Arsenal
With Alexis Sanchez absent from
the starting line-up for the season opener against West Ham, Arsenal seemed to
struggle to find their feet despite a promising pre-season. Fans would have
been filled with hope after their Community Shield victory against Chelsea, but
may have been left unsure after the opening game as the Gunners disappointed in
a 2-0 opening day loss. Olivier Giroud struggled throughout the game and Wenger
could well go back into the transfer market to look for a new striker to lead
the attack. Talk of Karim Benzema arriving has simmered down to mere whispers
which may upset the Arsenal faithful. Petr Cech’s competitive debut was less
than convincing, however I’m sure it was simply a blip in form and he will
prove his worth in the upcoming fixtures. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was possibly
the Gunners’ only bright spark during the game, however Sanchez’s return
following his rest after the Copa America saw him return to the bench for the
match against Crystal Palace.
Giroud’s scissor kick put Arsenal
ahead at Selhurst Park on Sunday and a Damien Delaney own goal secured the
victory in the second half. The Crystal Palace attack tormented Arsenal’s
defence throughout, however after a vast improvement on the previous match the
Gunners clung on to a 2-1 victory. Mesut Özil stood out massively during the
game, with a 97.9% pass completion rate, inclusive of the assist to Giroud’s
spectacular opener.
Looking forward, I’d expect to
see Arsenal bounce back to form, however with a tough fixture against a buoyant
Liverpool side up next they’ll need to do this swiftly. With heaped expectation
on them this season a win would be the only acceptable outcome at the Emirates
on Monday.
Aston Villa
Rudy Gestede looks to be a
fantastic signing for Aston Villa, his strength in the air highlighted as he
grabbed Villa’s winning goal in their season opener against Premier League new
boys Bournemouth. The Cherries’ attacking mentality has been expected to test
defences this season and the Villa defence, now lead by ex-Manchester City
defender Micah Richards, managed to withstand all that was thrown at them. The
1-0 away victory will please manager Tim Sherwood, who is looking for an
improvement this season despite the losses of former captain Fabian Delph to
Manchester City and star striker Christian Benteke to Liverpool. With over half
of their starting line-up making their Villa debuts it was important for the
team to gel quickly and they appear to have done just that, securing an
important 3 points.
In their first game of the new
season back at home however, Villa faced the tough task of the transfer
window’s heavy spenders Manchester United. Having fought valiantly, Villa were
unlucky to lose the game to a deflected Adnan Januzaj goal in the first half.
Questions seem to have risen over Villa’s attacking qualities as they seek to
find a way to move forward from Benteke’s departure. Agbonlahor seems to be
struggling to get in amongst the goals again and Gestede had a limited impact
on the game with his appearance from the bench. Villa rarely threatened the
United goal, so Sherwood may want to put a bid in for a striker before the end
of August – QPR’s Charlie Austin has a proven record in the Premier League so
there may be a late swoop for him.
Villa need to find a solution to
their attacking problem if they are to improve on last season’s performance –
if not they may find themselves in a relegation scrap once more. With matches
against Crystal Palace, Sunderland and Leicester on the horizon, Sherwood will
be looking for far more convincing performances than those seen so far.
Bournemouth
Bournemouth started their opening
game as many may have predicted with a fast-flowing, attacking brand of football.
They threatened the Aston Villa goal on various occasions in the early stages
of the match and more clinical finishing could have seen a far different
result. Eddie Howe was full of praise for the performance of his side despite
the 1-0 loss at the small Vitality Stadium. Howe made some smart signings over
the summer, perhaps most notably the permanent signing of goalkeeper Artur Boruc,
who played a huge part in Bournemouth’s promotion to the Premier League
following a particularly successful loan spell last year. Another stand-out
signing would be that of Max Gradel, the Ivorian winger looking to impress upon
his return to England after 4 seasons in France with Saint-Etienne. He had
limited time to make an impact, used as a substitute in the Villa match,
however expect to see him play a bigger role in other fixtures.
The Cherries were extremely
unlucky against Liverpool at Anfield on Monday evening as they fell to a second
consecutive 1-0 loss. The controversy began as Tommy Elfwick was judged to have
been climbing on Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren as he put a header away early
on in the match. They later fell victim to a second contentious decision as
Benteke’s goal stood despite Coutinho’s clear attempt to play the ball from an
offside position. Under the updated offside rules it is clear that the goal
should not have stood, Eddie Howe’s disappointment thus being very
understandable. In light of these decisions, Bournemouth will feel very hard
done by, but will take many positives from the performance. They will need to
find a way to turn these performances into results as soon as possible though!
