Chelsea’s indifferent start to the Premier League season continued as they were held to a drab goalless draw by Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side were again short on creative threat as the hosts dealt comfortably with what their opponents could muster in attack, only once looking genuinely troubled when Raheem Sterling’s second-half free-kick cracked the underside of the crossbar.
For Chelsea it was a familiar case of failing to find the critical pass, as possession and overall control of the match counted for little.
It leaves the team assembled for more than £1billion by co-owner Todd Boehly languishing in 14th place with just one win in their first five league games.
Andoni Iraola saw the winless streak with which his Bournemouth tenure has started stretch to five matches but also witnessed moments of genuine attacking intent from his team, most notably when Dango Ouattara was denied brilliantly in the first half by Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.
Sterling had the first sight of goal in the 10th minute when he darted into the box to latch onto Conor Gallagher’s chipped pass but his shot was horribly miscued and rolled away to safety.
Nicolas Jackson made better use of his first opportunity, striking the outside of the post from Mykhailo Mudryk’s through-ball, but on the whole the opening exchanges passed with little incident.
It took a superb sprawling save from Sanchez to keep out Ouattara, the goalkeeper diving at the striker’s feet after Bournemouth had caught Chelsea out with a quick free-kick.
Sterling looked in the mood to continue the rich vein of form with which he has started the season. In the 22nd minute, Malo Gusto linked up well with Gallagher down the right and sent over a low cross that Sterling was first to react to, but his shot was deflected to safety.
Neto got a strong right hand down to beat away Gallagher’s effort from 18 yards after he had been set up by Mudryk. For Chelsea, the first half had traced a familiar pattern; plenty of possession and probing balls into the channels, but little to suggest they had fathomed how to break Bournemouth down.
Sterling nearly gave them the perfect start to the second period, his free-kick from 20 yards crashing off the bar and down onto the goal line. Levi Colwill tapped home the rebound but was rightly called offside.
The Blues had conceded five goals in their first four league games, and there were again signs of defensive frailties in Dorset.
Axel Disasi failed to get height or distance on his clearance from the edge of the box, heading the ball to the feet of Ryan Christie who curled a well-struck effort into the palms of Sanchez.
Chelsea’s breakthrough looked to have arrived after 65 minutes when Sterling slid a ball in behind for Jackson, whose low cross was almost turned home by the stretching Colwill – with Neto clawing the ball to safety.
But the visitors were looking increasingly desperate in their approach. Gusto and Sterling each epitomised the dearth of creative ideas that has dashed Pochettino’s early ambitions, lashing speculative shots high and wide from distance when there were options on.
At the other end, Bournemouth were increasingly a threat. First Philip Billing saw a free-kick deflected narrowly wide, before Dominic Solanke’s low drive was well saved by Sanchez.
Cole Palmer was summoned from the bench to help find Chelsea’s rhythm, but the summer signing from Manchester City had little more success than the player he replaced, Mudryk.
Ben Chilwell also came on and made one good burst forward and crossed for Jackson, but the striker’s header was easy for Neto.
Mason Greenwood made an impact off the bench during Getafe’s 3-2 defeat of Osasuna in LaLiga.
The 21-year-old made the switch to Spain on deadline day after it was announced last month that he would continue his career away from Old Trafford.
Greenwood was suspended by United last year over allegations relating to a young woman after images and videos were posted online and faced charges including attempted rape and assault but the Crown Prosecution Service announced in February this year that the case had been discontinued.
On Sunday he made his first appearance for his new club, coming off the bench with 13 minutes of the contest remaining and the teams level at 2-2.
Greenwood looked bright and he had a hand in the home side’s winner, earning a corner from which Nemanja Maksimovic scored.
Earlier, Stefan Mitrovic opened the scoring for Getafe but Iker Munoz equalised just before half-time.
