Team of the week (By Eurosport.com): We got 8 out of 11 picks

Our pick for the top eleven is very similar to Eurosport.com select eleven. The only difference - Jordan Henderson (Liverpool) is included in their squad at the expense of Ramirez (Chelsea). Also, Ryan Shawcross (Stoke) was favored ahead of Daniel Agger (Liverpool). Goalkeeper Krul (Newcastle) was selected ahead of our selection, Tim Howard (Everton).

I humbly disagree with dropping Ramirez and Agger. What do you think?

GK: Tim Krul (Newcastle United)

The young Dutchman has been in impressive form at the start of the season and excelled in a 2-1 win over Fulham, first turning a header from Steve Sidwell onto the bar and then producing a brilliant reaction save to deny Danny Murphy.

RB: Jose Bosingwa (Chelsea)

The Portugal international has benefited from the arrival of compatriot Andre Villas-Boas over the summer and has repaid his boss with some influential performances. He opened the scoring against Norwich with a thunderous effort from range and overlapped well on the right.

CB: Phil Jones (Manchester United)

The maturity of the summer recruit from Blackburn continues to astound and Jones enjoyed himself in the 8-2 rout of Arsenal. He exploited space in midfield to venture forward when required and, alongside a shaky Jonny Evans, was a rock at the back when keeping Robin van Persie quiet.

CB: Ryan Shawcross (Stoke City)

Stoke secured their first victory of the season with a 1-0 win at West Brom and their captain was crucial with his calming influence and dominant performance at the back. Shawcross helped to contain the lively Shane Long in typically uncompromising fashion.

LB: Leighton Baines (Everton)

It has been a difficult summer at Goodison but the sight of Baines pulling on an Everton shirt, despite speculation about his future, has cheered all Toffees fans. A threat from set-pieces, Baines was also a constant menace down the left flank, delivering a succession of teasing crosses in a 1-0 win over Blackburn.

CM: Charlie Adam (Liverpool)

The Scotland international claimed an assist when Martin Skrtel headed home his fine corner and then scored himself against Bolton with a neat finish from the edge of the box. Adam also sprayed the ball around with real panache from his position as a deep-lying playmaker, or the Xabi Alonso role, if you prefer.

CM: Jordan Henderson (Liverpool)

Eyebrows were raised higher than Carlo Ancelotti's when the Reds paid £20 million to Sunderland for the young midfielder but against Bolton he gave a demonstration of his ability and potential. Henderson claimed a well-taken goal and put in an accomplished all-round performance tucked in behind the forwards.

CM: Samir Nasri (Manchester City)

Nominally placed on the left of City's midfield, Nasri was in practice allowed to roam free on his debut and was superb in the 5-1 defeat of Spurs. The Frenchman struck up an immediate rapport with David Silva and his poise in possession saw him collect no less than three assists in a performance of sustained menace and unrelenting effort.

FW: Ashley Young (Manchester United)

Young's two wonderful goals would have graced any game, but to score them in a remarkable 8-2 win over Arsenal at Old Trafford was special indeed. He exploited the space afforded to him by a makeshift Arsenal defence to the full, giving young Carl Jenkinson a torrid afternoon with his direct running and rapid pace.

FW: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)

The United star collected a hat-trick - with two free-kicks and a penalty - hit the post with an outrageous chip and also produced a fine assist for Nani's goal in a virtuoso display. He relished dropping into very welcoming pockets of space and tormented Arsenal's defence on an afternoon when he scored his 150th goal for United.

FW: Edin Dzeko (Manchester City)

No player has accrued a tally of six goals from the opening three Premier League games of the season before but the Bosnian finds himself breaking new ground thanks to a four-goal haul against Spurs. Dzeko's perfect hat-trick arrived via good finishes with both feet and an expert header, but the coup de grace was his fourth, a glorious soaring effort into the top corner in the dying minutes.

