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With the international break over, action returned to the Premier League on Saturday, and there were a lot of goals to savour in the thrilling matches played.
Attention was on the early kickoff at the Etihad where Manchester City welcomed former title rivals, Liverpool.
With Erling Haaland not available for action for Pep Guardiola’s side, many saw that as a big boost for the Reds.
It appeared to be when Mohamed Salah shot Liverpool into the lead early in the game but Julian Alvarez quickly leveled to make the scores 1-1 by the halftime break.
Two goals early in the second half from Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan gave City a decisive edge before Jack Grealish wrapped up victory for the rampaging Cityzens.
Blazing Gunners
Having seen what City did against Liverpool, the onus was on Arsenal to do the same or even better and the Gunners did not disappoint.
Mikel Arteta’s men displayed their dominance in a 4-1 victory over Leeds United, maintaining an eight-point gap at the top of the table.
Brazilian defender Gabriel was the star of the match, scoring twice, once from a penalty kick in the 36th minute and again in the 55th minute.
Arsenal’s impressive performance saw them extend their impressive winning run and keep the pressure on their title rivals.
The other goals for the Gunners came from Ben White in the 37th minute and Granit Xhaka in the 84th minute, as they put on an attacking masterclass at the Emirates Stadium.
Poor Chelsea
Elsewhere, it was another heartbreak for Chelsea and their supporters as they were hammered 2-0 at the Stamford Bridge home ground by Aston Villa.
Goals from Ollie Watkins and John McGinn condemned the Blues to their 10th league defeat this season as they also dropped to the second half of the table in 11th position.
Surprisingly, Opta records show Chelsea mustered 27 shots without scoring against Aston Villa.
This is the club’s most attempts in a Premier League match without finding the net since January 2014 against West Ham when they had 39 shots and also failed to score.
Other games
In another game played in London, Crystal Palace began life again under veteran manager Roy Hodgson on a bright note with a 2-1 win over Leicester City.
The Nigerian duo of Wilfred Ndidi and Kelechi Iheanacho were in action for the Foxes with the former starting the game and the latter coming in as a 76th-minute substitute.
Unfortunately, neither could save the Foxes from going down to the defeat that has now dragged them into the relegation zone.
READ ALSO: EPL Round-up: Chelsea continue resurgence as Iwobi wins with Everton
Brentford and Brighton played out a thrilling 3-3 draw while Bournemouth gave their Premier League survival hopes a big boost with a crucial 2-1 win over Fulham.
Nottingham and Wolverhampton Wanderers ended their tie in a 1-1 stalemate with injured Nigerian striker Taiwo Awoniyi finally returning to action after spending a couple of weeks on the sidelines
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Tunde Eludini
Tunde Eludini is a graduate of the Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife, Nigeria where he studied International Relations. He is a Senior Correspondent coordinating the sports section for PREMIUM TIMES. Twitter: @tundeyeludini
Source: Premium Times | Read More
