Arne Slot had his first Premier League setback as Liverpool manager on Saturday as Nottingham Forest took advantage of a strangely uninspiring display by the Reds.
There is a sign in the players’ tunnel which reads ‘This is Anfield’ and, over the decades those three simple words have sent a shudder down the spine of many a visitor; but Nuno Espirito Santo’s Nottingham Forest had little to fear on Saturday and, as Liverpool failed to break the visitors’ resolve, Callum Hudson-Odoi plundered all three points with a second half stunner.
Forest are expected to be battling for survival again this year but right now, with two wins and two draws Santo’s side are in the chasing pack and just a single point behind the Reds. These were the first points Slot has lost this season, the first goal the Reds have conceded and it was Forest’s first win at Anfield in 55 years. The Liverpool boss was understandably unhappy, saying: “It wasn’t good enough; too many individual performances were not of the standard I’m used to. It’s a big setback.”
Nuno was delighted after watching Hudson-Odoi curl a beauty from 20 yards past Alisson and into the net: “I’m very proud of the work of the players,” he said, “and proud of the way we behave as a team. It’s all about taking your chances in the right moments and we did that.”
Haaland is on Cloud Nine
Manchester City’s home match against Brentford turned out to be another Erling Braut Haaland show as the Sky Blues recovered from an early setback to win 2-1 and make it four wins from four. Yoane Bissa put the Bees ahead after just 22 seconds to stun the Etihad crowd but, as we said in our SBOTOP preview of this game, the Bees have stung the Sky Blues twice in their six most recent meetings. And, interestingly Haaland had only scored one goal in three games against Thomas Frank’s men.
Well the Norwegian goal machine put that right in spectacular fashion to fire City to a fourth league win and to the top of the league table. The Premier League 2024 betting odds say the title is Pep Guardiola’s to lose and, if Haaland stays fit I can’t see any other outcome. He had a little luck with his opener as a deflection from Ethan Pinnock took his shot past Mark Flekken but there is no denying just how lethal Haaland is, as he became the first player in Premier League history to score nine goals in the first four league games. And he was inches away from completing a third hat-trick of the campaign…there are more records on the way it seems!
And there was more good news for City fans too as midfield maestro Rodri made a first appearance of the season after he picked up an injury in the Euro 2024 final. He came on for the second half and, with a Champions League clash with Inter Milan on the horizon the Spaniard’s return has come at the perfect time.
Arsenal conquer Spurs again
The North London clash was as feisty as we all expected and in a goalless first half the tempers spilled over after Arsenal’s Jurrien Timber left his mark on Pedro Porro with a full blooded tackle, resulting in players from both sides wading in as Porro writhed in agony on the floor. By the half time whistle the referee had issued seven yellow cards, five for Tottenham and two for Arsenal; there have never been more cards in a Premier League first half. With home advantage Spurs had dominated possession but there had been precious little goalmouth action.
The second half followed a similar pattern with Spurs dominating possession but not a lot for the keepers to do. And then the Gunners took their lead from a set-piece, so often a problem for Spurs. Bukayo Saka whipped in a corner and Gabriel rose unmarked to head home from four yards. Arsenal’s win, their third on the trot at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, took them second in the table.
Nest week; it’s Manchester City versus Arsenal…first against second.
In other Premier League 2024 results Manchester United won 3-0 away to ten-man Southampton to avoid a third consecutive defeat and move up into mid-table while the Saints remain pointless. Everton stay bottom after losing 3-2 to Aston Villa who climbed up into the top four ahead of Brighton and Hove Albion who were held to a goalless draw at home to Ipswich.
Fulham drew with West Ham while Crystal Palace also shared the points with Leicester City, and Chelsea picked up a second victory of the campaign thanks to a late Christopher Nkunku goal away to Bournemouth.
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