Jose Carmona headed in to restore the home side’s lead in the 51st minute but Ante Budimir’s penalty six minutes later levelled things up for a second time and that was the extent of the goalscoring prior to Greenwood’s introduction.
Unused substitute Fabrizio Angileri received a red card for dissent in the closing stages but the hosts held on during 10 added minutes to seal the win and maintain their unbeaten home record.
Getafe’s next match is at high-flying Real Sociedad next Sunday.
Leeds boss Daniel Farke hailed his side’s mentality to overcome the hostile atmosphere of The Den and return home with three points as they beat Millwall 3-0.
Striker Joel Piroe scored once in each half to put Leeds in control before Georginio Rutter added a third 10 minutes from time to seal a memorable visit to the capital.
Farke’s side weathered an early storm from the hosts before Piroe opened the scoring after 15 minutes and the German lauded the way his side stood strong in trying circumstances at times.
“I’m proud of my guys today because I’ve played here several times at The Den, I know it’s an unbelievably tough place to come,” he said. ”You have to be on it and it was a pretty complex performance.
“There are periods of the game where you have to show some steel and reliance. You have to be there and show these qualities because you can’t win all these long balls and all these long throw ins and sometimes they’ll have a corner kick.
“It is so difficult, you have to dig in and give your life in these moments and also to stay cool and mentally strong and wait for the moments where you can let your qualities shine and that’s what we did today.
“To return back from such a tough place with a clean sheet to the dressing room and to score three goals is pretty amazing.”
A comprehensive defeat at home continued Millwall’s slow start to the season, with the Lions taking just seven points from their opening six matches.
But manager Gary Rowett insisted the scoreline did not accurately reflect the balance of the contest.
“It felt a little bit harsh,” he said. “You concede three goals, and the opposition don’t concede then of course a 3-0 scoreline is what it is.
“It doesn’t look a fair reflection of the effort the players put in.
“I thought we got up against them, I thought we pressed really well, I thought we took a gamble in playing a little bit higher.
“We won a lot of good balls in and around the Leeds half and got into some good areas, forced lots of corners and (had) moments around the box without really creating obvious chances. But I don’t think Leeds did either.
“We go from those periods of pressure where we’re doing a lot of things well and a lot of things right to concede a poor goal.
“To be 1-0 down felt a little unjust and maybe gave Leeds a tiny bit of a lift, but after that we continued to put them under pressure, continued some of those moments.”
Sheffield United have condemned racist abuse and threats aimed towards goalkeeper Wes Foderingham following the 2-1 Premier League defeat at Tottenham.
Foderingham, who made a string of fine saves to deny Spurs before conceding two goals in added time, said in an Instagram post on Saturday night: “I don’t mind opposition fans calling me every name under the sun. But be easy with the racism and family threats. Think before you type.”
The Blades responded on Sunday morning offering support for their keeper and promising to investigate.
A statement read: “Sheffield United condemn the racist, abusive and threatening messages that have been sent to Wes Foderingham after yesterday’s game against Spurs.
“The club will now work with relevant bodies to investigate and support Wes.
“There is no room for racism in our game.”
Tottenham also responded with a statement of their own offering to assist Sheffield United with their investigation and ban any Spurs fans found to be responsible for the abuse.
The Spurs statement read: “We are disgusted to hear of racist, abusive and threatening messages sent to Wes Foderingham following yesterday’s match.
“The Club stands firmly against all forms of discrimination and will cooperate fully with Sheffield United and the relevant bodies in their investigations.
“We shall not hesitate in taking the strongest possible action, including Club bans, against any so-called fan found responsible.”
Paul Heckingbottom’s side were 1-0 up heading into the closing stages at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium thanks to a Gus Hamer opener.
But late goals from Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski turned the game around and the Blades are still winless from their opening five fixtures.
Sheffield United have condemned racist abuse and threats aimed towards goalkeeper Wes Foderingham following the 2-1 Premier League defeat at Tottenham.