Match Day 3: Team of the Week

DEFENDERS

• Tim Howard (Everton) - Keeper
• Daniel Agger (Liverpool)
• Phil Jones (Man United)
• Leighton Baines (Everton)
• Jose Bosingwa (Chelsea)

MIDFIELD

• Ashley Young (Man United)
• Samir Nasri (Man City)
• Ramirez (Chelsea)
• Charlie Adam (Liverpool)

FORWARDS

• Wayne Rooney (Man United)
• Edin Dzeko (Man City)

SUBSTITUTES

• J. Terry (Chelsea)
• Juan Mata (Chelsea)
• Franco Di Santo (Wigan)
• L. Best (Newcastle)
• L. Suarez (Liverpool)
• M. Skrtel (Liverpool)
• P. Evra (Man United)
• S. Kun Aguero (Man City)
• H. Hilario (Chelsea)

Please note that Monday games are not included in this pool.

Do you agree? Let your voice be heard!

The Manchester Massacre: Manchester United 8 Arsenal 2

Anything you can do, we can do better. If you can take down a London club, we can take down a bigger one.

That's Manchester United's message to rivals Manchester City, who dispatched Tottenham 5-1 earlier in the day. As a Liverpool fan, I will not spend much time on this topic. However, I dare say, that was quite a hiding handed out to the Gunners.

A few weeks back, I had blogged about this new season being a 'Manchester affair'. After this week's games, you don't need a crystal ball to know that. Also, I blogged about Arsene Wenger's philosophy. You don't need a psychic to tell you that his ways needs some mending either.

In that piece, I'd urged Mr. Wenger to buy. After an 8-2 loss to Man United, it's a little too late. The damage has been done.

The Great London Massacre: Tottenham Hotspur 1 Manchester City 5

Money talks. Period.

Now we've got that out of the way, let's talk about the other factors that contributed to Manchester City's total domination of this game.

Roberto Mancini
Criticized heavily last season for playing 'negative' football away from home, Mancini has finally assembled all the missing pieces his dream team, and has them firing on all cylinders. At game time, Mancini's formation and lineup clearly signaled his intent to adopt a new approach to all games (home and away) - total domination. They say when you spend money, spend it well. Roberto has done just that.

Edin Dzeko
Dzeko was written off last season as a potential Premier League bust. Perhaps his Bundesliga resume was not strong enough for most pundits. Whatever the case, those pundits are taking a second look after Dzeko's display at White Hart Lane. What is particularly scary is the ease, poise, positioning and accuracy with which he went about dispatching his goals. Stunning!

David Silva
A bundle of creativity, our week 2 Player of the Week was at his best again

Sergio Kun Aguero
Our week 1 hero wouldn't be shown up by his teammate Dzeko. He found a way to come up with another fantastic goal to compliment Dzeko's four.

Sir Alex Ferguson, Andre Villa-Boas and Kenny Dalglish are you all watching?

DROGBA RECOVERING (chelseafc.com)

DROGBA TO BE RELEASED FROM HOSPITAL

Posted on: Sat 27 Aug 2011

Chelsea Football Club can confirm Didier Drogba will be released from hospital tonight following medical tests.

The striker was stretchered off during this afternoon's 3-1 win against Norwich City after a collision with opposition goalkeeper John Ruddy, and is suffering from mild concussion.

The club's medical staff will continue to monitor the 33-year-old over the coming days.

Red Hot: Liverpool 3 Bolton 1

Liverpool's revival under Manager, Kenny Dalglish continued today with a very convincing performance by the Reds in front of their beloved Kop.

Once again, it was Copa America hero, Luis Suarez treating fans to an explosive display of persistent and tenacious football. Suarez's movement, passing and determined hunger for goal ensured Bolton defenders had a nightmare at the office.

Surprisingly, Suarez didn't scored. However, it was his pinpoint cross to Stewart  Downing with the outside of his boot, that started the sequence to the opening goal in the 15th minute. Downing met Suarez's cross with a smart flick on goal which drew a great save from Bolton's keeper, Jaaskelainen. Bolton defenders failed to clear the rebound, allowing Jordan Henderson to punch and draw first blood on the night.

