Is Kylian Mbappe's future nearing a resolution?

Mbappe is out of contract at the end of the season and the Paris Saint-Germain forward is no closer to extending his contract in the
French capital.

Real Madrid are reportedly poised to pounce.

 

TOP STORY – MADRID NEARING MBAPPE DEAL?

Real Madrid are closing in on Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe, according to the front page of Monday's Marca.

Mbappe is in the final year of his PSG contract and he has reportedly made it clear he has no intention of re-signing in Paris.

Long touted to join Madrid, the LaLiga giants' pursuit of Mbappe is set to enter a decisive phase this week.

The Transfer Window podcast, however, claims Liverpool will attempt to sign Mbappe on a free transfer at the end of the 2021-22 season.

 

ROUND-UP

- Sport reports Barcelona are monitoring Arsenal pair Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as they look to rebuild following Lionel Messi's departure to PSG.

- Inter are eyeing Napoli captain Lorenzo Insigne but want a discount on the Italy star, claims Sky Sport Italia. Napoli value Insigne at around €25-30million with one year remaining on his contract. Lazio's Joaquin Correa, Atalanta forward Duvan Zapata and Fiorentina sensation Dusan Vlahovic have also been linked to Inter.

- Sport Italia says Tottenham are in talks with Fiorentina for centre-back Nikola Milenkovic, who has been linked with West Ham. Spurs are also keen on Fiorentina star Vlahovic, according to Sport Italia.

- According to Cadena SER, Antoine Griezmann is open to returning to Atletico Madrid this off-season. Griezmann swapped Atletico for Barca in 2019.

Luka Jovic has decided he wants to join Inter on loan, per Nerazzurri Siamo Noi. The Madrid outcast has also been linked with Eintracht Frankfurt, Sampdoria and Genoa.

Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City are tracking Metz's 18-year-old midfielder Pape Matar Sarr, claims the Daily Mail.

Pep Guardiola praised Jack Grealish for an "incredible debut" but the Manchester City boss admitted his side lacked a clinical edge in the 1-0 loss away to Tottenham.

Son Heung-min scored the only goal of the game in the second half as Spurs, minus star striker Harry Kane, defeated the reigning Premier League champions.

Grealish played the entire game for City, the £100million signing completing 89.6 per cent of his passes and creating two chances. He also had three shots in total, with one of those ending up on target.

Guardiola was pleased with what he saw from the new recruit who was fouled five times - the most for a City player in a league game since Raheem Sterling in September 2018.

"He is so dangerous close to the box, when we have the ball, he always has an extra pass," Guardiola told a post-match news conference when asked about Grealish's display.

"He had an incredible debut and will be so important for us. I congratulate him for having the personality to try and try until the end."

City had 18 attempts but were unable to find a way through, their lack of goals likely to heighten talk around a renewed push to sign Kane from their opponents before the transfer deadline.

Guardiola was pleased with the majority of what he saw, particularly as some of his players had only just resumed training with the rest of the squad following international commitments.

"We started really well, the only problem is we concede some transitions – we are not good in these, we are not good enough – we conceded a few loose, simple, simple balls, that's why it was more difficult," he told Sky Sports.

"In general, you see the stats, the intention to create chances. Unfortunately, we were not clinical enough up front and we lost the game."

Guardiola has now lost more away games against Spurs in all competitions than against any other opponent on the road. This was also his first defeat in an opening game to a new league campaign since arriving in England, albeit he was not overly concerned at the early setback.

The former Barcelona boss added: "I'm not complaining. We arrived here and made a good, good game. The stats are exceptional, they always are.

"In previous years, except the first season when I arrived here and we lost deservedly at White Hart Lane, I have had the feeling we've been good, just not able to get results.

"We create far more, but we're in that period of the season where, two days ago, it was our first day together. The players need time to come back, and mentally we know here is always a tough game.

"At the same time, our intentions and approach was really good for all the game.

"It's still the beginning of the season, it's tough to win games."

Son Heung-min believes Tottenham beat "the best team in the world" in their 1-0 victory over Manchester City on Sunday.

