Saturday, Nov. 2
Newcastle 1 – 0 Arsenal
The Gunners have gone from title contenders to title pretenders in the span of a month. Do I really think they’re out? No. It’s a long season and anything can happen, but they don’t look the business right now and need to regain their teeth. Fair play to a vibrant and energetic Newcastle squad that punished Arsenal for their complacency and mistakes.
Bournemouth 2 – 1 Manchester City
If Man City are the megalomanical Zorg in “The Fifth Element”, they came undone by one. Little. Cherry. Or in this case, two big cherries in the form of Antoine Semenyo and Evanilson (both assisted by Milos Kerkez). It could easily have been more if not for heroic efforts by Ederson. City’s veneer of invincibility looks thin; their injury woes significant.
Ipswich 1 – 1 Leicester City
I truly believe that all disparate holy entities have it in for Ipswich. Mere moments from the final whistle, substitute Jorden Ayew played a sharp one-two with Jamie Vardy before cooly finishing the job.
Nottingham Forest 3 – 0 West Ham
At the end of Saturday’s fixtures, Nottingham Forest sit in 3rd place. Let that sink in. They absolutely pulverized the Hammers at home. Even though loyal supporters will point out that West Ham fell to 10 men after Edson Álverez’s second yellow, Forest were already 1-0 up off a Chris Wood header and fully in control. Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ola Aina notched the final two.
Liverpool 2 – 1 Brighton
Seagulls looked to snatch the victory from Liverpool after Ferdi Kadıoğlu’s 14th minute strike stunned the Anfield crowd into silence. The visitors were clearly the stronger side, carving apart a slightly anemic Liverpool defense. But Slot must’ve read the riot act in the changing room, as the second half Reds came out fired up. Expertly building pressure via possession and probing runs, Liverpool saw the dam break at 70 minutes when Cody Gakpo scored his 3rd goal in five days against Albion. Three minutes later, Mo Salah put the home side up and they never looked back.
Southampton 1 – 0 Everton
Slow clap for the Saints.
Wolverhampton 2 – 2 Crystal Palace
Given Palace’s injury woes from the midweek Cup game (Eze & Wharton both lost), traveling to desperate Wolverhampton and ekeing out a draw will feel very much like a win. Loanee Trevor Chalobah earned his first goal for the red & blue, but is was Marc Guehi’s sneaky back post run that clinched an important point for the Eagles.
Sunday, Nov. 3
Tottenham 4 – 1 Aston Villa
The pundits quipped: “It will take a wonder strike to beat a keeper of Martinez’s quality” James Madison: “Hold my beer.” His deadball curler was the feather in a second half cap that saw Tottenham completely overwhelm the visitors, particularly Dominic Solanke’s double at ’75 and ’79. One note of concern for Spurs is they allowed their tenth goal from a set-piece, the worst in the league.
Manchester United 1 – 1 Chelsea
When Bruno Fernandez sent David Sanchez the wrong direction and calmly converted his PK, pandemonium ensued. But in the space of four minutes Old Trafford went from exuberance to exasperation. Casemiro’s meek clearance from a corner fell to Moises Caicedo and he wasted no time showing off his quality.
Monday, Nov. 4
Fulham vs. Brentford
PREDICTION: 2-2 draw.
REPORT: OH MY FREAKING LORD!!! What a final eight minutes of added time. Two words summarize this match: Harry Wilson. He stepped on the pitch at ’82, made two runs into the box; scored two goals (’90+1 and ’90+7). That’s some super-sub play from the young Welshman. NB… if it wasn’t for Bernt Leno’s save of Carvalho’s strike at ’90+4 the score WOULD’VE been 2-2. Just sayin’.
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