both teams and a friction scene in the 44th minute when Gabriel Jesus and Joao Palinha both received yellow cards for going at each other. The second half came to life in the 56th minute when Arsenal were from an Aleksander Mitrovic solo strike but responded with a goal from captain Odegaard and Arsenal snatched a winner in 85th through Gabriel Magalhaes after receiving a pass from William Saliba. The win keeps Arsenal’s perfect record of the season while they sit on top of the table with 12 points out of the available 12.

Harry Kane stirs Tottenham through Nottingham Forest

Tottenham came home with a vital three away-point from The City Ground on Sunday evening after doubles from star striker Harry Kane.

The match saw the away side dominate the first half from kick-off with the first goal coming in the 6th minute when Harry Kane buried in Dejan Kulusevski’s pass.

The second half resumed in a different fashion with Nottingham pressure but could not make do of it when VAR awarded a penalty to Tottenham after Steve Cook committed a handball in his box, Harry Kane stepped up but failed to convert after Henderson denied him with a fine save.

Harry Kane made up for his penalty miss when he turned in Richarlison’s cross in the 81st minute. Tottenham moves up to 3rd on the table with 10 points while Nottingham moves down the table to 14th with four points.

West Ham Compounds to Aston Villa woes

Aston Villa lost to West Ham on Sunday afternoon after both teams sought to bounce back from the loss of their last match.

Aston Villa welcomed West Ham in search of a second win of the season while West Ham was in search of their first point and win of the season which they achieved in the 74th minute when Pablo Fornals scored from a pass from Declan Rice pass.