Chelsea’s final goal against Tottenham Hotspur seemed to encapsulate everything that had gone right for the Blues – and all that could have gone wrong for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side. Timo Werner, who had come on from the bench midway through the second half, hadn’t had a great cameo up until that point: taking a poor touch to end a bulldozing counter-attack earlier, but that didn’t matter. From a corner, the forward was able to identify some space in the right channel, before looking up and noticing that his compatriot, Antonio Rüdiger, had drawn back away from his marker. One German player found another, and with a tidy finish, two centre-backs had got on the scoresheet. A clever routine had worked, while Tottenham lost grasp of their defensive ABC’s.

Thomas Tuchel tried to hide it, but smiled coyly as he shook hands with his opposite number at full-time, before beaming broadly as he greeted his players on-field. He got it right. With both sides in stalemate at the half, he made a seemingly inconspicuous change – Kanté for Mount. Hang on: they’re looking for a goal. Removing an attacking midfielder for more central control? Why? Twitter frothed with alternative suggestions. Yet of course, the Frenchman’s presence created plenty of 3-on-2 situations, and the fact that he scored just “had to be”.

 

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After going three wins from three, Tottenham look at two consecutive Premier League defeats, with a European draw against Rennes lodged in-between. With Arsenal on the horizon this weekend, Santo will know that he has to draw some energy from somewhere to feed the front three. His side are early favourites with the bookies, but not by much.

Just 45 minutes before kick-off in N17, West Ham were forced to swallow a bitter pill. Martin Atkinson’s refereeing made himself an obvious discussion point, and debates raged regarding whether or not Cristiano Ronaldo should have earned a spot-kick on more than one occasion. With the Hammers awarded a last-gasp penalty kick, David Moyes took the decision to send on Mark Noble (whose penalty conversion rate was only bettered by Robert Lewandowski in 2020) to try and put his side level. There were some serious shades of the Euro 2020 final here, though. He was cold, physically and mentally. Despite his prowess from 12 yards, for him to take a kick on which the outcome of the game lied with added time all but over in front of the fans was always going to be an anomaly from his statistics.

 

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Indeed, things were slightly better for their North London rivals. Unconvincing at points, but they came away with all three of them, with a moment of inspiration from Martin Ødegaard putting their side into a lead that they were able to hold onto, though with some better decision making in the final third, it could have been more. Takehiro Tomiyasu is already appearing to get settled at right-back, with Gabriel and Ben White in front of Aaron Ramsdale – the goalkeeping situation still unclear. With six points in the last two, Arsenal propel themselves out of the bottom of the table, but there’s plenty to be done. The front line aren’t quite on the same wave-length at this period of time, but Mikel Arteta knows there’s signs that that can be remedied with the right coaching.

There’s no reason for Manchester City to be overly concerned about how they played yesterday – more that there was cause for Southampton celebration. The Saints were condemned to defeat long before kick-off, by predictors, odds and writers (myself included), something that I can only hold my hand up and say that I got wrong. Ralph Hassenhüttl was vocal and raucous on the sideline, and got his reward. Tino Livramento dug in at right-back, dealing with the ever-dangerous Jack Grealish who looked to pounce off the shoulder. Jan Bednarek showed all of his experience leading his defence, and came out with a clean sheet and without a yellow card.

Making progress pic.twitter.com/Clcuqqn9qH

— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) September 19, 2021

Guardiola put out of all of his cavalry. Riyad Mahrez, Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden were all tasked with working up a bit of magic, but while of course the home side dominated possession of the ball, they failed to get into incisive spaces – having to in fact wait until the 90th minute just to have a shot on target. The Sky Blues have never been a side that go on runs of consistently fail to create chances, more that it just seems to happen erratically.  In the case of the Champions League final,  for example, it was at the worst possible time.

The question that naturally sat on everyone’s lips was again about City’s striker situation – with Romelu Lukaku’s presence up front causing Tottenham numerous problems on Sunday, even if he didn’t score. You can’t excuse a lack of chances from the City side because of this, though – there’s more than enough firepower in this side to blow sides away without a traditional centre-forward. Yet until January, when the next opportunity to recruit arises, Pep will need to imbue a killer instinct into his side, with the ante-post outright odds for the League title that had his side as clear favourites already beginning to lengthen.

