1. Coutinho the difference as Liverpool overcome Arsenal
IN AN ERROR-STREWN affair, Liverpool edged Arsenal to claim an opening-day win at the Emirates this afternoon.
While there were plenty of defensive errors from both sides, there was also some brilliant attacking play in the game.
Sadio Mane scored a wonderful solo goal on his competitive debut for the Reds, but Philippe Coutinho was comfortably the best player on the pitch.
The 24-year-old Brazilian midfielder scored two goals and also had a hand in Lallana’s 49th-minute effort. In particular, his superb free-kick just before half-time changed the course of a game that Arsenal had dominated up until then.
Coutinho has generally been impressive since joining Liverpool from Inter for £8.5 million back in January 2013, earning himself admiration from abroad, though the one criticism of the player is that he tends to drift in and out of games at times.
However, at his best, Coutinho is a match-winner, and if he can add a greater degree of consistency to his game, Liverpool will be a real force going forward this season.
2. Man United make early statement of intent
While they rarely got out of second gear, Jose Mourinho will be happy enough with an efficient start to the season for Man United today.
Although they will face better teams than Bournemouth this season, Dean Court can be a tricky place to go — Louis van Gaal’s United team were beaten 2-1 in the same fixture last season.
Yet this afternoon’s match went pretty much according to plan as far as the Red Devils were concerned, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s powerful strike the highlight of a convincing victory.
But what was arguably most impressive about United was their defence — Bournemouth hadn’t registered a shot on target until their consolation goal in the second half, with the visitors looking comfortable for the most part.
It was therefore a performance befitting of a Jose Mourinho team — clinical in attack while giving little away at the back, a display that certainly bodes well for the coming season.
3. End of the line for Joe Hart at City?
Joe Hart was a notable absentee from Man City’s starting XI in their somewhat unconvincing win over Sunderland at the Etihad on Saturday evening.
The goalkeeper was allegedly dropped owing to his discomfort with the ball to feet and charging out of his goal — skills new boss Pep Guardiola, who insists he has no issue with Hart, deems essential for a goalkeeper to possess.
It is not the first time Willy Caballero has been preferred to England’s number one goalkeeper — Manuel Pellegrini took the England international out of the firing line for a couple of matches after a series of costly errors at one point during his reign as manager.
There is nothing to suggest Hart can’t learn the skills Guardiola is asking him to acquire, but dropping the 29-year-old was still a big statement and a decision which completes a miserable few months for Hart, after some basic individual mistakes contributed to England’s premature Euros exit in the summer.
The experienced goalkeeper will certainly need to learn fast, though. Guardiola is no respecter of reputations, as he showed by casting off Ronaldinho and Deco early on in his stint as Barcelona coach.
4. Are teams finally figuring out how to combat Leicester?
Opening-day Premier League matches can be notoriously deceptive.
Last season for instance, Man United beat Tottenham 1-0 at Old Trafford, but Spurs went on to have the far more impressive season of the two sides.
Nonetheless, on Saturday, there were worrying signings for reigning champions Leicester, as they suffered a shock defeat to relegation favourites Hull.
With the Foxes only having suffered three Premier League losses in all of last season, Hull’s victory was a surprise to say the least.
The pervasive sense of a title-winning hangover was epitomised by Leicester’s star striker, Jamie Vardy, who fluffed more than one good opportunity and lacked his usual sharpness in attack.
Moreover, a depleted Hull team — with Mike Phelan in charge as temporary boss — managed to look comfortable for the most part, astutely sitting back and denying Leicester the space in behind that they capitalised on so regularly last year.
5. Idrissa Gueye impresses for rejuvenated Everton
One of the big positives from Everton’s creditable opening-day draw with Tottenham was the performance of Idrissa Gueye.
The midfielder was one of the few bright spots in a dire Aston Villa side last year, and he picked up where he left off at Goodison Park on Saturday.
At one point last season, only three players across Europe’s top five leagues had made more interceptions than the 26-year-old, indicating why the Toffees spent £7.1 million on the Senegal international in the summer, a bargain prompted by a release clause in the player’s contract.
Gueye gives Everton an energy and a tenacity that they previously lacked in the centre of the park, and yesterday against Spurs, he set the tempo, with the hosts looking the far superior side for the first hour of the match.
Therefore, with Gueye in the heart of midfield and the tactically astute Ronald Koeman as manager, Everton currently look a good bet to improve on last season’s disappointing 11th-place finish.
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