With the international break over, Premier League football returned for week 4. The weekend featured plenty of goals, controversy, and even a sacking, with Crystal Palace’s Frank De Boer getting the sack after his side’s defeat to Burnley. But which players made the headlines?
Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
Call me if you need another assist @gabrieljesus33
pic.twitter.com/n1tSZ4XUwl
— Kevin De Bruyne (@DeBruyneKev) September 9, 2017
A mouth-watering match between two free flowing attacking sides ended up being rather one sided, with Manchester City running out 5-0 winners over Liverpool after the sending off of Sadio Mane.
City did take the lead before the red card, however, with Kevin De Bruyne’s quick thinking allowing him to play the ball through to Sergio Aguero. The Argentine striker rounded Simon Mignolet before slotting in. Liverpool did threaten early on in the match but the red card for Mane after a collision with Ederson on 37 minutes saw the visitors attacking threat diminish. The home side virtually secured the win in stoppage time at the end of the first half with De Bruyne again the provider, crossing for Gabriel Jesus.
Manchester City took control of the game completely in the second half – ending with 66% of possession over the course of the game. They showed their ruthless nature with three more goals. Jesus grabbed a second after Aguero squared to his strike partner when clean through. Then substitute Leroy Sane netted a double including a superb curling strike in the final minutes of the game.
The sending off allowed City’s midfield to dominate. De Bruyne pulled the strings as evident by his two assists in the game. The Belgian was the most creative player in the league last season with 18 assists and he could even beat that total with the attacking prowess around him this season.
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting (Stoke City)
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting is the 1st player to score a PL double v Man Utd since Alexis Sanchez in Oct 2015 pic.twitter.com/lE2nUkLUVs
— Sky Sports Statto (@SkySportsStatto) September 9, 2017
Manchester United dropped their first points of the season as they were held by Stoke City at the bet365 Stadium thanks to a brace from Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting.
The 2-2 draw was a deserved result for the home side with Stoke often troubling a Manchester United side who had looked comfortable and confident in their previous three Premier League games. It was Stoke who took the lead after 43 minutes with Choupo-Moting finishing from a Mame Biram Diouf cross after a good team move. Their lead only lasted a few minutes though. Marcus Rashford equalised after getting the final touch from a corner.
Romelu Lukaku did put the away side in front just over ten minutes into the second half. But Choupo-Moting levelled five minutes later with a powerful header from a Xherdan Shaqiri corner. It meant both sides had to settle for a point.
Choupo-Moting is a new signing for Stoke having been signed on a free transfer after the end of his contract at Schalke. He only managed three goals for Schalke last season but the Cameroon international looks as though he is adapting quickly to the Premier League.
Pascal Gross (Brighton)
Brighton recorded their first ever Premier League victory with a 3-1 win over West Brom at the Amex. The goals were also the first time they have netted since their promotion to the top flight.
It was new signing Pascal Gross who stole the show with two goals and an assist. His first came just before half time with a close range finish from a Solly March cross. It didn’t take long for Brighton to double their lead with Gross grabbing his second just three minutes into the second half. The German hit a right footed drive from 20 yards which found the bottom right corner of the net. It frustrated Ben Foster, who felt he could’ve saved the effort. Gross then showed the primary reason why he was brought into the club with a superb cross for Tomer Hemed to nod in a third to secure the points for Brighton.
Gross was the most creative player in the Bundesliga last season despite playing for relegated FC Ingolstadt. His crossing and range of passing in the game against West Brom showed that he is likely to be key to Brighton’s chances of survival and if he can score even more goals he will be a huge favourite on the south coast.
Harry Kane (Spurs)
Games to reach 100 career goals:
Harry Kane – 167
van Nistelrooy – 176
Shearer – 233
Rooney – 286
Henry – 288 pic.twitter.com/yoR6yXVZUW— Footy Accumulators (@FootyAccums) September 9, 2017
It’s September – so of course Harry Kane has now scored his first Premier League goals of the season. The England striker netted a double as Tottenham Hotspur ran out convincing winners over a disappointing Everton side at Goodison Park.
It was also a special day for Kane with his first goal being his 100th for Spurs. Luck was on Kane’s side for the goal, though. Kane was clearly aiming to cross the ball into the box but instead sent a looping ball over Jordan Pickford and into the back of the net. That goal gave Spurs the lead after 28 minutes and they didn’t look back with the impressive Christian Eriksen scoring before half time to increase the away sides advantage. Kane scored his second with a well-placed finish after getting onto the end of a Ben Davies cross to complete the scoring.
In truth, Spurs could, and maybe should, have won by more against Everton. A combination of poor finishing and good goalkeeping from Jordan Pickford kept the score to just three. Spurs will be delighted that Kane is off the mark; the forward is crucial to any success the north London side are likely to have this season and current football betting trends price him highly as a top goalscorer tip.
SEE ALSO: Who will win the Premier League Golden Boot? 12 candidates to be top scorer
Jamaal Lascelles (Newcastle United)
Newcastle United will have lifted the spirits of their recuperating manager Rafa Benitez with a 1-0 away win over Swansea City.
The first half saw both sides struggling to create chances. Despite Swansea dominating possession, it was Newcastle who came closest in the opening period, with a Joselu header which was superbly tipped away by Lukasz Fabianski.
In the second half the game was more open with both sides looking to win the match and two moments of the game involving Newcastle captain Jamaal Lascelles proved pivotal in deciding who took the three points.
The first one came on the hour mark when Tammy Abraham was played in on goal by Leroy Fer. The on loan Chelsea striker took the ball around the keeper but his effort was superbly cleared off the line by a sliding Lascelles. It was a fantastic piece of defending – although Lascelles himself has admitted his frustration that he allowed Abraham to have the chance in the first place. It was then Lascelles who turned match winner with a powerful header after 76 minutes which gave Newcastle the lead – and ultimately proved the difference.
Lascelles started the season out the Newcastle first team after the arrival of Florian Lejeune. However, the opening day injury to Lejeune has allowed Lascelles to reclaim his place. After two clean sheets and two wins in their last couple of games, it is unlikely that he will lose his place for the next couple of games at least.
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