YOUTHFUL ARSENAL GUNNING FOR TITLE SHOT
A young Arsenal side brimming with attacking talent are starting to look like the real deal after beating Liverpool 3-2 at the Emirates on Sunday and, although the Reds were not at its strongest, it is a sign of things to come.
Mikel Arteta’s side opened the scoring inside the first minute through Gabriel Martinelli and though Liverpool twice pegged it back, the Gunners held on for a win that put it back on top of the table.
“It doesn’t matter your age, it’s your heart and how much you want to achieve in football and life. That is the most important thing. We need to believe and go game by game trying to win all of them,” the 21-year-old Martinelli told Sky Sports.
The win puts it back on top of the table, one point ahead of reigning champions Manchester City, and Arsenal show no signs of slipping up just yet, despite its youth.
RONALDO CAN STILL IMPACT GAMES, EVEN OFF THE BENCHCristiano Ronaldo returned to Manchester United amid much fanfare ahead of last term but the campaign ended in bitter disappointment for the Portuguese striker when United finished with its lowest ever Premier League season points total.
This season, Ronaldo cannot even get in the United team, restricted to a bit-part role. But that does not mean he cannot still affect games, as he demonstrated when he fired the winner, after coming off the bench, with his 700th career club goal, to earn his side a 2-1 win at Everton on Sunday.
It was his first league goal of the campaign, and with an injury to Anthony Martial potentially giving Ronaldo more opportunities in the coming weeks, the veteran forward will be looking to increase those career numbers yet further.
“Every player needs the goals,” United coach Erik ten Hag said. “I have worked with goalscorers, they need goals every season to have that feeling. Once they have some goals, they have the flow. Games go easier. That will happen with him as well.”
FIVE-STAR NEWCASTLE READY TO MAKE THE BREAKTHROUGH
A year and a day after the club was taken over by a Saudi-backed consortium while languishing in 19th spot in the Premier League, Newcastle United moved into the top six with a 5-1 win over Brentford, and there is more to come.
Brentford’s terrible defending aside, Newcastle’s attack looked sharp as they made the most of its chances and there was a bright spot for boss Eddie Howe when Allan Saint-Maximin and Joelinton both came off the bench.
With record signing Alexander Isak set to return soon after picking up a knock while on international duty, Howe’s side may just be in the top six to stay.
FREE-SCORING CITY ARE UNPLAYABLE AT HOME
Manchester City season ticket holders are getting real value for money at the moment, with every visit to the Etihad Stadium yielding at least four goals for its side.
The champion continued its remarkable scoring streak at home by cruising to a 4-0 win over Southampton which brought its tally to 24 goals in its five Premier League home games.
Having the insatiable Erling Haaland in the team certainly helps but even when the Norwegian has a relatively quiet day, such as taking 65 minutes to score here, the goals keep flowing.
In the last week alone, Pep Guardiola’s side has scored six goals against Manchester United, five against Copenhagen and four against Southampton. Before then, they had beaten Bournemouth 4-0, Crystal Palace 4-2 and Nottingham Forest 6-0.
PRESSURE MOUNTS ON RODGERS AS LEICESTER COLLAPSE AGAIN
When Leicester City scored early and led at Bournemouth for nearly 70 minutes, things started to look up for it but in four chaotic minutes they showed why losing points from a winning position has become a habit they cannot seem to shake off.
Leicester has only four points from nine games and the 2-1 loss — a fifth consecutive away defeat — even prompted some of the travelling support to chant in favour of sacking manager Brendan Rodgers.
The only positive for Leicester was Patson Daka scoring his third goal in four games to prove he can step up to replace the ageing Jamie Vardy, who has yet to open his account this season despite playing nearly 200 more minutes than the Zambian.