For the next 10 minutes, Suarez, Kuyt, Downing and Henderson raided the Bolton goal are like bandits. Suarez blew a chance to send Liverpool two goals up when his chip over Jaaskelainen sailed over the bar on the 25th minute mark. A few minutes later, Liverpool's right full back, Martin Kelly pulled a hamstring and was substituted by Martin Skrtel.

The Liverpool attack resumed with vigor in the second half with Suarez deserving of a penalty in the 47th minute. Not given. Nonetheless, the Reds were 2-0 up in the next five minutes when substitute Martin Skrtel thumped home a powerful header off a Charlie Adam corner kick.

The very next minute, Charlie Adam turned scorer from provider, drilling a right-footed shot into the corner of the net past the diving Jaaskelainen. Game over.

Bolton got a consolation goal via Ivan Klasnic in added time, to make the score line more decent. By then, the Kop was long lost in joyous singing and chanting to the delight of Liverpool Manager, Kenny Dalglish.

The Reds are definitely back and looking red hot!

Chelsea 3 Norwich City 1: Premiership New Boys Show Courage

From the blast of the whistle, it looked like it would be a long day for Norwich City as they took on former champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

A Jose Bosingwa cracker in the 6th minute to open his Chelsea account for the season, looked like the perfect start for a one sided affair. Norwich City players looking obviously startled and trying desperately to adjust to a newly introduced system for the game, hung on for 10 more minutes of heavy fire from Chelsea.

Much credit should be given to Paul Lambert, as he recognized the struggles of his players and took quick action  to alter his system in the 30th minute with an early substitution. Thereafter, the game changed and Norwich had Chelsea on their back foot till the break.

Norwich resurgence continued in the second half and paid off in the 63rd minute as Grant Holt capitalized on a defensive error with a beautiful finish to level matters at 1-1.

A minute later, Chelsea's Didier Drogba collided with Norwich keeper, Ruddy in a goal attempt. Drogba came out worse from the collusion, leaving the pitch unconscious on a stretcher.

Norwich continued their bold display until they were undone by a Ramirez penalty, a red card to keeper Ruddy and the introduction of Chelsea's new signing, Juan Mata. Frank Lampard converted the penalty to give Chelsea a 2-1 advantage in the 82nd minute.

Down to 10 men and looking vulnerable, Norwich were further put to the sword by Juan Mata, who completely took over the game in the midfield and delivered the hammer blow in the 100th minute.

While Chelsea collected maximum points, it was not a convincing victory and credit has to be given to the Norwich City new boys for their gallant display of good football.

This competitive edge makes the Premier League the best in the world.

Up next: Liverpool vs. Bolton. Go Reds!!!

Aston Villa 0 vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers 0: A waste of 90 minutes

For all Football fans who got out of bed to catch this early game in the US (4:00 am Pacific, 7:00 am Eastern), my sincere apologies. Villa and Wolves should all refund us our precious sleep.

Back to the game, the first half was a complete wash with absolutely no desire from either team to take the game. The second half saw a more purposeful Villa side, but lacking creativity and the finishing touch in the final third.

Wolves will be very pleased with picking up another point to bring their total points from the first three games to 7 points. Not bad for a team that barely escaped relegation last season.

Suffice to say, no player from this game will be making Match Day 3 team of the week. Guaranteed!

Top Six News Headlines

Manchester United (manutd.com)

Boss welcomes European draw

Sir Alex Ferguson is delighted with United's Champions League group stage draw, a mix of classic, fairly familiar and brand new opponents.

Benfica barely need any introduction after being on the wrong end of the Reds' first final victory in 1968, the epic 4-1 victory at Wembley. Prior to that, the Portuguese giants famously lost 5-1 at home to United on a night in 1966 when George Best was on brilliant form. More recently, during Sir Alex's reign, Benfica knocked the Reds out at the group stage in 2005/06 but then lost both meetings in the following term, 2006/07.

United have only placed Basel twice before, winning 3-1 away and drawing 1-1 at Old Trafford in 2002/03 - the latter match being the senior debut of Darren Fletcher. The final opponents in the group stage, Otelul Galati, are however an unknown quantity after winning the Romanian title for the first time in their 47-year history.