Foderingham, who made a string of fine saves to deny Spurs before conceding two goals in added time, said in an Instagram post on Saturday night: “I don’t mind opposition fans calling me every name under the sun. But be easy with the racism and family threats. Think before you type.”
The Blades responded on Sunday morning offering support for their keeper and promising to investigate.
A statement read: “Sheffield United condemn the racist, abusive and threatening messages that have been sent to Wes Foderingham after yesterday’s game against Spurs.
“The club will now work with relevant bodies to investigate and support Wes.
“There is no room for racism in our game.”
Paul Heckingbottom’s side were 1-0 up heading into the closing stages at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium thanks to a Gus Hamer opener.
But late goals from Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski turned the game around and the Blades are still winless from their opening five fixtures.
Andrew Robertson believes Liverpool have been let off the leash.
The stand-in skipper hailed the Reds’ fresh start following their 3-1 win at Wolves on Saturday.
Robertson scored his first goal since May 2022 – also against Wolves – with five minutes left before Harvey Elliott’s shot deflected in off Hugo Bueno in stoppage time.
It capped a comeback started by Cody Gakpo’s second-half equaliser and extended Liverpool’s unbeaten run in the Premier League, stretching back to last season, to 16 games.
They finished fifth last season, 22 points adrift of champions Manchester City but Robertson welcomed the clean slate.
“It’s a new start. We’ve got a lot of new players, kind of a new way of playing and things like that. So I think we just feel free,” he told the club’s official website after a fourth straight win.
“We’ve got good, exciting young players that sometimes you could probably see that in the first half where it was time to just put the foot on the ball and we were still maybe trying to force it.
“Then in the second half, they just came out, played with no fear and we made really good substitutions. Darwin (Nunez) caused problems, Harvey caused problems and Luis Diaz comes on at half-time.
“So, we’ve got a strong squad, we’ve still got players obviously missing with Trent (Alexander-Arnold) and Thiago.
“They weren’t in the squad so we can only get stronger. But if we keep everyone fit, we believe that we’ve got a squad that can compete, and we need to keep on showing that.”
Hwang Hee-chan gave Wolves an early lead and the hosts dominated the majority of the first half, with Matheus Cunha missing a golden chance to double their lead.
Defeat means Gary O’Neil’s side have lost four of their opening five league games, despite promising performances under the new head coach.
“Like the coach said after the game against Manchester United, we cannot perform at this kind of level and have this kind of game – the first half we dominated the game – and get out of it with zero points,” Pedro Neto told the club’s official website.
“We’re feeling it a lot, but we have to continue to work, we have to take points. We have to continue to do these first halves and take what we did in the first half into the second half.”
Celtic moved clear at the top of the cinch Premiership while there were also wins for Rangers, St Mirren and Hearts.
Livingston’s bus broke down on the way to Dingwall but they claimed a point while there was also a share of the spoils at Rugby Park.
Here are five things we learned from the weekend’s action.
Rangers suffer Euro blow
Danilo was the most expensive of Rangers’ summer signings but his settling-in period will be prolonged.
He suffered a suspected fractured cheekbone when heading the opener in Saturday’s 2-0 win over St Johnstone following a clash of heads that also saw Saints captain Liam Gordon go off.
The injury came before the Europa League opener against Real Betis at Ibrox on Thursday night and Michael Beale will have to come up with another formula in his ever-changing attack.
Aberdeen are the worst this century
The Dons remain on two points after a 2-0 defeat by Hearts at Tynecastle in their fifth game of the season.
It is their worst start to a campaign since Ebbe Skovdahl lost his first seven league games as manager in 1999.
Aberdeen made 13 summer signings but there is little immediate sign of a return on investment.
The Dons have only won two of their last 13 games since Barry Robson was named permanent manager last season.
No stopping St Mirren
The unbeaten Buddies moved second as Scott Tanser’s cushioned volley proved enough to inflict Motherwell’s first league defeat of the season.
