The increasingly beleaguered Arsène Wenger
Sunderland 0 – 1 Newcastle United
Ryan Taylor’s free-kick settled the first Tyne-Wear derby of the season, undoing Steve Bruce’s good work from Sunderland’s opening day draw at Anfield. The game was a typically gritty clash, with Sunderland ending with ten men after Phil Bardsley was dismissed with two minutes left. Looking at the stats, it seems the hosts had much of the game but were denied a point by wayward finishing, with an impressive ten shots off target (they forced Tim Krul into action just twice!) For Alan Pardew, four points from those two tough opening games is a great start, and the dissatisfied section of the Newcastle faithful haven’t had much to complain about so far.
Arsenal 0 – 2 Liverpool
The bad luck doesn’t paper over the cracks for Arsenal’s stretched squad, and if Arsène Wenger believed the side was strong enough before Saturday’s home defeat to Liverpool then his eyes must be open now. The midfield absences of Jack Wilshere, Alex Song, Abou Diaby, Tomas Rosicky and of course Cesc Fabregas, meant the Gunners lined up with 18-year-old Emmanuel Frimpong and a man on the verge of departure, Samir Nasri. The shallowness was further exposed when Laurent Koscielny, who started in a defence shorn of the injured Kieran Gibbs and Johan Djourou, was taken off with a back injury, and Ignasi Miquel had to step in for his first league appearance. The youthful errors were inevitable, and Liverpool took full advantage. If there was a disappointment on a good day for Liverpool fans, it was that they barely looked like threatening until Andy Carroll was withdrawn. The brightness of Luis Suarez, however, will give them heart for the weeks and months ahead.
Aston Villa 3 – 1 Blackburn Rovers
How old is Michel Salgado? From the highlights, about 67. I noted last week that he looked dreadful in the bitesize version of the game the BBC presented, and this week was no different. Turned inside out by Gabriel Agbonlahor for the forward’s excellent opening goal, the Spaniard looked slow and old every time he appeared in the picture. I’ve read that Steve Kean’s only other option is the Brazilian fullback Bruno Ribeiro, who at 28 has never played for a team outside his own country. With no money to invest and Chris Samba still possibly following Phil Jones out of the door, the Scot has a massive task, and faith in him already seems to be disappearing (although I am judging this purely on online reactions). Good start for Alex McLeish though, four points from those two games is a fairly decent tally.
Chelsea 2 – 1 West Bromwich Albion
Andrés Villas-Boas’ side churned out a first win under the Portuguese in a game reminiscent of Carlo Ancelotti’s first game at Stamford Bridge – a come-from-behind 2-1 win against Hull City in 2009. Roy Hodgson’s side had raced into the lead thanks to a second goal in two games from new signing Shane Long, but they crumbled under pressure in the second half, with a silly mistake by Nicky Shorey eventually leading to Nicolas Anelka’s deflected equaliser. Florent Malouda later won the game after a great ball across the box by Jose Bosingwa. I can’t help but feel for Hodgson, who has seen his side battle brilliantly in their first two fixtures against last season’s top two, and come away with nothing. Villas-Boas, meanwhile, needed the win to avoid the papers getting on his back early on. It’s clear that Chelsea aren’t quite firing yet, though.
Tommy Smith and Alejandro Faurlin celebrate
Everton 0 – 1 Queens Park Rangers
How long do you think it’ll be before Everton fans just ask to be anaesthetised between the months of August and January? Their habit of starting the season in dismal fashion continued with an insipid reverse at home to newly promoted QPR, who were spanked by Bolton Wanderers last week. The fact that David Moyes, one of Britain’s best managers, has been prevented from signing a single player on a permanent deal this summer is scandalous. Everton’s financial situation isn’t his fault, and while I appreciate that the restrictive conditions might challenge the Scot to get the most out of the players at his disposal, it can’t be doing his career much good. Everton have the potential to be a big club, but the missing ingredient is money. Not Man City money, just a bit of investment to help them complete their squad. I think Moyes has done a fantastic job over the years for Everton, but they are in danger of being surpassed by their manager in terms of ambition. All of which ignores a great result for QPR, for whom Tommy Smith netted the winner with a smart finish. The perfect way to bounce back from last weekend’s disappointment.