"It's an interesting draw with no real travel difficulties. We're looking forward to the games," Sir Alex told ManUtd.com.

"Obviously we've played Benfica in the past. They're always great games. Obviously there's great history between the two clubs. Basel are a Swiss team who are doing really well. Swiss teams tend to bring lots of young players through their system which is great. We have played them before, in 2002/03, in the group stage. We don't really know much about Otelul Galati but that's the beauty of the Champions League, you get fresh teams to play against. They obviously deserve to be in the competition. It's great for them."

Chelsea (chelseafc.com)

VILLAS-BOAS: MATA AVAILABLE, DAVID LUIZ OUT

Posted on: Thu 25 Aug 2011

Andre Villas-Boas has spoken for the first time ahead of this weekend's game against Norwich, also discussing the arrival of Juan Mata and one or two other transfer stories...

Squad news

The manager has Juan Mata available to face Norwich City but will be withoutDavid Luiz who only returned to full training this morning.

It is expected that new signing Mata, who arrived yesterday from Valencia, will be on the bench with Saturday coming a little too soon to ingratiate himself fully into the squad.

'It is too early. This league is very specific in terms of intensity and emotionally and culturally,' Villas-Boas said. 'It doesn't mean he is not threatening the starting 11 but two training sessions is short for playing and creating new relationships with the players, so we will assess tomorrow.

'Tomorrow is the decisive day for the strategic part of our game and we will decide tomorrow.

'David Luiz is coming back to full training, today he had a full intensity training. It will be too early for him but he is selected for Brazil and I am going to let him go to add a couple of minutes.

'On other fronts there is nothing special. Petr has made a tremendous recovery and is looking good for after the international break, and Essien is long-term.

'Everybody is up for selection. At the moment the funny thing is we are on full weeks running into a game, then when the transfer window finishes we have two games a week. It seems now we went into a pattern of the 18 and 11 but it doesn't mean changes won't happen after.'

Villas-Boas also went into more detail on Mata, 23, and what he expected the player would bring to his squad.

'He can play right, left and through the middle,' said the Portuguese. 'He has been tested as well in 4-4-2, not just 4-3-3 so it gives us flexibility in formation as well.

'He has an eye for goal and a magnificent record for assists throughout his career. Now comes one of the biggest challenges for his career now in the Premiership and he has made public his comments on that, it is a step up for his career and we hope he can add to the quality of our squad.

'We were looking for a player that would give us creativity in the final third, not that we don't have it, but we want always to add when you can find talent of this nature.

'We thought the price was reasonable for what Mata's qualities and his demonstrations in the Spanish league and Champions League so we decided to bring him in. It's a big addition everybody was looking for, speculation was coming from all fronts, and criticism for a lack of market activity, so we can feel laid off now!'

On facing Norwich City

New to England, Villas-Boas was modest in discussing his knowledge of Norwich, but is more than familiar with Canaries manager Paul Lambert, a European champion during his playing days.

'I cannot go in depth on Norwich last season but I know they had a fantastic season, an incredible amount of goals scored last season and the season before, coming up twice,' said the 33-year-old.

'Paul Lambert likes to organise his teams and play good attacking football, that's why they were the highest scoring team last year.

It is twice making promotion and this is a high value because you know how tight the Championship is.

'I can only assess what has been happening in pre-season and their first three games and there were some changes Paul made to his team. It leaves us a little bit trying to assess what he is going to do, it seems his principles are well established but to get the starting 11 right will be difficult for us because he changed dramatically his team in the last three games.

'In two difficult games coming out with a draw, almost a win against Stoke, means Norwich is here to play a part and I look forward to playing against him. I think Paul was influenced throughout his career on his influences in European football, and maybe why he uses a mixture of European flair with the attacking British game.'

Other news

With the closing of the transfer window now less than a week away, there was plenty of discussion on transfer targets, and while he did not want to discuss Tottenham's Luka Modric, he did confirm a bid has been placed for Porto's Uruguayan international, Alvaro Pereira.

