Here’s what happened this weekend in the Premier League, in case you missed it…
READ ALL ABOUT IT
• Saturday: Mourinho melee, Liverpool trims Huddersfield & more
• Sunday: Everton beats Palace for 3rd staright win
WATCH MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
Chelsea 2, Manchester United 2 || Bournemouth 0, Southampton 0 || Cardiff City 4, Fulham 2 || Manchester City 5, Burnley 0 || Newcastle United 0, Brighton & Hove Albion 1 || West Ham United 0, Tottenham 1 || Wolves 0, Watford 2 || Huddersfield Town 0, Liverpool 1 || Everton 2, Crystal Palace 0
WHAT STOOD OUT
A tale of two Manchester sides
James Sharman and Craig Forrest recap a busy Saturday that saw Manchester United earn a draw at Chelsea, and Manchester City pummel Burnley.
Man City quietly going about its business
Somewhat lost in the hoopla surrounding the near melee involving Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho this weekend was Manchester’s destruction job to stay top of the Premier League table.
A 5-0 win over visitors Burnley highlighted all of the best qualities from the Pep Guardiola’s side: A swarming attack, a relentless pursuit of controlling possession and an air-tight defence that gives very little away.
Manchester City showed no mercy to Burnley goalkeeper Joe Hart upon his first return to the club for whom he once starred in net and helped win two league titles. Goals by Sergio Aguero, Bernardo Silva, Fernandinho, Riyad Mahrez and Leroy Sane were just rewards for the home team that pinned their opponents inside the final third of the pitch for long stretches.
It was a seventh victory in nine games for the reigning league champions, allowing them to keep a hold on first place over Liverpool on goal difference.
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BEST GOAL
Étienne Capoue scored with this laser strike from outside the penalty area to put Watford up 1-0 against Wolves on Saturday:
BEST MOMENT
One the one hand, it was a classless move by Chelsea technical assistant Marco Ianni to celebrate his side’s injury-time leveler right in front of the Manchester United bench. On the other hand, you have to love his passion and the drama that ensued. It’s not as though Mourinho hasn’t wildly celebrated at an opponent’s ground when his team has scored.
BEST MATCH
Chelsea and Manchester United produced a four-goal thriller that included some highlight reel strikes, some late drama and a melee that nearly got out of hand.
HE SAID IT
“Don’t do what everyone does and say, ‘It’s Mourinho who does things’. I don’t know his name, I don’t need to know. Everything is fine.” – Jose Mourinho, on the altercation with Chelsea technical assistant Marco Ianni.
THE GAME WITHIN THE GAME
Italian international Jorginho has been one of the best newcomers in the Premier League this season, flourishing under Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri – both of them made the move from Napoli to Chelsea this past summer. But Manchester United did a very good job of harrying and closing down Jorginho, all in effort to limit his time on the ball. It worked, and United reaped the benefits at Stamford Bridge.
CRISIS CLUB OF THE WEEK
James Sharman and Craig Forrest discuss why Fulham has been in a freefall this season since winning promotion to the Premier League.
THE BIG QUESTION
Every week, Sportsnet’s soccer panel will debate The Big Question:
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SIX PACK OF STATS
• Chelsea is unbeaten in its last 65 Premier League games at Stamford Bridge in which they’ve been ahead at halftime (with 54 wins).
• Newcastle United is only the fourth team in English top-flight history to lose its opening five home league games of the season (Manchester United 1930-31, Portsmouth 2009-10 and Bolton 2011-12).
• Fulham’s Ryan Sessegnon is the first player born during or after the year 2000 to score a Premier League goal.
• There were just 58 seconds between Watford’s first and second goals against Wolves on Saturday.
• Mohamed Salah has scored 50 for English clubs, reaching that mark in just 83 games in all competitions.
• On Sunday, Everton had two different substitutes score for them in a Premier League game for the first time since March 2014.
Stats courtesy of Opta
THREE STARS
1) David Silva, Manchester City: The Spaniard collected two assists and was the main orchestrator behind the Blues destruction of Burnley.
2) Anthony Martial, Manchester United: Put in a man-of-the-match effort at Stamford Bridge in bagging a second-half brace.
3) Abdoulaye Doucoure, Watford: The Frenchman set up both of Watford’s goals as the Hornets cruised to a big road win over Wolves
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