The attacking mentality
Bournemouth possess lends itself to the Premier League so hopefully they won’t
be struggling for too much longer. Results will need to start turning in their
favour soon though otherwise their Premier League life may be short-lived.
Chelsea
Reigning champions Chelsea faced
a Swansea side who have hit the ground running this season and battled through
for a 2-2 draw. Last year’s “best defence in the league” struggled massively
throughout this match, with weaknesses exposed in right-back Branislav Ivanovic
and Captain John Terry. Having lead twice, Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho will
be disappointed his side let the 3 points get away from them. He’ll be left
further frustrated by Thibaut Courtois’ sending off as he brought down Bafetimbi
Gomis, giving away the penalty which allowed Swansea to score their second
equaliser of the game. Despite their appeal, the Belgian’s ban stood as the FA
saw no reason to overrule the red card. Mourinho managed to shift the blame for
the defeat onto his medical staff who ran onto the pitch as Eden Hazard went
down late in the game, reducing Chelsea to 9 players for a period of time.
Overall it was a strong Swansea performance and leaky Chelsea defence that
brought about the draw and the Blues were lucky to get away with a point.
Next up came the task of who many
consider to be Chelsea’s biggest challengers for the title this season, Manuel
Pellegrini’s Manchester City side. Once more Chelsea’s defence struggled
throughout the game, and with Captain John Terry being removed from the field
of play at half time, it’s no wonder why Chelsea are further pursuing Everton’s
John Stones as the look to strengthen their defence for the future. If not for
Chelsea’s summer signing Asmir Begovic coming in to replace Thibaut Courtois in
light of his suspension, the London club could have gone into the break 4 or 5
down – Begovic limited it to only 1-0. The Manchester City attack continued to
torment Chelsea’s back line in the second half, taking the game to a 3-0 full
time result.
Chelsea will need to recapture
the form and confidence they played with last season quickly or they may be
letting other title contenders – Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United
– to get away too early in the season. Star player Eden Hazard will need to
find form as soon as possible and take control of games as he was last season
to secure more points otherwise they may struggle to compete with the top
teams.
Crystal Palace
Eagles boss Alan Pardew will be
happy with the way his side have started this season, with an opening day 3-1
away victory against Norwich City. The Canaries threatened the Palace goal on
various occasions, however as a result of strong defending a little bit of luck
Palace withstood what was thrown at them. Pardew’s astute acquisition of Yohan
Cabaye from Paris Saint Germain is considered by many to be the best Premier
League signing of this transfer window and the manager will be pleased to see
his star man on the scoresheet as he secured the victory with a late goal.
Goals from Wilfried Zaha and Damien Delaney will provide Palace fans with a lot
of hope or the coming few fixtures.
Despite a great performance in
front of a sell-out Selhurst Park, Palace succumbed to a 2-1 defeat against a
strengthened Arsenal side. The Eagles pounded on the Arsenal door throughout
the game and perhaps deserved more than they left the game with. The result
will feel even worse as Damien Delaney sliced and Alexis Sanchez header into
his own net. There is plenty for Palace fans to rave about, including Joel
Ward’s driven shot which drew them level 28 minutes into the match. A good
performance all round, it will be important for Palace to hold onto winger
Yannick Bolasie, one of Arsenal’s tormentors on Sunday, as rumours of interest
from Spurs gather pace.
Since their return to the Premier
League, Crystal Palace have made a big impact on the league and they definitely
have the potential to improve on the 10th place finish last season
if they can continue to reproduce the performances they have begun this season
with. The Eagles could be the surprise package this season.
Everton
In their season opener at
Goodison Park, Everton took a while to feel their way into the game against a
resolute Watford side. Striker Romelu Lukaku only had 14 touches of the ball in
the first half and it took until 76 minutes into the game for Ross Barkley to
break to seal for Everton, equalising after Miguel Layun’s opener after 13
minutes. Late goals from Watford’s Odion Ighalo and Everton’s Arouna Kone ended
the game at 2-2, probably a fair result at the end of a good contest between
the two sides. Roberto Martinez will be looking for an improvement however
after disappointing campaign last season as they finished 11th. A
lot of pressure will be resting on 21-year-old Ross Barkley’s shoulders as he
looks to translate expectation into reality, so he will be happy to have opened
his account against the Hornets.