Romelu Lukaku has now scored 4 goals in 4 games for Chelsea. Signing of the season? #UCL pic.twitter.com/1fdMo2fZTI

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) September 14, 2021

A team that are arguably playing with too much instinct is Norwich City, who are looking pitiful at the foot of the table. Watford was, simply put, a game they had to take a point or more from. Despite this, Daniel Farke attempted to play ball that his team just can’t sustain. Adaptation to the requirements of the Premier League from the Championship is a key aspect of survival or better – as Brentford did remarkably against Wolves, bringing men back and forth when needed, before defending valliantly after a red card. Billy Gilmour and Kenny McLean strained to work the midfield, but they simply had too much to do.

Norwich City have now lost their last 1⃣5⃣ Premier League matches under Daniel Farke – the longest losing run by any side in English top-flight history under a single manager.

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 18, 2021

Nothing is sealed at this part of the season: teams are still learning and adapting. Yet there’s plenty of food of thought for managers on both sides of the standings – and for the sides chasing objectives like survival or trophies, the window in which you’re allowed to make mistakes is starting to expire.

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The High Press Media can confirm that it will not be handing out any prize to anyone who can guess what the stand-out story from the most recent weekend of Premier League football was.

Two goals, wrapping up the points for his home side, in front of his own adoring supporters. He’d been away for a while, but after the money was forked out, he was on the next plane out of Italy, finding the net in his own true jersey once more. That’s Romelu Lukaku – one of the finest centre-forwards in the world.

That is, of course, a joke – but it is indeed easy to forget that three players notched a brace this weekend, not just one. Cristiano Ronaldo was joined by Lukaku and the Celtic import Odsonne Edouard in the at-the-double club, and while they all received their plaudits, only the former was really going to take the headlines.

Big win for the team! So proud to make my debut at home in front of the fans! Thank you for your all your support @CPFC pic.twitter.com/fhe0mzlIV4

— Odsonne Edouard (@Oedouard22) September 11, 2021

Ronaldo’s return went perfectly according to the script. Score the opener and come up again when his side needed it, with Newcastle fighting back. The goalkeeping for both was questionable, let it be said: with Freddie Woodman parrying into the Portuguese’s path for 1-0 and allowing him to fire through his legs for 2-1 – but his positioning, movement and pace remained impeccable, demonstrating the blend of striker’s instinct and winger’s incisiveness which has made him, for many managers down the years, a cheat code.

There’s more to come from Ronaldo, who looked driven and hungry. Admitting that he felt “anxiety mixed with adrenaline” as took the turf on the Theatre of Dreams once more, one can reasonably expect him to rise to the challenge one mental level higher than playing for Juventus – he relishes any challenge, but particularly one that is close to his heart.

Edouard is some 13 years Ronaldo’s junior, and endeared himself to the Crystal Palace supporters in perfect fashion to kick off the weekend. Signing for £14 million, Edouard notched a pair against a Tottenham Hotspur side that looked a long way away from the races. Young defender Japhet Tanganga was sent off, and Harry Kane looked isolated. Both of the Frenchman’s finishes were impressive, wheeling away in celebration to secure an important victory for his fellow countryman Patrick Vieira, who is settling into the role nicely.

Lukaku sits somewhat between the two age wise, and demonstrates that there really is no “prime” when it comes to the centre-forward. Players like Erling Braut Haaland at his young age has already established himself as one of the finest number nines in the world, while Robert Lewandowski continues to age like a fine wine, despite moving through his early thirties. The goal-getting attribute and instinct isn’t one that can be forgotten, regardless of how much a player physically declines or adds other elements to their bow.

