Burkina Faso
Czech Republic
Lithuania
Montenegro
Nigeria
North Macedonia
United Arab Emirates

Manchester City fire a blank as rivals march on - Premier League talking points

sportsmole.co.uk, 19 September 2021, 17:44
There was plenty of drama and talking points once again as the Premier League action continued this weekend.

Here, the PA news agency looks at five things we learned from the latest round of fixtures.

Tired City draw unexpected blank

After netting 16 goals in their previous three home games, having dispatched Norwich and Arsenal 5-0 before sweeping past RB Leipzig 6-3 in their midweek Champions League opener, Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl was expecting another onslaught. However, the champions were unusually blunt in attack, only managing one effort on target - and that in the 90th minute - as Saints battled to a goalless draw. City boss Pep Guardiola thought the lack of preparation time after their European exploits played its part and also felt guilty for not rewarding the City fans with a win following his midweek rallying call. However, with three tough away games coming up at Chelsea, Paris St Germain and then Liverpool, there is not much opportunity ahead to fully recharge.

Refreshed Reds look up for the challenge

While City may have been somewhat laboured on Saturday, Liverpool displayed few signs of fatigue as they swept past Crystal Palace 3-0 at Anfield. Boss Jurgen Klopp made six changes from the midweek Champions League victory over AC Milan, with £36million summer signing Ibrahima Konate making his debut at centre-back. While there are sterner challenges ahead on all fronts, Klopp will be hoping a change continues to prove as good a rest in tackling a busy schedule before the next international break head on.

United show steel to blunt Hammers

Having come up short in their own Champions League opener away to Young Boys in Switzerland, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side produced the perfect response to fight back and take all three points at West Ham. Cristiano Ronaldo's fourth goal in three games since re-signing quickly had them back on level terms after falling behind to a deflected strike from Said Benrahma, before Jesse Lingard's stunning late goal completed the turnaround. Yes, there was still late drama when Irons skipper Mark Noble came off the bench to see his stoppage-time penalty saved, but dropping two points would have been rough justice on a squad which very much looks ready to mount a long-overdue sustained title challenge.

Silva lining as Blues sink Spurs

There was little sentiment shown by Chelsea on the pitch as they continued their own impressive start with a 3-0 win at Tottenham. Everyone in the stadium was united before kick off to hold a minute's applause in tribute to former England, Tottenham and Chelsea striker Jimmy Greaves, Spurs' record goalscorer, who died at the age of 81 on Sunday morning. Thomas Tuchel's side, though, have displayed a ruthless streak to adapt to whatever is needed to grind out a result this season. The latest came after working through the first half before making the needed tactical changes during the interval. Defender Thiago Silva crashed in a header from a corner to break the deadlock before substitute N'Golo Kante's deflected effort and a late strike by Antonio Rudiger wrapped up another hard-earned victory - which also inflicted a second straight league defeat for Spurs under Nuno Espirito Santo.

Farke claims unwanted record

Norwich may have swept to another impressive Sky Bet Championship title under Daniel Farke last season, but their return to the Premier League has failed to get off the ground. A disappointing 3-1 home defeat by fellow new boys Watford on Saturday extended the Canaries' pointless start, and saw head coach Farke become the first manager to lose 15 consecutive matches in the English top flight. Should that wretched run of form continue, questions will be grow over whether Farke is the right man at the helm - no matter how much hard-earned credit he has in the bank at Carrow Road.