It completed an early-season double over the Lanarkshire side, who crashed out of the Viaplay Cup in Paisley.
Stephen Robinson’s side are unbeaten since the first game of the season, a Viaplay Cup defeat at Montrose.
Mixed feelings for new Hibs head coach
Nick Montgomery was happy with some of his side’s football and no doubt delighted to see them take a two-goal lead at Kilmarnock when Dylan Vente added to a Will Dennis own goal on the hour mark.
But signs of the inconsistency which dogged Montgomery’s predecessor, Lee Johnson, were soon evident as goals from Kyle Vassell and Joe Wright earned Killie a point and denied the new man a debut win.
Celtic introduce some new boys
Nat Phillips was handed a debut from the start as Celtic beat Dundee 3-0, although a minor ankle issue forced him off at half-time.
Three goals early in the second half allowed manager Brendan Rodgers to give some players a rest and he introduced Luis Palma and Paulo Bernardo to the Parkhead faithful while handing Reo Hatate a comeback from injury.
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers claims excitement has wiped out any trepidation ahead of their Champions League opener.
The Scottish champions begin their European campaign against Feyenoord in Rotterdam on Tuesday.
Rodgers’ side warmed up with a 3-0 win over Dundee which took them two points clear at the top of the cinch Premiership on Saturday but there were further signs they are still finding their rhythm under Rodgers during a goalless first half when Joe Hart made an impressive save from Luke McCowan.
Rodgers, whose side also face Lazio and Atletico Madrid in the group stage, said: “It’s a really exciting time. I know there always can be a wee bit of trepidation going into the Champions League and the level, but for me there is nothing but excitement.
“It’s a brilliant opportunity for us playing in the elite competition in European club football.
“We are going to a real historical ground. We are coming off the back of a couple of really good wins in different ways.
“We will recover well, we will get our plan right and we will put out a team to get a result.
“We are really going to enjoy the Champions League. Listen, they are the Dutch champions so they will be a very good side.”
Daizen Maeda had a goal ruled out for offside and Matt O’Riley hit the post with a deflected effort but Celtic otherwise struggled to get in behind Dundee during the first half.
The breakthrough came in the 51st minute when David Turnbull netted a penalty after getting himself in the way of Ryan Howley’s over-eager attempts to win the ball on the edge of the box.
Celtic stepped up the tempo and Kyogo Furuhashi headed home before setting up O’Riley to round off the scoring midway through the half.
Rodgers had handed Nat Phillips a debut only for the on-loan Liverpool defender to come off at half-time with an ankle injury, although he is expected to be fit for Rotterdam.
Paulo Bernardo and Luis Palma made their Celtic debuts off the bench while Reo Hatate made his comeback from a calf injury during the second half.
Dundee manager Tony Docherty was happy with how his game plan was working at half-time and he vowed they would not be derailed by the 16-minute goal flurry.
Docherty, whose side host Kilmarnock on Saturday, said: “We will not be defined by losing at Celtic Park but what we will be defined by is our reaction to it.
“A lot of positives, a lot I was pleased about. Every goal was preventable but I have got to take positives and move on to what is a massive game next week at home.”
Tottenham match-winner Dejan Kulusevski credited the calmness of head coach Ange Postecoglou for inspiring their last-gasp 2-1 victory over Sheffield United on Saturday.
Spurs were heading for a first Premier League defeat under the Australian after Gustavo Hamer put the Blades ahead in the 73rd minute.
But the hosts kept their composure and levelled in the eighth minute of stoppage time through Richarlison before Kulusevski rifled home the winner two minutes later to spark jubilant celebrations.
It helped continue the feel-good factor around the club and Swedish attacker Kulusevski paid tribute to his boss following a fourth consecutive league success.
He told SpursPlay: “I was quite calm. In the end I just tried to stay calm, it’s just a game of football.
