Premier League round-up: Saturday’s Man of the Match awards revealed
West Ham 3-1 Manchester United - Felipe Anderson - 8.49 rating
Felipe Anderson opened the scoring against Manchester United with an audacious flick through his legs from Pablo Zabaleta’s driven cross to the front post, notching his first West Ham goal in the process. The 25-year-old was a constant threat for the Hammers, creating three further goalscoring opportunities as West Ham comfortably beat a dismal United outfit. Not only that, but Anderson also completed seven tackles, at least two more than any other player.
Wolves 2-0 Southampton - Jonny - 8.04 rating
Jonny’s fine start to life at Wolves has erased any doubts why Nuno’s side sought to replace Barry Douglas after the Scotsman enjoyed such an impressive campaign for the club last season. Jonny secured all three points for Wolves against Southampton, lashing home Matt Doherty’s ball inside the six-yard box with three minutes of normal time remaining. The 24-year-old completed four tackles and interceptions combined and also made five clearances to help Wolves keep a clean sheet.
Arsenal 2-0 Watford - Rob Holding - 7.75 rating
Arsenal eventually overcame tricky opponents Watford on Saturday to secure their fifth victory on the bounce in all competitions. Mesut Ozil and a Craig Cathcart own goal wrapped up the points but centre-back Rob Holding emerged as the WhoScored Man of the Match. The 23-year-old won five aerial duels, as well as making six clearances and completing three interceptions. With Sokratis unavailable, Holding took his chance to impress Unai Emery with both hands.
Everton 3-0 Fulham - Gylfi Sigurdsson - 9.27 rating
Gylfi Sigurdsson was denied a hat-trick against Fulham after thundering a penalty off the crossbar, but the Iceland international quickly made amends to put Everton out of sight at Goodison Park, scoring twice. The 29-year-old had six attempts on goal in total and created five goalscoring opportunities for the Toffees, as Marco Silva’s side romped home to victory. As well as thriving in the attacking third, Sigurdsson also made four tackles to help pile the pressure on Fulham.
.@hazardeden10: MotM -- @ChelseaFC 1-1 Liverpool
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) September 29, 2018
For more player stats -- https://t.co/ifpt7nt2su pic.twitter.com/K2T1kjVrZ5
Huddersfield 0-2 Tottenham - Harry Kane - 8.41 rating
It’s been a testing start to the season for Harry Kane but the 25-year-old notched both goals in Tottenham’s 2-0 win away to Huddersfield on Saturday afternoon. Kane hit the target with all three of his attempts on goal, only being denied once. He created one goalscoring opportunity and won two aerial duels in a dominant performance up against Huddersfield’s defenders. The Terriers struggled to come to terms with Kane’s presence in attack, fouling the England captain on six occasions.
Manchester City 2-0 Brighton - Raheem Sterling - 9.07 rating
Raheem Sterling played a direct hand in both of Manchester City’s goals in a 2-0 win over Brighton, opening the scoring in the first half before turning provider for Sergio Aguero midway through the second stanza. The England international hit the target with two of his three attempts on goal and registered four key passes during his Man of the Match performance. City stunningly enjoyed 80% of the possession against the Seagulls and Sterling touched the ball more times (103) than any of City’s offensive players. The 23-year-old completed three dribbles and was fouled on three occasions.
Newcastle 0-2 Leicester - Harry Maguire - 9.04 rating
Harry Maguire scored his second goal of the season to help Leicester overcome Newcastle away from home, heading home from a James Maddison corner with less than 20 minutes of normal time remaining. Maguire also made a crucial intervention when the scores were 0-0, before Jamie Vardy gave Leicester the lead from the spot 12 minutes later. Impressively, Maguire had two more efforts on goal than any other Leicester player (4), hitting the target on two occasions and also winning the joint-most aerial duels (6). The 25-year-old completed four tackles and interceptions combined to help Leicester keep a second successive clean sheet in all competitions.
Chelsea 1-1 Liverpool - Eden Hazard - 8.47 rating
While Mohamed Salah underperformed and was eventually hooked, Eden Hazard reiterated his case as the best player in the Premier League with another eye-catching performance under Maurizio Sarri. The Belgium international opened the scoring in stunning fashion for the home side to continue his stunning form since the World Cup. Hazard has scored or assisted 16 goals in his last 16 matches for club and country and now has six goals in seven Premier League appearances this season.