Liverpool continued their fine start to the 2019/20 campaign as they defeated Southampton 2-1 away from home. It may not have been the prettiest of victories but Jurgen Klopp won’t mind as his side now has six points from two games. Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino scored the goals for the Kops while Danny Ings grabbed the Saints consolation.
For the defending champions-City, they were denied a late winner by VAR as they drew 2-2 with Tottenham Hotspurs. Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero struck for Pep Guardiola’s side while Erik Lamela and Lucas Moura replied in kind for the visitors.
At the Emirates, Arsenal made it a perfect 6 points from two games thanks to a 2-1 victory over Burnley. Alex Lacazatte and Pierre Emerick Aubameyang found the back of the net either side of Ashley Barnes’ equalizer.
For Chelsea, they are still yet to win a game under Frank Lampard as they were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Leicester City. Mason Mount gave the host a first-half lead but his goal was canceled out by Wilfred Ndidi in the second.
Elsewhere, Teemu Pukki grabbed the headlines thanks to a hattrick as Norwich City defeated Newcastle United 3-1 on Saturday. Bournemouth beat Aston Villa 2-1 away from home, Everton were 1-0 winners against Watford while Sheffield United edged Crystal Palace 1-0 at Bramall Lane.
The remaining Match-Day two fixtures will see Wolves host Man United on Monday night.
Here are the XI players who stood out for me this past weekend in a 3:4:3.
GK: Jordan Pickford (Everton)
Pickford did not make a host of saves but the stop to deny Troy Deeney in the second half was as good as it got for the England international. He has now kept two clean sheets in as many games.
CB: Chris Basham (Sheffield United)
Basham made three tackles and five clearances in Sheffield’s 1-0 win over Palace– their first since their return to the top-flight.
CB: Caglar Soyuncu (Leicester)
Leicester City’s center-back out-battled and out-fought Chelsea’s strikers and were sent packing by the Turkish international. This kid has a real battling spirit, one that could not go unnoticed.
CB: Dan Burn (Brighton)
New £20million signing Adam Webster has another thing coming if he reckons he’s getting past Burn and into the starting XI any time soon. Once again he was excellent for the Seagulls at both ends of the pitch in the 1-1 draw with West Ham and also had an assist chalked off by VAR.
MF: Dani Ceballos (Arsenal)
Ceballos has already won over hearts at the Emirates thanks to his display in the 2-1 win over Burnley last Saturday. The Spaniard assisted both of Arsenal’s goals in his first start for the Gunners.
MF: Kevin De Bruyne (Man City)
The Belgian midfielder created nine chances against Spurs on Saturday evening, with a pair of them resulting in assists on City’s two goals.
MF: James Madison (Leicester)
Leicester City should have come away from Stamford Bridge the victors and James Maddison the hero. In the end Maddison had to settle for man of the match while his team settled for a point. Maddison has created 50 chances from set plays in the Premier League since start of last season – six more than any other player.
MF: John Lundstram (Sheffield United)
As well as scoring the winning goal, Lundstram completed 90 percent of his passes in the opposition half against Crystal Palace.
FW: Raheem Sterling (Man City).
Even with Moussa Sissoko helping him out, Kyle Walker-Peters will be glad he doesn’t have to see the England superstar for some time. His header for City’s opening goal was excellent while he was always a threat running at Spurs’ backline.
FW: Sadio Mane (Liverpool)
Directly involved in both Liverpool goals in the win over Southampton on Saturday. Mane assisted one and scored the other as the Kops ran out 2-1 winners.
FW: Teemu Pukki (Norwich)
Pukki is the name on every Premier League fan’s lips at the moment. He scored a hattrick in Norwich’s 3-1 win at home to Newcastle United.
