Talking points: No title for Liverpool, Unreal Erling and real deal Arsenal
REAL DEAL: Arsenal's Thomas Partey celebrates scoring their side's first goal of the game with team-mate Granit Xhaka during the Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium.
Football makes fools out of us all eventually, but I think we can legitimately say, with seven wins out of eight games this season, sitting atop the league, Arsenal really do look like the real deal. The game against Tottenham was a big test and one they passed easily. While it seems unlikely that they can compete with Manchester City long term, right now, they absolutely are. And right now, only City look better than them and only then because of Erling Haaland’s extraordinary talent. Were he to get injured, well, maybe Arsenal are in with a chance of a title win. They are certainly enjoying playing football.
They were far superior to Spurs. Better organised, they held 65% possession, much more dangerous, they had 22 shots at the Tottenham goal, nine on target, to Spurs total of four. And though they conceded a penalty for Harry Kane to score, the 3 - 1 scoreline flattered Spurs. Had Arsenal won by five or six, it would not have been unfair.
Superior all over the pitch, they are strong in every position. Even the defence, which for so long has been their weak spot, under the leadership of this season’s early hero, William Saliba, looks resolute and tough. They have cohesion and organisation and have married that to some exciting forwards. Playing Granit Xhaka further forward has made such a difference. No longer does he look like an accident waiting to happen, he’s now influencing games and scored their third on Saturday. They came out of the traps at a hell of a pace and had so much energy all afternoon, but more than anything, they had self-belief and that can take you a long, long way. Impressive stuff. They end the weekend on top of the table and rightfully so.
Sometimes you’ve just got to laugh at Erling Haaland’s outrageous skill. I say skill, is he really skillful? Not in the George Best or Maradona or Thierry Henry way. His skill is timing runs, having enough pace to beat most defenders and an almost vicious focus on the ball. His first goal, scored with a header was routine enough until you saw it in slow motion. He came at the ball with the focus of a cat pouncing on a mouse, eyes never leaving it, almost angrily powering it into the goal. He can go short or long. He’s huge and can physically dominate anyone. He's clinical and unstoppable. He even grabbed an assist for one of Phil Foden’s three. 15 goals in eight matches, 17 in all competitions, 14 in eight Premier League games, three consecutive home hattricks. He’s on course to beat Dixie Dean’s league goal record of 60.
Antonio Conte seems unable to address his team’s habit of throwing in disjointed, uninspired performances which lack inspiration. They may well feel that Emerson Royal’s red should’ve been yellow and might point to a brief revival after Kane’s penalty, but in truth they were outplayed for most of the game. Hugo Lloris' mistake to gift Arsenal a second was symptomatic of the whole team’s under performance. The problem seems to be with the attitude of the players themselves. How else to explain their ability to tear sides apart with a cutting elegance in one game and look woefully out of their depth in the next?
Perhaps this is why Conte has not renewed his contract, which is up in the summer. He’s no fool. He must know that he is not able to get his side to play well consistently, even though he has got them to play well in patches. Is he the sort of manager to stick around for a couple more years in the hope that he can eventually turn the team into title challengers? His CV suggests not.
The most significant thing about the Bournemouth v Brentford game was that the referee, when sent to the monitor to look again at his decision not to give a penalty, decided he had been right in the first place and didn’t overturn it. This is the first time anyone can remember this happening. Bournemouth are unbeaten in four since sacking Scott Parker and this was Brentford’s first clean sheet, so both left an uneventful game feeling content with the goalless draw.
New Chelsea boss Graham Potter had never beaten Crystal Palace, so he was probably unsurprised when they took the lead in his first league game as the Blues boss and perhaps just as surprised to see Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang actually score, given his poor form at Arsenal. But it was Palace’s player of the season last year, Conor Gallagher who won the game with a late lash into the top corner. Gallagher has had a difficult start to the season at Chelsea but unexpectedly has kept his place. A player with so much potential, he must be delighted that Potter has taken over. He’s exactly the sort of run-all-day young talent the new manager likes, who, when on form, is a real difference maker, as Saturday’s game well proved. Potter’s excellent man-management skills will only make Gallagher better by giving him the freedom and courage to be creative and dare to be dangerous. That’s good for the Blues and for England too.