Everton faced a tough away
fixture against last season’s surprise package, Southampton, in their second
game of the season, but impressed greatly throughout with exciting football.
They walked away 3-0 winners, which will please the Toffee fans who made the
long trip down south to get behind their team. A first half Lukaku brace set
Everton underway and the victory was secured late on as Barkley grabbed his
second of the season. Martinez’s side executed their fast counter-attack style
of play as they broke away from a Southampton corner with Lukaku dispatching an
Arouna Kone cross after 22 minutes. Tim Howard had a strong game between the
sticks, fending off any Southampton threat.
As they seek to improve on last
season’s uncharacteristic performance, Everton look to be well underway in this
campaign. Barkley has impressed early on and will need to continue to do so
moving forward. It will be important for the Toffees to keep hold of England
centre-back John Stones as Chelsea send further offers their way.
Leicester City
Having survived against the odds
last season, Leicester will be looking to get a fast start to this campaign,
doing just that in a 4-2 opening day victory against Sunderland. New manager
Claudio Ranieri seems to have injected some new found belief into the Foxes
with Algerian Riyad Mahrez impressing, scoring a brace in the first half of the
game. An early head from striker Jamie Vardy, alongside the Mahrez goals, saw
Leicester enter the break with a convincing 3-0 lead. Sunderland worked hard in
the second half trying to drag the game back in their favour, however Marc
Albrighton’s strike after 66 minutes put the game out of reach and the Foxes
took their first 3 points of the season.
Leicester faced a West Ham side,
who were buoyant following an opening day victory against title contenders
Arsenal, in their second match and could have easily come unstuck. The Foxes
continued to impress with yet another fast start. Summer signing Shinji Okazaki
opened the scoring and Mahrez added to Leicester’s lead, putting them 2-0 up at
the break. West Ham came out fighting, but a Dimitri Payet goal proved to be a
mere consolation as Leicester left Upton Park victorious. Another good
performance from the Foxes, which will please Ranieri as they look to welcome
Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.
It will be a tough task for
Leicester to continue this form, however they will be given yet another lift
following Switzerland midfielder Gokhan Inler’s signing from Napoli. He could
prove to be the ideal replacement following Esteban Cambiasso’s departure. The
Foxes will need to work hard to make sure they can stay away from the
relegation scrap later in the season.
Liverpool
Having spent heavily in the
transfer window, Brendan Rogers will have been looking for his Liverpool side
to gel quickly this campaign. Stoke City away will not have been the fixture
Reds fans wanted to start with after an embarrassing 6-1 defeat in Gerrard’s
departing match at the end of last season, despite Rogers’ claims. Christian
Benteke made his Liverpool debut as they seek to find an answer to their
attacking problem following Luis Suarez’s exit in 2014. However it was Philippe
Coutinho who secured the 1-0 victory as his thunderbolt on 86 minutes rifled
into the back of Jack Butland’s net. With so many debuts across the Liverpool
team, they will be happy to have left the Brittania Stadium with 3 points.
Against Bournemouth in their
match on Monday night, Liverpool appeared to have the rub of the green as
refereeing decisions fell in their favour, bringing about a 1-0 victory.
Conceding early on, the Reds were lucky to have seen Tommy Elfwick’s header
disallowed, and perhaps even more fortunate that the linesman saw nothing wrong
with Philippe Coutinho’s clear lunge towards the ball, despite being in a clear
offside position, as the cross came in for Benteke’s goal. A less than
convincing performance against the Premier League new boys, Liverpool were
lucky to get away with 1 point, let alone 3. Nonetheless, another clean sheet
for Simon Mignolet is a massive positive to take away from the match.
Liverpool will need to be far
more decisive when attacking, and the team will need a little more time to
fully cooperate in order to threaten for a Champions League place this season.
Rogers will need to hope his signings buy into his ethos quickly, otherwise the
Reds will be punished for performances like those seen so far when playing
higher quality opposition.
Manchester City
As Raheem Sterling made his debut
following a £49million move to Manchester City, the Sky Blues romped home to a
3-0 win against West Brom at the Hawthorns. Yaya Toure inspired the City side
throughout, grabbing the second goal of the game, sandwiched between talisman
David Silva’s opener and Captain Vincent Kompany’s second half header. Manuel Pellegrini’s
men impressed throughout the game and looked at ease as they tore apart the
Baggies. After a particularly effective first half, man of the match Toure may
have worried some City fans as he left the field of play with a groin injury in
the second half. Star striker Sergio Aguero made an appearance from the bench
late on but had little impact following his return from the Copa America.