'I can confirm that we have made a bid for him but we are very far apart in terms of numbers,' reported the manager. 'It's a big, big difference. I am not very confident.

'Not only in Porto, he has a tremendous influence in the Uruguayan national team and played an important part in the Copa America.

'He plays regularly, I think he beat the record for games played in Porto, and gives consistency. He has versatility as well, he can play in side in midfield, on the wing and left-back, so he can add to any squad in the world.'

With Pereira a possible addition to Mata's arrival, it was reported in today's newspapers that Florent Malouda could be leaving the club, but Villas-Boas was quick to dismiss these claims about a player with 43 goals from 189 games.

'Speaking about the number of goals and assists we can speak about the number of goals and assists Malouda has for Chelsea,' he said. 'This is the kind of importance this player has for us, he is an excellent professional, very driven and determined throughout his career, so we can't let ourselves sell talents of this quality.

'As you know I have no problems whatsoever with the average age of the squad because I believe in their competence and I believe in Malouda's competence.'

Manchester City (mcfc.co.uk)

Manchester City FC is delighted to announce the signing of Samir Nasri, who has become Roberto Mancini's fourth signing of the summer.

The French international joins the Club from Arsenal on a four-year deal and will meet his new team-mates on Thursday. He will wear the number 19 shirt. Stayed tuned for an exclusive citytv interview with Samir!

Nasri follows in the footsteps of Sergio Aguero and Stefan Savic as well as fellow former Gunner Gael Clichy in making the switch to the Etihad Stadium.

The 24-year-old, adept in both wide and central roles, arrives in time to merit consideration for Sunday's game at White Hart Lane against Tottenham, his former club Arsenal's fierce rivals.

Born and brought up in Marseille, Nasri joined his hometown team at the age of nine and rose through their youth system before making his senior debut aged 17.

He was named Ligue 1’s Young Player of the Year for 2006/07, and made his senior international debut in March 2007. He joined Arsenal in the summer of 2008 after theEuropean Championships.

Nasri began his Gunners career in fine style, scoring on his Barclays Premier League debut against West Brom in Arsenal’s opening game of the 2008/09 season.  

His first year in England brought 44 appearances and seven goals. A broken leg in pre-season interrupted his progress but he bounced back to fitness and goalscoring form.

Named French player of the year for 2010 and was short-listed for the 2011 PFA PLayer of the Year alongside Carlos Tevez.

Nasri scored 15 goals in all competitions last season and will wear the No.19 shirt for the Blues.

Arsenal (arsenal.com)

Van Persie - We have surprised a few people

By Chris Harris

Robin van Persie wants Arsenal to use their Champions League play-off victory as a launchpad for a successful season.

Arsène Wenger's side advanced to the group stage for the 14th consecutive year on Wednesday night after coming from behind to beat Udinese 2-1 in Italy and win 3-1 on aggregate.

Van Persie scored the all-important equaliser on the night before  Wojciech Szczesny's penalty save and Theo Walcott's goal sealed victory. Now the captain has challenged his team-mates to produce the goods every time they take to the field.

"It has been a hard week with Cesc leaving and Samir leaving and we have been in the papers for the wrong reasons sometimes but I think that we played well and that is a positive sign," said Van Persie.

"Now we have to show it every few days because that's football, we can't live off this night for the rest of the month or the rest of the year. Now I'm looking forward to Manchester United.

"It was tough against Udinese, we had to dig deep, but we can be proud of ourselves because we had a really good performance," he added.

"We were a bit shaky in the first half, especially when they had chances and they scored. But we came back really well. Our first goal finished them off a bit mentally, it was tough for them to regroup after that.

"I think we surprised a few people and hopefully we can do that more often."

Tottenham Hotspur

Emmanuel Adebayor has joined Tottenham Hotspur on loan for the rest of the season.

The striker, signed from Arsenal in the summer of 2009, will not be eligible under Premier League rules to play against City when the teams meet at White Hart Lane on Sunday.

