We are only four weeks into the 2019-2020 season of the English Premier League, and there has already been plenty of action. Smaller clubs like Leicester City, Everton, West Ham United and Crystal Palace are in fantastic form. This is due to the fact that they are seen alongside Liverpool, Manchester City and Tottenham in the top seven. However, it is too early to predict which clubs will take the coveted four Champions League spots.
At first glance, this week seemed to be of average intrigue. The most exciting game was the North London Derby, where Tottenham faced Arsenal. It is always difficult to predict a match between two rivals; especially when there are top-tier talents on both sides. Spurs dominated the first half of the game, which gave them a 2-0 lead by the 40th minute. This was thanks to goals by Christian Eriksen and Harry Kane.
Just before the halftime intermission, Alexandre Lacazette brought Arsenal back to life with a goal. It is difficult to overcome a 2-0 deficit at the break, so Lacazette’s goal gave Arsenal a well-needed motivation to pull through with the victory. In the 71st minute, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang equalized the score after a beautiful pass from Guendouzi. The match concluded as a 2-2 draw, which left neither club satisfied. Although this match may have featured the biggest clubs, it was not the most exciting match of the week.
When people saw that Wolves were set to face Everton at Goodison Park, they did not anticipate the action-packed game that followed. Last season, both teams were fighting for the Europa League spot that was eventually won by Wolverhampton. With many talented players making their way into both rosters, like Moise Kean, Patrick Cutrone, Alex Iwobi and Jesus Vallejo, a similar race for the Europa League should take place once again. As early as the fifth minute, Richarlison capitalized after a mistake off of the Wolves’ back line. Before Everton could use the momentum, Romain Saïss equalized the score four minutes afterwards, in the ninth minute. Only three minutes later, Alex Iwobi scored a header to hand the lead back to Everton. The next goal was not until Raúl Jiménez scored in the 75th on a set piece. Once again, Everton dominated the lead, when Richarlison placed a header in the back of the net. For the rest of the match, Wolves did everything they could to equalize the score, but they couldn’t get past goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Several teams were disappointed by the result, mainly Manchester United, as they drew against Southampton. The Reds took the lead in the 10th minute with a beautiful goal from Daniel James, but the Southampton back line stayed strong for the rest of the game. In the 58th minute, Jannik Vestergaard, scored the equalizer leaving the Red Devils in disbelief. Chelsea continued to disappoint as they drew against newly promoted Sheffield United. The young Chelsea forward Tammy Abraham scored a brace, but a late own goal by Kurt Zouma conceded the draw to Sheffield United.
Unsurprisingly, both Manchester City and Liverpool dominated their matches this week. Although Liverpool are at the top of the table, an exciting title race similar to last year’s should take place once again. The other matches showed Leicester City defeating Bournemouth 3-0, Crystal Palace defeating Aston Villa 1-0 and West Ham United defeating Norwich City 2-0.
Next week there are a few matches that can make an impact on the table. Leicester City is traveling to face Manchester United, Chelsea looks to restart with an important match against Wolves. On Monday, there will be another Derby in London as Aston Villa and West Ham United go head-to-head.
