From Manchester City's loss to Manchester United and Chelsea showing dominance, here are the takeaways from gameweek 1 of the Premier League.
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The Premier League is back and, if we take Gameweek 1 as evidence, is just as good if not better than ever. The opening round of fixtures was exciting for a number of reasons, not just the action on the pitch. Fans are back in stadiums and the difference it makes to the players as well as the overall viewing experience is telling. And while most clubs haven’t made wholesale changes to their sides – a result of a deflated market due to the COVID-19 pandemic – the on-field action remains enthralling. Most would have forgiven a few sluggish fixtures but the matches were full of excitement and, of course, goals.
One round down, 37 to go. #PL pic.twitter.com/3mTP00cNcw
— Premier League (@premierleague) August 15, 2021
With that in mind, here are the ten major takeaways from Gameweek 1.
As far as starting title defences, there are better ones to be had than losing to a club whose main player you’re trying to sign. But City’s loss to Spurs showed exactly why they are so keen to bring in Harry Kane. Wastefulness was the norm for the Citizens at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Spurs, for their part, were resolute in their gameplan and a threat on the counter. They could have had more than the one goal, but they will take plenty of satisfaction from the win. That they did it with Kane not even in the squad was an added bonus.
There’s always been a question about whether Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba can be effective together on a consistent basis. Well, we don’t quite know the answer to the consistent part but the two combined to put Leeds United to the sword.
Pogba made four assists as Fernandes got a hat-trick. Granted, not all opposition will be as open as Leeds were, such is Marcelo Bielsa’s committment to playing on the front foot. But they are quality side who United easily disposed of. More such days could easily see their fans dream of a title run.
Speaking of title runs, many expect Chelsea to be dark horses for the league’s top spot this season. Before the game, Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel was surprised why people saw them as favourites. But a 3-0 hammering of Crystal Palace shows exactly why many rate them so highly.
Again, there’s an obvious caveat here. Palace are in the midst of a rebuild – in terms of players, manager and even playing style. Patrick Viera is no Roy Hodgson and will doubtless take time to put his ideas into practice. As such, this was the perfect time for Chelsea to face them. But it’s also worth noting that the Blues will soon welcome Romelu Lukaku into the playing XI – thus making them even more dangerous. A title contender? It’s not as preposterous a suggestion.
One London side who will most likely not be in title contention are Arsenal. They finished eigth last season, outside of the spots guaranteeing any form of European football. And they began this season with a soul-crushing 2-0 loss to newly-promoted Brentford.
Now let’s give the newcomers some credit – Brentford are a decent side and greater than the sum of their parts. Losing to them isn’t an issue, but what is worrying for Gunners fans is that nothing has changed. Arsenal still look unconvincing going forward and shaky at the back. After a season and a half of Mikel Arteta being there, more can and should be expected.
Liverpool beating Norwich City was an expected result, but the real takeaway for them would have been Virgil van Dijk completing 90 minutes. The Dutch centre-back, who is so key to their defence, has been out of action since October 2020 and endured a lengthy rehabilitation this summer.
Liverpool’s poor form in the second half of last season was at least partly due to his absence. The key now would be to get him up to match speed, although he looked encouraging against Norwich. Bigger tests await but for now, Jurgen Klopp will be glad that Liverpool’s back-line doesn’t look brittle again.
Oh Newcastle. How do you go from leading 2-1 at half-time to suffering a 4-2 defeat? Especially with the home fans in fine voice and backing them to the hilt. The frustrating part for the Magpies was that they looked good going forward in the first half. Sadly, they never recovered from West Ham’s brilliant start to the second half.
As for the Hammers, they seem keen on emphasising that last season was no fluke. They might not have Jesse Lingard to call upon anymore but they remain a capable side. At one point it seemd they would score with every counter-attack. David Moyes too will be keen to build on last season’s good work, something evidenced by their eventually convincing win.
There was a time when the prospect of playing Burnley at home was not one travelling sides looked forward to. How times have changed though. Sean Dyche’s men ended up losing 2-1 to a goal-shy Brighton despite actually taking the lead. Whichever way you look at it, that is not a good result for them.
It is quite the show of strength from Brighton though. Graham Potter’s men play a style of football that’s easy on the eye but they can be surprisingly goal-shy. There is plenty of positives to take from this win though – and build on for the future.
It’s not easy being Rafael Benitez. The new Everton manager is already unpopular with fans thanks to his previous Liverpool allegiance. That he once dubbed them a ‘small club’ probably doesn’t help either. And in front of a packed Goodison Park, everyone seemed anxious when Southampton took the lead.
Everton would come back to win 3-1 and spare Benitez any awkward post match questions. For anyone in Benitez’s shoes, the only way to win over the fanbase is with results. As such, he could not have asked for a better start to his life back in Merseyside.
Watford’s had to hang on for dear life in the end to get the three points, but they did so and started life back in the top flight with a win over Aston Villa. Both sides will be asking questions of their defence, however. Villa looked fine going forward and even pulled back two late goals.
Watford were, in turn, clinical going forward and at one point appeared to be cruising. Yet both sides looked porous and there for the taking. It is a result that is best viewed in isolation given both sides don’t appear the finished product. Yet it is still the better one for Watford, who could not have asked for a better Premier League return.
When Leicester signed Patson Daka in the summer, it was seen as a sign for the club preparing for life after Jamie Vardy. Yet it was the veteran striker who scored the lone goal as the Foxes beat Wolves to begin their campaign with three points.
Vardy remains an effective player even now, although age will eventually catch up to him too. Still, it seems likely that he will remain a key player for Leicester as long as he chooses to be around. And given his age, it seems likely he will retire at the London club. Five years after powering them to an unlikely title win, Vardy remains as important as ever.
