Dyche and O’Neil sack coming while Arsenal enjoy overdue Newcastle humbling
Gary OâNeil and Sean Dyche will be feeling the pressure in the sack race, while Liverpool needed a hand from Kepa and Arsenal enjoyed a Newcastle defeat.
Aston Villa 3-1 Wolves: The end is nigh for Gary OâNeil
How fitting, considering the disputed nature of this West Midlands derby, that the formbook never needed to be thrown out.
Aston Villa had been pretty poor in their previous game, a home fixture against opposition threatened with relegation, eventually dominating and coming from behind to win.
Wolves led for an age in their last match against a team trying to establish itself among the Premier League elite, before retreating into their defensive shell too far and too early, conceding late goals in defeat.
The only surprise with the stoppage-time goal from substitute Jhon Duran is that Villa had scored their winner before then. Ollie Watkins equalised nearly 50 minutes after Matheus Cunhaâs opener and Ezri Konsa put the hosts ahead as time ebbed away. Wolves had their last shot in the 45th minute; it was coming.
Unai Emery will be thrilled to follow up victory in the Champions League with a win which keeps Villa neck and neck with Liverpool. While Wolves are only bottom alphabetically, it feels as though Gary OâNeil might not be long for the challenge of dragging them back up. Wolves have conceded seven and scored no second-half goals in the Premier League this season. That can only reflect dreadfully upon the manager and his approach after the break.
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Fulham 3-1 Newcastle: Arsenal fans cheer on as Magpiesâ deceiving start catches up
Arsenal youth graduates Alex Iwobi, Emile Smith Rowe and Reiss Nelson all starred for Fulham against Newcastle United, handing the Magpies an overdue first defeat of the season.
Eddie Howeâs side had 10 points out of 12 ahead of their trip to Craven Cottage but have been pretty pants at the start of the season. Their comeback win at Wolves last week could not be repeated but Newcastle did threaten to salvage more points when half-time substitute Jacob Murphy assisted Harvey Barnes 30 seconds into the second half.
Newcastle and Fulham traded chances before Nelson sealed the win for the hosts in the 92nd minute. His goal was one that Arsenal fans would have loved, but not as much as Smith Roweâs to make it 2-0 in the first half.
Arsenal fans were very sad to see him leave but knew it was the right decision. The fact he is no longer at the club doesnât mean they canât support him anymore, though, and another goal will make their day. His shot might have been weak and Nick Pope may have threw it in the goal, but they, nor Fulham fans, will care.
Another former Arsenal youngster in Alex Iwobi got an assist as well, setting up Raul Jimenez for the opening goal, which was taken very, very well.
Newcastle will need to respond away to AFC Wimbledon in the Carabao Cup and surely will. They need to improve massively when they host Man City next weekend, because what they are producing right now is not sustainable, as displayed against Fulham.
Leicester 1-1 Everton: Foxes and Toffees stuck at the bottom
Fair play to Sean Dyche, who sought to address Evertonâs predilection towards losing games they have at one stage led 2-0 by only establishing a 1-0 advantage instead. But if the Toffees are to look upon a draw away at Leicester in anything like a positive light it doesnât half sum up their current position.
There were again silver linings to cling to: Iliman Ndiayeâs goal; Dwight McNeil continuing to shine in the middle; Jesper Lindstrom continuing to find his feet. But those are some awfully dark and unavoidable clouds looming ahead.
If a Dyche team cannot a) win despite leading 1-0, b) win despite leading 2-0, c) score a third goal, d) win after going behind and e) defend set-pieces, it is no surprise to see the supporters questioning the point of it all. Stephy Mavididi scoring within the six-yard box from an uncleared corner with three Everton defenders and Jordan Pickford on the line is another damning footnote in this awful season.