Spurs' off-season was dominated by speculation surrounding star striker Harry Kane, who was absent for the win after only recently returning to training.

Kane is a target for City, with trophies at the top of the England captain's agenda, and Spurs arguably did not miss him against the champions.

Much like under Jose Mourinho last season, Tottenham set up to hit City on the break and that tactic eventually bore fruit early in the second half, Son curling a left-footed effort into the bottom-left corner at the end of a rapid break.

It marked only the third time in Premier League history that the reigning champions have lost on matchday one of their title defence, while Pep Guardiola suffered a first opening-day defeat since losing to Numancia with Barcelona in 2008-09.

And the gravity of Spurs' win was not lost on match-winner Son.

"Obviously we want to start well, first game of the season, first game with the fans, finally," he told Sky Sports.

"It was just an incredible performance. Everyone worked so hard to get this three points and obviously Man City is currently the best team in the world, so this means a lot for us and for the start of the season."

Attention soon turned to the absent Kane, who was the subject of chants from Spurs fans asking if he was watching.

But much like he did to make space when fronted by Nathan Ake for his goal, Son skilfully sidestepped the issue when asked about his usual partner in attack.

"We are all professional, we wanted to just focused on game, it doesn't matter who's involved," Son added.

"Everyone was really focused for this game. Obviously, Harry is so important for us, but let's see. Let's let H prepare well for the season."

Nuno Espirito Santo was taking charge of Spurs for the first time in a competitive match and made it three wins against Guardiola in the Premier League, level with Jurgen Klopp, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Mourinho for the most.

Yet, despite that accomplishment, Kane was also a key subject in his post-match interview, with Nuno accepting Spurs are lucky to have a striker of his quality.

"Look, Harry Kane is one of the best players in the world, honestly," Nuno said. "We are very lucky to have him.

"He has to get ready and help the team. We still have to go to Portugal then we think about [whether he plays against next weekend] Wolves."

Following the Super League debacle earlier this year, it doesn't take much for owners and chairmen at Europe's major football clubs to give off the air of scheming supervillains.

Still, Spurs chief Daniel Levy chuckling away to himself before kick-off amid no other visible amusement in the directors box felt a little on the nose.

Perhaps he was pondering a best-case scenario in the current context of his own club, visitors Manchester City and Sunday afternoon's absent superstar.

On their three previous visits to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the reigning Premier League champions had been beaten without scoring a goal. In each of those games, City's expected goals (xG) figure, as per Opta, was superior to their hosts, including a comedic 0.3-2.9 when Jose Mourinho's Spurs won 2-0 in February 2020.

It was the same story here as Tottenham won 1-0 with their first shot on target from Son Heung-min, although few could begrudge Nuno Espirito Santo this stirring start in his new job.

As they did for much of last season, City lined up without a specialist centre-forward in their XI. Fernandinho and Joao Cancelo spurned glorious openings within the opening five minutes as the fledgling link-up between Raheem Sterling and £100million man Jack Grealish on the left laid the foundations for early domination by Pep Guardiola's side.

Riyad Mahrez shanked off target from 10 yards in the 35th minute but, by that stage, Spurs had a foothold in the contest. Indeed, had it not been from some unusual hesitation from Son on the break, they might have led.

Harry Kane, Son's usual partner in crime, would have prayed on those opportunities but was out of Nuno's matchday 18 on account of lacking fitness, City's widely reported interest or most likely some combination of those factors.

Ferran Torres, leading the City attack, managed nine first-half touches and only two of those were on the fringe of the Spurs box. When the early momentum that saw the away team hog 79 per cent of possession in the first 15 minutes waned, they lacked a presence and a focal point to help them wrest it back.

Half-time did not settle Guardiola's men and they resumed in ragged fashion, increasingly ill-suited to a game being played in transition.

Steve Bergwijn sprung in behind Fernandinho, who looked every one of his 36 years here, and fed Son. If City seldom score in this fixture, the Korean star always does. He whipped in a left-footed shot that beat an unsighted Ederson for his seventh goal against these opponents.