“When Richy scored, we knew we’re not going to lose and then I got the ball and did my thing. I know I just need to make one good thing to score and that’s what happened.
“We have got to stay calm. You see our coach Ange, he is on the side always being very calm so we have to do that as players.
“Stay calm, trust in each other and play like a family. We can improve a lot.
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“First half we wanted to score too much, we thought we would score a lot of goals, but we have got to stay calm always and wait for the game to come to us.”
Tottenham’s late show ensured Postecoglou kept his lengthy unbeaten home league record, which now stands at 50 matches across spells with Yokohama, Celtic and Spurs.
The 58-year-old has not tasted defeat in a league fixture on home turf in almost three years since Yokohama lost to Kashima in November, 2020.
Postecoglou said: “I do put a big emphasis on that wherever I’ve been because ultimately for your supporters, as much as you enjoy the away wins because you’ve got to earn every one of them, it’s when they come to their home ground that you want to really reward them.
“I’ve been very fortunate that at the last three clubs I’ve had, we’ve had even in Japan 30,000 to 40,000 and at Celtic they’re always sold out and it creates an atmosphere and you can see it helps the team.
“I think that helps you as a club if you’re really strong at home, so yeah it’s something I’m proud of.”
Sheffield United boss Paul Heckingbottom was left to reflect on another near-miss after they suffered a third loss of the season due to late goals.
Forward Oli McBurnie was also sent off deep into stoppage-time for a second yellow card, which Heckingbottom insisted was handed out by referee Peter Bankes due to a simple query.
“A centre-back jumps into Wes (Foderingham), turns his back, leads with his elbow, Wes gets stitches and that’s deemed a yellow card,” Heckingbottom said.
“Oli McBurnie goes over to say he’s pulling my shirt – not swearing – and he gets booked. Deemed the same offence. We’ve got a player missing now.
“(Officials) just do not know what they’re doing and it’s nothing to do with the results.
“Both sets of players are frustrated, both sets of fans are frustrated. Why? Because the people directing the game haven’t got a clue about football. They do not know football.”
Ben Davies hopes Rangers got back on track with their 2-0 cinch Premiership win over St Johnstone at McDiarmid Park.
The 28-year-old defender made his first start of the season on Saturday after recovering from fitness issues dating back to a hamstring complaint picked up against Aberdeen in May.
Brazilian striker Danilo headed the Light Blues ahead after 16 minutes but had to be immediately substituted along with Saints captain Liam Gordon after both men clashed heads, with the Gers player taken to hospital with a fractured cheekbone.
Substitute Rabbi Matondo added a second in the 79th minute and, after damaging defeats to Celtic and PSV Eindhoven before the international break, the Govan side go into the Europa League opener against Real Betis at Ibrox on Thursday night with renewed confidence.
Davies told RangersTV: “It was good to be back, I felt my fitness – lungs wise – was good and I felt quite strong in the game.
“It was my first 90 minutes since before Aberdeen, so it’s been a long time and I was happy to be out there and involved.
“When I realised I was playing, I was just thinking, ‘Solid performance and clean sheet’. So I was happy that we’ve done that.
“I thought we controlled the game really well, limited them to not much at all. We scored two good goals and could have scored more.
“But it’s a step back in the right direction and the start of hopefully a good run.
“The most important game is always the next one and to bounce back from not a great start (to the season) is crucial to do so at the first opportunity and we’ve done that.
“We sent fans home pretty happy and now we can look forward to playing the next game.
“I’m looking forward to Thursday, under the lights at Ibrox is special, so it’s really important that we find a performance.
“I’ve got a few days now recovering until the next game so hopefully make the most of that and then we can go again.”
St Johnstone are bottom of the table with just two points and no wins in five games, but manager Steven MacLean believes there is better to come from his squad.
The former McDiarmid Park striker said: “I always said we will get better as we go on. We have 11 new signings and we are going to improve.
