After seeing every PL club play a match, it’s time to recap the first round of games and predict how the rest of the season will play out.
It was an exciting first batch of games in the Premier League, and before we go again Friday afternoon, let’s recap Matchday 1.
Burnley 0-3 Manchester City
I really don’t think we can blame Burnley much here. City are just in a completely different stratosphere.
It only took Erling Haaland three minutes to open his account for the season, and they never looked back.
I was actually impressed by Burnley’s initiative and willingness to try and play, so that will be an encouraging sign for them going forward. However, this City team is just too good.
Haaland was a menace as always, and Rodri showed why he’s probably the best midfielder in the league. Simple for them in the end.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Rodri
Arsenal 2-1 Nottingham Forest
Great players make great plays. That’s really all this match came down to.
It was tense and tightly contested. Full credit to Forest for hanging tough and making things difficult.
However, a brilliant spinning backheel pass by Martinelli set up Eddie Nketiah’s opener, and Bukayo Saka’s trademark left-footed curler from just outside the box gave Arsenal a 2-0 lead despite Forest’s best efforts.
When Saka, Martinelli, Rice, and others play like they did, the rest of the team can be mediocre-to-poor and still win PL matches. That’s pretty much what happened here.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Bukayo Saka
Sheffield United 0-1 Crystal Palace
Sheffield has some new signings coming in the door, but if this is the level of their typical starting lineup, they will struggle to stay up.
Palace were pedestrian – slow on the ball, dull, and guileless. It didn’t matter. Andersen and Guehi are hard to get past for any PL attack, let alone one with second-tier talent.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Joachim Andersen
Bournemouth 1-1 West Ham
Not a whole lot to say about this one.
West Ham has a massively talented eleven, even after Declan Rice’s departure, but that talent has a tendency to underperform (cough, cough… David Moyes…?).
Both teams had their moments in the game, but Jarrod Bowen’s performance stood out. Electric down the wing and through the middle, Bowen’s brilliant curling effort from outside the box opened the scoring. Good on Bournemouth for fighting back.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Jarrod Bowen
Brighton 4-1 Luton
Luton are just going to struggle this year. That’s all there is to it. I didn’t really think Brighton were close to their best either.
Both teams were awarded controversial penalties and scored them, so 3-0 is a fair scoreline to report on if we’re canceling those out. Luton in fairness tried to play when they could, but Brighton was just all-around better.
Solly March really stood out to me in the game. Every time he got the ball, it felt like something exciting was going to happen for the Seagulls. Him and Mitoma on either wing are a difficult combo to stop for any PL defense, especially one that has zero experience at that level.
Brighton will need to improve to match their success from last year, but against Luton, this performance will do the trick.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Solly March
Everton 0-1 Fulham
Everton dominated every facet of the game but were left to rue countless missed opportunities. It seemed to not matter who the chance fell to for the Toffees; it was either a miss or straight at Leno.
One loss of concentration is all it took for Fulham to get its goal, and it held on from there. The Fulham keeper, to his credit, was extremely assertive in the box and made several key saves.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Bernd Leno
Newcastle 5-1 Aston Villa
Newcastle are going to be a problem all year. I didn’t necessarily think Aston Villa was that bad. They created some decent chances, and new signing Moussa Diaby looks a real threat going forward.
The Toon were simply too good. Sandro Tonali scored Newcastle’s opener and dominated the entire midfield by himself. His versatility and know-how on when to make runs into the box and when to hold back was vital on both ends.
Just barely edging him out for Man of the Match, however, was Alexander Isak. He’s such a menace up front, and combines that tenacity with lethal clinicality and a touch of flair; he looks to be fully coming into his own.
Anthony Gordon was electric on the wing as well, and Harvey Barnes looked great when he came on. This really had little to do with Villa – Newcastle were just that much better.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Alexander Isak
Brentford 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur
One thing is for sure: Tottenham under Ange Postecoglou will be appointment viewing. Brentford’s willingness to get forward and attack certainly helped the back-and-forth action become quite enthralling.
Lots of players stood out, but Yves Bissouma was a rock in the Spurs midfield. His versatility and ability to play in both boxes will be massive for a Postecoglou-coached team that will, in all likelihood, spend a lot of time in those areas.
Fun match and fair scoreline.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Yves Bissouma
Chelsea 1-1 Liverpool
The first big-six clash of the season did not disappoint. Both teams had a lot of squad turnover during the summer, but I thought Chelsea looked a bit more cohesive.
Enzo Fernandez was very good in the midfield, and Nicolas Jackson had the Liverpool defense on skates all game.
Liverpool’s counters, however, were mightily effective. Having Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Diaz, Alexander-Arnold, and Salah on the field at the same time certainly helps in that department.
Overall, a fair result and one that will encourage both sets of fans.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Nicolas Jackson
Man Utd 1-0 Wolves
United were incredibly lucky to get anything out of this game. Wolves were excellent. Matheus Cunha looks like he’ll be a massive player for their hopes of staying up. He was all over the United defense and hit the post from point-blank range early in the second half.
On the United side, both wingers – Garnacho and Antony – were terrible. However, all it took was a little creativity from Fernandes and some improvisation from Wan-Bissaka to set up Raphael Varane for the only goal.
Wolves were so unlucky not to get a penalty at the end of the match when Andre Onana clattered Sasa Kalajdzic trying to get to a cross. VAR somehow refused to award a penalty.
All that matters, I suppose, is that United won.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Matheus Cunha
Now, this is typically where I would power rank the clubs, but given this is the first matchday recap of the season, allow this ranking to serve as my prediction for the season:
NICK’S POWER RANKINGS (23/24 predictions)
- Manchester City
- Arsenal
- Chelsea
- Liverpool
- Newcastle United
- Manchester United
- Tottenham Hotspur
- Brighton & Hove Albion
- Aston Villa
- Brentford
- West Ham
- Fulham
- Crystal Palace
- Wolverhampton Wanderers
- Bournemouth
- Nottingham Forest
- Burnley
- Everton
- Sheffield United
- Luton Town
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