Mahrez and Cancelo each delivered dangerous crosses to nobody in particular but City were dealing in what Guardiola referred to as "incredible almost chances" after their Champions League final loss to Chelsea. At least until Torres added another howler to their north London catalogue after a well-worked 70th-minute free-kick.

Often free-scoring during Guardiola's trophy-laden tenure, this was a third 1-0 loss for City after their reverse to Chelsea in Porto and last week's Community Shield defeat to Leicester City.

The most damning aspect was how inevitable this meek surrender felt after Son scored, on a weekend when Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool all won comprehensively. That trio of title contenders will have enjoyed what they saw, although an eye-catching substitute cameo from a half-fit Kevin De Bruyne means it is not a time to draw too many conclusions beyond a gaping hole at centre-forward.

City's area of need is obvious after an afternoon of sweet success to savour for Spurs. Whether he enters negotiations or opts to divert all calls from Manchester, Levy can certainly afford to cackle his way through next week.

Son Heung-min delivered the goods for Tottenham in the absence of Harry Kane as he sealed a 1-0 win over Premier League champions Manchester City in Nuno Espirito Santo's first match at the helm.

Kane, who has been strongly linked with a move to City, was reportedly deemed not sharp enough after only recently returning to training, but Spurs adapted well to the situation after a shaky start against a visiting side who handed a debut to British record signing Jack Grealish.

Spurs' reliance on counter-attacking football may have initially frustrated sections of the crowd at Tottenham Hotspur stadium, but it looked like the most realistic way of hurting City in the first half.

And that tactic bore fruit in the 55th minute, with Son rounding off a flowing move with a fine finish that even Kane would have been proud of, denying City the chance to set a new record of 11 successive opening-day wins in the Premier League.

Spurs looked to be in for a long day after a difficult opening that Pep Guardiola's men dominated, with Joao Cancelo and Riyad Mahrez both having presentable chances fall to them, but they weathered the early storm.

The hosts were set up to threaten on the counter and several times they looked bright bursting forward, though uncharacteristically meek play from Son twice saw encouraging moves peter out.

The South Korean looked a little more like his usual self just before the interval, though, seeing a curling effort deflected agonisingly wide by Cancelo after a rapid break.

Spurs began the second period much sharper than the first. Within five minutes of the restart, Ruben Dias had to be alert to prevent Son from having a tap-in and then Lucas Moura shot wide from 20 yards.

Son soon found his range, however, tucking a lovely effort inside the left-hand post from just outside the box after Nathan Ake failed to engage him at the end of a blistering break, setting up a fourth straight win for Spurs over City on home soil.

Spurs were pressed into defensive action in the latter stages, with Hugo Lloris becoming increasingly busy, but they held on to secure only their fifth win in 13 league games without Kane since the start of 2019-20.

What does it mean? Wasteful City need options in attack

While the £100million signing of Grealish will surely be worthy, it looks as though City are going to need more if they are to take themselves to the next level, with their inability to find the net despite their expected goals being almost double that of Spurs (1.0 v 1.8).

While Ferran Torres has occasionally done a job leading the line for City, he is not a central striker and Gabriel Jesus does not seem to have convinced Guardiola in that position either, otherwise he would surely have started.

Kane is the obvious option – perhaps after seeing this match play out, Guardiola will have renewed desire to get him in as soon as possible.

Son shines without Kane

In the past few years, a lot of the praise that has come Son's way has often related to his relationship with Kane, rather than the merits of his own quality. Although he seemed strangely subdued early on, he soon got himself on the front foot and proved a real nuisance to City, his five shots more than anyone else on the pitch, and one of those was the excellent goal.

Mendy makes a meal of defensive work

While there were a few situations early on where Benjamin Mendy's ability in attack looked useful, defensively he appeared a weak link throughout. He gifted possession back to Spurs in dangerous positions a couple of times, and was nowhere to be seen for Son's goal on the break.

What's next?

Spurs go to Pacos Ferreira for the first leg of their Conference League qualifier on Thursday before Nuno reunites with Wolves at Molineux next Sunday. City host promoted Norwich City in six days' time.

