#EPLROUNDUP: Liverpool Flays Bournemouth, City Survive Scare, As Man United And Chelsea Hold On For Tight Wins
Even Jurgen Klopp, too, was shocked at a point during the second half because his Liverpool FC side was nothing short of murderous at Anfield as they tore through AFC Bournemouth and put nine unreplied goals past the visitors, who were far from being worthy adversaries.
After a disastrous start to the 2022/2023 EPL season, which saw them pick up only two points from their opening three matches, The Reds took their frustrations out on the newly promoted side.
Luis Diaz opened the scoring in the 3rd minute. By the 31st minute, Liverpool were four goals up and flying courtesy of Harvey Elliott (6th minute), Trent Alexander-Arnold (28th minute), and Roberto Firmino (31st minute), before Virgil Van Dijk also got in on the rout with a thumping header in the 45th minute. 5-0, the first half ended.
If Bournemouth thought their pain was all over, they were wrong, and it took only one minute into the second half for them to find out. A horror moment for defender Chris Mepham saw him divert a Diaz effort into his net for Liverpool’s 6th in the 46th minute, before more goals from Firmino, Fabio Carvalho, and another from Diaz sealed a Premier League record-equalling victory for the rampaging Reds.
Elsewhere at The Etihad Stadium, Manchester City suffered a first-half shock defeat to Crystal Palace, who ran away with a 0-2 lead at the interval courtesy of a John Stones own-goal (4th minute) and a powerful Joachim Andersen header from a corner kick in the 21st minute.
However, the reigning Champions, who are seeking to become the second ever team to win the Premier League titles three times in a row, came roaring back to life in the second half with a goal from midfield talisman Bernardo Silva (53rd minute), and a hat trick from new wonder boy Erling Haaland (62nd, 70th, and 81st minutes).
Pep Guardiola’s men took no chances with a Palace side who have beaten them at The Etihad before in recent years, and the gulf in class and quality on the pitch paid off for The Cityzens eventually, as they ran out 4-2 winners on the evening.
At Stamford Bridge, The Blues went a man down in the 28th minute of the first half after Connor Gallagher inexplicably picked up two yellow cards in only six minutes and left his team with a lot to do against a very tough Leicester City side.
Chelsea was also without their manager Thomas Tuchel on the touchline as the German tactician served his match ban following his red card in the game against Tottenham Hotspurs. Even with the obstacles, though, The Blues did remarkably well as they ran away to a 2-goal lead in the second half courtesy of well-taken strikes from Raheem Sterling in the 47th and 63rd minutes.
Their lead was halved almost immediately, though, as Harvey Barnes pulled a goal back for The Foxes in the 66th minute and set the match up for a very frantic and exciting final 30 minutes plus added time. It took a mixture of valiant defending and excellent saves from Chelsea’s Edouard Mendy in goal to keep Jamie Vardy and the rampaging Foxes out till the end of the match.
Leicester City is still without a win in their opening four matches this season, and this looks like worrying times for Brendan Rogers and his wards, even though it is early days in the League yet.
Over at the Saint Mary’s Stadium in Southampton, Manchester United continued their season’s revival under new manager Erik ten Hag, as they battled out a 0-1 victory over The Saints in the day’s early kickoff and first match.
After an evenly matched first 45 minutes that saw both sides trying to establish their dominance and take charge of the match, the Red Devils went ahead in what turned out to be the only goal of the encounter in the 55th minute.
The goal came after some good work down the right flank by Anthony Elanga, who set up the ball for Diogo Dalot to send a delightfully squared ball back to the edge of the Southampton box towards interim captain Bruno Fernandes who expertly side-footed the ball past a helpless Gavin Bazunu in The Saints’ goal.
There were few chances from there on for both sides afterward, with David de Gea’s brilliant save from Joe Aribo’s sharp header the only notable goal-mouth action till the match ended. The other highlight of the game was the 80th-minute introduction of United’s latest signing, Casemiro, who helped them see out the well-deserved victory.
The Red Devil’s 1-0 win helped them to claim back-to-back Premier League (PL) wins for the first time since February 2022 and also end a nightmarish run of 7 straight away losses in the League.
Our major observation and lesson from these matches are that, no matter how deep a top and a highly talented person falls, they can always dig their way out and climb back to the top if they do not relent or allow themselves to be fazed by the challenges and obstacles facing them!
Each of these top Premier League teams has suffered one setback and disappointment or the other this season. Still, the way they’re all bouncing back and recovering shows that having excellent quality and being the best at your craft is something we should all endeavor to attain in life.
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