English Premier League: Mo Salah scores double, Chelsea win under Tuchel and Spurs stumble without Kane
Liverpool fans, rejoice — Mo Salah broke his Premier League goal drought against West Ham.
Those who lost hope in the Egyptian winger of late must have heaved a huge sigh of relief on Sunday evening. Salah scored (not once, but twice) for the first time in seven Premier League fixtures, effectively ending his dry spell.
After a goalless first half for the Reds, they turned it around in the second half after Klopp pulled youngster Curtis Jones off the bench. The 20-year-old assisted Salah with his first goal of the night within less than 15 minutes of being on his feet. A second goal from Salah arrived 11 minutes later, and a third from Georginio Wijnaldum came as the match neared its final whistle.
- Still in the game: Can you guess the oldest active athletes in 2021?
- Look: Ten-man Real Madrid lose sight of La Liga title
- Football transfer gossip: Deals for Pogba, Van Dijk and Mbappe in the works
- In pictures: Meet the female officials in men's sports
- Look: Fernando Torres looks unrecognisable in new photos
But, in defence of Craig Dawson, he did manage to score West Ham’s singular goal of the night with three minutes to spare, robbing Liverpool of their clean sheet if nothing else.
What does this mean for Liverpool? Well, they’re only four points away from table leaders Manchester City (although City do have a game in hand). And even better, they play against City next Sunday, which could make all the difference in the standings.
Chelsea beat Burnley 2-0 in first win under Thomas Tuchel
Is it beginners luck? Or a sign of things to come? It’s not unusual for a team to shine under new management at the start — though it’s usually not a sure indication of how things will continue.
Nonetheless, Chelsea secured their first win under new boss Thomas Tuchel on Sunday evening. The Blues picked up two goals against Burnley in a game where they had nearly three-quarters possession of the ball.
Conversely, Burnley only managed one measly attempt at goal throughout the entire match — and it wasn’t even on target.
Meanwhile, Chelsea’s Cesar Azpiliceuta buried the first goal at 40 minutes while Marcos Alonso secured his team’s win with a goal at 84 minutes. Chelsea are currently seventh on the table.
Leicester’s unbeaten streak violently slashed by Leeds
Title-challengers Leicester suffered an abysmal home defeat against Leeds, their first loss in 10 games in the league.
The 3-1 result against newly promoted Leeds cost Leicester a potential second place standing in the Premier League; instead, they’re down to fourth behind Liverpool.
It was a big moment for Leeds United, who had lost this fixture against Leicester for three games in a row before cinching this win. Actually, this was Leeds first time beating Leicester in six attempts, since their 1-0 in the Championship back in 2012-13.
Spurs fumble the game without Kane
Brighton sunk Tottenham with a tight 1-0 result as Son Min-Heung failed to drum up any goals or assists without his goal-scoring buddy Harry Kane on the pitch.
Those who thought Son might pick up the slack for Kane, out on an ankle inury, were sorely disappointed.
Though Spurs had plenty of time to equalise after Brighton’s Leandro Trossard netted the game’s first and only goal at 17 minutes, they failed to do so.
Even though they had slightly more possession of the ball, they only managed eight shots and only four of them were on target.
Brighton’s offensive play meanwhile paid off; they had 16 shots — only five on target — but their singular goal denied Spurs a much-needed win.
The North London side is now down to sixth on the table with 33 points, beneath West Ham’s 35, and have a game in hand.