City made one change to their
starting XI as Sergio Aguero returned against Chelsea on Sunday. He was very
effective as the Sky Blues made a blistering start to the match with a chance
within 20 seconds. Asmir Begovic kept City, and more specifically Aguero, out
for 31 minutes, but with little protection in front of him, Aguero broke the
deadlock as he tinkered his way through Chelsea’s defence and buried his shot
into the bottom corner. Fernandinho may have been lucky to stay on the pitch
after a collision in the air with Diego Costa, however nonetheless City went on
to score two more through Kompany and Fernandinho himself to secure a second
consecutive 3-0 victory. A well contested game ended with probably the right
result as Chelsea’s defence was less than convincing in the match.
Manchester City were written off
by a few over the Summer, perhaps unfairly, as the attention was drawn to the
competition between Chelsea and Arsenal, however they have proved their worth
in the title race, clearly shown against current holders Chelsea. If they can
continue with performances like this, they’ll be difficult to stop.
Manchester United
After
Louis van Gaal’s clear out over the summer it was important for the Red Devils
to get off to a quick start this campaign. It wasn’t quite that easy though as
they stumbled through their opening fixture against Tottenham Hotspur. A first
half Kyle Walker own goal was all United fans could shout about after the game
with a less than convincing performance in their 1-0 victory. With an abundance
of new signings it may take a short while for the squad to pull together fully,
but despite a poor performance, van Gaal will be pleased to escape with 3
points. New signing Sergio Romero started in goal amidst uncertainty over last
year’s star man David de Gea’s future, and was instrumental in keeping Spurs
out all game, including a late Christian Eriksen effort.
Up
next for United was an away fixture against an Aston Villa side playing with
confidence on the back of an opening game victory. Louis van Gaal’s squad
selection somewhat unexpectedly saw Belgian youngster Adnan Januzaj appear on
the flank for the Red Devils despite rumours that he may leave Old Trafford on
loan for the season. As it happened, Januzaj scored the only goal of the game
as a delightful Juan Mata assist found him on the edge of the six yard box. His
deflected shot meant United kept up their 100% record for the season with
another 1-0 victory. Captain and star striker Wayne Rooney appeared a little
isolated up front throughout, so van Gaal may wish to look for another
attacking option, having sent Javier Hernandez out on loan last campaign.
Rooney is a pivotal figure for
Manchester United this season – if he can rediscover his top form, they could
mount a title charge otherwise they may have to settle for third or fourth once
more, but should remain mindful of Liverpool breathing down their necks.
Memphis needs to prove his talent can translate to one of Europe’s biggest
leagues to aid United’s performance this season.
Newcastle United
In manager Steve McClaren’s
return to the Premier League, Newcastle faced a tough opening day fixture
against last year’s surprise package, Southampton. The match was hard fought,
with the Magpies having plenty to shout about as they ploughed on through to a
2-2 draw at St James’ Park. One particular moment will stand out from the game
as summer signing Georginio Wijnaldum buried his header to take the game to
2-1. An astute acquisition from McClaren, one which has slipped a little under
the radar. The Newcastle boss may be disappointed to see his side fail to hold
on to the win, however has many positives to take from the match.
A buoyant Swansea side lay in
wait for the Magpies in their subsequent fixture at the Liberty Stadium. An
early Bafetimbi Gomis goal set the tone for the game, with the Swans emerging
2-0 victors. Newcastle were perhaps lucky to hold on to this score-line following
Daryl Janmaat’s first half dismissal after his lunge on Jefferson Montero saw
him receive a second yellow card. Swansea dominated throughout in all aspects
of the game, with a predictable outcome.
Expect to see a mild improvement
on last season’s performance however McClaren will be looking to players such
as Papiss Cisse to rediscover form in order to have any chance of finishing in
the top half this season.
