Key takeaways and analysis from opening weekend of EPL season
Following every weekend of Premier League action, theScore examines the most important developments and biggest talking points to emerge from the slate of matches. Below, we dissect the opening round of the 2024-25 season.
The inexorable march begins
Manchester City's quest for an unprecedented fifth consecutive Premier League title got off to an auspicious start Sunday.
What was, on paper, the most intriguing match of the opening weekend ultimately played out in unsurprising fashion. Erling Haaland scored his 91st goal in his 100th appearance for the club, and Pep Guardiola's side, even without Rodri patrolling the midfield, looked largely comfortable against a Chelsea team that's far from a finished product after another lavish summer that's been high on dollars but low on sense. There were some promising signs - Romeo Lavia looked good after missing virtually all of last season - but Enzo Maresca has a big task on his hands to turn this youthful, bloated squad into a cohesive group. Chelsea probably aren't done spending, either.
Guardiola is trying to solve an entirely different problem this season: how to maintain hunger and continue innovating after so much sustained success. Having the insatiable Haaland helps, of course. So, too, does the signing of Savinho, the Brazilian international who arrived from sister club Troyes after an impressive loan spell at Girona - another sister club - last season. The mechanics of this transfer are questionable, but the end result isn't.
The 20-year-old, starting opposite Jeremy Doku on Sunday and often swapping sides with his fellow winger, gives Guardiola a dual threat of traditional wide players that he's rarely had, if ever, at the Etihad. Various combinations have been similar in some ways, with Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling coming closest of all. But having two rapid dribblers on the pitch together who can stretch the opposition apart and then easily beat their markers before looking up to find Haaland is, frankly, frightening. Oh, and they brought Phil Foden off the bench.
Arsenal are deeper and, after coming so close last season, more mature and tested. Liverpool have the core that was in contention for so long last season. But Manchester City remain the team to beat.
Quick free-kicks
Arsenal don't need another striker
Kai Havertz didn't look like a natural fit when he arrived at Arsenal for nearly £70 million last summer. It appeared, initially, to be an unnecessarily opulent outlay for a team that had more pressing needs. After a period of adaptation, though, the German established himself as Mikel Arteta's best option in the No. 9 position, finishing the season in inspired form. He's carried that into the new campaign, scoring the type of headed goal so commonly associated with prototypical strikers in his side's season-opening 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers. In doing so, he continues to prove that Arsenal should forgo adding another center forward in the final weeks of the transfer window. Havertz is capable of leading the line for a team with title aspirations.
Slot needs time, and a No. 6
Arne Slot preached patience in the buildup to the new season, both in terms of his style of play - he wants Liverpool to be a little more measured than his high-octane predecessor, Jurgen Klopp - and how long it'll take for his tactical ideas to become embedded within a group that was accustomed to one voice for so long. He was right to do so. Liverpool looked disjointed in the first half of their opener against Ipswich Town before, ironically, upping the tempo and pulling comfortably clear in the second stanza. The performance also highlighted why Slot remains so keen to sign a No. 6 who can dictate the tempo and control games from midfield. Martin Zubimendi would've been a perfect fit, but after he spurned the Reds' advances, Slot and Co. need to act before the transfer window shuts.
Zirkzee can bridge the gap
There's much work for Erik ten Hag to do before Manchester United can return to the upper echelon of the Premier League. Fulham's inability to properly assess and complete a final pass was the only thing that kept them off the scoresheet at Old Trafford. Better teams will punish the Red Devils. But, for now, we'll use the optimistic lens and look at the biggest positive of United's 1-0 win: Joshua Zirkzee is off to a dream start at the club. The Dutchman, 23, is far more of a modern, versatile forward than a traditional striker, but the debutant's instinctive finish late in Friday's contest showed that he has the intuition inside the box to capitalize on chances crafted for him. With Rasmus Hojlund sidelined for a couple more months, Zirkzee can carry some of the load up front while United try to build momentum.
Star performer
Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
On the back of a draining 2023-24 season - physically and emotionally - Saka had only 37 days between the final of Euro 2024 and the opening game of the new Premier League campaign. And yet, there were absolutely no signs of fatigue in Arsenal's win over Wolves on Saturday. Quite the opposite. Saka crafted Havertz's header with a delicious cross and then whipped in a goal of his own with a vintage cut inside onto his lethal left foot.
He created five chances, won four duels, had three shots on target, and made two tackles, in addition to his aforementioned goal involvements. He's picking up right where he left off after recording 20 tallies and 14 assists across all competitions last season.
"There is no roof for this guy ... The sky is the limit for him. I am just happy to have him on my team, and we have got to help him to improve all the time and push him," captain Martin Odegaard said of his 22-year-old teammate, according to ESPN. Indeed.
Best XI
(Courtesy: FotMob)
Goal of the weekend
There were some lovely individual efforts this weekend - Saka and Kovacic chief among them - but the fluency of Liverpool's first official goal under Arne Slot was too satisfying to overlook.
Sublime team move 🤩 pic.twitter.com/mAtlwpU2Ce
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) August 17, 2024
Stat of the weekend
Is this good? This seems good ...
Mohamed Salah now has 300 goal involvements (212 goals, 88 assists) in all competitions for Liverpool after 350 games. 🇪🇬👑 pic.twitter.com/UT9wQuLjLY
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) August 17, 2024
Social media moment
The opening match of the campaign provided the season's first entertaining tussle, as Lisandro Martinez and Adama Traore took turns getting the best of one another.
"I sent him to the gym," the Argentine defender said after the match, reflecting on the pair's back-and-forth duel. "I learnt from the first situation. In the first situation, he killed me - so I killed him back."
Traore, who has seemingly put on even more muscle somehow this season, didn't wait long to respond. Round 2 goes Jan. 25 at Craven Cottage.
📲 Adama Traore on IG:
— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) August 17, 2024
"Don't worry 😉 we will meet again." pic.twitter.com/lEzqGyWhJ6
Where we stand
| Position | Club | Played | GD | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Brighton | 1 | +3 | 3 |
| 2. | Arsenal | 1 | +2 | 3 |
| 3. | Liverpool | 1 | +2 | 3 |
| 4. | Manchester City | 1 | +2 | 3 |
| 5. | Aston Villa | 1 | +1 | 3 |
| 6. | Brentford | 1 | +1 | 3 |
| 7. | Manchester United | 1 | +1 | 3 |
| 8. | Newcastle | 1 | +1 | 3 |
| 9. | Bournemouth | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 10. | Leicester City | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 11. | Nottingham Forest | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 12. | Tottenham | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 13. | Crystal Palace | 1 | -1 | 0 |
| 14. | West Ham | 1 | -1 | 0 |
| 15. | Fulham | 1 | -1 | 0 |
| 16. | Southampton | 1 | -1 | 0 |
| 17. | Chelsea | 1 | -2 | 0 |
| 18. | Ipswich Town | 1 | -2 | 0 |
| 19. | Wolves | 1 | -2 | 0 |
| 20. | Everton | 1 | -3 | 0 |
View more stats here.