Benitez receives hostile welcome as Utd remain top of Premiership
After plenty of build-up, the Premier League weekend didn’t quite live up to expectation, but there were still some fascinating results across Saturday and Sunday.
Things certainly got off to an entertaining start when West Brom continued their fine form with a 4-2 win at Sunderland on Saturday lunch-time. A game full of twists and turns, it was a cracking start to the weekend’s action.
There were then four matches getting underway at 3pm, with Wigan and Reading’s clash particularly entertaining. Both teams had their chances to win the game, but in the end it was Wigan – thanks to a Jordi Gomez hat-trick – that came on top 3-2.
Elsewhere, Norwich secured a fantastic point at Everton with an injury-time equaliser, while Stoke defeated Fulham 1-0 and Manchester United recovered from a goal down to beat bottom of the table Queens Park Rangers 3-1.
In the late kick-off on Saturday, Arsenal and Aston Villa played out a 0-0 draw at Villa Park. This represented a decent evening’s work for Paul Lambert’s men, while the Gunners left rather frustrated with just a point.
Moving onto Sunday, the first game of the day saw Swansea and Liverpool draw 0-0 as Brendan Rodgers returned to his former club for the first time. There were plenty of chances, particularly for the visitors, but nobody could break the deadlock.
Southampton then recorded a fantastic home win over struggling Newcastle. Nigel Adkins men made it two wins from as many games as a goal either side of half-time gave them the points.
One of the most intense games of the day was between Tottenham and West Ham at White Hart Lane. There was some tension between the fans throughout, but in this London derby, it was Spurs who showed their class on the pitch to win 3-1.
Billed as the biggest game of the weekend, Chelsea v Manchester City was somewhat of a let down as the final game on Sunday. The main talking point afterwards was Rafa Benitez’s negative reception as he took charge of Chelsea for the first time, because on the pitch – it was a dull 0-0 draw.
Still, another Premier League weekend gone and with another round of fixtures during the week, plenty to look forward to.