Norwich City
The 2015/16 season began with a
match that will leave Canary fans with a bitter taste lingering in their
mouths. A few contentious decisions saw the game run away from them in a 3-1
home defeat to Crystal Palace. Having gone 2-0 down, Norwich responded well as
substitute Nathan Redmond pulled one back after 69 minutes. Striker Cameron
Jerome then scored what would probably be the greatest goal of his career,
expertly hooking the ball over his head, only for it to be taken away for a
“high boot”. Although the foot was high, it seemed to have no impact on
surrounding players, suggesting the goal should have stood. A potential turning
point in the game got away from the Canaries and they went on to concede
another, beginning their Premier League return with a defeat.
Norwich visited Sunderland in
their second game of the season as they looked to bounce back. They did so in
style, running away victorious in a 3-1 win which included goals from Captain
Russell Martin, defender Steven Whittaker and a second for the season from
England youngster Nathan Redmond. Redmond may play a key role in Norwich are to
survive this season. The Canaries attacking well throughout the game, their
fluid counter-attacking football tormenting Dick Advocaat’s Sunderland side all
afternoon. Manager Alex Neil will be pleased as his solid defence repelled the
Black Cats throughout, as they conceded a mere two shots on target.
If Norwich can continue to put
together performances like those seen thus far, they could be a surprise
package for the season. Having come up through the play-offs, the Canaries may
have been many punters’ favourites to go down but they have so far proved their
critics wrong.
Southampton
England striker Jay Rodriguez
made his return in a 2-2 away draw against Newcastle, as Southampton sought to
build on the good foundations they laid down in last season’s impressive 7th
place finish. An opening goal from striker Graziano Pelle after 24 minutes will
have filled Saints fans with hope, but it was short lived as goals from Papiss
Cisse and Georginio Wijnaldum gave the Magpies a lead early in the second half.
Rodriguez’s replacement, Shane Long, grabbed a late equaliser for Southampton
after 79 minutes which will give the travelling fans something to cling onto.
Southampton’s defence leaked a
further three goals as they disappointed the St Mary’s crowd in their second
game of the season, trundling to a 3-0 home loss to Everton. Saints may want to
rethink their tactics in a few areas, having conceded their first goal in a counter-attack
after throwing too many men forward for a corner. Despite monopolising
possession in the first half, they went into the break 2-0 down. The home side
created very few chances in the game with Saido Mane’s first half strike being
the closest they came in what was simply a lacklustre Saints performance.
Without Morgan Schneiderlin
patrolling the area in front of the back four, Southampton’s defence has been
left exposed, which has been taken advantage of in their opening two games this
season. Koeman may want to dip back into the transfer market for a defensive
midfielder to add a little protection, otherwise Saints may experience a
relatively underwhelming season.
Stoke City
Stoke fans had plenty to be
optimistic about this season as Mark Hughes proved his side could compete with
some of the top sides for the big names, signing Ibrahim Afellay from Barcelona
– the winger starting the opening game against Liverpool. A late moment of
brilliance from Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho took the draw away from the
Potters in a well contested match at the Britannia Stadium. Hughes will look
for his side to be more clinical moving forward, with only one shot on target
in the match. Despite the loss, Stoke proved they have what it takes to go toe
to toe with the big boys this season and could shock a few.
In an astonishing turn of events,
many fans’ dreams of Xherdan Shaqiri being signed by Stoke were realised in the
week building up to their second game off the season against Tottenham Hotspur.
The new signing however was carrying a ban from his time at Inter Milan,
forcing the Switzerland international to watch from the stand. In what really
was a game of two halves, the Potters responded well having entered the break
2-0 down, with second half goals in the shape of a Marco Arnautovic penalty and
a flicked header from Mame Biram Diouf. Stoke fans will have been pleased as
their side escaped with a point following a solid second half comeback.
Xherdan Shaqiri’s signing may
bring a new confidence in Stoke City’s play this season, which could see them
steal a few points as the season moves forward. A tricky one to call, but
definitely a team to keep an eye on this campaign.
Sunderland
Questions rose about the solidity
of Sunderland’s defence as they fell short in a 4-2 defeat away to Leicester
City in their opening fixture of this Premier League season. Dick Advocaat’s
men had little to shout about at half time, conceding three goals in the
opening 30 minutes of the game. New signing Younes Kaboul seems to have
struggled to settle in his new role leading the Black Cats back line, as John
O’Shea’s omission from the starting line-up may have surprised some after a
solid 2014/15 campaign. Advocaat will have been happier at full-time than
half-time, despite the loss, following his side’s attempt to drag themselves
back into the game with goals through strikers Jermain Defoe and Steven
Fletcher.
