Premier League Recap: Gameweek 1
The new Premier League season got off to a blistering start this weekend, with plenty of goals and action throughout most of the games.
Manchester United 2-1 Leicester City
The season kicked off in Old Trafford, where Manchester United hosted Leicester. United started off very brightly, and won a penalty in the 3rd minute after Daniel Amartey handled the ball, with Paul Pogba slotting the penalty very neatly past Kasper Schmeichel. After the goal, the game started to calm down, and Leicester were becoming the dominant side, yet they could not beat the reliable David De Gea, whilst United constantly threatened on the counter. In the second half, the game continued in the same pattern, but in the 83rd minute, a loose touch by Luke Shaw turned into an incredible one, and he finished the ball nicely to give himself his first ever senior goal, as well as doubling the lead. Leicester did manage to get a goal back late on, after a shot from Ricardo Pereira hit the post with Jamie Vardy popping in to finish.
Newcastle United 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham began their season very well with a win against the Magpies, even after they probably were not the better side. They started off on the front foot, as Jan Vertonghen headed the ball to the post on the 8th minute, with the ball barely crossing the line, giving Spurs an early lead. However, the lead did not last very long, as a perfectly weighted cross from Matt Ritchie found Joselu free in the box to head into the goal in the 11th minute. Yet Tottenham struck again, as an even better cross from Serge Aurier in the 18th minute found Dele Alli free to calmly head in for the lead. After the goal, Newcastle started to push on once again, but they kept on hitting the woodwork and could not equalise, with the match eventually ending with a win for Spurs.
AFC Bournemouth 2-0 Cardiff City
Bournemouth managed to record an opening week win over the newly-promoted Cardiff, through goals from Ryan Fraser and Callum Wilson. Bournemouth were the team on top throughout the whole match, and their dominance was rewarded in the 24th minute when a cross from Wilson found Fraser alone in the box to slot it past the keeper, and in the 90th minute, Wilson doubled the lead after Simon Francis put the ball on a plate for Wilson to slot it home. In between the goals, Bournemouth also missed a penalty, as in the 34th minute Wilson was brought down in the box, yet the same player managed to miss the penalty. However, Bournemouth still managed to win the game and get off to a good start.
Fulham 0-2 Crystal Palace
Roy Hodgson's Palace continued where they left off last season, with a win over Fulham in the Premier League. Overall, the game was very balanced and both sides looked to attack, with Wayne Hennessey being put into action countless times. However, the breakthrough came from Palace, after Jeffrey Schlupp blasted the ball into the top corner from a very tight angle in the 41st minute to beat Fabri. After the goal, the Eagles kicked on and in the second half they attacked much more, with their attacking prowess being shown in the 79th minute, with Wilfried Zaha slotting the ball past the goalkeeper.
Huddersfield Town 0-3 Chelsea
Maurizio Sarri's new Chelsea team demolished Huddersfield in the first match of the season, dominating the whole match. N'golo Kante got the Blues off to the start they wanted, as in the 34th minute, a cross from Willian was volleyed by the World Cup winner to grant them the lead. In the 45th minute, Chelsea were awarded a penalty after Marcos Alonso was tripped in the box, with Jorginho putting the ball in the back of the net as cool as ever. Chelsea continued their dominance in the second half, and in the 80th minute, Pedro scored with a dink over the goalkeeper to give them a well-deserved three-goal win.
Watford 2-0 Brighton and Hove Albion
Watford managed to edge past Brighton in what was a very heated encounter between two mid-table sides. The player that separated the two sides was the brilliant Roberto Pereyra, who struck in the 35th and 54th minute, first with a well-met volley from a corner, and then with a cool placed shot in the bottom corner to put it past Mat Ryan, giving Watford their first three points of the season.
Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-2 Everton
One of the most anticipated games of the weekend ended level after some pieces of brilliance from both sides. Everton struck first through their big-money signing, Richarlison, as the ball fell to his feet in the box, and he did not disappoint, giving them the lead in the 17th minute. However, Everton were reduced to ten men in the 40th minute, after Phil Jagielka went through Diogo Jota, earning the first red card of the new season. After that, Wolves pushed on and managed to find an equaliser from the resulting free-kick through the brilliance of Ruben Neves in the 44th minute, as he curled home a delightful shot into the top corner, giving Pickford no chance. Everton did manage to regain their lead in the 67th minute, after Richarlison got his second goal of the campaign, as he curled the ball past Rui Patricio. Wolves managed to find the equaliser late on in the 80th minute, as a wonderful ball from Neves found Raul Jimenez free in the box to nod it past Pickford, giving Wolves a point.
Liverpool 4-0 West Ham United
Liverpool finished the gameweek top of the league after hammering West Ham by four goals. They ran riot with chances, and in the 19th minute, a fine ball from Andrew Robertson found Mohamed Salah free to tap the ball into the net. The Reds struck once again in the 45th minute just before half-time, when James Milner recovered a ball and gave it to Sadio Mane for another tap in. In the 53rd minute, Roberto Firmino slotted a ball to Sadio Mane, who seemed to be offside, yet somehow the flag stayed down, as the Senegalese forward blasted the ball into the net. Late on in the 88th minute, Daniel Sturridge signaled his return to Anfield with a goal to give Liverpool a well-deserved win over the Londoners.
Southampton 0-0 Burnley
Southampton and Burnley managed to record the first goalless draw of the new season, yet the game was not that dull, as both sides threatened to take the lead, yet they could not find a way to do so. The game eventually dragged on and ended, giving a point to both sides.
Arsenal 0-2 Manchester City
The first heavyweight match of the season ended with the champions coming out on top, handing Unai Emery a debut defeat. Raheem Sterling drifted past the Arsenal defence brilliantly in the 14th minute and finished the ball past Petr Cech in order to give City the lead. Petr Cech was Arsenal's saviour several times, keeping them in the game for most of the game. However, Bernardo Silva smacked the ball into the back of the net in the 64th minute, after a fine ball from Benjamin Mendy.
Which was your favourite match of the whole gameweek?