Harry Kane has not been named in the Tottenham squad to face Manchester City in their Premier League opener.

England captain Kane has been extensively linked with a mega-money switch to Premier League champions City during the close season, a saga that has hung over Sunday's encounter at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

New Spurs boss Nuno Espirito Santo refused to rule Kane out of the contest despite him only returning to first-team training on Friday, even though the 28-year-old's match fitness was an obvious concern.

After helping England to the final of Euro 2020, Kane was reported to have failed to show up for Tottenham training when scheduled, in what was viewed as an attempt to force through a move to City.

However, he denied refusing to train and said he returned to the club "as planned" last Saturday, before completing a five-day quarantine at The Lodge – the accommodation adjacent to Tottenham's Enfield training base.

In Kane's absence, Steve Bergwijn, Lucas Moura and Son Heung-min will form a three-man forward line, supported by Dele Alli. New signings Bryan Gil, Cristian Romero and Pierluigi Gollini are all on the bench, with Oliver Skipp starting alongside Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in midfield following an impressive season on loan at Norwich City.

City's British record signing Jack Grealish starts in north London alongside Raheem Sterling, although their England team-mates Kyle Walker and John Stones are on the bench alongside Kevin De Bruyne.

Bernardo Silva and Gabriel Jesus, each of whom have been linked with moves away from the Etihad Stadium to help fund any move for Kane, are also among Pep Guardiola's substitutes as the ex-Barcelona boss begins his bid for a fourth Premier League title in the past five seasons.

Romelu Lukaku has penned an emotional farewell letter to Inter supporters following his return to Chelsea.

Lukaku re-signed for Chelsea – the club he left in 2014 – on Thursday, joining the European Champions on a five-year deal for a reported fee of £97.5million (€115m).

The 28-year-old scored 24 goals in 2020-21 as he spearheaded Antonio Conte's attack, leading Inter to their first Serie A title in 11 years.

Lukaku spent two seasons in Serie A and swiftly became a fan favourite in San Siro, netting 64 goals across all competitions. 

On Sunday, Lukaku said goodbye to Inter, posting a statement to his official Twitter account.

"Thank you for loving me as one of your own. Thank you for making me and my family feel at home in Milano," Lukaku wrote.

"Thank you for the unconditional support and love on a daily basis. Thank you for motivating me even more after the first season.

"When I came to Inter, I immediately felt that I would do well for this club. The love and reception I first received at Malpensa airport was the start of a beautiful story.

"I made it my mission to never let you down every time I wore the Inter shirt. I gave 100 per cent in every training session and every game so that I could make you proud.

"Our first season ended in the toughest possible way, but you guys gave me the strength to continue to keep pushing and we did as a team. That's why we became champions together."

He also revealed his reasons for leaving, stating he felt a move back to Chelsea was an opportunity that he could not refuse.

"I hope you guys understand my decision to move on to Chelsea. It's the chance of a lifetime for me and I think at this time of my career it is a chance that I always dreamed of," the statement continued.

"One thing is for sure and that is I will always remain an Interista, because without you I wouldn’t be the player or man I am today. Thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Lukaku represents the second big sale of the transfer window by Inter, who also saw Achraf Hakimi depart for Paris Saint-Germain.

The Italian champions needed to ease financial difficulties that were compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, with player sales required. Lautaro Martinez is also a reported target for Tottenham, though a move for the Argentina international may depend on the future of Harry Kane.

Inter moved to replace Lukaku by signing Edin Dzeko from Roma, while right-back Denzel Dumfries – who impressed for the Netherlands at Euro 2020 – has also joined the Nerazzurri. 

Meanwhile, with Lukaku on board, Chelsea have reportedly agreed to sell Tammy Abraham to Roma, with the England international travelling to Italy on Sunday to complete the transfer said to be worth up to €45m (£38.3m).

Manchester City's interest in signing Tottenham forward Harry Kane is well known.

The two sides will meet on Sunday in the Premier League with the situation adding spice.

Spurs have held out on City's interest although the matter will develop as the conclusion of the transfer window approaches.