#CHEAST
Lukaku’s movement for Chelsea’s 1st goal

– Shift into half space when thrown-in is played = open central space
– Occupy CB
– Curved run inwards when Kovacic evades press -> attack open central space -> drag CB = opening CB-FB seam for the pass to be played into pic.twitter.com/bmZb0wNkLD

— sm (@TacticoModerno) September 11, 2021

Indeed, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang finally got himself onto the scoresheet, netting the only goal in a 1-0 victory against Norwich which saved the Gunners from getting off to their worst ever Premier League start. ‘Awkward’ is a word that could potentially summarise the way he has played, struggling to get himself into the right place at the right time and finishing without the sheer incision that earned him a lucrative contract many months back. The best of the Gabonese international will surely return – for the reasons aforementioned. Mikel Arteta will be counting on him to step up and break through any mental blockages, spearheading the attack that will need to simply gel if Arsenal are to push their way back to the top section of the League.

It’s been the weekend of the centre-forwards, including Hwang Hee Chan who came off the bench to get his first goal of the season. Raul Jimenez, who is returning to the forefront after a horrific head injury that cut his season short last time out, will require further assistance this year, with wingers like Trincao and Adama somewhat rough diamonds, full of technical ability but lacking in the department of providing goalscoring support to the centre-forward. New manager Bruno Lage will have been pleased with his side’s offensive output as they look to move to a position where they score regularly.

The weekend was completed with Everton stunning Burnley, after turning things around in Goodison Park to score three times in just seven minutes. Rafa Benitez demonstrated his tactical prowess, switching to a four-at-the-back formation when his side needed it most to overwhelm Sean Dyche’s side. Sweeping through the Clarets’ defense, Andros Townsend decided to run it back by delivering one of the goals of the season so far, cutting inside before dispatching beautifully into the top corner. In fact, without centre-forward Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who had broken his toe, Everton cleverly thought up ways to create without the presence of a bulky number nine, using the talented winger Demarai Gray as a catalyst.

It just gets better with every view. @andros_townsend pic.twitter.com/utpvUYcDzv

— Everton (@Everton) September 13, 2021

For those young budding ballers who ply their trade as an out-and-out striker, this weekend was a beautiful template for how your play should be marked. Players of all different physical body types, playing styles, heights and strengths all found a common ground – know where the ball will fall and get there first. A football purist will be hoping that every single weekend is like this one.

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Last weekend, it may be fair to say that the on-field action was overshadowed. That’s a word often with negative connotations – like something seriously bad had occurred, but not in this
case, depending on your point of view. This transfer market was historic – with the two greatest players of this era both moving; a Premier League side the beneficiary of one of the
deals.

He’s back.#MUFC | #RonaldoReturns

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) August 31, 2021

That is, of course, the one story to dominate the football headlines this week, and it involves the transfer of one of the game’s greatest ever to the club where he grew from a talent to a star. Elsewhere, the Tottenham transfer saga seems to have come to a close, with Harry Kane confirming on social media that he would be staying at White Hart Lane, and across the seas, Leo Messi finally played in another club’s jersey.

For Manchester United, Ronaldo shakes up the plans. He had not been on great terms with Juventus’ coaching staff towards the back-end of his spell: indeed being benched for the Bianconeri’s opening game of the season, before the various links away and the stunning day which saw him in talks with the blue half of Manchester in the morning, before being confirmed to have reached a deal with his former employer by the end.

Against Wolves, where events were of course overshadowed, some United fans indeed admitted that things could have gone worse. Conceding 15 shots, six on target, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer benefitted from the fact that Wolves have taken just shy of 60 attempts so far this season – putting none into the back of the net.

Ronaldo’s signing can only remedy oh-so-much; there’s valid cause to remember that for all of the near-guaranteed brilliance he will provide, it may only paper over the cracks in midfield.

Chelsea, who have a better midfield in Kante, Jorginho & Kovacic have just signed Saul Niguez but Man United with Fred & Matic won’t Neves/Bissouma.

It’s hard to believe anyone at the club actually realize how badly we need a defensive midfielder. Unbelievable.