Adebayor, who scored a Europa League hat-trick last season against Lech Poznan, started only two League games, scoring a penalty at Wolves. He also enjoyed a successful loan at Real Madrid.

Liverpool (liverpoolfc.tv)

Reds agree Aquilani deal

Liverpool FC have reached an agreement, subject to a medical, for Alberto Aquilani to join AC Milan on loan for the remainder of the current season. The deal includes an option to make the move a permanent one.

Director of Football Damien Comolli said: "I want to pay tribute to the way Alberto has conducted himself during these discussions.

"Throughout the entire process, his only desire has been to play football and he has put this ahead of any other considerations and at personal cost to himself. We wish him well for the season ahead."

Match Day 2: Team of the Week

DEFENDERS

• Michel Vorm (Swansea) - Keeper
• T. Vermaelen (Arsenal)
• V. Kompany (Man City)
• Martin Kelly (Liverpool)
• Jose Enrique (Liverpool)

MIDFIELD

• Fabian Delph (Aston Villa)
• David Silva (Man City)
• F. Malouda (Chelsea)
• S. Hunt (Wolves)

FORWARDS

• Gabby Agbonlahor (Aston Villa)
• Edin Dzeko (Man City)

SUBSTITUTES

• Anelka (Chelsea)
• M. Richards (Man City)
• G. Barry (Man City)
• L. Suarez (Liverpool)
• R. Merieles (Liverpool)
• Jones (Stoke)
• M. Javis (Wolves)
• P. Reina (Liverpool)

Please note that Monday games are not included (Man U vs. Tottenham players are not part of this pool).

Do you agree? Let your voice be heard!

Carlos Who?

It's very rare to see an English Premier league team opt for a non-English speaking Captain. It was refreshing to see Manchester City ignore the stereotypes and appoint Carlos Tevez the team captain last season.


He certainly earned it, and deserved the recognition after scoring 43 league goals in two seasons. So after a third place finish in the league and an FA Cup triumph, Man City expectations were high for their Captain this season.


Apparently, 'Carlito' is more interested in relocating himself and his family to a Spanish speaking country rather than spend some of the nearly $300,000 he makes a week on hiring an English teacher. Why should he care about winning the league? Why should he be remotely interested in leading Man City to a Champions League title? He's already achieved both feats for the City of Manchester, as a Manchester United  player (Man City's arch rivals). Pretty selfish, right?


Manager Roberto Mancini's response? Buy an even better replacement to cover Carlos Tevez's position while he whines. Not only is Mancini's replacement another Argentine, but he is younger, faster and also the great Diego Maradona's son-in-law, Sergio Kun Aguero. Interestingly, he is ahead of Carlos Tevez in the Argentine National team pecking order.


Since the arrival of Kun Aguero, Carlos has been a forgotten man. Hopefully, he can learn his lesson and get back to playing football. Perhaps, he may even add to his Manchester legacy by being the first player to win league and Champions league titles with two different Manchester teams.


Play Carlos play!

Nzogbia feeling quite at home at Aston Villa

Charles Nzogbia may have found the home he has so desired in the English Premier League. Spells at Newcastle and Wigan had left the talented winger with the bitter taste of defeat in his mouth and constant threat of relegation over his shoulder.

After his new team's 3-1 victory over Blackburn, Nzogbia can finally smile and feel at home at his third English club. In a match that saw Aston Villa dominate the game, Nzogbia will be looking forward to going to work every weekend, especially when he has the experience of Emile Heskey, the pace and technique of Gabby Agbonlahor and the finishing of Darren Bent, to rely on.

It's definitely home cooking for Charles Nzogbia at Aston Villa!

Chelsea leaves it late: Chelsea 2 West Bromwich Albion 1

Mission accomplished for Andre Villa-Boas.

For Chelsea's new 33 year old Manager, it was vital that he recorded a victory at Stamford Bridge. Anything less would have attracted the TV talking heads' attention, and an immediate declaration of doom would have followed.