“There is certainly enough to work with. I was concerned at the start of the season, but the group I have got together now. if we keep working hard and improving we will be fine this season.”
Former champions Glenmuir High maintained a positive start to the ISSA/Wata daCosta Cup season, as they outclassed last year’s beaten finalist Central High in a come-from-behind 5-1 win in what turned out to be a lopsided encounter at the former’s base on Saturday.
Nyron Allen (15th), Kyle Gordon (31st), Deandre Johnson (48th), Tajaun Cummings (52nd) and substitute Derrick Henry (69th), were on target for the Andrew Peart-coached Glenmuir side, after James Gallimore gave Central High an 11th-minute lead.
Peart welcomed the win, which was his team second on the trot, putting them in firm control of Zone L on six points.
“The result is very important at this group stage, especially also due to the fact that both teams had some level of success last season so there were a lot of talk around the town about who would win, and we came out on top,” he said in a post-match interview.
“We are just training hard and always seeking to improve, last year we laid down some foundations and we have built on them so far. So there is no pressure, I am just looking at what is in front of me, the players that are in front of me and the direction we want to take the school in,” Peart added.
With Glenmuir being gradually slow to settle, Central capitalised and grabbed the early ascendancy when James dyer sidewined his way between two defenders before playing a pass off to Gallimore, who made no mistakes from close range.
However, their lead was short-lived, as captain Gordon dispossessed a defender and found an unmarked Allen, who fired a firm right-footed effort past Davone Robinson in goal for Central.
Glenmuir suffered a setback as they lost last season’s standout player after he picked up what appeared to be a broken arm in the 25th minute. Watson tallied 17 goals and nine assist last season.
Still, Glenmuir pressed on and found the lead just past the half-hour mark when Gordon converted from the penalty spot, after Johnson was felled inside the danger area by Robinson, to put Glenmuir 2-1 up at the break.
They wasted little time to pick up where they left off on the resumption and extended the lead three minutes in when a defensive mix up, allowed Johnson to arrive on the ball and head past Robinson for his second goal of the season.
And Cummings put further daylight between Glenmuir and Central with a cool, calm and collected finish over a well-advanced Robinson, who was left in no man’s land.
Though Central tried to play their game and had a few openings from which they could have narrowed the gap, Justin Murray, in goal for Glenmuir was not for beating.
While Central’s hunt was fruitless, Glenmuir helped themselves to a fifth, as Allan slipped two defenders, before passing to Henry, who slotted home from deep inside the 18-yard box.
A disappointed Jermaine Douglas of Central High felt his team lost their composure after finding the lead.
“I thought we were playing well in the first 15 to 20 minutes, but my concern was always scoring first and then becoming complacent, it's something we try to guard against but that is exactly what happened. I don’t think we should have lost by this margin we got some chances that we didn’t put away, but such is football,” he said.
The result leaves Central pointless, while the other group contest between Porus and Old Harbour was called off due to bad weather with the latter leading 5-0.
Saturday’s results
Zone A
Cornwall College 0, Irwin High 0
Maldon 4, Green Pond 0
Spot Valley 2, St James 1
Zone D
Mannings 1, Petersfield 0
Zone I
Tacky High 3, Horace Clarke 3
Wycliff Martin 1, St Mary Technical 1
Zone J
Dinthill 6, Ewarton 0
McGrath 1. Enid Bennett 0
Zone K
Yallahs 6, Robert Lightbourne 0
Morant Bay High 1, Paul Bogle 0
Zone L
Glenmuir High 5, Central High 1
Porus 0, Old Harbour 5 (Game called off due to lightning)
Zone M
Kemps Hill 0, Vere Technical 2
Garvey Maceo 8, Tacius Golding 0
Kingston College moved to fourth place in Zone A after clipping Calabar 1-0 for their first win of the season in the ISSA/Digicel Manning Cup.