— RuthlessRashy (@datmufcfan) September 1, 2021

Things didn’t start particularly well for Mikel Arteta, and despite the fact that Manchester City were indeed seriously tipped to get the victory, he still knows how timidly his side performed. Across the 90 minutes, the side took one shot and showed no desire to win the ball, allowing Ederson to take all the time on the ball he desired – which, for someone of his ball-playing
stature, was a dreadful mistake.

Indeed, on the ball, City were fluent and easy on the eye – with Jack Grealish assisting one goal before sauntering down to Leeds Festival to appear with Stormzy on stage; such jaunts are currently a long way from the mind of any Arsenal player.

i’m crying wtf why did stormzy just bring jack grealish out at leeds pic.twitter.com/4gOEYLwYRJ

— em (@emshammm) August 28, 2021

The weekend in fact ended with the Gunners at the bottom of the table, with their nemeses Spurs sitting atop the perch. Spurs have spent too – most recently securing the signing of Emerson Royal from Barcelona, as the final day of the window has been marked with a flurry of window shopping. It will take plenty of time to see the impacts of buying (or, for some clubs like Liverpool, the notable lack thereof), so it is foolish to judge new signatures.

Arsenal have spent around £150 million, leaving them genuinely without excuse, while Spurs have kept their talisman, and Nuno Espirito Santo will be confident of putting the saga
behind him and allowing Kane to return to his well-known triumphant best.

Liverpool v Chelsea was a clash between the two sides who have both paid for just one player this season. Thomas Tuchel’s men splashed big on Romelu Lukaku, while Liverpool
shelled a conservative £36m on Leipzig centre-back Ibrahima Konate – something that frustrated many Reds fans, as they felt that squad depth remained a serious issue up front
and in midfield. In fact, by the time this article had been drafted, Chelsea had recruited Saúl Ñiguez on loan, a testament to Marina Granovskaia’s determination to not let any potential
window of serious attraction pass them by.

 

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Chelsea showed real spirit after Reece James was sent off – defending valiantly while still chiselling out a few productive attacking shapes in the second half, while Jurgen Klopp’s side
were stifled in front of the Kop. The two German managers greeted each other happily at the end of the proceedings, a handshake and hug full of similar ambition and philosophy, albeit
with different bankrolls.

In fact, the last of the three managers from the great European nation may be feeling frustrated. Daniel Farke likely knew that his side were likely to open with defeats when their nasty opening run of matches was announced, but against Leicester had their chances, especially with their pacey right-back Ricardo forced off after just five minutes. Recruits such as Billy Gilmour, Josh Sargent and Milot Rashica will know that to overcome the odds and beat relegation will be a challenge, but there are already signs it’s far from impossible.

This window was another flex of not only the top six’s muscle, but that of the Premier League in general. Recruitment was widespread across the division – talent pouring in across the table. Foreign players new and sometimes old will be keen to make inroads, and domestic talent taking their steps up should mean that this year’s table gets very congested.

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“At the age of 23, I always believed he had the possibility of becoming the best number nine in world football because he has absolutely everything.”

This was said about Romelu Lukaku by Roberto Martinez, back when he plied his trade in the Premier League – storming to the public eye with Everton. Martinez has now managed the Belgian twice – once at Goodison Park, and last at the Euros with his national side – perhaps you could say he just couldn’t turn down the opportunity to manage him again.

”If I hold you like this and roll you like this, it’s finished”

Romelu Lukaku did warn defenders when he was at Everton @Carra23 | @RomeluLukaku9 pic.twitter.com/YASeRY8Jp9

— Football Daily (@footballdaily) August 23, 2021

Indeed, Lukaku’s return to the Premier League had an air of inevitability about it. Inter Milan underwent a ‘restructuring’ that saw the side lose key players and their manager, with Lautaro Martinez now also linked away from the club.

With Chelsea, he provided everything they could have possibly been looking for in the opening minutes. A presence. Speed. Positioning. A product of the Belgian League, Lukaku had one dry spell at Stamford Bridge, after which he was sent to find success at two other British clubs before his fruitful two years in Italy.

