This was a week in football that was dominated by the death of Diego Maradona one of the greatest footballers to have ever lived. At times flawed away from the pitch but certainly a genius on it, there has been an outpouring of grief for the Argentinian around the world to the extent that one cannot remember the magnitude of a loss in the football world before- not this big anyway. The footage will keep his memory alive, but for some of us we just lost a little bit of our childhood with his passing.
There were 25 goals in the Premier League this past weekend and perhaps the stand out game was Manchester United's fantastic comeback against Southampton. With just 30 minutes of the game left United were 2 goals down but won 3-2, and were inspired by Edinson Cavani who scored 2 goals and assisted in Bruno Fernandes goal too. It was a man of the match performance for their former PSG player. However just hours later the FA opened an investigation over a tweet made by Cavani that from an English perspective was seen as racist. Though words can easily mean something completely different in another culture so much so that Cavani will not have believed he did anything wrong. However the FA are set to come down hard on him and he could miss a few games in the process.
Arsenal are now 14th in the league after their third straight defeat, losing against Wolves 2-1. One has to wonder how long manager Mikel Arteta has to turn around the clubs fortunes, this is the Gunners worst start to a football season since 1981. Arsenal play Tottenham away next and if they lose heavy it could signal the end of Arteta's time at the Emirates, it will be a fascinating match, that is for sure. The game itself was overshadowed somewhat by the clash of heads between David Luiz and Raul Jimenez that left Jimenez with a fractured skull. Thankfully the Wolves striker is fine, but he will surely miss the rest of the month as a result.
Jose Mourinho played it down but a draw for Tottenham at Chelsea felt like the perfect result for the league leaders. It seemed clear that Tottenham were going to Stamford Bridge for the draw, respecting an opponent who had gone 2 months unbeaten in all competitions. Chelsea had the better chances and yet dropping two points at home would have suited Mourinho and Tottenham who remain in 1st place.
Liverpool couldn't take advantage after they surprisingly drew 1-1 at Brighton. VAR was a huge influence on the game and it denied Liverpool a few goals before awarding Brighton a penalty in the 93rd minute. It was a decision that left Jurgen Klopp furious and he went on TV to vent his anger in footage that went viral. Is the pressure getting to him?
In other results West Ham climbed to 5th as they continued their solid form by beating Aston Villa 2-1. Fulham shocked Leicester by going to the King Power Stadium and beating them 2-1. Everton's poor form continues with a 1-0 loss at home to Leeds United, Carlo Ancelotti's team have been defeated 4 times from their last 5 games. And Manchester City showed they could be a threat in the coming weeks by crushing Burnley 5-0 at the Etihad where Riyad Mahrez scored a hat trick.
Premier League: Team of the Week:
Meslier, Walker, Mendy, Koch, T. Silva, De Bruyne, Ward-Prowse, Mahrez, Podence, Wilson, Cavani
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