5 Things We Learned: Premier League Matchweek 6

Story posted October 31, 2020 in CommRadio, Sports by Cole Koffler

It’s not a Premier League weekend without controversy and shifts in momentum.

Everton gets its first loss of the season

The invincible run ended early for the Blues, as Everton lost to Southampton 2-0. The Toffees were beaten by a Southampton squad that gave them a taste of their own medicine. Dominating possession and shots, the Saints were led by James Ward-Prowse and Che Adams.

With this being Everton’s first loss of the season, it will be interesting to see how they handle adversity. Currently, they are still in first place but their neighbors across Stanley Park are tied at the top with them. Will we see a Merseyside title race?

Patrick Bamford is a star

Leeds United’s 3-0 win was led by striker Patrick Bamford. Bamford tore Aston Villa apart by scoring three goals in the matter of 25 minutes. An absolutely dominating performance by Leeds was too much for the Villains, as they took their first loss of the season.

Many people going into this season were questioning if Bamford could keep up with the likes of Jamie Vardy, Mohamed Salah and Harry Kane. Bamford has proven his doubters wrong so far this season with this dominating victory over Aston Villa.

Harry Kane and Heung Min-Son are on fire

People are seeing a reinvented Harry Kane this season. He is not just a one-trick pony, as the primary goal-scorer has torched Premier League defenses with his assists. Kane leads the league with eight.

While Kane is bagging in assists, Heung Min-Son is leading the league in goals. The funny part is that Harry Kane assisted seven out of the eight of the goals that Son has scored. Fans of the Premier League may be witnessing something special coming out of North London this year, as Tottenham Hotspur looks to get the monkey off its back and win a trophy.

Still no lift off from Manchester City

Manchester City drew 1-1 with West Ham, and the money-spending giants have yet to hit the ground running in the league. Sitting in 13th place, the blue side of Manchester has won two, drawn two and lost one. A big factor to this start-of-the-season skid is the lack of goal-scoring from the side.

Manchester City can no longer rely on Sergio Aguero to bang in goals. Raheem Sterling’s finishing is still in question, and Gabriel Jesus is not the consistent threat that he was brought in to be. Aguero is back in the side, coming back from injury, but he has not looked the same. If City want to get into the title race, it needs to find the goal-scoring in order to keep up.

More VAR controversy

Harry Maguire took down Cesar Azpilicueta with a wrestling move in the box in the first half of the game that ended in a scoreless draw. A surefire penalty was ruled not a penalty by VAR, leaving fans confused.

Referee Martin Atkinson came out to say, "I think it’s solely because the ball is in play and he cleared it too quickly. I think he looked at it, cleared it very quickly and didn’t scrutinise it.”

The biggest question that fans of the game have is that if the ball was not cleared quickly, then it is a one-on-one with the keeper and a sure penalty.

VAR has not been as consistent as it should be this season, and it has fans questioning what the rules are and how they are interpreted.

 

Cole Koffler is a freshman majoring in communications. To contact him, email colekoff13@gmail.com.