Arsenal and City win to sit joint-second behind Liverpool

City were 3-2 victors over Fulham to stay one point behind Liverpool, alongside Arsenal who saw off Southampton 3-1 with a stand-out performance from Bukayo Saka.  Arteta's men controlled the game with confidence, but lacked the finishing touch as they ended the first half with only one shot on target from 14 attempts in total. 

Fresh from a dominant win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, Arsenal were expected to sweep aside winless Southampton. But the Saints shocked the Emirates 10 minutes into the second half when Cameron Archer fired in his first Premier League goal since a summer move from Aston Villa. The Saints front-man was served by Mateus Fernandes after he won the ball back from Raheem Sterling.

Southampton's lead only lasted three minutes before Kai Havertz scored for the seventh consecutive home game. Gabriel Martinelli was introduced after an hour and took just eight minutes to make his mark with a finish on the volley from Bukayo Saka's cross. Southampton were close to equalising as they were denied by the woodwork twice, however, after setting up Arsenal's first two goals, Saka pounced on a loose ball to score the third himself at the 88'.

- Fulham's outrageous opener -

Rodri's season-long absence due to a serious knee injury is expected to be a major blow to City's chances of retaining the title for a fifth consecutive season. But it was the Spaniard's deputy Mateo Kovacic who scored twice to turn the game around for the champions at the Etihad.

The visitors had not lost since the opening night of the season at Manchester United and led thanks to Andreas Pereira's finish from an outrageous backheel assist by Raul Jimenez., Kovacic's deflected effort quickly brought City level before a cleaner strike less than two minutes into the second half made it 2-1. Jeremy Doku then smashed into the top corner from outside the box to give City a two-goal cushion, which they needed. Rodrigo Muniz gave Fulham hope on 88 minutes, but City held out for a 17th consecutive win against the Cottagers.

West Ham eased the pressure on new boss Julen Lopetegui by ending a run of three home defeats to start the new season. Michail Antonio, Mohammed Kudus, Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta struck for the Hammers in a 4-1 win over Ipswich, who are still waiting for their first Premier League win 22 years. There were six goals before half-time as Brentford beat Wolves 5-3 to leave the visitors still rooted to the foot of the table. Leicester secured their first league win of the season as Facundo Buonanotte's strike beat Bournemouth 1-0. Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag faces a huge match if he is to remain in charge when the Red Devils visit Aston Villa in the pick of Sunday's action.

 

October 5, 2024