Swansea City 0 – 0 Wigan Athletic
Roberto Martínez nearly marked his return to the Liberty Stadium with a win, but a missed penalty by Ben Watson thwarted him. More disappointment for Wigan, then, who also failed to beat a newly promoted side last week in Norwich City, but it’s a solid way to bounce back from last week’s chastening trip to Manchester City for Swansea. Brendan Rodgers will perhaps be pleased to register his first Premier League point, but he’ll know that home games like this will have to end with all three in future if the Swans are to stand any chance of prolonging their stay in the top tier.
Bolton Wanderers 2 – 3 Manchester City
Seven goals in two games; negative indeed. I wouldn’t read anything into the supposed reinvention of Roberto Mancini as a manager, though. In general I don’t think the Italian gets enough credit. I don’t think he’s suddenly decided that his Man City team will attack instead of defend. I think his policy was to build a team which could keep goals out at one end, and score them at the other. The first part seemed to come easy; the second depended on the side blending, which it now appears to have done beautifully. They finished last season in sensational form and they look to have picked up where they left off. The addition of Sergio Aguero will help, but three goals in three games for Edin Dzeko (including the Community Shield), who was so disappointing last season, indicates that some things just need time. Bolton made a good fist of it but I don’t expect many teams will take points off City this season, which is ominous for the other top teams.
Norwich City 1 – 1 Stoke City
If Norwich were delighted with last season’s smash-and-grab draw at Wigan, they’ll be desperately disappointed after Stoke performed a similar trick on them on Sunday. A header from former Stoke defender Ritchie De Laet had seemed for a long time to have put the hosts on their way to a first Premier League victory since their return to the top flight, and a fine penalty save by John Ruddy (after Leon Barnett had received a ludicrous sending off) but Kenwyne Jones’ equaliser in injury time broke Anglian hearts. The injustice of it all. It could only have been Stoke. The cunts.
Wolverhampton Wanderers 2 – 0 Fulham
Wolves still have a 100% record following this comfortable defeat of Fulham, for whom Martin Jol hasn’t started as well as everyone assumed he would. Kevin Doyle and Matt Jarvis netted first-half goals for Mick McCarthy’s side as they ground out a deserved win, and following the win at Ewood Park last week, it’ll be a huge encouragement to Wolves fans who were only too used to seeing their side drop points against lesser sides last season (harsh to call Fulham ‘lesser’ as they finished 8th last season, but I think you know what I mean). As for the visitors, it might be a bit of a worry for the Cottagers that despite a long head-start on any of their Premier League peers (thanks to the Europa League), they have only managed one point from six this season. That’s as few as Arsenal, for goodness sake. Or are they tired already? It’ll probably take Jol a while to get the team playing the way he wants them to; Fulham started poorly under the now unemployed (haha) Mark Hughes last year, and they were absolutely fine in the end.
Manchester United 3 – 0 Tottenham Hotspur
United youngster Danny Welbeck
Spurs continued their abysmal record at Old Trafford last night with a second-half capitulation, the 3-0 scoreline fully reflecting the champions dominance on the night. Anderson’s goal, the second of three, was a delight; a quick-passing move culminating in the impressive Danny Welbeck’s backheel and the Brazilian’s smart finish. You can’t really fault the way United have started the season, with a battling win at West Brom and barely breaking sweat in a win over a supposed Champions League place challenger. They look very good, and the core of the team is a young one. The commentators claims that we’re seeing ‘Ferguson’s Babes’ is slightly misleading, given that United’s line-up yesterday cost £130m. Matt Busby’s batch of youth graduates were decidedly cheaper than that.