Zone leaders Hydel were leading Camperdown 5-1 at halftime before the rest of the game was called off due to lightning. Charlie Smith, who are second in the Zone, also had their game against Penwood called off at halftime with a 3-0 lead.
In Zone D, STATHS got their second win in as many games with a 4-0 win over Clan Carthy.
In Zone F St. George’s College secured a 2-1 win over Campion College while Waterford beat Ardenne 3-0.
A Zone G clash between St. Jago and Wolmer’s Boys was also called off at halftime due to lightning with St. Jago leading 2-0.
Erol Bulut explained the reasoning behind his decision to keep Ollie Tanner at Cardiff after the young winger claimed South Wales derby hero status in the Bluebirds’ 2-0 win over Swansea.
Cardiff had lost the previous four derbies against their bitter rivals and were being held at bay before 21-year-old Tanner was sent on as a 70th-minute substitute.
Tanner, who was signed from Isthmian League side Lewes in July 2022 and spent the second half of last season on loan at York, scored his first Cardiff goal within 60 seconds of arriving and then won the penalty which captain Aaron Ramsey converted to seal matters.
Cardiff manager Bulut said: “He came from nothing and last season he was not here.
“When I had the pre-season, I gave everybody the chance to play and I saw that he had something in him.
“He has a good left foot, he has a good shot, he can dribble, he is strong on the ball. So I said I will give him a chance and keep him.
“I hope for his career he continues likes this, keep his feet on the floor. I said I would not give him away (on loan), I made the right decision.”
Bulut, the former Fenerbahce manager who has taken charge of passionate Istanbul derbies with Besiktas and Galatasaray, said before the game he had mingled with Cardiff fans in a city centre pub to understand the importance of the rivalry.
It was Cardiff’s first derby win on home soil since November 2013, which was a Premier League fixture.
He said: “To have a win is special. I’ve played a lot of derbies in my career as a player and a coach and I said to them this game was different.
“The fans told me it was 10 years since we won (in Cardiff) and this was very important for us. It was a must for the table and what pleased me is that we were really a team on the field.”
Swansea have yet to win a league game under Michael Duff and remain in the bottom three.
Duff was given short shrift by some Swansea fans as he went to them after the final whistle.
He said: “It’s part of the job. I don’t like getting beat. I’m not stupid.
“I’m sure there’ll be a vent at me, but I’ve been here before. This is where you see the true characters at the club.
“The ones that stick together, the ones that don’t blame everyone else and whisper in the corridor. There’s been a lot of change at the club. That’s not me hiding behind it.”
Swansea did not manage a shot on target until the final minute, with Duff adding: “It’s the lack of quality that cost us the game.
“I faulted them the last time we got beat because there wasn’t enough intensity, that was there today.
“We couldn’t sustain attacks, we couldn’t build momentum and every time we went forward we gave it away. That’s why we didn’t get any threat.”
Champions Barcelona thrashed Real Betis 5-0 to move to the top of LaLiga on Saturday.
Joao Felix marked his first start of the club with his first goal and Robert Lewandowski also struck as Xavi’s side took control in the first half at their temporary Olympic Stadium home.
Ferran Torres, Raphinha and Joao Cancelo wrapped up an emphatic victory in the second half.
The result took them a point clear of Real Madrid, who face Real Sociedad on Sunday, at the top of the table.
Betis, with seven points from their opening four games, had travelled with hope of causing an upset, but they were firmly put in their place by the champions despite an encouraging start.
Barca were sluggish in the opening minutes and the visitors had the first clear-cut opening when Luis Henrique fired just wide after being cleverly played in by Isco.
Barca eventually clicked into gear and Felix put them ahead after 25 minutes. He initially miskicked after meeting a cross from Oriol Romeu with an attempted volley but readjusted brilliantly to dribble round Rui Silva and slot home from an acute angle.
They then moved through the gears and doubled the lead just after the hour as Lewandowski claimed his first league goal of the season.
