Indonesia
Nigeria
South Africa

5 Things we learned from the weekend's Premier League action

sportsmole.co.uk, 12 September 2021, 18:08
The Premier League returned this weekend after the international break. Here, the PA news agency looks at five things we learned from the latest round of fixtures.
Ronaldo's presence alone can get United motoring

For much of the first half of Cristiano Ronaldo's Manchester United homecoming on Saturday, it was possible to wonder what all the fuss was about. United were ponderous in possession, potentially vulnerable on the break and struggling to get Ronaldo into the game. Yet there seemed a certain inevitability that the Portuguese, as he has done throughout his glittering career, would deliver when it mattered - and so it proved. The five-time world player of the year was in the right place at the right time to score twice and analysis of his game shows he was consistently getting into dangerous positions, whether he received the ball or not, and a sniff is sometimes all he needs. He is an irrepressible force who can energise the team and fans simply by stepping onto the pitch and that alone can propel United forward, even on his rare quiet days.

International break good to Arsenal

After their dismal start to the season - three defeats from three without scoring a single goal - Arsenal could easily have slipped into crisis had they lost to another winless side in Norwich. Yet Mikel Arteta has clearly rallied his group during the international break. The Gunners returned with a spring in their step against the Canaries and claimed a deserved 1-0 win after racking up 30 shots, their most in a game for almost four years. They will obviously face tougher tests but fans will hope a corner has been turned.

Silva service for City

With Jack Grealish arriving to bolster a squad already boasting the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling at champions Manchester City, it might have been easy for Bernardo Silva to slip away unnoticed over the summer. Yet despite apparently wanting to move on, the Portuguese has remained at the Etihad Stadium and injuries to De Bruyne and Foden this term have seen him handed another opportunity by Pep Guardiola. It is one he has grasped and his energetic, all-action performance against Leicester on Saturday, capped by the winning goal, underlined his value.

Hero to zero for Antonio

Michail Antonio proved just how quickly fortunes can change in football. The West Ham forward was named player of the month for August after scoring four times in his side's opening three games, also garnering plenty of attention with a unique Dirty Dancing-themed celebration along the way. Yet from hero he went to zero on Saturday as he was sent off for a poor challenge during the Hammers' drab goalless draw with Southampton. His forthcoming suspension will frustrate manager David Moyes.

Stop Kane and Son - and stop Spurs

That Tottenham are heavily reliant on Harry Kane and Son Heung-min is hardly news, but new manager Nuno Espirito Santo saw that point starkly illustrated on Saturday. Spurs had enjoyed a 100 per cent start to the season while Crystal Palace had failed to win a game, but the tables were turned. Palace did a superb job to keep the prolific Kane quiet, limiting his touches and preventing him getting into the game. With Son out injured, Spurs simply lacked inspiration. Admittedly, they had to play a third of the game with 10 men but it was still a worry for them.

Top News

26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United and Real Madrid have seemingly been handed a significant boost in their hopes of landing AC Milan left-back Theo Hernandez, who is experiencing 'high tension' with head coach Paulo Fonseca. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Man City will attempt to arrest their calamitous slump in form when they face Everton on Boxing Day. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta will not be 'waving the white flag' in the Premier League title race, but the Spaniard and his squad will look at the top-flight table with "a fair bit of regret". 26 December 2024 talksport.com Man City's under pressure stars slept at the club's training ground on Christmas Day as they look to turn around their worrying form. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea have reportedly laid out their plan over how to approach for the upcoming January transfer window. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Nottingham Forest will be bidding to end a 29-year run when they play host to Tottenham Hotspur on Boxing Day. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United will have the chance to sign Victor Osimhen in January in a deal with Napoli that would see one of Rasmus Hojlund, Joshua Zirkzee or Marcus Rashford head in the opposite direction. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Chelsea will always be busy in a transfer window - it's a tale as old as time. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Both beaten by Serie A title contenders just before Christmas, Empoli and Genoa will meet for their final fixture of 2024 on Saturday afternoon. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Aston Villa will be hoping to avoid equalling an 89-year streak when they square off against Newcastle United on Boxing Day. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Damian Lewis may be an award-winning actor - but Zinedine Zidane showed him levels when it came to a performing masterclass. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal face the prospect of losing out on Athletic Bilbao's Nico Williams, who is reportedly on serious interest to Bayern Munich. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim believes the club are at one of their lowest moments in living memory, and the side face the prospect of entering 2025 in the bottom half of the Premier League. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Hearts vs. Hibernian (Thursday, 12.30pm) Two places separate Edinburgh rivals Hearts and Hibernian in the Scottish Premiership table heading into gameweek 19's Boxing Day derby at Tynecastle Park. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Man City vs. Everton (Thursday, 12.30pm) The first Premier League fixture after Christmas will see Everton make the short trip down the M62 to face champions Manchester City at the Etihad on Boxing Day. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk The Boxing Day feast of Premier League football concludes at around 10pm at Anfield, where league leaders Liverpool will hope to be celebrating a 13th top-flight win of the season against Leicester City. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool will almost certainly win their Premier League match against Leicester City at Anfield on Boxing Day, according to Reds expert David Lynch. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Ruben Amorim's Manchester United will look to return to winning ways when they travel to Molineux to face Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League on Boxing Day. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal fans should not expect Ethan Nwaneri to start Premier League matches week in week out in the wake of Bukayo Saka's injury, Gunners expert Charles Watts has warned. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea and Fulham and meet at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day in a second West London derby to be played at the stadium in the space of three weeks. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Looking to strengthen their unlikely push for a Champions League spot, Bournemouth will host Crystal Palace at the Vitality Stadium in the Premier League on Boxing Day. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Three years after being given the boot by Tottenham Hotspur, Nuno Espirito Santo reunites with his former employers again on Boxing Day, as Spurs head to the City Ground to meet Nottingham Forest. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Closing out the first round of post-Christmas Premier League fixtures, Arsenal and Ipswich Town engage in an Emirates battle on Friday evening. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Two iconic north-west clubs meet in the Premier League on Boxing Day, looking to move further up the standings from where they currently are, when Manchester City welcome Everton to the Etihad. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Aston Villa midfielder Emiliano Buendia may reportedly make the switch to Leeds United during the January transfer window. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk West Bromwich Albion have confirmed that Carlos Corberan has left the club to become the new manager of Valencia. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah could hit yet another new Premier League goalscoring milestone when the Reds host Leicester City in their Boxing Day battle at Anfield. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna has lost captain Sam Morsy to suspension ahead of Friday's Premier League clash with Arsenal at the Emirates. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal temporarily begin life without Bukayo Saka when Ipswich Town arrive at the Emirates for Friday's Premier League showdown. 25 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk The curtain closes on the festive round of Premier League fixtures at the Emirates Stadium, where title outsiders Arsenal and relegation candidates Ipswich Town lock horns on Friday evening.