Key events
GOAL! Liverpool 2-1 Fulham (Mac Alllister ’39)
RICHARD MCGAHEY, ALEXIS MAC ALLISTER DEFINITELY ISN’T A DEFENDER.
He’s smacked this into the top corner from distance and Liverpool lead once again. Both their goals today have been utterly world class. What a way to net your first Liverpool goal.
Some correspondence for you:
Richard McGahey: “I am a Liverpool fan and love his midfield play, but Mac Allister is not a defender. On the Fulham goal, Wilson ghosts in from midfield, Mac Allister has his back to him while watching the ball, Wilson gets free shot away, well taken but was unmarked.”
Ian Sargeant is enjoying the West Ham game: “Greetings from the London Stadium where the ground is 90% full and 25% are getting wet. Early doors there was a passage of play where the ball didn’t touch the ground for 30 seconds Have sky put up a stat to say how many touches there were? I’m guessing 15 …”
Harry Wilson didn’t celebrate his goal against Liverpool. Levi Colwill started to celebrate his, but then suddenly remembered his loan spell at the Amex …
33 mins: Dear Gareth Southgate, please just put Trent Alexander-Arnold in your England team. Seriously. You might like it.
The right-back tries a left-footer, which is blocked away for a corner. Van Dijk almost scrambles it home from the set-piece before Tsimikas squanders a good crossing chance.
32 min: I mention Palace in that cohort simply because they’ve been so poor at the London Stadium so far. West Ham haven’t been brilliant either, but they’ve not needed to be.
30 mins: Could this week see the first batch of managerial sacking in this season’s Premier League? A full mid-week schedule might prevent it, but you suspect some clubs’ patience is wearing thin.
Sheffield United, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace (if they lose) could be among those considering making a change.
28 mins: That VAR check on Diego Carlos’ possible goal was interminably long, by the way. That’s why so many people dislike the use of technology.
Anyway …
Time for us to catch our collective breath? Don’t bank on it. West Ham are pushing forward for a second, while Fulham are sensing some weakness at Anfield and have been able to launch an incisive counterattack or two.
GOAL! Liverpool 1-1 Fulham (Wilson ’25)
Goodness gracious me! Liverpool are sloppy in possession and Harry Wilson scores against his former club, a late run and a prod through Kelleher’s legs to level up.
Less than 25 minutes played in these games and we’ve had seven goals.
I can’t keep up with these first half goals! Diego Carlos completes a rapid turnaround for Villa at the Vitality.
Or does he? No, it’s been chalked off. It remains 1-1 on the south coast.
GOAL! Chelsea 2-0 Brighton (Colwill ’21)
A quickfire double for Chelsea! Colwill makes it two for Pochettino’s posse. Are Brighton once again suffering from a European hangover this season? Few expected this scoreline after 20 minutes.
GOAL! Bournemouth 1-1 Aston Villa (Bailey ’20)
Another eyecatching effort and Villa are level! Drilled hard and low by the former Leverkusen winger Leon Bailey. It didn’t take long for Emery’s troops to find their feet.
GOAL! Liverpool 1-0 Fulham (Alexander-Arnold ’20)
Sensational from Alexander-Arnold! He’s in some form! It’s an absolute peach from a free-kick, which goes in off the underside of the crossbar. Leno had no chance.
GOAL! Chelsea 1-0 Brighton (Fernández ’17)
Enzo Fernández! His first Premier League goal for Chelsea is a precious one for Mauricio Pochettino, after Benoît Badiashile kept it alive and hooked it back into play.
17 mins: Another delay at Anfield, with Palhinha the latest to take a knock to the head. We haven’t really seen any action in this one yet.
15 mins: Leno now resembles Terry Butcher, with a heavily bandaged head, and has apparently passed the concusion protocols, so somehow is ok to carry on.
GOAL! West Ham 1-0 C Palace (Kudus ’13)
West Ham are playing without an out-and-out striker today, but with Mohammed Kudus in this kind of form, it matters not! Coufal gets forward down the right and knocks it back to the onrunning Ghanaian who sweeps home beyond Johnstone at his near post.
12 mins: It looks like a serious injury for Leno, who gets an encouraging word or two from Salah as he receives treatment and the players try to keep themselves warm during the lengthy delay.
GOAL! Bournemouth 1-0 Aston Villa (Semenyo ’10)
Against the run of play! Antoine Semenyo has given the hosts the lead after their goalkeeper kept it goalless at the other end moments earlier. Ryan Christie’s pass created the opening.
8 mins: Neto is sprung into action in the Bournemouth net … Villa are revving up there, with Douglas Luiz testing the goalkeeper with a shot.
Over at Anfield, Mo Salah has the ball in the net but Díaz has been flagged offside in the buildup. Leno may have injured himself in that passage of play, as VAR rubber-stamps the offside call.
4 mins: Why on earth Sky Sports chose West Ham versus Palace as the game to broadcast of these four, I’m not quite sure, with all due respect to fans of those two clubs. It’s been an, ahem, agricultural opening to that game.
Photograph: Paul Childs/Action Images/Reuters
3 mins: An early effort from Luis Díaz at Anfield, testing Bernd Leno who is up to the task. Fulham will have to be tip-top defensively to get anything from their trip to Merseyside.
