Erling Haaland scores another hat-trick for Manchester City; Arsenal’s Declan Rice ruled out against Tottenham
The weekend’s Premier League action brought Arsenal their first dropped point of the season, Ipswich Town their first point of the season, another Erling Haaland hat-trick and more. Saturday started off well enough, with Declan Rice sent off for the Gunners and Bournemouth overturning Everton’s lead for their first win of the season, but Haaland ended the day to the best of his ability. With two consecutive hat-tricks, the race for the Premier League Golden Boot may be over as he already has seven goals. Let’s take a look at what happened:
premier league scores and schedule
Saturday, August 31
- Arsenal 1, Brighton 1
- Nottingham Forest 1, Wolverhampton 1
- Leicester City 1, Aston Villa 2
- Ipswich Town 1, Fulham 1
- Brentford 3, Southampton 1
- Everton 2, Bournemouth 3
- West Ham United 1, Manchester City 3
Sunday, September 1
- Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace, 8:30 p.m. ET (Peacock)
- Newcastle United vs. Tottenham, 8:30 am ET (USA)
- Manchester United vs. Liverpool, 11 am ET (Peacock)
Holland, Holland and more Holland
Manchester City is inescapable and one of the reasons is the presence of world-class destroyer Haaland. The Norwegian completed another hat trick and made it look easy. Four shots, three on target and three goals. When he can score with different finishes, it makes City unstoppable, especially when Ilkay Gundogan is there to solidify the midfield. Haaland has already scored seven goals this season and is on pace to surpass his debut season with 36 goals in league play.
Haaland, who has scored 70 league goals in 69 games for City, is dominating every record board and is unstoppable and that shows the power of the number nine in the title race. The only question now is what City will do when he is not on the pitch. Julian Alvarez has moved to Atletico Madrid, so for now, there is no recognised second striker in the squad.
Given the talent City have, this may not be an issue, but a prolonged absence is where things become worrying. They are now used to seeing Haaland at the top of the XI, but there is only one player in the world who can create chances from the shots he takes. If forced to play without him, teams like Arsenal might have a chance in the Premier League, but as long as Haaland is healthy, they are going to be unstoppable again.
The opening challenge for Arsenal
No one wants to be the first team to concede a title, especially after Arsenal took a lead at halftime against Brighton. Rice was sent off soon after the half, but Joao Pedro scored to level the match for Brighton. This is Rice’s first red card and it could have been avoided as Brighton was caught in the net. Mikel Arteta is always one to preach about the mentality of his teams, but now Rice brings a challenge to Arsenal. They not only have to make up the points in the coming matches, but they also have to replace Rice in the North London derby against Tottenham.
With new signing Michael Merino out injured after suffering a shoulder injury, most of Arteta’s international break will be spent ensuring he has the right setup to face his opponents. The good thing is that going without Rice will allow Arsenal to prepare for the rotation that will be needed during the Champions League game. Arteta will also be happy that despite being one player short, the Gunners managed to create a big chance in the second half and look to grab all three points from the match. While it’s never nice to lose points, to do so before such a big game will show what Arsenal’s mindset is like this season.
Bournemouth for Europe?
Don’t look now, but the Cherries are still unbeaten after three games since selling Dominic Solanke to Tottenham. Andoni Iraola’s side are moving up the table after a stunning comeback against Everton, scoring three goals after the 87th minute. Antoine Semenyo has already taken a step forward this season with two goals and an assist, but this is a true team attack where everyone in the team can hurt you. They’ve been flexible with styles and have a young defender in Dean Hughes who will be a dynamic addition once he’s fully up to speed.
Comfortable with the ball out from the back, he could help in matches such as facing Everton where Evanilson was ruled out of the game. Not having European commitments at present means the Cherries will have the chance to pick up points from other tired teams around the league as the season progresses.
For Everton, while they were able to score goals during the match, this is when the worries would start to grow for Sean Dyche. Three games into the new season, the Toffees have conceded 10 goals and scored just two and they are bottom of the table. While there is a chance they will turn things around, it is very important to do it as soon as possible.
