The English Premier League (EPL) league table continues to get intense with each passing matchday. This past weekend produced some interesting results.
Man City 6-0 Nottingham Forest
Erling Haaland scored a perfect hat-trick inside 38 minutes to make history as Manchester City crushed Nottingham Forest 6-0 at the Etihad Stadium. Having put City 2-0 up with two early close-range finishes, Haaland converted from John Stones’ header to make it nine goals in his first five Premier League matches – a new competition record. Joao Cancelo then extended City’s lead further with a fine long-range effort, before Julian Alvarez opened his Premier League account with two more goals on his first start. The dominant win ensured Pep Guardiola’s side maintained their unbeaten start to the new season and laid down an ominous marker to any would-be challengers, with the champions now fully up to speed.
Liverpool 2-1 Newcastle
Newcastle debutant Alexander Isak, playing just hours after receiving his work permit, had given his new team a first-half lead with a fine finish, only for Roberto Firmino to equalise in the second half. It looked like more dropped points for Jurgen Klopp’s side as the game ticked into stoppage time, but a late corner caused a goalmouth scramble, which ended in Carvalho scoring for the second time in a week. Eddie Howe will be disappointed with the result but would have been pleased with the efforts of his team, who were missing key players Bruno Guimaraes and Allan Saint-Maximin.
Leicester 0-1 Man Utd
Manchester United have won three Premier League games in a row for the first time this year as they beat Leicester City 1-0 at the King Power Stadium. Although United’s performance was by no means flawless, victory moved them up to fifth in the table, with the nightmares of their first two games of the season seemingly a distant memory. United were fully deserving of the first-half lead that was given to them by Jadon Sancho at the end of an incisive move – though their level dropped significantly after the restart. Leicester were encouraged and carried greater threat, but clear-cut chances remained at a premium as United’s solid backline helped guide the visitors to another win.
Other results:
Crystal Palace 1-1 Brentford
Fulham 2-1 Brighton
Southampton 2-1 Chelsea
Leeds United 1-1 Everton
Bournemouth 0-0 Wolves
Arsenal 2-1 Aston Villa
West Ham 1-1 Tottenham