Show more

Top News

24 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea will reportedly have to pay a penalty price of £5m if they renege on their obligation to sign Jadon Sancho in the summer transfer window. 24 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are reportedly braced for competition from Tottenham Hotspur for the signature of Sunderland's Chris Rigg. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Virgil Van Dijk has reportedly decided to end his time at Liverpool, with Paris Saint-Germain touted as a likely destination. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Virgil Van Dijk has reportedly decided to end his time at Liverpool, with Paris Saint-Germain touted as a likely destination. 23 March 2025 talksport.com Chelsea must pay Manchester United £5million if they don't sign Jadon Sancho on a permanent deal this summer, talkSPORT understands. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk France dramatically completed a terrific UEFA Nations League comeback over Croatia as they reached the semi-finals with a 5-4 penalty-shootout win following a 2-0 quarter-final second-leg victory and 2-2 aggregate draw at the Stade de France. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Portugal advanced into the UEFA Nations League semi-finals after beating Denmark 5-2 in the second leg at home on Sunday night, winning 5-3 on aggregate after extra time. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Spain booked their spot in the semi-finals of the 2024-25 UEFA Nations League courtesy of a penalty-shootout success over the Netherlands on Sunday night, with the two teams finally being separated after two blockbuster contests. 23 March 2025 talksport.com Michael Owen has revealed the formation he would have gone with to unlock the best of England's Golden Generation. 23 March 2025 talksport.com Phil Parkinson says win, lose or draw, Wrexham owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have his back. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Julian Nagelsmann's Germany scraped into the semi-final of the UEFA Nations League after drawing 3-3 in a dramatic quarter-final second leg against Italy at Signal Iduna Park on Sunday night. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Egypt will aim to make it back-to-back wins in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers when they welcome Sierra Leone to the Cairo International Stadium on Tuesday for a matchday six encounter. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk In-form Ecuador will make the trip to Santiago to face Chile in World Cup qualifying on Tuesday knowing they are within touching distance of reaching the finals. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Everton have reportedly identified Genoa centre-back Koni De Winter as a potential replacement for Manchester United-linked Jarrad Branthwaite. 23 March 2025 talksport.com Cristiano Ronaldo was denied from the penalty spot just six minutes into Portugal's crucial Nations League clash with Denmark. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool's Alisson Becker, Arsenal's Gabriel Magalhaes and Newcastle United's Bruno Guimaraes will all drop out of the Brazil starting lineup for Tuesday's World Cup 2026 qualifying clash against rivals Argentina. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Argentina midfielder Rodrigo De Paul is pushing to start Tuesday's World Cup 2026 qualifying clash against Brazil in Buenos Aires. 23 March 2025 talksport.com Edin Dzeko has shown off the brutal facial injury he suffered playing for Bosnia-Herzegovina on Friday. 23 March 2025 talksport.com Mohamed Salah wants to stay at Liverpool even though he hasn't yet agreed a new deal. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Argentina will look to officially secure their place at World Cup 2026 when they face rivals Brazil in Tuesday's clash at Estadio Mas Monumental in Buenos Aires. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Morocco will look to continue their impressive start to the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers when they host Tanzania at Stade Municipal on Tuesday. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Republic of Ireland and Bulgaria have announced their starting lineups for Sunday's fixture in the UEFA Nations League. 23 March 2025 talksport.com It's almost been eight years since Andrea Pirlo retired from football, but he hasn't lost his world-class free-kick abilities. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Newcastle United have suffered a blow in their pursuit of Malaga's teenage winger Antonio Cordero ahead of the summer transfer window. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona have reportedly set their asking price for Ferran Torres, with the versatile attacker expected to be on the move during this summer's transfer window. 23 March 2025 talksport.com Steve Bruce has passionately responded to Dwight Gayle after he claimed he 'didn't do tactics' when in charge of Newcastle. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid have reportedly been offered the chance to sign Manchester City defender Manuel Akanji this summer. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Luka Modric has revealed that he is yet to speak with Real Madrid over his future beyond the end of the campaign. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Flash back to the first few months of Ange Postecoglou's Tottenham Hotspur reign, where the Australian took a marvellous 26 Premier League points from 30 on offer, the most by any head coach in their first 10 matches in the competition. 23 March 2025 sportsmole.co.uk Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane is reportedly giving serious consideration to returning to the Premier League during this summer's transfer window, with Liverpool said to be his preferred destination.