The Top Flight
Fansided

English Premier League: Best of matchday two – Man City hit stride

By Orri Benatar

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - AUGUST 19: David Silva of Manchester City celebrates after scoring his team's fourth goal during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Huddersfield Town at Etihad Stadium on August 19, 2018 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - AUGUST 19: David Silva of Manchester City celebrates after scoring his team's fourth goal during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Huddersfield Town at Etihad Stadium on August 19, 2018 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Matchday two of the Premier League was a week of opposites for the Manchester clubs. Elsewhere, the London derbies had plenty of action.

Manchester City’s domination of Huddersfield, Man United’s shocking defeat to Brighton, and Chelsea’s late win against Arsenal were the headlines of a typical weekend in the Premier League. Lots of goals, an upset, and an exciting, end-to-end game between two rivals.

For a second straight weekend, all but one game had a goal and six teams remain perfect in the league. With six having six points, there are only four with zero. For more reaction on matchday two, listen to our new episode of the Top Flight Podcast.

Best Match – Chelsea 3-2 Arsenal

The London Derby at Stamford Bridge was an instant classic, and that was apparent after the first half. Chelsea took the commanding lead after 20 minutes and we all thought “Same old Arsenal”. Instead, Arsenal tied it and honestly could have been up 6-2 at the break.

The win keeps Chelsea perfect and Arsenal have lost two straight to begin the season, the first time that has happened since 1992-93. Despite that, the Gunners fans have hope and believe this team will get points soon. There is more hope around Arsenal than Manchester United.

Best Player – Sergio Aguero

This answer is just too obvious. A hat-trick and an assist make Sergio Aguero a top-10 scorer in the history of the Premier League, with 146 goals tying him with Teddy Sheringham. Honorable mentions for best player this weekend to Neil Etheridge, Theo Walcott, and Kieran Trippier.

Best Fantasy Performance – Neil Etheridge

Of the over 5 million Fantasy Premier League players, 0.3% of them own Filipino and Cardiff City goalkeeper Neil Etheridge. Those 15,000 people are absolute geniuses in these first two weeks of the Premier League season. Etheridge essentially earned Cardiff their first EPL point in four years with his penalty save.

Best Goal – Kieran Trippier Free Kick

For the second straight week, I am picking a free kick as my favorite goal. We haven’t seen too many open-play screamers yet but the free kicks are off the charts to start the season. Trippier’s free-kick brought back the memories from the World Cup and gave Tottenham the lead late in the second half. Trippier is in for a special season.

Best Moment – David Silva’s perfect day

Silva had an amazing free kick too, but it didn’t have the same significance as Trippier’s goal from a match standard. From an emotional standard, Silva’s free-kick capped off one of the best days of his life. He scored in his 250th league appearance for the Citizens and had his son, Mateo, at the Etihad and dad David held him before kick-off.

Manchester's Mixed Sunday. light. Read

Mateo was born very prematurely in early January and finally came home in mid-May. For anyone who binged the new Amazon series “All Or Nothing: Manchester City” this weekend, they understand Silva’s emotions and hardships even more during this game than before. It was a perfect day for David Silva, his family, and the entire Manchester City community.

Home/Premier League