While the day ended well, it did not necessarily start very well for the young Manager and his band of established players. Finding his team behind in only three minutes of play on an Alex error, he showed why he is so often compared to his mentor Jose Mourinho by yanking Kalou in the 35th minute for Malouda.

Obviously, the Ivorian must not have been playing to instructions, as he did not seem injured. A very bold move from a new and young Manager which ultimately paid off with Malouda getting the winner in the 83rd minute.

All said and done, it was a victory and 3 points in the bank. However, Chelsea will need to improve on their performance to keep up with the Manchester teams. They have a good chance of going tops with next week's fixture at Stamford Bridge against new comers Norwich City.

Match Day Two: Arsenal 0 Liverpool 2 - Players Rating

ARSENAL

• Thomas Vermaelen - 8. Put in a full day's shift on Andy Carroll and looked like a true leader.
• Samir Nasri - 7. Surprisingly, he was very committed and played better than expected. You can't fault him for wanted to leave Arsenal for Man City. If anything else, this game will convince him to pack his bags tonight.
• Robin Van Persie - 6. Really not much he could do. With no Fabregas and Wilshere to deliver killer thru balls, RVP had to drop deep to contribute.
• B. Sagna - 6. Consistent, but not enough. Still has to learn to cross the ball. Without that technique, he will always be a middle of the road full back.
• C. Jenkinson - 5.5. While this may look like a low rating, it is actually a compliment to a former League One player to be the 5th best player in Arsenal on game day.
• I. Miquel - 5.5. The 18 year old Spainard was not bad on his first day, replacing Koscielny in the 16th minute
• E. Frimpong - 4.5. Great potential. Inexperience showed in getting the two bookings that sent him to the showers early and gave Liverpool the game
• T. Walcott - 4. Based on this game, he has no business being ahead of Adam Johnson (Man City) and Stewart Downing (Liverpool) in the Three Lions (England National Team) pecking order.
• A. Ramsey - 3.5. Awful. Nowhere close to being a Fabregas replacement
• A. Ashavin - 3. Woeful. Should give his weekly wage back or donate to charity.
• N. Bendtner - 3. Mentally checkout. Had only 10 minutes to impress. Did not.
• H. Lansbury - 3. Who?

LIVERPOOL

• J. Carragher - 8. True leader. His long ball tendencies are very amusing.
• D. Agger - 8. Worthy partner in the central defence
• J. Enrique - 8. Another solid performance. neutralized Walcott
• M. Kelly - 8. Stood his ground against Ashavin and Sagna. I'm still scratching my head as to why he did not feature in Liverpool's opening game
• L. Suarez - 8. Difference maker off the bench. Only scored an 8 rating because he played for only 20 minutes
• R. Merieles - 8. No reason for this man to be on the bench. Dalglish continues to get it wrong fielding Henderson.
• P. Reina - 8. Wasn't really tested. Had some great punches on the numerous corner kicks
• D. Kuyt - 7. Road Runner (energizer bunny) did what he does best - energy, energy and winning tackles.
• S. Downing - 6. Average performance.
• Lucas Leiva - 5.5. Average
• C. Adam - 5. Did not do much today except some key tackles that broke up Arsenal attacks.
• Andy Carroll - 4.5. Not what Liverpool fans want from a $35MM player. Needs to do better
• J. Henderson - 4. Still not ready for this level.

We got it wrong: Arsenal 0 Liverpool 2

Ok, so we were a little emotional in our predictions about this encounter, choosing to rely on historical data and the magic of Arsene Wenger.

In hindsight, we got it wrong. To be fair, we weren't all that off. Afterall, Liverpool did play as awful as Arsenal until the red card and the introduction of the Suarez/Merieles combo. Moreover, our reliance on historic data is an error everyone would have easily made.

Think about it. Arsenal has been the most consistent team in the Premiership behind Manchester United. While they haven't added to the 3 titles and numerous FA Cup trophies, they have played elegant, entertaining and attacking football since Wenger's arrival almost 15 years ago.