Liverpool have fallen behind in almost every game this season and Brighton were ahead within four minutes, two nil up with 18. The Red’s defence is not working as a unit on the right hand side and against Brighton were constantly exposed by a team that was thinking quicker and composed on the break.
Trent Alexander-Arnold was given a torrid afternoon defensively, repeatedly pulled out of shape, somewhat justifying Gareth Southgate’s comments that he felt the likes of Reece James and Kieran Trippier are better all round players, despite Trent’s fantastic crossing ability which was also on display against the Seagulls. All Brighton’s goals came down Trent and Joel Matip’s side. It is an obvious glaring weakness which needs addressing immediately.
Virgil Van Dijk had never lost a home league game for Liverpool in 67. Make that 68, despite him turning in yet another flaky performance where he seemed to be behind the pace of the game, in the way that a player who has just gone over the hill is. Worrying.
Having done well to take the lead Liverpool seemed to flag instead of pressing home their advantage and a Brighton equaliser was not a shock. They have dropped 11 points already this season and are 11 off the top. Unless things change dramatically, they will not be anywhere near winning the title this year. With the club lying in ninth, having won just two games in seven, struggling in Europe and with a physically demanding Champions League game against Rangers this week, things could get worse yet. With observers spotting parallels between this and Jurgen Klopp’s last season at Dortmund, it is not the most unlikely thing to think this could be his last at Liverpool.
It was as though Graham Potter had never left. Roberto De Zerbi’s iteration of the Seagulls played in the style Potter had established and fearlessly took the game to Liverpool. Slick passing and beautifully organised, Anfield did not intimidate them at all.
Leandro Trossard has been playing in a more advanced role now and he made a mess of Liverpool’s lines very successfully, scoring an excellent hattrick. Danny Welbeck scared them all afternoon too. Brighton were aggressive in competing for second balls and were superb off the ball.
While Liverpool asserted themselves in the second half, making a comeback and taking the lead, Brighton still made chances, still tore open the Liverpool defence and Welbeck really should’ve netted them a third and a fourth even before Trossard’s equaliser and hattrick strike hit the back of the net.
If this is how Brighton are going to play under their new manager, they have a very good chance of making European places. They’re adventurous, sophisticated and have discovered their shooting boots. Tremendous to watch, they should not be underestimated.
Dwight McNeil scored his first goal in 55 games for the Toffees to take all the points at Southampton. It was the first time the team had scored two goals in a game. While unbeaten in five games and edging up to 11th, despite having only won two games, this improvement in results feels brittle. That Jordan Pickford was back in goal is significant but with just seven goals scored in eight games and seven conceded, it's clear where their strengths are and where their weaknesses lie.
Only Chelsea and Manchester United spent more than West Ham’s £179 million this summer. They’re a very expensively assembled side, full of good players, who have been radically underperforming, starting this game in the relegation places.
It’s long been thought manager David Moyes isn’t the best at spending money and managing expensive players and the start of this season has hinted that this view has some truth to it. That being said they were better than Wolves, but that is not saying much, as they are injury hit and short of forwards. West Ham still allowed the visitors 15 shots at goal, gave them 61% possession and conceded a disallowed offside goal.
This despite at times putting 10 behind the ball to protect a two goal lead. The more defensive Moyes asks his team to be, the worse they often look. Wolves new arrival, the surely too-old-to-cut-it 34-year-old Diego Costa should’ve scored with a header shortly after coming on as a sub. Against a side with half-decent strikers, West Ham wouldn't have won.
They did enough, but is doing enough good enough for the amount of cash they’ve spent? The feeling persists that this is a rather good team being held back by its over cautious manager and that someone with more progressive and innovative ideas could shape them into a very good team indeed. Wolves thought their performance was so poor they had to sack Bruno Lage.
; simply embarrassing.
All wrong and nothing right.
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