West Ham v Crystal Palace was the last of the games to get under way, with television cameras filling the empty space with images of the actor Danny Dyer in the stands heartily singing about bubbles. Lovely stuff.
KICK OFF!
PEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!
Terry Venables is being remembered around the grounds, particularly by fans of his former clubs Chelsea and Crystal Palace, as the players emerge for kick-off.
Jürgen Klopp believes his stand-in goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher is the best No 2 in the world. He may not need to be that good against goal-shy Raul Jimenez this afternoon, but it’s certainly a big day for the Irishman deputising for Alisson. It’s his first Premier League home appearance for Liverpool since the 2020/21 season.
Billy’s back at his former stomping ground, this afternoon. He always felt a little hastily discarded by Chelsea. He wasn’t alone in that.
These four fixtures feel like a test for the Premier League’s oft-fabled competitiveness. How big is the gulf between the haves and the havenots? If so, in which group do Chelsea belong? I believe we’ve seen enough of Unai Emery’s Villa to know they’re justifiably placed in the upper echelons of the league. Can Bournemouth and Fulham prove a point today?
Chelsea could sure do with a win today but the wait for Christopher Nkunku to make his debut lingers on. He’s still not fit enough to make the squad, while Cole Palmer has been restricted to bench duty after picking up a knock in the week. Thiago Silva, the club’s oldest ever outfielder, keeps his spot despite a disasterclass at St James’ Park last time out.
Back to these games and it’s six changes for Liverpool from the side that beat Lask in the Europa League on Thursday. Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Mac Allister, Szoboszlai and Núñez all come back into the equation, with the Reds looking to continue their positive form of late. They face a Fulham side whose only previous away league win this season came on Merseyside – at Everton on the opening weekend.
There are some pretty tasty ties in that FA Cup third round, the draw for which is now concluded. Sound the Tyne-Wear derby klaxon!
West Ham v Crystal Palace lineups
West Ham: Areola; Coufal, Mavropanos, Aguerd, Emerson; Alvarez, Ward-Prowse, Soucek; Kudus, Paqueta; Bowen
Subs: Fabianski, Cresswell, Kehrer, Ogbonna, Cornet, Fornals, Benrahma, Mubama, Ings.
Crystal Palace: Johnstone; Ward, Andersen, Guehi, Mitchell; Richards, Lerma; Olise, Hughes, Ayew; Edouard
Subs: Whitworth, Tomkins, France, Clyne, Matthews, Riedewald, Ebiowei, Ahmada, Mateta
Liverpool v Fulham lineups
Liverpool: Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Gravenberch; Salah, Núñez, Díaz
Subs: Adrián, Gomez, Endo, Konate, Jones, Gakpo, Elliott, Doak, Quansah
Fulham: Leno; Tete, Bassey, Ream, Robinson; Reed, Palhinha; Pereira, Iwobi, Wilson; Jimenez
Subs: Rodak, Tosin, Ballo-Toure, Castagne, Cairney, Decordova-Reid, Willian, Lukic, Vinícius
Chelsea v Brighton lineups
Chelsea: Sánchez; Disasi, T. Silva, Badiashile, Colwill; Fernández, Caicedo, Gallagher; Sterling, Jackson, Mudryk
Subs: Bergström, Petrović, Gilchrist, Maatsen, Matos, Madueke, Palmer, Broja, Washington
Brighton: Steele; Veltman, Van Hecke, Igor, Baleba; Hinshelwood, Gilmour; Buonanotte, Lallanga, Adingra; Ferguson
Subs: Verbruggen, Milner, Moder, Gross, O’Mahony, Kavanagh, Boaitey, Mitoma, Pedro
Bournemouth v Aston Villa lineups
Bournemouth: Neto; Smith, Zabarnyi, Senesi, Kerkez; Cook, Christie; Kluivert, Semenyo, Tavernier; Solanke
Subs: Travers, Mepham, Rothwell, Billing, Traorè, Brooks, Dango, Sinisterra, Moore.
Aston Villa: Martínez; Carlos, Torres, Konsa, Digne; McGinn, Tielemans, Luiz; Zaniolo, Watkins, Bailey
Subs: Olsen, Cash, Moreno, Lenglet, Diaby, Durán, Dendoncker, Ramsey, Iroebgunam
Before we get to team news, the FA Cup third round is about to be drawn and you can follow it with John Brewin:
Preamble
Hello and welcome to a bumper Sunday clockwatch, which comes with special thanks to the Europa League, Conference League and modern football’s insistence that dozens of games are played relentlessly on Thursday nights. Is Sunday at 2pm the new Saturday at 3pm? Sshhh. Don’t tell the traditionalists.
Anyway, we’ve got Bournemouth v Aston Villa, Chelsea v Brighton, Liverpool v Fulham and West Ham v Palace as the significant hors d’oeuvres to Manchester City v Tottenham’s main course later on. Liverpool and Villa can go to within a point of Premier League leaders Arsenal if they win while Chelsea can close the gap to underperforming Manchester United to just five points if they can chalk up a victory. Imagine being eight points behind this Manchester United side …
We’ll run through the teamsheets next. Do stay tuned.