What we learned in the Premier League this week

Another Premier league weekend is behind us and, as always, there are plenty of talking points and incidents to look back on.

There was a surprise result at Anfield as Paul Clement recorded his first victory as Swansea manager with a 3-2 win over Liverpool. Fernando Llorente scored twice to give Swansea a 2-0 lead before a brace from Roberto Firminho brought the reds level. The momentum seemed to be with Liverpool but Gylfi Sigurdsson scored with fifteen minutes remaining to give Swansea a huge win which took them out of the relegation places and left Jurgen Klopp bemoaning his side’s defensive frailties.

Chelsea continued their title pursuit with a relatively comfortable 2-0 win over Hull city at Stamford Bridge. Diego Costa opened the scoring, having been recalled following reports of him being unsettled by an approach from a Chinese Super League club. Hull gave a good account of themselves but failed to genuinely threaten the Chelsea goal and the game was settled when Gary Cahill grabbed a second for the blues. There were particularly worrying scenes for Hull after Ryan Mason picked up a serious injury in a clash of heads with Gary Cahill which stopped the game for around ten minutes. Mason was later found to have fractured his skull and required an operation. News that he was talking and taking visitors in hospital following the operation will have come as a huge relief to all concerned.

Arsenal moved up to second in the table with a controversial 2-1 win over Burnley at the Emirates. The gunners led through an unlikely source as Shkodran Mustafi’s header put them in front. The task was made more difficult for Arsenal when Granit Xhaka was sent off for the second time this season following a rash two-footed lunge on Steven Defour. Burnley looked to have grabbed a late point when Andre Gray converted a penalty in the ninety third minute but Arsenal had the last say as Ben Mee was penalised for a high foot on Laurent Koscielny and Alexis sanchez coolly chipped in the penalty to seal a vital three points. Burnley manager Sean Dyche was left fuming as Koscielny appeared to be in an offside position for the incident that led to Arsenal’s penalty but his protests went unheeded.

It was another frustrating weekend for Pep Guardiola as his Manchester City side let a two goal lead slip as they were held to a 2-2 draw with Tottenham. City started strongly but had to wait until early in the second half as the usually reliable Hugo Lloris made two uncharacteristic errors. Firstly heading the ball straight at Leroy Sane who couldn’t believe his luck before slotting home. Lloris then dropped an easy catch directly at the feet of Kevin De Bruyne who tapped in for 2-0. Dele Alli headed in to reduce the deficit and then came the moment which so incensed Guardiola. Raheem Sterling went through on goal and appeared to be pushed by Kyle walker in the penalty area just as he was about to shoot at goal but neither the referee nor his assistants spotted an infringement. Guardiola’s misery was complete when, shortly after, Son Heung-Min equalised for Spurs meaning City have just one win in their last four league games.

History was made at the Britannia Stadium as Wayne Rooney became Manchester United’s all-time record scorer with a fabulous free kick to snatch a 1-1 draw with stoke at the death. It was a fitting way for Rooney to reach the milestone of 250 United goals and was certainly a goal that previous record holder Bobby Charlton would have been proud of. Some argue that Rooney has not quite fulfilled the potential he showed as a sixteen year old at Everton but to be the leading scorer for both England and arguably the biggest club side in the world is an achievement that simply cannot be underestimated.

Crystal Palace slipped into the relegation zone following a 1-0 defeat at home to Everton, a result which leaves Sam Allardyce without a win so far as Palace manager. Seamus Coleman scored with just three minutes remaining to seal a fourth win in five for Ronald Koeman’s resurgent side and condemn Palace to a fourth straight league defeat.

 

10:45 am