The absence of Darragh-like conditions meant we were treated to a host of Premier League action over the weekend.
However, storm clouds loomed over Molineux and St. Mary’s following Wolves’ defeat to Sunday evening’s humiliation of Ipswich Town and Southampton. Both Gary O’Neil and Russell Martin They are now out of their respective jobs, with Wolves turning to Jorge Mendes in the hope of finding a suitable successor for O’Neil.
Much of the speech centered around the weekend’s action Sunday’s Manchester derby between two vulnerable units. A tepid affair burst into life in the closing stages thanks to a back pass from Matheus Nunes, and it was the man who capitalized on Nunes’ mistake who stood out 90 minutes seven protagonists of week 16 of the Premier League.
Liverpool don’t normally ‘run away’ with points at Anfield, but Andy Robertson’s early dismissal meant Arne Slot’s league leaders were forced to work very hard. by a point against Fulham.
The Reds went down 1-0 2-1 on Saturday, but the returning Jota ensured the spoils were shared six-and-a-half minutes after entering the fray. With Darwin Núñez struggling for goals, the Portugal international’s return from injury is a huge boost for Liverpool.
Jota’s equalizer was worked in masterfully, with the wily striker fooling Jorge Cuenca in a fluid move before wrong-footing Bernd Leno with a calm finish.
It only took him 881 days, but Spence’s first start for Tottenham was worth the wait.
Ange Postecoglou has relegated the versatile winger to the fringes so far this season, but Pedro Porro’s underperformance in recent weeks meant ‘club signing’ Spence was given a rare opportunity at St. Mary’s.
And boy, did he make the most of it.
The right-back registered an assist within 40 seconds after cleverly rolling past Flynn Downes and finding James Maddison in behind. He showed poise in possession and comfort when tasked with drifting upfield. Expect to see a lot more from the 24-year-old moving forward.
Murphy has long been derided as lacking the level required for a club with Newcastle’s ambition, but the winger is a trusted lieutenant of Eddie Howe and played a major role in 4-0 thrashing by the Magpies at Leicester.
Murphy struggled in the first 30 minutes of Saturday’s triumph and missed a good chance before calmly slotting home the opener from the edge of the box. The winger’s efforts were tireless down the right flank, with his straight running causing Leicester’s defense to worry. He rounded off Newcastle’s win with a powerful finish on the hour mark.
Oliver Glasner had struggled to cope with the departure of Michael Olise at the start of his first full season in charge of Crystal Palace, but the Eagles have a new attacking star in Ismaila Sarr.
The former Watford winger has burst into life in recent weeks, and on Sunday he was in the double as Palace claimed bragging rights in the M23 Derby.
A quick outlet who can run all day, Sarr terrorized Brighton’s Lewis Dunk at the Amex and pinched the defender’s pocket on his way to a second goal. Before that, Sarr benefited from a superb delivery from Tyrick Mitchell to head home Palace’s second after Trevoh Chalobah had opened the scoring.
It may have been the forward’s best performance Premier League career
Only Bukayo Saka and Mohamed Salah have registered more Premier League assists than the Fulham left-back this season. Coincidentally, it was these two players who most recently took a trip to Robinson Penitentiary.
In back-to-back weeks, Robinson has tamed two of the league’s best. At Anfield, the USMNT international kept Salah in check, though the Egyptian king registered an assist for Cody Gakpo, as he wreaked havoc down the left flank.
Robinson set up Andreas Pereira’s opener with a pinpoint cross to the back post and made a remarkable diving run to get behind Jarell Quansah before crossing for Rodrigo Muniz to score.
It was a relentless performance in every phase.
Maddison, like the Lilywhites, have blown hot and cold this season, with Dejan Kulusevski emerging as Ange Postecoglou’s main creator.
However, there is no denying that Tottenham are a superior team when Maddison is purring. theirs Beat Southampton 5-0 it had the playmaker’s fingerprints all over it.
A strike inside 40 seconds set the tone and Maddison completed a dazzling first half performance with a superbly taken second goal. He made the most of Southampton’s inability to track runners from deep, but the Saints couldn’t get close even when he was in sight.
Spurs were brilliant on Sunday and Maddison was the main enabler.
In the 87th minute after a Manchester derby, Amad was not close to emerging as a rival in this ranking. City looked set for a rare win before the Ivorian latched onto Matheus Nunes’ tame pass to Ederson.
The chance looked to have gone when Ederson stopped Amad’s drive but Nunes, while looking to make up for his early error, doubled United’s lead with a free-kick, who used his body smartly and drew the contact, in the area.
Bruno Fernandes equalised, but Amad had time to turn Sunday’s derby around him. In the absence of duo omitted Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho, it was the humble Ivorian who took the shot in behind the City defence, latching on to Lisandro MartÃnez’s pass, rounding Ederson and finishing brilliantly.
The 22-year-old has shown flashes this calendar year and has proven to be an excellent full-back option already under Ruben Amorim. His late heroics at the Etihad could be the start of something very special for Amad in Manchester.
