Ahead of kickoff, most Arsenal fans would have taken a 1-1 draw at a resurgent Chelsea (especially after the West London giants destroyed Barcelona in midweek action).
Arsenal miss opportunity against ten-man Chelsea
But Arteta will feel a bit deflated after drawing 1-1 against a Chelsea side who were down to ten-men for almost an hour. That was a proper derby. Honestly, that was as fierce a London derby as I can remember, with tackles flying in from the first whistle to the last. The likes of Marc Cucurella and Hincapie could have easily seen red. But it was Chelsea’s midfield general Caicedo who fell victim to the occasion, sent off in the 38th minute for a mistimed tackle on Mikel Merino (a key figure yesterday). Surprisingly, the red appeared to buoy Chelsea, who created a flurry of chances either side of halftime before breaking through in the 48th minute. Chalobah gave the Gunners a taste of their own medicine, glancing in Reece James’s pinpoint corner to take an unlikely lead. Arteta’s side appeared to struggle in the pressure-cooker atmosphere at Stamford Bridge. But Bukayo Saka cracked the safe, mazing past Marc Cucurella before drifting a delightful ball to Merino. The Spaniard headed home powerfully, once again demonstrating his excellence when deployed in more advanced positions.
Bayern fight back while Dortmund beat Leverkusen in battle for 2nd
Bayern bounced back from defeat against Arsenal with a dogged 3-1 comeback win over St Pauli. Oh, how they missed Luiz Diaz at the Emirates. Gnabry had his moments in London, but Die Roten seriously missed Diaz’s direct, in-your-face approach. St Pauli caught Kompany’s side napping in the early stages of the first half, suffocating Konrad Laimer with the press before scoring on the counterattack. The Kiezkicker went into their hole after that and were made to pay, with Diaz unlocking St Pauli’s compact defence with a delicious assist for Raphael Guerreiro. He showed his versatility to give Bayern the lead, rising to score in added time with an excellent header. Substitute Nicolas Jackson added some gloss to proceedings as Bayern maintained their unbeaten start to this season’s Bundesliga campaign.
Niko Kovac’s well-organized Dortmund side picked up a precious three points at Kasper Hjulmand’s Leverkusen, gaining momentum in this year’s runner-up race (sorry if I seem cynical). Both sides went into the clash oozing with confidence after exceptional midweek European outings: Leverkusen beat Man City 2-0 while Dortmund dealt with Villareal 4-0. Dortmund absorbed plenty of pressure at the BayArena but took the lead just before halftime, as Aaron Anselmino rose to meet a sumptuous Daniel Svensson free-kick. Hjulmand’s resurgent Leverkusen side battered Dortmund for periods in the 2nd half but it would be Dortmund who extended their lead, with Adeyemi scoring yet another header in the 65th minute. The hosts would score a late consolation goal, with Kofane neatly slotting home after coming on as a substitute for Patrick Schick. But there was no customary Leverkusen late-show and Dortmund would leapfrog them into 3rd position.
Barca return to top of LA Liga after Real stumble
Barcelona returned to the top of La Liga on Saturday (where they would remain), bouncing back from a dreary shellacking at Stamford Bridge with a determined 3-1 home win over Alaves. Hansi Flick’s side never got off to the greatest of starts, with Ibanez tapping in from close range after Marc Casado completely fluffed his clearance. But the Blaugrana quickly dispelled any notion of back-to-back defeats, with Yamal putting that Chelsea disaster-class behind him to equalize from a Raphinha cutback. Raphinha couldn’t stay out of the match, setting up Dani Olmo to give Barca the lead in a seesaw opening stanza. The Nou Camp faithful rose in unison in the 2nd half, with midfield maestro Pedri returning from the leg injury he sustained in the Clasico defeat. But it was Spanish playmaker Olmo who would enjoy the final decisive moment, playing a silky give-and-go with Yamal before making it 3-1 in the 93rd minute.
There appears to be trouble brewing in Denmark (well, Spain in this case). Xavi Alonso and Real Madrid have been quick to quash any rumours of civil unrest (word around the campfire is that Vini Jr- amongst others- is not too pleased with Alonso). Those rumours are going to be exacerbated following their flat 1-1 draw at Girona. Real dominated possession but struggled to penetrate against an obstinate Girona side. Girona knew what they were doing, essentially deploying two banks of four to quell Real’s attacking might. Real created some decent chances in the first half and were forced to rue their wastefulness, with Ounahi smashing home a curling effort just before the break. Alonso’s men did come out with purpose in the 2nd half and were awarded a penalty after fleet-footed Vini Jr was felled in the box. Mbappe duly obliged, equalizing to set up a grandstand finish. Real knocked on the ball but generally lacked the necessary imaginton to get things done, relinquishing top spot in the La Liga standings to bitter rivals Barcelona.
Allegri-ball is back, baby
AC Milan’s 1-0 win over Lazio took them to the top of the Serie A standings and confirmed one thing: Allegri-ball isn’t dead after all (whether it should be is an entirely different conversation). Allegri’s AC Milan ground out a pragmatic 1-0 home win over Lazio, with Portuguese winger Rafael Leao latching onto a neat Tomori cutback to score the lone goal in the 51st minute. Milan kept their shape after taking the lead and looked to close the game out in true Allegri fashion. The match also delivered another hallmark of Allegri-ball: late drama. VAR decided not to give Lazio a penalty deep into stoppage-time. Romagnoli shot the ball, and it appeared to hit Pavlovic’s elbow. VAR ruled that he had been fouled in the process and awarded a free-kick to the Rossoneri. Allegri got himself sent off for remonstrating too vividly about the VAR process (never mind the fact that the decision went his way). Another day, another scrappy Milan victory mired in controversy- Allegri is really molding this side in his image.
Antonio Conte’s Napoli kept pace with Milan, moving level on points with the Rossoneri following a hard-fought 1-0 at Gasperini’s Roma. Conte seems to have rediscovered his touch since reverting back to a back-three (reminiscent of the tactical change that spurred Chelsea to the title under his stewardship). David Neres silenced the Stadio Olimpico in the 36th minute, latching onto a Hojlund assist to cheekily finish off a swashbuckling counterattacking goal. That was virtually game over. Despite an excellent start to the campaign, Roma have suffered somewhat in advanced areas. Conte seemed content to soak up pressure, marshaling his well-drilled team against a Roma side lacking cutting-edge in the final 3rd. It was a dispiriting showing from a Roma side desperate to break a long Scudetto drought. Things are shaping up nicely in Serie A, with five points currently separating the top seven teams.
Player of the Week- Andy Carroll
I know, I know. What on earth am I on about? Most people reading this probably don’t even know that Andy Carroll is still around. The former Newcastle and Everton man has struggled with injuries throughout his career, returning to England this season following a brief stint with Bordeaux. The 36-year-old went to the 6th tier of British football, looking to help lowly Dagenham and Redbridge (as both player and shareholder). And he turned back the hands of time this past weekend, netting a hat-trick to guide the 6th tier outfit to a 5-1 win at AFC Totton. Look, I know this isn’t as sexy as El Clasico, but these little narratives need to be celebrated.