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Liverpool 3-0 Bournemouth: New club, same Kepa
Liverpool really needed to beat Bournemouth after Nottingham Forest stunned Arne Slot to win 1-0 at Anfield last week. Their afternoon started horrendously, going behind in the early exchanges when Antoine Semenyo scored. But the Bournemouth man was marginally offside and that gave Liverpool a shot in the arm no team should require that early on.
Getting back to winning ways was imperative and Slot can thank Kepa Arrizabalaga for being Kepa Arrizabalaga and getting the ball rolling.
Ibrahima Konateâs long diagonal over the top for Luis Diaz saw Kepa come rushing out of his goal, getting nowhere near the ball, getting rounded with ease and watching the Colombian put the goal in the net. Gotta love, Kepa, donât ya?
Diaz made it two and Darwin Nunez made it three, scoring a trademark Mohamed Salah goal, bending one in the far corner with his left foot. And no, we have not made that up.
A comfortable afternoon can not come often enough and Bournemouth gave Liverpool just that. They probably didnât deserve a consolation goal but the Cherries had 19 shots at Anfield, which is an incredible amount and something Slot should be a tad worried about. Thankfully, only six went on target and Caoimhin Kelleher kept his sheet nice and clean in the absence of Alisson.
Southampton 1-0 Ipswich: Saints suffer sucker punch in six-pointer
The term âsix-pointerâ should not really be thrown around at this stage of the season but both Southampton and Ipswich know this is the sort of fixture they should be winning if they want to avoid relegation from the Premier League. All three promoted sides were tipped to go down before a ball was kicked, just as they did in 2023/24, and no wins between them yet is bleak.
Relegation six-pointers are often defined by the goalkeepers and it was the man in between the sticks who shone through for Southampton to pick up their first point of the season. But it should have been three. Aaron Ramsdale made some outstanding stops in the first half to keep Ipswich out after young Tyler Dibling scored in the fifth minute.
The promising 18-year-old made his first Premier League start at home to Manchester United last week and impressed, but his goal against Ipswich was a moment of pure class.
Played the ball by Adam Lallana, Dibling took it on the turn and left Jacob Greaves for dead, lifting his head like a cultured pro to see Arijanet Muric scrambling on the deck, allowing him to pass it past the Ipswich goalkeeper.
He looks bloody brilliant and for all of the players Southampton have bought, Dibling should now establish himself as the first name on the teamsheet.
There are still no wins on the board for the promoted trio after Sam Morsyâs deflected effort in stoppage time. It will have knocked Russell Martin and Ramsdale sick seeing the ball float into the top corner. The ex-Arsenal goalkeeper had no chance whatsoever and an afternoon that should have been so memorable will be one they look back on with huge disappointment.
Both teams need to win a Premier League match to stay up, that much is for certain. Aston Villa at home for Ipswich next week is not ideal. Bournemouth away for Southampton is a little nicer.
Tottenham 3-1 Brentford: Johnson makes the haters his motivators
It is deeply regrettable yet depressingly inevitable that an element of the Spurs fanbase might feel empowered by Brennan Johnsonâs inspirational reaction to their abuse on social media.
In those warped minds his two crucial goals in three days might not have come without the faceless, nameless cowardice the Welshman had to endure after the north London derby â and, frankly, ever since he joined from Nottingham Forest for a fee he had no input in deciding.
With excellent finishes against Coventry and Brentford, Johnson scored in consecutive games for the first time under Ange Postecoglou. And as the manager said in midweek, âI reckon you put any of his critics in that situation and they would be looking for a change of pants pretty quicklyâ. But those transgressors should have felt nothing but embarrassment when the forward celebrated his piercing strike from a Heung-min Son pass with a simple finger to the lips.
Sandwiched in between Dominic Solankeâs first Spurs goal and a delightful late James Maddison effort, it is what really decided an engaging, error-strewn game with Brentford, who for the second straight game quite foolishly scored in the first minute and lost. While the robotic Erling Haaland did for them for the first time, there was an admirably human story behind this defeat.
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