Premier League
Premier League talking points
Talking points from the latest round of Premier League games:
RAMSDALE PROVES HIS WORTH TO KEEP GUNNERS ON TRACK
Goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale has had his critics at Arsenal but the 24-year-old proved his worth in the league leaders’ 2-0 victory at rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, making a string of fine saves to keep Spurs at bay.
Ramsdale made seven saves in total in the match, before the gloss was taken off his man-of-the-match performance after he appeared to be kicked by a Spurs fan following the final whistle.
“We showed the other face when we had to dig in, we needed some big moments from Aaron,” coach Mikel Arteta said.
“He was the difference when we needed him.”
WAS RASHFORD NOT INTERFERING IN FERNANDES EQUALISER?
Manchester United’s dramatic 2-1 comeback victory over rivals Manchester City on Saturday was not without its fair share of controversy.
With champions City leading 1-0 at Old Trafford until 12 minutes before the end, Bruno Fernandes’ equaliser was initially ruled out for offside against Marcus Rashford, the target of Casemiro’s throughpass, before VAR intervened.
Rashford was deemed not to have interfered and the goal stood, before the in-form England forward went on to score the winner. City were adamant they had been wronged by the officials.
“The first goal is a joke,” City defender Manuel Akanji told the BBC. “I understand he (Rashford) doesn’t touch the ball but he’s running for 30 metres until the last second. It is clearly offside.”
LAMENTABLE LIVERPOOL RISK MISSING OUT ON EUROPE
Liverpool’s lamentable season went from bad to worse as they were hammered 3-0 by Brighton & Hove Albion, and Juergen Klopp’s side are now in danger of missing out on European football completely.
Brighton used the win over a rudderless Liverpool to leap-frog the Reds and move up towards the Europa League places, and few teams will have anything to fear from Klopp’s toothless attack, which was missing the injured Darwin Nunez.
Not that his absence mattered – new signing Cody Gakpo started up front but Liverpool were so completely overrun in midfield that they barely threatened Brighton at all.
Klopp chose to blame a lack of organisation in his team for the result, a tacit admission that both he and his players have a lot of work to do if they are to make it into the top six by the end of the season.
WHERE TO NOW FOR AILING EVERTON?
Everton’s season continues to stumble from one dismal defeat to the next and amid fan protests inside Goodison Park following Saturday’s 2-1 loss to bottom side Southampton, the question for the club is “where to now?”.
Manager Frank Lampard admitted in the wake of the defeat that this was a must-win game for his team, as was the loss by the same scoreline to Wolverhampton Wanderers a few weeks back when the latter were also bottom of the league.
Fan frustration for now is focussed mostly on the board, especially as rival clubs close to the relegation zone bring in fresh talent to help their survival bid, while Everton remain silent in the transfer market.
There was a promise from the club’s board that last year’s flirtation with relegation would not be repeated, but if anything the situation looks more dire this time round. It is a famous name in English football that appears on an irreversible slide.
-Reuters
Thomas Partey, who formerly played for English Premier League soccer club Arsenal, has been charged with rape and sexual assault, London’s Metropolitan Police said on Friday.
Partey, a Ghana international, was charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, with the charges relating to three women and the offences reported to have taken place between 2021 and 2022, the statement said.
Partey’s management did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
He is due to appear at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Aug. 5.
Partey, 32, was signed by Arsenal from Atletico Madrid for 50 million euros ($59 million) in October 2020 and became a key member of Arsenal’s first team.
He was first arrested in July 2022, though he was not named at the time and continued to play for Arsenal while investigations were ongoing.
-Reuters
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Five players including England forward Marcus Rashford and Argentina winger Alejandro Garnacho have informed Manchester United that they wish to explore a future away from the Premier League side, a club source said on Friday.
Brazilian midfielder Antony, Dutch defender Tyrell Malacia and England international Jadon Sancho are also looking to leave the club, the source added.
Rashford, who has made more than 400 senior appearances for United, has fallen out of favour with manager Ruben Amorim, played for Aston Villa on loan while United had their worst-ever Premier League campaign, finishing 15th in the standings.
Amorim had called Rashford’s work rate into question, saying he would rather put a goalkeeper coach on the bench than a player not giving their all.
Rashford said he was feeling fitter and better since joining Villa, where he scored two goals in 10 league appearances.
United also failed to qualify for the Champions League as they lost the Europa League final 1-0 to Tottenham Hotspur. Garnacho, who was a late substitute in the final, voiced his displeasure on social media after the loss.
“Up until the final, I played every round helping the team, and today I play 20 minutes, I don’t know,” he wrote in a post . “The final will influence (my decision), but the whole season, the situation of the club.”
Sancho was on loan at Chelsea, where he made 31 league appearances last season. Antony, who joined United from Ajax Amsterdam in 2022 for a reported initial transfer fee of more than $100 million, scored five goals in 17 LaLiga appearances on loan at Real Betis.
Malacia joined Dutch side PSV Eindhoven on loan in February.
-Reuters
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Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes turned down the opportunity to join Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal in order to keep playing “at the highest level”, he said on Tuesday.
The Portuguese midfielder admitted that he had considered the move, which media reports said was worth four times his current salary, after being contacted by Al-Hilal’s president.
“There was that possibility, the president of Al-Hilal called me a month ago to ask me about it,” Fernandes, who is preparing to face Germany with Portugal, told reporters on Tuesday.
“It was a big offer, very ambitious. There was a waiting period for me to think about the future.”
Fernandes ultimately decided to stay at United and said he was motivated by his desire to continue playing at the top level and encouraged by his family and the club’s coach Ruben Amorim.
“I would be willing to do it if Manchester United thought so,” Fernandes added. “I spoke to the coach Ruben Amorim who really tried to talk me out of it. The club said they would not be willing to sell me, only if I wanted to leave.
“I spoke to my wife and family, and she asked me what my personal goals were in my career.
“It would have been easy to move there but I want to keep myself at the highest level, playing in the big competitions and I feel capable of it. I am happy with my decision.”
The 30-year-old Fernandes scored 19 goals and provided 19 assists in 57 appearances across all competitions for United last season, winning the club’s Player of the Year award for the fourth time.
However, it was a season to forget for the team, as they finished 15th in the Premier League, their lowest league finish in half a century, and lost the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur.
-Reuters
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