The Arsenal performance we saw in the early morning of August 20, 2011 against Liverpool, was probably the worst performance I have seen in the last 10 years. The Udinese Champions League game on Tuesday does not count, since they found a way to win that match.

Something has to change. Arsenal has made over $60MM in the transfer, while spending less than $20MM on three teenage prospects. If the fans do not let their voices be heard, the board will not reinvest in player personnel.

It's time Arsenal fans let their feelings be known and stage a boycott. The only way to do that is to hit them in the pockets.

Stay home!

We got it right: Seb Larsson's goal is voted goal of the week (Eurosport.com)

Sebastian Larsson has won our first Premier League Goal of the Week award for his debut stunner forSunderland.

The Swede hit a sensational volley to earn his new club a 1-1 draw against Liverpool at Anfield, and earned 50 per cent of over 25,000 votes in our Eurosport-Yahoo! poll.

Larsson's manager Steve Bruce said after the game: "I’m delighted we’ve got him.

“I had the good pleasure of working with him for three or four years (at Birmingham City) and he’s developed as a player and as a person and we all know we needed to add something to our set-piece delivery.

“Of course he’s one of those manager’s dreams where he gets on with everything, left or right, what a way mark your debut with a spectacular goal like that.”

Larsson left the opposition trailing, withManchester United striker Wayne Rooneysecond on 25 per cent, and Bolton's Gary Cahill on 20 per cent.

Wolves' Stephen Ward and Fabrice Muamba of Bolton made up the five contenders.

Only matches played on Saturday and Sunday were included in the poll, so Sergio Aguero's stonking drive forManchester City was not considered.

GOAL OF THE WEEK RESULT:

1-Sebastian Larsson 50%

2-Wayne Rooney 25%

3-Gary Cahill 20%

4-Stephen Ward 3%

5-Fabrice Muamba 2%

Match Day Two: Saturday Fixtures and Predictions

Sunderland vs. Newcastle
Nothing like a good old fashioned derby to start the week. If you thought Newcastle played with spirit in their season home debut against Arsenal last week, tomorrow's encounter will demand more from them than their opening day effort.


The Tyne and Wear derby, as the matchup is famously referred to, has been played 142 times since 1883. Newcastle United has recored 52 victories to Sunderland's 45,, with both sides drawing 45 times.


Stats - Sunderland won 37% of their Home games last season, drew 26% and lost 37%. Newcastle lost 47% of their Away games last season, drew 26% and won 26%. The odds seem to favor Sunderland, but Newcastle showed promise against Arsenal. Prediction - Draw


Arsenal vs. Liverpool
On paper, this looks like a run away victory for Liverpool, with all the negative press and misfortunes surrounding the Gunners. However, Liverpool has not beat Arsenal in the English Premier League since March 2007, and tomorrow's game looks an unlikely venue for their first victory in 5 years. 


Why? Arsenal plays a System that is not necessarily dependent on particular personnel. Granted, they have lost their most prized gem in Cesc Fabregas, not to mention Clichy, Eboue and quite possibly, Samir Nasri too. Injuries to Jack Wilshere and suspensions to Song and Gervinho pile on the misery.


However, Arsenal always rises to the occasion when matched up against Liverpool. The home fans will painfully remember Liverpool's 102nd minute goal by Dirk Kuyt that killed the Gunners hopes of wrestling Man United for the title last season. They will be out in full voice seeking for some payback blood from the Reds!
Prediction - Arsenal 2 Liverpool 1.


Other Saturday Fixtures -


Swansea City vs. Wigan - Swansea has a chance to beat ex-Manager Martinez and record first points of their Premiership season. Swansea is favored to win this one.
Aston Villa vs. Blackburn - Villa won the corresponding fixture last year 4-1, and should take tomorrow's game as well.
Everton vs. Queens Park Rangers - QPR should expect another hiding after the 4-0 home trashing they suffered in the hands of Bolton.
Chelsea vs. West Bromwich Albion - Roberto DiMatteo (Chelsea 1st team Coach) will ensure his players understand the need to restore some pride back for WBA firing him midway last term. Expect lots of goals in a one-sided encounter.