 

TOP STORY – SPURS HOLDING FIRM ON KANE

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is refusing to budge as Manchester City attempt to sign Harry Kane, reports The Telegraph.

Levy will come face to face with City officials in Sunday's Premier League meeting between the two sides.

The report claims the Spurs chairman is unwavering in his plan to retain his best player despite Kane expressing his desire to leave.

ROUND-UP

- Despite that, Tottenham continue to be linked with big-money moves, hinting they are expecting funds in their pockets soon, with Villarreal's Pau Torres firmly in their sights for £55m (€65m) according to The Mirror.

- Tammy Abraham's proposed switch from Chelsea to Roma is imminent according to The Athletic. The fee is reportedly worth €40m (£34m) with a buy-back clause after his second season.

- Calciomercato claims that Bayern Munich are willing to accept Hector Bellerin as part of a straight swap with Arsenal for Corentin Tolisso .

- Despite heavy speculation, Liverpool are yet to formally lodge a bid for Atletico Madrid's Saul Niguez claims AS.

- Former Atletico Madrid and Chelsea striker Diego Costa is set to complete his move to join Brazilian club Atletico Mineiro until December next year reports Fabrizio Romano.

Manchester City manager Josep Guardiola has brushed off debate around the club's spending insisting it is relative to ambition.

City landed Jack Grealish for £100 million from Aston Villa in the off-season and have been heavily linked with a big-money move for Tottenham's Harry Kane.

In 2020, City purchased Ferran Torres from Valencia for £20m, Nathan Ake from Bournemouth for £40m and Ruben Dias from Benfica for £62m, with their total off-season transfer expenditure reaching almost £144m.

Guardiola pointed to the fact the club sold players to the region of £97m last off-season, while they have again made money selling peripheral players such as Ivan Ilic, Jack Harrison and Lukas Nmecha.

"I said last year that we couldn’t spend £100m," Guardiola told The Guardian.

"We have bought Jack Grealish because we sell for £60m, so in the end we have spent £40m. Otherwise, we cannot do it."

City's spending comes amid Paris Saint-Germain's off-season flurry of transfer activity which has seen the French powerhouse land Lionel Messi, Achraf Hakimi, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Sergio Ramos and Georginio Wijnaldum.

Chelsea have also this week completed a bumper deal for Romelu Lukaku for £97.5m from Internazionale, having previously shown strong interest in a lucrative move for Borussia Dortmund Erling Haaland.

"Each club has its own reality, its own history," Guardiola said. "And every owner of every club decides how he wants to live.

"Our owners do not want to benefit, they want to reinvest in the team. There is Chelsea with [Roman] Abramovich and our club with Sheikh Mansour.

"They want to be in this world, they want to be buying into football. What is the problem?"

Guardiola also eluded to the potential signing of Kane when he said: "I don’t know if we will sign a striker; that depends."

Tottenham captain Hugo Lloris has backed Harry Kane's professionalism amid intense speculation linking the forward with a move to Sunday's Premier League opponents Manchester City.

City manager Josep Guardiola has declared his desire to sign Kane, who had requested Spurs allow him to leave late last season.

The situation has dragged on with no clarity ahead of Sunday's meeting between the two sides to open their Premier League campaigns.

Kane only returned to Tottenham training late this week after a delayed break following Euro 2020 following by a period in isolation.

"Harry is a professional and he is here with a smile," Lloris told The Guardian. "There is a situation in the air, we can not hide that, but it belongs to him and the club.

"I’m just focused on the team, and if the manager needs him he will be professional."

Lloris reiterated the message that the group was focused on one direction, with Kane's situation not affecting their preparations for the new season.

"The priority is the team, the start of the season, and the rest we try to separate," 34-year-old Lloris said.

"The most important for me as the captain and a player is to see my teammates going in the same direction, together. But we are in a period that a lot of things can happen.

"It is also the message from the manager, he just wants players focused on training sessions and focused on the competition, and then we will see what will happen.

"As a player, a teammate, I have no words to say. It belongs to the club and Harry to find a solution."

