Premier League entertained us once again with new faces on the bench making their impact and the resurrecting heroes marking their big return.
Positive sensations at the Goodison Park
The mid-week loss to Liverpool meant the final end for Marco Silva as the Everton manager. The Toffees had no choice but to sack the underwhelming Portuguese. Duncan Ferguson took over as the caretaker manager with the team preparing for one of the toughest matchups of the season against Chelsea.
However, once the match started on Saturday, it wasn’t the same team as before. Ferguson had his men flying all over the pitch. The proof of that is the number of tackles – Everton made 37 tackles, most they had in a decade and the biggest figure in the Premier League this season. The atmosphere erupted early on at the Goodison when Richarlison scored his third goal in a row – Chelsea were the latest victim after Tottenham and Liverpool. Dominic Calvert-Lewin doubled the lead for Everton before Mateo Kovacic’s strike made it 2-1.
However, Calvert-Lewin circled a great night for the Toffees, as he scored the third goal for the home side, thus sealing a big win for his team. The scenes of Ferguson celebrating with a ball-boy, the crowd absolutely living the match, and the players playing with their heart remain for history, no matter what comes next for the Toffees.
Nigel Pearson was another new managerial appointment at Watford, and it looks like he’s making strides. After by his own admission, motivating the team, Watford managed to get a point at home against the dangerous Crystal Palace.
Jose Mourinho continued his revenge tour, and this time Burnley fell victim to a 5-0 Spurs win where Son Heung-Min scored a contender for a goal of the season, slicing through the whole Burnley’s defence – not just any defence – Sean Dyche’s defence.
Lucas Moura, Mousa Sissoko, and Harry Kane’s brace rounded up the show for Tottenham. Liverpool kept doing their thing as the Reds routinely beat Bournemouth away with a great performance from Naby Keita, who could be an enormous boost to an already unstoppable Liverpool side.
Manchester is red
Manchester derby at the Etihad brought us a ton of passion right from the get-go. Solskjaer opted for a racing front three of Martial, James, and Rashford, hoping to catch City off guard. And catch them they did as the Red Devils completely outplayed the Citizens in the first half, scoring two goals in the process. The backline held its own against City, and it took Nicolas Otamendi’s strike in the 85th for the home side to score a solitary goal as the match ended 2-1 for United. The city, at least for a day, was red.
Super Sunday wasn’t as super as we’re used to. However, it was very important for Sheffield United, who bounced back off of Newcastle defeat in mid-week with a 2-1 win against Norwich as The Canaries continue their awful form this season.
Steve Bruce’s Newcastle is on a roll. The Magpies took their second victory in a row, this time against Southampton. It’s also interesting that Bruce’s side had the ball almost 47% of the time, and compared to their recent performances, it might as well be called tiki-taka against Southampton who remained in the relegation zone after the defeat.
Leicester railed their way through the inferior Aston Villa, as the Villans were a much weaker side in a 4-1 defeat, with the only goal for them coming from Jack Grealish’s moment of inspiration. Vardy’s party lives on, as the striker now has 16 league goals, five more than the second-best league scorer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Brighton and Wolverhampton ended the Sunday night as they split the bill. Most of the events happened in the first half, where Maupay and Propper scored for the Seagulls, while Diego Jota scored a brace for the Wolves, and the final scoreline showed 2-2. The second half had some nice up-and-down pitch action, but none of the teams were able to convert.
Arsenal rebirth featuring Pepe
The Monday night fixture closer brought Arsenal’s resurrection. The first half was awful for the Gunners to say the least, especially after Ogbonna scored for West Ham who took the lead. However, a half-time talk did wonders, as it looked like an entirely different team ran onto the pitch in the second half. First the ultra-talented Brazilian, Gabriel Martinelli, scored for the lead after Kolasinac’s assist.
And then, Nicolas Pepe took matters into his own hands. In the span of just three minutes, he first scored a stunning curler, and then assisted Aubameyang for Arsenal’s 3-1 lead. This was also the final result, and now Manuel Pellegrini should be seriously worried about his departure from the Hammers.
The new faces on the bench did their jobs this week. Freddie Ljungberg, Nigel Pearson, Duncan Ferguson, and Jose Mourinho all noted terrific wins for their teams. Soslkjaer isn’t doing too shabby either, as Manchester United beat Tottenham and Manchester City in the span of just three days. Leicester continue to dream as they aren’t giving up on the title race just yet, unlike Manchester City, who look as good as finished for this season.
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