Chelsea Football Club went top of the English Premier League (EPL) on goal difference after beating Cardiff City 4-1 on Saturday. Liverpool kept pace with the Blues with a 2-1 against Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley Stadium.
There were also notable away wins as Manchester United ended Watford’s winning run with a 2-1 victory at Vicarage Road, while the Gunners beat Newcastle United by the same score at St James’ Park.
Chelsea tore through Cardiff thanks to an inspired performance from Eden Hazard, who himself to a hat-trick after the Bluebirds took a shock early lead through Sol Bamba.
Hazard’s goals, the third coming from the penalty spot, helped make him the most prolific force in this young season with 4 goals and two assists.
Substitute Willian won the penalty Hazard converted and hammered in Chelsea’s fourth to underline the depth of attacking quality in manager Maurizio Sarri’s squad.
Chelsea have the goalscorers to power a title push, an attribute shared by Liverpool. The Reds poured the pressure on against Spurs but had the hosts’ backup goalkeeper, Michel Vorm, to thank for both goals.
He was at fault for Georginio Wijnaldum’s opener six minutes before the break and saw the ball just evade his grasp before Roberto Firmino tapped the Reds into a 2-0 lead.
Erik Lamela pulled one back for Tottenham in injury time, but Liverpool maintained a 100 percent start to the season and continue to look capable of a title challenge.
Arsenal don’t belong in the same bracket yet despite a third win in a row. It took much-maligned midfielder Granit Xhaka to break the deadlock for head coach Unai Emery’s side following a goalless first half.
The points looked safe when Mesut Ozil, another player often the subject of criticism, turned in a second two minutes before the hour mark in his 200th appearance for the Gunners.
Arsenal are steadily climbing the table on Emery’s watch, and United are doing the same after an uneven start. Romelu Lukaku put the Red Devils ahead against Watford before Chris Smalling produced a superb effort to double the lead.
United should have been coasting, but Andre Gray scored with 25 minutes left to give the hosts a chance after being teed up by impressive playmaker Abdoulaye Doucoure.
But the visitors didn’t the buckle, not even when Nemanja Matic was shown a red card in stoppage time. It’s a welcome three points for United manager Jose Mourinho, who appears to have steadied the ship after losing to Brighton & Hove Albion and Spurs.
Saturday’s Premier League Result and Scores
- Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Liverpool
- Bournemouth 4-2 Leicester City
- Chelsea 4-1 Cardiff City
- Huddersfield Town 0-1 Crystal Palace
- Manchester City 3-0 Fulham
- Newcastle United 1-2 Arsenal
- Watford 1-2 Manchester United
Not wanting to be outdone by Liverpool and Chelsea, champions Manchester City sauntered to a 3-0 home win over Fulham. Leroy Sane got things started barely two minutes into the match to continue a fine run on home soil. He has 18 goals in his last 16 games at Etihad Stadium.
David Silva and Raheem Sterling added to the tally, with the latter’s goal bringing up a landmark in manager Pep Guardiola’s tenure.
Another City win may be no surprise, but Bournemouth will have shocked a few by sitting on the edge of the top four. The Cherries built a four-goal lead against Leicester City at the Vitality Stadium thanks to a brace from Ryan Fraser, a Joshua King penalty and a finish from Adam Smith.
Leicester went down to 10 men when Wes Morgan was sent off on 69 minutes, but they scored twice in consolation in the last five minutes through James Maddison’s penalty and Marc Albrighton.
Finally, Crystal Palace moved into the top half after Wilfried Zaha scored the only goal to heap more misery on Huddersfield Town. Like Cardiff, the Terriers already find themselves on the edge of the bottom three and without a win.
Additional Report by BleacherReport
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