Sunderland fans will have wanted
to see a better performance as they welcomed promoted side Norwich to the
Stadium of Light in their second game of the season. Nonetheless they once
again disappointed with a second consecutive loss of the season, this time 3-1.
Another lacklustre performance will leave little hope for the home support and
pressure will be heaped on manager Advocaat for the next few games. The Black
Cats were lucky to escape with a goal in the defeat, with Duncan Watmore’s
debut consolation goal after 88 minutes all the Sunderland fans had to be
positive about after the game.
Perhaps the most disappointing
starts for any team in the Premier League, Advocaat’s side could well see
themselves propping up the rest of the league for a while, an in form Swansea
side their next opponents. If results do not turn their way, the first Premier
League sacking of the season could be on the cards.
Swansea City
A strong performance from Garry
Monk’s Swansea City side saw them come from behind twice in their opening
fixture against reigning champions, Chelsea. A resolute attitude throughout the
team meant Swansea’s perseverance and good decision making in attack brought
them through the game, to leave Stamford Bridge with a point. A composed finish
from new boy Andre Ayew brought Swansea level after 29 minutes, however the joy
was short lived as a Fernandez own goal brought Chelsea level just 1 minute
later. In the second half, Swansea continued to threaten Chelsea’s goal and
striker Bafetimbi Gomis won a penalty early on as Chelsea’s goalkeeper Thibaut
Courtois saw red. Gomis dispatched the penalty to draw them level once more.
Swansea couldn’t take advantage of the situation, but will be pleased to leave
with a point.
Swansea welcomed Newcastle to the
Liberty Stadium for their second game of the season and will have been
confident after their performance at Stamford Bridge a week prior. This
confidence had an immediate impact as striker Gomis rounded Newcastle
goalkeeper Tim Krul to score after 90 minutes. Winger Jefferson Montero ran
riot down Swansea’s left flank and proved too much to deal with for Magpies
full-back Daryl Janmaat, his dismissal on 41 minutes for persistently impeding
Montero. The Ecuadorian continued to impress, providing the assist to Ayew’s
goal, Swansea’s second of the game. Further efforts from Montero and Gylfi
Sigurdsson could have increased the Swans’ lead further but for the Newcastle
upright.
With two good performances to
start the campaign this season, Swansea will hope to continue progressing and
have a good chance of challenging for the Europa League spots. If they can
continue to upset the league’s big boys, they could be a very influential team
this season.
Tottenham Hotspur
Manager Mauricio Pochettino will
have been hopeful that star man Harry Kane could reproduce his form from last
season for Tottenham when his team visited a renovated Manchester United side
at Old Trafford in the opening Premier League fixture for the season. Chances
came at a premium for the striker and the first real chance of the game fell to
midfielder Christian Eriksen – his dinked effort beat United goalkeeper Sergio
Romero, but fell onto the roof of the Argentinian’s net. Shortly after, Red
Devils’ striker Wayne Rooney found the ball caught under his feet in the Spurs
area, only for Kyle Walker’s last ditch tackle to trickle into his own net. The
game remained at 1-0, with the few chances Spurs had kept out by Romero.
Tottenham returned to White Hart
Lane to face Mark Hughes’ Stoke City. With two first half goals – the first
through defender Eric Dier and then midfielder Nacer Chadli – Spurs will have
gone into the break brimming with confidence for the game. A mistake from
Tottenham new boy Toby Alderweireld handed Stoke a penalty on 78 minutes,
fiercely dispatched by Marco Arnautovic, igniting a late comeback. Goalkeeper
Hugo Lloris saw a second goal ripple his net only five minutes later as Spurs
defender Jan Vertonghen lost track of Mame Biram Diouf’s run as he flicked on a
Stephen Ireland cross. Pochettino will be furious with his side as they allowed
a 2 goal lead to slip away from them so late in the game.
Spurs will need to focus far
better in future games in order to hold onto leads such as that held in the
Stoke match. Pochettino may want to sign a new striker before the end of the
transfer window, with Roberto Soldado’s recent departure leaving him with only
Harry Kane as a viable striking option. West Brom’s Saido Berahino seems to be
the most likely candidate.
Watford
Watford will have wanted to start
the season well in order to have a chance of staying up following their
promotion to the Premier League on the back of an impressive performance in the
Championship last campaign. They did just that, Miguel Layun’s half-volley
opening their account after 13 minutes in what could have been a tricky away
fixture against Everton. The toffees drew level late in the second half, Ross
Barkley’s strike beating Watford goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes after 78 minutes.