As a spearhead for Thomas Tuchel’s set-up, Arsenal were the unfortunate first side who were condemned to suffer – and it could have been more. The post-match dissection continued long into the night and the start of the working week, as we witnessed the Gunners suffer some heavy punishment down the flanks during the first half. Reece James and Marcos Alonso could have enjoyed the Sunday papers while in possession – the Chelsea 3-4-3 getting the better of Arteta’s four-at-the-back.

Indeed, Arteta already finds himself second bottom of the table (not that that matters so much at this stage), but with injury problems beginning to accrue, something must change if this air of pessimism that is already growing is to be nipped in the bud. It’s City away next – a game that the bookmakers’ odds are not something to be looked at if you’re an Arsenal aficionado. We’ve seen stranger things, however.

 

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On the topic, Michail Antonio has continued his path to establishing himself as one of the finest classic number nines that the League has to offer. After securing his passport, the West Ham man is set to play for Jamaica for the first time during next month’s international break – another spanner in the self-isolation works, though that remains a discussion for later. What must be said now, is how astonishingly he has marched into this season and continued right where he left off. Running off the shoulder, pressing and finishing, Antonio is becoming impossible to ignore – and an FPL essential, too.

A little lower down the pitch, a lack of definitive defensive midfield presence is perhaps what Manchester United’s drop of points this weekend could be attributed to. Nemanja Matic, a beacon of experience, was paired up with Fred – the latter having a forgetful night in the red jersey: the Saints’ goal was finally credited as an own goal against his name. The lack of a proper holding presence in Solksjaer’s set-up has stifled him time and time again – there’s only so far that firepower and a defensive wall will take him.

Indeed, there seems to be a revolving door for midfielders filling the gap between the centre backs and Fernandes and Pogba marauding forward. It’s not a role Donny van de Beek would want to do by himself, and with the transfer market still open, United fans are unsurprisingly questioning whether or not the pocket that has been deep enough for Raphael Varane and Jadon Sancho will stretch to an out-and-out number six.

Jurgen Klopp found himself frustrated with the manner Burnley played against them to kick off the action on Saturday. He compared the side’s physical game to “wrestling” – at one point Diogo Jota was remarkably thrown to the floor by Johann Berg Gudmundsson as it became apparent that the game was up for the visitors. Mike Dean, who loves the opportunity to reach into his pocket and brandish the yellow card like he were the main character of a New York action flick reaching for his weapon, somehow booked no players during the game.

Tottenham’s second consecutive victory without Harry Kane fueled further insatiable media appetite. “They play better without Kane” has been a trope echoed through the times when he sat on the sideline for extensive periods, especially during their 2018/19 Champions League campaign in which Kane came back for the final. His tangible impact on Tottenham from a football perspective is, at this point, somewhat irrelevant: perhaps the question is whether or not they will play better without him from a psychological perspective, once this transfer saga finally comes to an end.

Working pic.twitter.com/FaZvR8eoWN

— Harry Kane (@HKane) August 24, 2021

Son Heung-min was starved of opportunities for a lot of the game, but a Dele Alli penalty that he won was enough to bag the three points. We experienced a mini-Dele revival when Jose Mourinho took charge of the club, and has worked his way back into the starting XI once more. Is this another repeating trend, or is there a real window of opportunity for the 25-year-old to revert to his 2018 form? With Romelu Lukaku back in the limelight once again, there’s no reason why Alli, who enjoyed his football when Lukaku did in the Premier League, can’t put his name on the back page every week once more.

The post Premier League Roundup – Gameweek 2 appeared first on High Press Media.

The opening weekend of the 2021-22 Premier League was raucous, energetic and not devoid of personality.

Firstly, the elephant in the room. Fans. Lots of them. All of them, in fact. The appetite was insatiable – with hardly an empty seat in sight. From Carrow Road to Old Trafford, the noise was through the roof. Away days were finally back on the menu, and there were TikTok and Twitter videos aplenty of supporters revelling in the long train trips, early pints and tall staircases to reach the visiting fans’ stands.

