Petr Cech had a forgettable Premier League debut as Arsenal suffered a frustrating 2-0 defeat against an unyielding West Ham side. A moment of magic by the mercurial Philippe Coutinho was the difference between Liverpool and Stoke City as the Reds emerged victorious at the stadium where they were handed a 6-1 drubbing last season.
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Slaven Bilic had a dream start as Hammers manager, as goals from Cheikhou Kouyate and Mauro Zarate as West Ham ended a run of nine straight league defeats against Arsenal. There was a sense of déjà vu around the Emirates Stadium as the Gunners put in a jaded display against a resolute West Ham. It wouldn’t be harsh to say that Petr Cech was at fault for both of West Ham’s goals – he was caught in no-man’s land during the Kouyate’s header and was wrong-footed by Zarate’s shot. Cech got it all wrong during Dimitri Payet’s free-kick and completely fluffed his punch, as Kouyate nodded the ball into an empty net just a couple of minutes before half-time.
12 minutes after the restart, after a scramble in the box, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Francis Coquelin gave the ball away on the edge of their area and Mauro Zarate finished from 20 yards, with a well-struck shot past the outstretched arms of the Czech keeper. Cech, who perhaps had his view blocked by his defenders, was wrong-footed and by the time he made the dive to his right, the travelling supporters were already celebrating. Although the home side enjoyed the lion’s share of possession, Arsenal could only manage 6 of 22 shots on target. Ramsey struck the bar in the first-half but that was closest as they came in what was a disappointing result. Although Petr Cech’s costly errors were highlighted after the match, 16-year old Reece Oxford hogged the limelight as the Englishman became the second-youngest player to start a Premier League game. Oxford, who is naturally a centre-back, was deployed in midfield by Bilic and the teenager didn’t disappoint, showing maturity and calmness throughout his 79-minute debut.
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Liverpool edged past Stoke City thanks to a mesmerizing goal by Philippe Coutinho, as Brendan Rodgers’ new-look squad showed promise at the Britannia Stadium. It was more of industry than creativity for the entirety of the match but Coutinho’s thunderous 25-yard shot, four minutes from the end was enough to secure all three points for Brendan Rodgers’ men. It was a dull game and in all fairness, neither side deserved to win and despite the loss Mark Hughes won’t be too displeased with his team’s performance as the new boys Ibrahim Afellay and Marko van Ginkel had impressive debuts. Although Liverpool will enjoy the win, how Rodgers will utilize Christian Benteke, a player who thrives on crosses, in his attacking plans remains a question yet to be answered. A £32.5 million pound signing from Aston Villa, Benteke failed to have any meaningful attempts on goal and had only 5 touches in the opposition box.
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Shane Long’s late headed goal earned Southampton a point after Georginio Wijnaldum’s powerful header had put Newcastle United on course of an opening matchday victory. Graziano Pelle continued his rich goalscoring form from last season, to give the Saints the lead but his goal was cancelled out by Papiss Cisse, who chested in a deflected cross. Wijnaldum, making his Premier League debut struck a powerful header past Stekelenburg to make it 2-1, before substitute Shane Long equalised with another headed goal. Sadio Mane missed two glorious chances in the dying moments of the match to give Southampton the lead, as both sides settled for a point on Tyneside.
Tags: Arsenal english premier league EPL EPL news Petr Cech Philippe Coutinho West Ham