Liverpool have condemned an "offensive and inappropriate" chant heard during their Premier League win over Norwich City on Saturday.

The homophobic chant, which could clearly be heard on television coverage of the match, appeared to be aimed at Norwich's on-loan Chelsea midfielder Billy Gilmour.

Liverpool's LGBTQ+ fan group, Kop Outs!, highlighted the issue on social media.

"Great result today marred by homophobic chanting by some of our fans targeting Chelsea loanee Billy Gilmour," the group posted.

"If you can't support without resorting to bigoted nonsense, you don't understand YNWA [you'll never walk alone]."

The club have previously criticised airings of the same chant and shared the post.

Liverpool added: "The chant is offensive and inappropriate – a message we have repeatedly communicated alongside Kop Outs. 

"We urge supporters to remember the inclusive values of the club and to refrain from using it in the future."

Capacity crowds returned to Premier League stadiums this week for the first time since the 2019-20 campaign due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Jurgen Klopp conceded his Liverpool players will have to get used to playing in front of crowds again after overseeing an opening 3-0 Premier League win at Norwich City.

Mohamed Salah set a new Premier League record by scoring on a fifth successive opening weekend, having laid on goals for Diogo Jota and substitute Roberto Firmino.

But Klopp felt Liverpool were not at their best before Jota's 26th-minute opener and suggested the capacity Carrow Road crowd was a factor.

"We saw on Sunday and Monday playing against [Athletic] Bilbao and Osasuna, we were sensationally lively from the start," he told Sky Sports, referencing Liverpool's final pre-season friendlies played out in front of fans at Anfield.

"It was not the case today. Let's get used to it. I could see it in the eyes of the players. That's fine for the first game but, of course, we want to start differently.

"And, yes, everybody has to get used to an atmosphere again. Hopefully we have a great atmosphere next Saturday [against Burnley at Anfield] and let's try to use it.

"We scored goals and controlled the game apart from two or three situations.

"It was not perfect, of course, but that's not important. It's important that we get the result and can build on it and work with it. We can work with this performance very well."

Virgil van Dijk came through 90 minutes on his first competitive appearance since last October.

"Top," Klopp said of the Dutch centre-back's display. "After that long time being out, having the pre-season he had and now being back on the pitch… it feels different.

"You could see all his quality, all his class in all moments. It was hard for him to go 90 minutes, maybe he will need a mobile ice bath.

"Kostas [Tsimikas] did really well on his first Premier League start until about 80 minutes when somebody pulled the plug. It was a very professional performance."

There was a clinical edge to Liverpool's play, one exemplified by the prolific Salah.

"They are all in good shape up front, in training they all look really sharp. But Mo is just a good footballer and he loves the competitions," Klopp added.

"As soon as it starts getting competitive again, he goes to the next gear and you saw that today."

Paul Pogba assisted four of Manchester United's goals as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side started their 2021-22 Premier League campaign with a 5-1 thrashing of Leeds United.

Bruno Fernandes netted three of them, with Mason Greenwood and Fred also getting in on the action as United issued a statement of intent.

Chelsea followed up that victory with a 3-0 win over Patrick Vieira's Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge, while Liverpool rounded out the day by beating newly promoted Norwich City by the same scoreline.

Leicester City, Everton, Watford and Brighton and Hove Albion also claimed wins to get their seasons started in style.

Using Opta data, we take a look at the key statistics from across Saturday's fixtures.

 

Manchester United 5-1 Leeds United: Pogba and Fernandes leave Whites reeling

Pogba became the seventh player in Premier League history to assist four goals in a single game on Saturday, as he and Fernandes helped United seal a record 20th opening-day win. 

Dennis Bergkamp, Jose Antonio Reyes, Cesc Fabregas, Emmanuel Adebayor, Santi Cazorla and Harry Kane had previously teed up four goals in a Premier League match.

Two of Pogba's assists were for Fernandes, whose hat-trick was the 10th scored on the opening weekend of a Premier League season, while the playmaker was the first United player to achieve the feat since Lou Macari in 1977.