Felix, who is on loan from Atletico Madrid, was again involved, this time dummying from an Andreas Christensen pass to allow the Pole to run through and fire past Silva.
Betis threatened to reply before the interval as Willian Jose tested Marc-Andre ter Stegen, but Silva also had to be alert to deny Felix from a Barca counter-attack.
That proved Silva’s final contribution as he was substituted at half-time for Francisco Vieites, but his replacement was unable to halt Barcelona’s march.
Felix thought he had claimed his side’s third just before the hour only for his effort to be ruled out for offside.
The champions did not have to wait much longer, however, as Torres curled in a superb free-kick after 62 minutes.
Victory was then made absolutely certain four minutes later as Raphinha, who had replaced Torres after the third goal, scored with his first contribution. The Brazilian took a touch and then lashed in a fierce drive from the edge of the area.
Cancelo wrapped up the scoring with his first Barca goal nine minutes from time. The on-loan Manchester City full-back found space on the right and wrong-footed Juan Miranda before firing into the far corner.
Barcelona went close to adding even more in the closing moments as Raphinha forced a save from Vieites and Lewandowski backheeled narrowly wide.
Mauricio Pochettino is saddened by some of changes he has witnessed in English football, believing a move towards a more technical way of playing costing the Premier League some of its identity.
The manager is in his sixth full season working in England since being appointed at Southampton midway through the 2012-13 season.
He stabilised relegation-threatened Saints and pulled them clear of the drop zone before helping establishing them in the top flight the following year.
At his next job, Tottenham, he transformed the club from perennial underachievers into regular Champions League qualifiers and took them to the final in 2019, losing 2-0 to Liverpool in Madrid.
He is working his first Premier League job since being sacked by Spurs in November of that year, and is tasked with turning around Chelsea’s fortunes after a wretched campaign last season that saw them finish 12th.
The value and commercial appeal of England’s top flight has grown hugely since Pochettino replaced Nigel Adkins at St. Mary’s more than a decade ago, with the appeal and financial incentive on offer to foreign stars greater than ever.
It has influenced English football to move away from some of its traditional habits, typically thought to have been centred around stamina and physicality.
“It’s true that the Premier League is different from when we arrived at Southampton (in 2013),” said Pochettino, who takes his team to face Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium on Sunday looking for only their second league win of the season.
“Improved? Yes. Every season it improves, because the potential of the Premier League to sign players from everywhere has made the teams stronger.
“But it’s true that it loses a little bit of the identity of British football, or English football. Being honest, I like (it) of course, because as coaching staff we love to play in this way.
“English football always was about to fight. But to play good football in (a) different way also is to play well, because if you want to play in a different way, you need to be clever also in how you decide a philosophy and structure of the team.”
The Premier League had only 13 foreign players – not English, Scottish, Welsh or Irish – when it was launched in 1992.
The influx of players, and just as significantly managers, from overseas has seen the league grow to resemble a more technical style previously associated with Spain, Italy and other European leagues.
Pochettino added: “Losing this type of identity I think made me a little bit sad because always in my head it was different football in England, that is true.
“People want more spectacular, more things like this. Of course, that is the evolution of society. People ask for different demands, different things, and we are adapting. Football is adapting.”
Pochettino repeated his call for Chelsea’s young squad – the youngest in the league with an average age of just over 23 – to be afforded the time they need to grow into themselves following co-owner Todd Boehly’s whirlwind £1billion recruitment drive.
He cited one famous example of a player bought for big money who took time to come good.
“It’s not fair to assess one game, two games, three games; (a player) is not performing when we play someone and say ‘they need to perform like this’.
“I always use the same example. Real Madrid paid 70, 80, 100 million for one player, Zinedine Zidane.
“After six months you can ask the fans of Real Madrid. He started to perform after seven, eight months. Zidane was 26, 27.
“When you bring in a player who is 18 or 19 or 20 or 21, be careful. They are not machines. They need to settle. We need to give time.”
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