The Premier League is back and so are the fans! I always get excited when the Prem comes back around...but this year even more so seeing the stands packed at the grounds! A goal-filled first round of games. With a total of 34 goals 3 more than the previous year's openers we saw a few surprises, have identified a few overperformers but all and all a great week for football!
Game of the week
The reigning premier league champs left me with more questions than answers, primarily how can you be the first club to spend $1.1 Billion and still not have any forwards. Man City's spending habits are more akin to a car collection in that most of them won't get driven, and you don't really need more than one or two of the midfielders you have acquired. While I think is more of a matter of when they land their dream striker at the Etihad, it is evident they do not have the scoring power they would hope for. Tottenham on the other hand, left us saying Harry who? Son carried the Spurs over in a dramatic fashion and giving a quick showing that Nuno has his team performing in what could already be seen as a 'clutch moment'.
Imposters
Swift Kicks' Steve was the first to bring up that Leicester has a Vardy party problem. With Vardy scoring a great goal in the 41st minute. It was evident that Leicester is lacking striking power in any form other than Vardy. This Leicester squad has a long way to go to prove to me that they are in fact a big 6 team, many teams would have capitalized against Leicester and made them pay for sloppy defending. Nothing more evident in this than when Adama from Wolves (who is the most yolked player in the league...) missed an absolute sitter and should have put Wolves up 1-0 in the 30th minute. Better teams can and will convert these and leave Leicester in their wake.
The other imposters from week 1, was a very fortunate Everton. The Blues are under new management with Rafael Benitez in the driver's seat. In a game where Everton struggled to control possession, they did however do well to pull back from a 1-0 deficit. Doucoure did score a world-class goal in the second half to take the lead in the 76th minute and it was all downhill from there for an underwhelming Southhampton. Overall Everton will not get the opportunity to get back in games against better clubs, especially considering they were unable to have a pass accuracy above 69%.
We said that Brentford would be here to score goals, and they did just that against Arsenal. Brentford's inability to control possession should be a cause of concern, and while they were able to capitalize on Arsenal's cluster of a backline not being able to transition from Defense it is clear that Brentford is going to struggle against competitive opponents. Arsenal is in for a rough patch if Arteta cannot win back his locker room.
Things to watch
United were able to win in dramatic fashion putting away 5 goals on an opening day is always exciting for a United fan. Paul Pogba came out and exceeded his last season's assists totals with 4 against Leeds. Can United keep Pogba in form...and happy long enough to see him finally paying off? United player to watch is Mason Greenwood, if he is in form and able to put up numbers this year it will offer a huge boost to United's somewhat inconsistent past few years. Chelsea...look...scary banging three goals away without conceding any furthers our thoughts that Chelsea is the real deal, and with an outstanding ability to connect 91% of their passing they are gelling. They also appear to have found a formation and lineup that suits Tuchel's philosophy. Tuchel also appears to have figured out a good use for Pulsic...now add Lukaku to the mix and watch out. Liverpool also appeared to be hot out of the gate with a strong 3-0 performance over the green Norwich. Our favorite Bond villain, Klopp has a lot to prove after the year they had last year, however, Liverpool's attack looks strong with goals coming from 3 different players. Mo Salah set a Premier League record opening by scoring in his 5th consecutive opening day, another strong start for the Egyptian. The question Liverpool needs to answer is can their defense keep them from going behind in big games.
All and all a great week back! What are you most excited about this season? Who are the players that are going to be on our radar for the first time this year? comment below!