Watford responded well, as Odion Ighalo put the Hornets ahead once more, only
for his goal to be cancelled out by Arouna Kone’s composed finish late on in
the game. The travelling fans will be happy with their side’s performance, a
2-2 draw probably the right result.
Upon their return to Vicarage
Road, Watford contested their second consecutive draw of the season, the match
against West Bromwich Albion ending 0-0. Odion Ighalo had the best chance of
the game, heading wide in the second half. Having not contested a goalless draw
in the Championship last year, this will be an unusual scenario for the home
fans, however there were plenty of positives to take from the game. Watford
dominated throughout, controlling the game all over the pitch – 64% possession
and 16 attempts telling the tale of the game. Quique Sanchez Flores may want
his team to be a little more patient in attack, shots being taken perhaps too
often. He will however be pleased to see an almost telepathic connection
between his striking pair, Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo. The Hornets may have
deserved more from the game, but look to be settling well for the season.
Watford have started their
campaign well, two accomplished performances providing the Hornets with plenty
of promise moving forward. They may, however, need to adapt to Premier League a
little quicker if they are to translate these performances into wins.
West Bromwich Albion
Tony Pulis’ West Brom side will
have been hoping to start the season with an upset against a Manchester City
side improved by their £49million signing of Raheem Sterling. The atmosphere at
the Hawthorns was dampened after 9 minutes, as Yaya Toure’s shot ricocheted in
off David Silva’s legs, giving the Sky Blues an early lead. Toure got on the
scoresheet later on in the game and Kompany rounded off the performance with a
third, his second half header completing their domination of an underwhelming
Albion side. A 3-0 loss would not have been how the Baggies wished to start
their campaign, but it would have taken something special against a Man City
side playing with this much quality.
Their next fixture saw West Brom
travel to Vicarage Road for a more evenly matched fixture against a newly
promoted Watford side. The Baggies were organised well at the back limiting
Watford to predominantly long range chances. With no shots on target in the
game, Pulis will have a lot to work on with his side in training over the next
few weeks. Rumours of Saido Berahino’s departure to Spurs may lead to Pulis
dipping back into the transfer market to find a replacement striker. Charlie
Austin would be a viable option, but with the QPR striker being linked with the
majority of Premier League clubs, Albion will face strong competition. The game
against Watford ended in a 0-0 draw, the best West Brom could have hoped for
given the performance.
The Baggies will need to find a
way to pose more of an attacking threat in order to get off the mark for this
campaign. There is talk of Tottenham defender Fazio completing a move to the
Hawthorns, which will help to solidify West Brom’s backline, however in order
to avoid a relegation scrap they will need to bolster their attacking options
as well.
West Ham United
West Ham could not have started
their season in a better way as they stormed through to a 2-0 away victory against
a favoured Arsenal side in their opening fixture of the season. Goals from
Cheikhou Kouyate and Mauro Zarate allowed the Hammers to leave the Emirates
with 3 points in their first Premier League game under new manager Slaven
Bilic. Summer signing Dimitri Payet impressed massively, providing the assist
for Kouyate’s opener and could surprise a few this season. Youngster Reece
Oxford performed awesomely, the 16-year-old protecting the Hammers defence
immensely well, completing the game with a 95% passing accuracy – the highest
of any player on the pitch. Bilic will be hoping the youngster continues to
play with such authority in their coming fixtures.
Leicester City came as the second
challenge of the season for West Ham. Each side came into the fixture on the
back of impressive victories in their opening games. The match at Upton Park
saw the teams go toe to toe in a thrilling encounter, West Ham falling short
with a 2-1 home loss. Dimitri Payet impressed once more, his goal giving the
Hammers hope in the second half, after going into the break 2-0 down. West Ham
were reduced to ten men late on, as goalkeeper Adrian saw red having gone up
for a corner in stoppage time. Having enjoyed 70% of the possession, the home
side will have been regretful of wasting their opportunities and not creating
more for their strike force to feed on.
West Ham will have been pleased
with their start to this campaign and have laid down strong foundations to
build upon for the rest of the season. Reece Oxford will have to take a lot of
responsibility in the midfield for the Hammers and it will be interesting to
see how he copes. Expect to see them consolidate on their performance last
season, a respectable 12th place.
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