This Brentford fan crying tears of joy after the game is too much for me this Friday evening pic.twitter.com/5u71SQEOgA

— TrailerHub Gaming (@Trailerhubtweet) August 13, 2021

Sports editors must have been rubbing their hands in glee on Friday night. The remarkable stat that dominated the papers was Brentford’s 74 year absence from the Premier League – strutting back in, with a full crowd in tow, to take all three points off Arsenal without conceding, raising the decibels and making them the first team to go top this season.

Their reign, however, was short-lived, as Manchester United flexed their muscle on Saturday afternoon. Starting with the presentation of Raphael Varane, in what was probably one of the best PR moves in recent PL transfer history, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men tore apart their classical rivals, Leeds United.

Paul Pogba made Graeme Souness, in generous terms, look like a bit of a fool. We all know about his agenda. He said that the Frenchman’s price tag should mean that “we expect” the performance he provided, one in which he returned four assists – something that has now only been recorded seven times in Premier League history. With elegance, poise and a silky, deft touch, Pogba linked up telepathically with Bruno Fernandes, Mason Greenwood and Fred to join a highly exclusive club – the previous inductee being Harry Kane, when he set up all four of Son Heung-Min’s finishes away to Southampton last year.

Souness “For me, the star of the show was Greenwood.”

Micah “Pogba’s had four assists.”

Souness “We expect that from a 100 million pound man.”@MicahRichards not allowing Graeme Souness to forget Paul Pogba’s performance against Leeds United pic.twitter.com/IvRPkHo6ir

— Football Daily (@footballdaily) August 15, 2021

You don’t need me to tell you that Kane and Son were one of the major talking points of the week in their own right. The headlines wrote themselves – and indeed, a jam-packed White Hart Lane sang “Are you watching, Harry Kane?”, in a victory that added another twist to this transfer saga: if you can call it that.

It’s been tight-lipped; a battle of wits. Guardiola, in his defeat, would have been yearning for the forward, as his side generated tactical ideas for fun. But it lacked that final piece. The killer instinct. The number nine to tie things up. If anything, Levy’s negotiating position only grew stronger on Sunday evening, as his side held valiantly. The young Japhet Tanganga came back into the side to strengthen the defensive outpost, helping to create counterplay that was finished off by the South Korean captain. Nuno Espirito Santo endeared himself to the N17 faithful, while Pep was left flustered. We’re left with 13 days of the transfer window, and a position akin to that of a chess game between two great masters.

Japhet Tanganga v Manchester City – 15/08/21. pic.twitter.com/aV1cmeJLLK

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 17, 2021

Elsewhere, there was no shortage of goals – and there was no draw on the opening weekend. Chelsea delivered against Patrick Vieira’s Crystal Palace side, while Watford resisted a late fightback from the new Jack Grealish-less Aston Villa to treat Vicarage Road to a thrilling victory. And of course, Mohamed Salah did his thing. I could go through each and every game, but there is no real need. Match of the Day is now on iPlayer.

 

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Let’s not forget that Romelu Lukaku is still to come, and there’s plenty of time for deals to get done. Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel will have both been delighted with what they saw with their team’s first displays, with Virgil van Dijk and Trevor Chalobah both impressing on opposite sides of the seniority spectrum – the latter scoring a stunner.

What was most refreshing was the VAR interventions last weekend – or, to be specific, the lack thereof. We saw the new ‘adjusted’ offside rule in action for the first time, as Bruno Fernandes’ hat-trick goal was allowed to stand. With thicker lines, we may be minimising time ascertaining whether or a player’s armpit was 0.005 inches ahead of the heel of the defender’s Nike Tiempo, and more enjoying the flow of the match.

Opening weekends come with a certain swagger, optimism and vigour, something we weren’t let down this year – reinforced by the return of supporters, all of Manchester City’s title rivals impressed, while they stuttered; while two of the three promoted sides came out with victory. While I’m not one to jump to conclusions, there was a template for enjoyment between Friday and Sunday. There’s plenty yet to be determined about the state of play, but more than enough opening signs that we are in for a ride this season.

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