F365’s 3pm Blackout: Liverpool taste their own medicine, Maresca sack, Doku shines again
Liverpool deservedly lost at Crystal Palace, and Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca is under big, big pressure. Premier League football is unbeatable on days like today.
It was a chaotic afternoon at Selhurst Park, as Liverpool were dealt some of their own medicine, while Brighton staged a dramatic comeback to win at Chelsea. Elsewhere, Jeremy Doku shone again as Man City beat Burnley, and Leeds were unlucky to draw with Bournemouth.
Yeah, taking on all four games was a terrible decision, folks. Anyhow, here’s F365’s 3pm Blackout for Saturday, September 27…
Crystal Palace 2-1 Liverpool: Reds dealt their own medicine in dramatic defeat
Well, that was eventful.
Crystal Palace’s unbeaten run continues. They are now second in the Premier League. Liverpool have lost for the first time this season. Arne Slot’s head is on Mars. Florian Wirtz is officially 007. Ibrahima Konate might be rubbish. Arsenal fans are crying corruption anyway. There’s a lot to unpack.
We still can’t believe this was a blackout game, to be honest. Palace at home to Liverpool is the most 12:30 on a Saturday match of all, and those two playing at Anfield at 14:00 on a Sunday is the only option. We feel very strongly about this.
It was destined to be a cracker, and bloody hell, wasn’t it? Liverpool were second best for much of the game, but you just felt a late equaliser was coming, and when it did, you felt a late winner was coming too. When that winner arrived, it actually went to Palace, triggering absolute scenes at Selhurst Park.
While Liverpool will feel hard done by to lose so late on, and conceding to a player who was very marginally onside after Palace’s first came from a corner that shouldn’t have been, Oliver Glasner’s men should’ve been out of sight in the first half.
After Ismaila Sarr opened the scoring from an incorrect corner decision, Slot was booked for his complaints. Palace were quickly looking for a second and came very close on multiple occasions.
Alisson, though, is simply outstanding. What a goalkeeper. The Brazilian cheat code made some incredible saves in the first half, and when he was beaten by an outstanding Jean-Philippe Mateta effort, the post came to his rescue. Palace’s misses made Liverpool’s equaliser feel all the more inevitable.
Liverpool obviously created more chances in the second half. Wirtz, searching for his first goal in a Liverpool shirt, missed an absolute sitter, and when he came off, his 007 status was confirmed. Yer nephew will be buzzing on social media platform X.
Alexander Isak ought to have equalised before Slot brought him off with six minutes to go. He should’ve ignored his own advice and kept him on for 90 minutes, we reckon.
With Isak and Wirtz off the pitch, Liverpool’s inevitable equaliser came. Three minutes later, another late goal: Federico Chiesa at it again. Heads were rolling over at Arsenal anyway, but when replays showed Salah attempting a Hand of God and potentially grazing the ball with his knuckles, it became a full-blown meltdown.
It was arguably the worst decision of all time and clear corruption for ten minutes before it became irrelevant when former Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah won it for Palace.
Slot was fuming again as Liverpool were finally on the wrong end of a late winning goal. You have to say Palace deserved it, though. And the good news for Arsenal fans? They can’t be out of the title race if they lose at Newcastle tomorrow. Well, they wouldn’t have been anyway, despite what Paul Merson wants you to think.
Chelsea 1-3 Brighton: Maresca sack looms as 10-man Blues capitulate again
It’s been a rubbish few weeks for Chelsea, hasn’t it? They’re not helping themselves or their under-pressure head coach Enzo Maresca with some clumsy mistakes on the pitch.
Last week against Manchester United, Chelsea were reduced to ten players in the opening minutes and completely capitulated, much thanks to some abysmal man management from Maresca.
It wasn’t the same kind of capitulation we saw at Old Trafford, but on Saturday at home to Brighton, they absolutely chucked it after Trevoh Chalobah was sent off.
Cole Palmer-less Chelsea were in dire need of a win and a good performance after backing up their Old Trafford disasterclass with an abysmal showing at Lincoln in the Carabao Cup, and when Enzo Fernandez headed them in front in the first half, they were the better side and looked like going on to win.
Chalobah’s sending off was a no-brainer, but it did take Simon Hooper quite a while when reviewing the incident to give the foul and the Chelsea defender his marching orders.
And after that, you fancied Brighton to not just get something, but to go out and win the game from 1-0 down.
They did just that, equalising through a thunderous Danny Welbeck header, and his celebration told us what we already knew: Brighton knew the game was theirs to win.
Chelsea once again couldn’t adapt to being a player down and fell behind in injury time through Maxim De Cuyper. Welbeck then rubbed salt in the blue wounds.
You can sympathise with Chelsea for having played 10 versus 11 for most of the second half, but the sheer lack of adaptability by Maresca is a big worry, and questions are again being asked about his long-term future at Stamford Bridge.
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Manchester City 5-1 Burnley: Jeremy Doku is getting better and better for City
Jeremy Doku is beginning to look like a leading Premier League winger, and Matheus Nunes at right-back might be sustainable after all.
Burnley provided a scare for Manchester City when Jaidon Anthony equalised in the first half after a Max Esteve own goal, but Pep Guardiola’s men asserted their dominance in the second period, taking the lead through Nunes before another Esteve own goal.
Both own goals didn’t look like own goals at first, but there was no denying that Esteve first beat Phil Foden to the ball and then Oscar Bobb fifty minutes later.
Doku played a big part in the opening goal as his shot rebounded into Foden and Esteve’s path and, after a very inconsistent first two years at City, he’s really coming of age in the Premier League.
We’re not jumping on any bandwagons, and we’re also not buying into the post-30-year-old full-back match-ups he’s been enjoying in Our League, we’re simply giving a player their flowers.
He gave Kyle Walker, who was dribbled past four times, a torrid time on his return to the Etihad, completing seven of his 12 attempted take-ons, winning two fouls, providing three key passes, and capping off a top performance with an assist for Erling Haaland, who was also assisted by an Esteve error for City’s fifth.
Nunes, meanwhile, was given the nod at right-back again and played a big part in City’s win. After taking a while to settle in that position, he definitely looks like a sustainable option, which is very handy considering Guardiola opted against signing a right-back in the summer.
It was a positive afternoon on an individual level for those two City players in particular, and eventually a very comfortable win against Scott Parker’s Burnley.
Leeds 2-2 Bournemouth: Whites throw away two points as Kroupi announces himself
Leeds will be sick to their stomachs after dropping two points at home to Bournemouth. But for Premier League lovers, it was another fantastic spectacle.
There has been a lot said about the promoted trio bucking the trend and staying up after two consecutive seasons of clubs going straight back down, and Leeds are certainly showing that they have enough about them to avoid relegation.
Beating Bournemouth would have been another statement after dismantling relegation rivals Wolves last week, but they couldn’t hold on as French wonderkid Junior Kroupi grabbed a 93rd-minute equaliser with a tidy volley that gave Karl Darlow no chance.
Had a Leeds fan been offered a point before kick-off, they would’ve happily taken it. But when it gets to that stage of the game, it’s a real kick to the teeth.
Sean Longstaff scored a lovely volley of his own to put Leeds in front after assisting Joe Rodon’s equaliser, which cancelled out Antoine Semenyo’s opener. He’s looking like a really good bit of business at only £12million.
We’re not going to say Leeds are safe after watching them draw at home to Bournemouth, but we’re bloody excited that there should be a genuine relegation dogfight this season. Yippee.