While many had their eyes glued on the clash of the cash, Rafa Benitez secured his first victory against Manchester United in the Prem. The game was not pretty, and Liverpool's two goals were all kinds of lucky, but sometimes it's better to be lucky than good.Liverpool 2 - Man U 1: Man U looked sloppy at the back and it cost them. Poor communication between Van der Sar and Brown(reminding us of the days when he couldn't even get a start) gifted Liverpool their first, and then Ryan Babel scuffed in the second. Neither Gerrard or Torres started, with Gerrard only seeing limited action. Tevez continues to impress, and linked up well with Berbatov. With Ronaldo close to match fit, this should be their last sloppy performance.
Chelsea 3 - Man City 1: Robinho got the first goal(with an assist from Mikel's head), but Carvalho used his own head to equalize. Ireland and SWP had some chances, but Chelsea's slick passing won the day when Lampard and Anelka converted theirs.
Arsenal 4 - Blackburn 0: Paul Ince's team looked pathetic at home, as Emmanuel Adebayor found his shooting boots and scored a hat trick. Walcott carved up the Blackburn defense, and Arsenal ran rampant up the wings. They still have some problems at the back, but as long as they pin teams back they won't have to worry.
Fulham 2 - Bolton 1: Not as ugly a game as it could have been, and Zamora looks comfortable up front. Hodgson has Fulham playing like a middle of the table side. It's early, but Bolton look like a team who will be in the relegation battle.
Hull 2 - Newcastle 1: This really was a sorry game for any Newcastle fan to watch. The crowd was more interested in booing the management than supporting the team, and the team didn't seem to intersted in being there as well. Marlon King showed the form that had so many teams queing(lining) up to buy him and grabbed a brace. Guthrie's foul at the end was atrocious, and with Ashley deciding to sell the team things will not calm down for a while.
Portsmouth 2 - Middlesbrough 1: Jermaine Defoe looks to be paying dividends, though Pompey were lucky to come away with the victory. Alves and Mido still look a devastating pair up front for Boro, but this game was decided at the back and Portsmouth were a little tighter.
West Brom 3 - West Ham 2: A big win for West Brom, and things are not looking good in East London. The Baggies have a pretty good team and look like they might be able to stay up this season. The Hammers definitely have the talent, but if it keeps going off injured like Ashton then they'll have to worry about their own relegation.
Wigan 1 - Sunderland 1: Wigan actually scored two great goals in the one, except Titus Bramble's went into his own net. Sunderland looked a bit disappointing, while Amr Zaki really does seem to be one of the league's best. His ability to find space in the box and then make the most of that space has given him four goals in four games.
Everton 3 - Stoke 2: Everton really have to tighten up their back line if they want to be at the top of the table. Fellaini did not have the best of games, while Yobo and Jagielka made a number of mistakes. It was obvious how important Cahill is to the team, as he puts other teams on the back foot. Stoke's game plan is pretty obvious, put the ball in the box and just try to bang it home.
Aston Villa 2 - Tottenham 1: Things continue to go poorly for Tottenham, as a howler by Gomes put this game out of reach. Villa really look impressive this season, and now that they have added some depth they will be a challenge to the Big 4.
One Liners
- Ashley to sell team, puts more effort into goodbye letter than he did looking over the club's books
- Fagan's leg broken by Guthrie kick, expect major suspension for Guthrie
- DIC say they are not interested in buying Liverpool or Newcastle, not all of North England will be awash in oil money
- Clarke joins West Ham, knowing the Hammers he'll turn out to be injured and miss the rest of the season
- Sepp Blatter disappointed by South Africa, wags his finger