Mason Greenwood benefitted from a sublime Pogba pass shortly after Luke Ayling's sensational equaliser – the full-back's first top-flight goal – and he is now the fifth-highest scoring teenager in the history of the competition with 18 goals.

United netted five goals in their opening game of a Premier League game for only the second time, after beating Fulham 5-1 in August 2006, while Leeds shipped five in an opener for the first time.

Norwich City 0-3 Liverpool: Records tumble as Salah stars

Liverpool might have relinquished their Premier League title last season, but Mohamed Salah picked up where he left off last term as he scored and provided two assists in Liverpool's 3-0 win at Norwich.

Salah teed up both Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino before netting himself in the 74th minute. It means he has scored on matchday one in all five of his Premier League seasons with Liverpool, while he is the first player in the competition's history to find the net on five consecutive opening weekends.

Norwich have now lost 11 successive top-flight games – only Sunderland have had a longer losing streak in the competition.

Firmino came on from the bench to score Liverpool's second. It was the 49th league goal scored by a substitute under Jurgen Klopp, the most of any side in the competition since the German joined in 2015, while the Brazil international also brought up the Reds' 8,000th league goal in the process.

Chelsea 3-0 Crystal Palace: Pulisic predictably punishes Eagles again

This trip to Stamford Bridge played out in painfully familiar fashion for Palace, who have lost more Premier League games against Chelsea (19) than versus any other side in the competition's history.

In a routine 3-0 opening-day victory, the Blues became the third team – after Tottenham (nine) and Liverpool (eight) – to win eight in a row against Palace in the Premier League era.

The nature of the first two strikes was predictable, too, with Marcos Alonso netting Chelsea's 50th direct free-kick goal in the competition – trailing only United (64) – before Christian Pulisic grabbed his fifth in five games against Palace, more than versus any other opponent.

The third was slightly more surprising, as centre-back Trevoh Chalobah's superb strike made him the second youngest Chelsea player to score on their Premier League debut for the club after Paul Hughes (22y 40d for Chalobah, 20y 274d for Hughes against Derby County in 1997).

Everton 3-1 Southampton: Benitez off to a winning start

Rafael Benitez was a contentious appointment at Everton but his tenure started with a 3-1 win over Southampton. It was the first time the Toffees have won a league match in which they trailed at half-time since September 2015.

On the other hand, since Ralph Hasenhuttl took over at Southampton in December 2018, they have lost 60 points from winning positions in the Premier League, more than any other side.

Adam Armstrong opened his Southampton account to put the visitors ahead at Goodison Park. Since the start of 2019-20, only Ivan Toney (55) has scored more goals in the top four tiers of English football.

Fresh from Olympic glory with Brazil, Richarlison scored the equaliser and has now netted in each of his last four league games against Southampton.

With Abdoulaye Doucoure lashing Everton ahead, Dominic Calvert-Lewin made it 3-1 with a diving header. He has now netted 12 headed goals in the league since the start of 2019-20, four more than any other player.

Elsewhere, Leicester City saw off Wolves 1-0 thanks to Jamie Vardy's first-half effort. The Foxes have lost just one of their last 25 home league games against the Midlands club.

Only Frank Lampard, Wayne Rooney and Alan Shearer (all eight) have scored more goals on the opening weekend of Premier League campaigns than Vardy (seven).

Watford 3-2 Aston Villa: Ings on the spot but post-Grealish era starts in defeat

Watford have now lost their opening league match in just one of the past 15 campaigns (W8 D6), after the Hornets overcame Aston Villa 3-2.

Emmanuel Dennis became the fourth different Nigerian player to score on his Premier League debut to put Watford ahead, with Ismaila Sarr registering his 20th goal for the club before Cucho Hernandez became the first Colombian to net on his debut in the competition.

John McGinn scored his second goal in the space of four league appearances, as many as he had in his previous 55, to pull one back, before Danny Ings converted a late penalty.

He is the 24th player to score on his Premier League bow for Villa, while his spot-kick was the 2,000th penalty scored in Premier League history.

