Garnacho’s acrobatic, Chelsea humiliated, Spurs’ honeymoon over… EPL wk 13 review

The English Premier league (EPL) returned following the November international break and as expected with mouth-watering fixtures.

We saw Garnacho score a fantastic acrobatic goal of the season contender in Manchester United win over angry Everton, City dropping points at home, Newcastle demolish Chelsea, Luton pick up all three points against Crystal Palace, while Brighton came from behind to claim all three points with one man down against Nottingham forest and Arsenal win Brentford in a London derby to climb up the top of the league table.

Everton 0 vs Manchester United 3

Everton started the day five points from safety due to the 10-point deduction for a violation of profit and sustainability rules, which was handed down by an independent commission and implemented with immediate effect.

The Toffees were playing for the first time since they were deducted ten points during the international break, which put them in the relegation zone.

An angry and noisy atmosphere was anticipated at Goodison Park to make it one of the hardest grounds for visiting teams, however Erik Ten Hag’s determined Manchester United made it look like a walk in the park.

Manchester United moved up to sixth in the Premier League table with a 3-0 win over Everton at Goodison Park that was lit up by Alejandro Garnacho’s “Rooney-ish” acrobatic goal. The defeat means Everton remain 19th while Erik ten Hag’s fifth win in six Premier League games, one achieved while he was watching on from the stands serving a touchline suspension, means United are now only six points off the top of the table.

Manchester City 1 vs Liverpool 1

Is there a better game to break the record of the fastest player to score 50 Premier league goals than in a headline fixture?

Erling Haaland’s 50th Premier League goal was skillfully set up by Nathan Ake in the 27th minute of the game. However, Trent Alexander-Arnold found the back of the net ten minutes to stoppage time and stole a point for the Reds. Manchester City dropped a point at home for the first time this season with that equaliser from Arnold who also thwarted all the threats from Doku.

For the visitors, it was a point earned and a result that should give them confidence for the for the title race, even though Guardiola and the entire Manchester City team may feel like they lost two points.

The Premier League’s top spot was unlocked by this draw, and Mikel Arteta’s Gunners made the most of it by defeating Brentford and winning all three points later that Saturday to go top of the league.

Newcastle 4 Vs Chelsea 1

After taking four points from their matches against Tottenham and Manchester City prior to the international break.

Chelsea was excited about playing a Newcastle team that was forced to name a number of U21 players on the bench However, as they have so frequently done this season, the Blues followed up their encouraging results with an unexpected display at St James’ Park, falling behind early on courtesy of a masterful finish from Alexander Isak.

Raheem Sterling’s magnificent free kick pulled Chelsea even, but their dismal second-half performance was all that Chelsea could muster.

An hour later, Lascelles put Newcastle ahead once more after Thiago Silva made an uncharacteristic mistake. Joelinton then added a third goal just a minute later.

After James was sent off for two completely avoidable bookings, things only got worse for The Blues. Anthony Gordon then scored a fourth goal to put Newcastle within three points of the top four.

Mauricio Pochettino must be growing more and more irritated with Chelsea’s weakness. The Blues were a complete mess at Newcastle after competing fiercely against champions City in their most recent match.

Brentford 0 vs Arsenal 1

Arsenal ran away as the 0-1 winners after a tough London derby game against the Bees and fly to the top of the table for the first time this season, going a point clear of Manchester City after they dropped points in the draw with Liverpool earlier.

Brentford set up in a 5-3-2 formation, looking to lock down the backline and maintain a strong defensive position throughout the game. They were tactically well-positioned and the game looked fairly evenly balanced at the beginning. David Raya, who is still on loan from Brentford, was not able to play the game and Ramsdale looked very unsteady as an alternative in the first half, making a few poor choices.

See also: EPL records broken by Haaland so far — And those he’s likely to break

Tottenham 1 vs Aston villa 2

In spite of creating numerous opportunities, Tottenham lost their third straight game at home to Aston Villa. Giovani Lo Celso scored the first goal, a powerful strike that deflected past his Argentina teammate Emi Martinez, to mark his first League start since October 2021.

What went wrong for Spurs in this game? They dominated Villa in the first half, getting through a goal from Lo Celso, who was starting a league game for the first time since October 2021. Lo Celso took Maddison’s place in a deeper role. However, a header from Torres tied the score just before halftime, and Watkins’ skillful play sealed the victory.

Even though Spurs are playing some amazing football, it appears that their honeymoon period is coming to an end after they have now lost three straight league games.