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EPL PHOTOS: Saints bring United down to earth; Chelsea down Arsenal

August 22, 2021

IMAGES from the Premier League matches played on Sunday.

IMAGE: Southampton's Mohammed Salisu looks dejected after the Manchester United's Mason Greenwood scores the equaliser during their Premier League match at St Mary's Stadium in Southampton. Photograph: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images

Manchester United were given a reality check after last week's storming start to the season when they could only draw 1-1 at Southampton in the Premier League on Sunday after forward Mason Greenwood cancelled out an own goal by team mate Fred.

United began the campaign with a 5-1 home win over Leeds United last weekend but could not repeat that performance and were lucky not to lose to Ralph Hasenhuettl's organised and dynamic side.

 

Southampton took the lead on the half-hour mark after a bright spell when Jack Stephens dispossessed Bruno Fernandes in the United half and the hosts swiftly moved the ball towards Che Adams, whose shot took a heavy deflection off Fred to squirm inside the near post and past David de Gea.

United coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was convinced that Stephens had fouled Fernandes in the build-up to the goal but Hasenhuettl said he welcomed referees letting the game flow.

United defender Harry Maguire had hit the crossbar early on with a looping header while Anthony Martial's rebound was scrambled off the line by Mohammed Salisu but the half had belonged to Southampton, who swarmed over United with an aggressive high press and caused havoc down the right-hand side.

Solskjaer's side levelled early in the 55th when Greenwood thumped a low shot under Southampton keeper Alex McCarthy after clever interplay between Fernandes and Paul Pogba, who added another assist to the five he notched up against Leeds.

Southampton finished the game stronger though and Adam Armstrong missed two clear chances to win it, first being denied by a fine save from De Gea following another speedy transition and then failing to steer an Adams flick on towards goal following a corner.

 

IMAGE: Manchester United's Paul Pogba takes a topple as he vies for possession with Southampton's Jan Bednarek. Photograph: Peter Nicholls/Reuters

Greenwood praised Southampton's performance but criticised his side for not capitalising on the equaliser.

"It was a difficult game, Southampton defended well but in my eyes we dropped two points," he told Sky Sports.

"When we got the equaliser we should have gone for the throats, the time went away and we did not get the winner towards the end."

Southampton right back Valentino Livramento said his side had chances to take all three points but he was happy with one.

"We knew the way we could compete was by being physical and aggressive with the press and hitting them on the counter," he added.

Solskjaer made two changes from the side that had hammered Leeds, bringing in Nemanja Matic and Martial but again starting with new signing Jadon Sancho on the bench before bringing him on in the second half.

The Norwegian criticised his side's defending for Southampton's goal even as he said it should have been ruled out.

"If you don't get a foul, we should make sure we block the shot, put your body on the line and make sure they don't get a strike on target," he said.

"That being said, it's a foul. I like the more lenient way, it's more men's football but still, that's a foul."

He admitted his side had faded in the final few minutes.

"After we scored, we did well to get the goal, build pressure, had another five or six minutes with a good spell and then we lost our way a little bit," he added.

"And maybe tiredness, sloppiness came in and we gave their crowd stuff to cheer about because they had a few counter-attacks and some dangerous moments."

United travel to Wolverhampton Wanderers next while Southampton, who picked up a first point after last week's 3-1 defeat at Everton, visit Newcastle United.

Returning hero Lukaku sets Chelsea on way to 2-0 win at Arsenal

IMAGE: Chelsea's Romelu Lukaku celebrates after their win over Arsenal at Emirates Stadium, London. Photograph: David Klein/Reuters

A goal by Romelu Lukaku on his second Chelsea debut and a strike by defender Reece James earned the Blues a 2-0 win at London rivals Arsenal on Sunday, their second victory in as many games at the start of the Premier League season.

Lukaku needed only 15 minutes to get off the mark for the Blues after his reported 97.5 million pounds ($132.8 million) transfer from Inter Milan, tapping in a cross played into his path by James.

The wing-back scored Chelsea's second goal himself 20 minutes later, taking his time to fire past goalkeeper Bernd Leno after being found in acres of space by Mason Mount.

Lukaku, who never scored a league goal for the Blues in his first spell, showed why Chelsea were prepared to break their spending record to bring him back to the club seven years after he left London.

The Belgian provided the Blues with the kind of muscular presence in attack they have lacked since the departure of Diego Costa in 2017, both when running at Arsenal's defence and holding the ball up with his back to goal.

Only a reflex save by Leno denied him a second goal when the German palmed Lukaku's point-blank header onto the bar with 15 minutes to play.

Arsenal, lacking several key players through injury and illness, rarely threatened to disrupt Thomas Tuchel's well-drilled side, who kept another of their trademark clean sheets and could afford to start with star names such as N'Golo Kante, Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech on the bench.

Kane makes first appearance as Alli earns Spurs win at Wolves

IMAGE: A young pitch invader receives a jersey from Tottenham Hotspur's Eric Dier after the match against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux in Wolverhampton. Photograph: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images

Harry Kane came off the bench to make his first Tottenham Hotspur appearance of the season as Dele Alli's penalty earned coach Nuno Espirito Santo a 1-0 win on his return to his former club Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League on Sunday.

Kane, who has been linked with a move to champions Manchester City all summer, came on in the second half and missed a great chance to immediately get on the scoresheet.

Alli's ninth-minute penalty was enough for Spurs to pick up all three points, however, as Nuno's first trip back to the club he brought up to the Premier League during a four-year spell between 2017 and 2021 ended successfully.

The results means Spurs have won two from two so far this season, both by a 1-0 scoreline.

Wolves remain without a single point after two defeats from their opening two league matches.

 

Source: REUTERS
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