Enzo Maresca and Chelsea visited Anfield to play Arne Slot’s Liverpool was the big game of the eighth week of the 2024/25 Premier League season. It was a very good match and lived up to the billing.
Mo Salah scored and made the winner for the excellent Curtis Jones after Jackson had drawn the visitors level in the second-half.
Here are five points for me from the weekend (Monday inclusive.)
Arsenal and Red Cards. I have been genuinely amused by the noise around Arsenal and sending-offs following William Saliba’s red at Bournemouth. As someone who remembers Patrick Vieira, Martin Keown and others getting sent-off for violent conducts under Arsene Wenger, I am unable to see those in the same light with Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard’s sending-offs which were both for two yellow cards. Saliba’s at the weekend was for a last man foul. There is no problem with their discipline for me.
What should worry the Arsenal fans would be the team’s reactions in the matches against Brighton and Bournemouth. They got praised for holding out against City but big teams/championship chasing teams should be winning the other matches.
Spurs needed that win. Blowing a two-goal lead at Brighton to lose in the end before the International Break must have had manager Ange Postecoglou seething and brooding all through. His mood won’t have been better when West Ham stole a lead on Saturday through the Ghanaian, Mo Kudus. The manner with which his players responded to that set-back to run out comfortable winners in the end would have pleased the Australian former Celtic manager.
When you listen to Postecoglou you hear a manager who is determined to end Spurs trophy drought. A man who actually believes that he can manage the football club to a league title. They will be involved one way or the other this season when the honours are being shared.
Watkins responding to Duran. Ollie Watkins scored a truly outstanding header at Craven Cottage on Saturday to make it his 5th goal of the season. The England striker knows without a shadow of doubt that in Jhon Duran, who has 4 goals, there is a striker at Villa Park ready to take his place should his for drop. Watkins has recovered from those two terrible misses against Arsenal in Villa’s home defeat to show he is worthy of the starting berth for Unai Emery’s team
Maresca knows what he is doing. Chelsea rocked up to Anfield on Sunday in the big match of the weekend and showed a team so brilliantly coached by the Italian. Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia showed in that first half especially that they had the technical and tactical proficiency to deal with any midfield in the league. The former ran the Liverpool match winner, Curtis Jones, closely for the man of the match.
On the flanks, Nonny Madueke gave the vastly experienced Andy Robertson a chasing for nearly an hour. He and Jadon Sancho on the other flank ensured that the home full backs kept to their day jobs of defending.
The sport is brutal and is purely a result business, so Maresca needs to win a trophy very quickly to earn him the time to continue the work he is doing.
Oliver Glasner’s Palace worry. While it is pleasing for Chelsea fans to see how well their team is responding to Maresca’s promptings, the Crystal Palace fans are confused (and worried) at what is happening at their football club. They finished last season winning six of their last seven league games. This season, after eight games they are still searching for their first win with 5 defeats. This latest at the City Ground, Nottingham, will worry because of how toothless they were in the second-half barring long range efforts from Eberechi Eze.
The Palace hierarchy will be wondering if the sale of Michael Olise is enough justification for this dreadful start to the season. They will hope that Glasner will be able to pull the team up and out of the current position – quickly.
