Matchday three was played over the last weekend, and there were a lot of goals as action continued in the new Premier League season.
Manchester United kicked off the weekend’s action with a dramatic 3-2 win over Brighton while Liverpool rounded matchday three with an impressive win over Arsenal.
Freshsports highlight some of the talking points from the latest round of games.
Reality Check For Chelsea: Before the season started, Chelsea were tipped as one of the teams that could challenge the top two due to the signings they made.
However, three matches in, it’s clear that Frank Lampard’s men are still a long way off from challenging the top two, and also face a battle to make the top four.
Following their loss to Liverpool, Chelsea took on West Brom at the Hawthorns, and it was a match they were expected to win.
However, West Brom flipped the script as they took a three-goal lead in the first half. Although Chelsea were able to mount a comeback in the second half, the result gave them a reality check.
Defensive Problems Still Remain For City: Former Champions, Manchester City, were embarrassed by Leicester in their first home game of the season. The Citizens suffered a 5-2 loss to the Foxes despite scoring first.
While it was a City side lacking some regulars, it was still a shock result for Pep Guardiola’s men. City’s defensive flaws, which has been a major issue since last season, was exposed again.
Both Kyle Walker and Benjamin Mendy gave away a penalty, while the defensive pairing of Nathan Ake and Eric Garcia struggled.
Guardiola has identified the problem and City are close to bringing in Ruben Dias from Benfica for over 60 million pounds. Dias signing takes Guardiola’s spending on defenders at the Etihad Stadium to over 400 million pounds.
Nonetheless, the former Barcelona manager will hope the Portugal international will provide the leadership they have been missing at the back since Vincent Kompany left.
Handball Controversies: Seven penalties were awarded in the latest round of Premier League games, thanks to the new handball rule.
The rule caused controversy in Tottenham’s 1-1 draw against Newcastle as Eric Dier was penalised in injury time after an Andy Caroll header hit his arm in the area.
However, replays showed there’s nothing he could do, and that incensed a lot of people. There was also a similar situation in Everton’s win over Crystal Palace with Joel Ward on the receiving end.
The decisions annoyed many with former Liverpool defender, Jamie Carragher, saying it is killing football. It remains to be seen if there would be an alteration to the rule.
Everton and Leicester Living Up To The Dark Horse Tag: Both teams were tipped to challenge the top six, and they haven’t disappointed so far.
Everton made it three wins out of three with a win over Crystal Palace. At the same time, Leicester City delivered a statement of intent with a resounding victory over Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium. Although it’s still early days, it won’t be a surprise if there are two new members in the top four this season.
Liverpool’s Title To Lose: Three games in, and it’s hard to see any team stopping Liverpool from retaining and winning their 20th league title.
The Reds haven’t even hit the full gear, and they’ve won their three games so far. Arsenal were their latest victims on Monday night.
Arteta’s men took the lead courtesy of an Alexandre Lacazette miscued finish after a rare error from Andy Robertson.
However, Liverpool hit back immediately through Sadio Mane. Robertson then redeemed himself by giving Klopp’s side the lead before Diogo Jota- making his debut- scored late in the second half to seal a comfortable win for the champions.
The Reds have now played two of the traditional big six, and they’ve dispatched them with ease. For now, it looks like other teams are fighting for other spots with Liverpool already champions-elect.