Meanwhile, Burnley are now winless in their last 11 home league games (D5 L6) since beating Villa 3-2 in January, equaling their longest run without a win at Turf Moor, after Brighton came from behind to win 2-1.

Virgil van Dijk stated Liverpool had room for improvement despite a 3-0 win at Norwich City on his long-awaited Premier League return.

Van Dijk was playing a competitive match for the first time since suffering a serious knee injury in a collision with Jordan Pickford during the Merseyside derby against Everton at Goodison Park last October.

Goals from Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino either side of half-time put Liverpool in control before Mohamed Salah established a new Premier League record by scoring for a fifth consecutive opening weekend.

The Reds were able to close out a clean sheet but a final Opta expected goals (xG) calculation of 1.6-1.4 in Norwich's favour suggested Liverpool rode their luck at times and Van Dijk certainly thought this was the case.

"Winning here 3-0 sounds comfortable but at times we made it difficult for ourselves," he told Sky Sports.

"Maybe that's fatigue, we have to do better. But we can’t be negative about tonight.

"I need games. The manger knows it, I know it. It's time to recover and hopefully I'm ready for next week and it’s going to be a very tough one again against Burnley."

Van Dijk explained how tough it was to watch on from the sidelines as an injury-ravaged Liverpool squad saw their title defence subside last time around.

"In the beginning, mentally it’s tough," he said. "You are going from one day being fully fit to the next day you can't walk, you're full of medication and you can't sleep.

"Everyone has their opinion and you read those things because you have nothing to do.

"We struggled last season with key injuries in key positions. We couldn't play our game with high pressure. When you have midfielders playing centre-back it's not easy and the guys did a fantastic job coming third."

In terms of whether Liverpool can mount a sustained title bid against the likes of champions Manchester City, Manchester United and European champions Chelsea this time around, Van Dijk was keen not to be drawn – instead focusing upon his excitement over being back in the heat of battle.

"I don't know. The only thing we can focus on is the next game," he added, having topped the Liverpool charts for touches (92), passes (85) and successful passes (79) over the course of the 90 minutes.

"I think it's exciting to see the Premier League like this. The quality that the Premier League has with the players coming in and coming back is exciting.

"I enjoy that. If I'm thinking about our team, if we stay fit, we have a good chance to be up there. We'll see what the season brings, we have to enjoy it.

"To play against world class strikers and world class teams against where you can't predict. It’s amazing."

Liverpool got their Premier League title bid off to an untroubled start with a 3-0 win at newly promoted Norwich City.

Diogo Jota opened the scoring in the 26th minute, having been selected to start alongside Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane up front.

Roberto Firmino, recently back in training following Brazil's run to the Copa America final, replaced Jota with an hour played at Carrow Road and swiftly got on the scoresheet.

Salah claimed both assists – the second seemingly far more intentional than the first – and duly got in on the act, finishing emphatically with 16 minutes remaining and becoming the first player to score on five consecutive Premier League opening weekends.

Tim Krul extended himself to tip over an 11th-minute header from Portugal forward Jota before his opposite number was given some work.

Teemu Pukki got in behind the returning Virgil van Dijk on the end of Todd Cantwell's dinked throughball and Alisson had to save sharply at his near post in the 19th minute.

A pleasing back and forth had developed as Salah crashed a volley just wide from Mane's chipped delivery and it was Liverpool who found the breakthrough when the Egypt star failed to control Trent Alexander-Arnold's cross, with the ball falling kindly for Jota to slot home.

Salah made a truer contact on the volley when a left-wing corner was partially cleared, with his strike blocked by Ben Gibson before Pierre Lees-Melou got in the way of Joel Matip's follow-up.

Last-ditch Norwich defending continued early in the second half as Max Aarons and Grant Hanley combined to thwart Mane.

Konstantinos Tsimikas, playing at left-back for Liverpool in the absence of Andy Robertson, stung Krul's palms after the hour and the second goal inevitably arrived when Salah retrieved another blocked Mane effort and cut the ball into Firmino's path for a simple finish.

The goal Salah's endeavours deserved arrived when he snaffled a Gibson clearance and curled impeccably beyond Krul.

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