Crystal Palace – Chelsea 1:2
Chelsea (1st place) and Crystal Palace (16th place) played a half of 11 vs. 11 and then decided that was too boring. Instead, each team received a red card before halftime and played 10 vs. 10 in the second half.
Arsenal – Tottenham Hotspur 1:1
Wenger hasn’t finished beneath Tottenham in the English Premier League in 18 seasons and looks to extend his record. New Spurs manager Pochettino looked to give his team their 50th win in the league against Arsenal in his first North London Derby.
Everton – Chelsea 3:6
Two of the higher level teams in the English Premier League met on Saturday for an exciting clash. There was a lot of anticipation coming into the match, how would Martinez’s possession-oriented Everton play against Jose Mourinho and his Chelsea squad?
Manchester City – Liverpool 3:1
On match day 2 the top 2 teams of last year’s Premier League met in the Etihad Stadium. Liverpool had a slight lead at the end of last season and an infamous 2:0 loss to Chelsea & a 3:3 tie with Crystal Palace allowed Manchester City to steal the League title from underneath Liverpool’s noses.
How Van Gaal will rebuild Manchester United
Italy was the natural home of the back three in the last ten years. But it is enjoying a resurrection in international football at present and could be introduced to many clubs in domestic football leagues. Louis van Gaal led the Netherlands to a World Cup semi-final with a 3-4-1-2
Liverpool – Chelsea 0:2
Jose Mourinho sent his B-team to Anfield, prioritizing reaching the Champions League final. Despite the weakened lineup, however, they managed to steal three points from Liverpool and make the race for the title extremely exciting again.
Everton – Manchester City 2:0
City with the wrong starting formation, then lacking in creativity. Everton ruthlessly exploited the reigning champion’s problems and even showed beginnings of counterpressing.
Strengths and weaknesses of Manchester United in 2012/13
This season Manchester United seems to lack the defensive strengths they had in previous seasons.