The Premier League is back!

The wait was finally over on Friday. The Premier League was back after a boring few months with little football. Everyone was excited to finally watch the Premier League again and it kicked off with Kompany’s Burnley facing the champions, Manchester City.

The match started with many people predicting Burnley to do very well this season and even finish in the top 10. Expectation and hope were sky high at Turf Moore, but it all came crashing down in the blink of an eyes. An inch perfect cross from De Bruyne was headed back across the goal for Haaland to bury in the back of the net. 3 minutes on the clock and THAT man/machine had done it all ready. An extremely disappointing start for the Clarets which could’ve easily been avoided. However, Burnley didn’t let their heads drops and were arguably on top for periods within the first half. Great speed and feet from Foster presented Burnley with a chance to equalise but his curled effort was inches wide of the post. The newly promoted side continued to play well but 10 minutes before half time, Haaland struck again. Kyle Walker pulled his cross back to Alvarez on the edge of the box who calmly laid the ball off to Haaland. The Norwegian’s first-time strike rocketed over Trafford and into the top corner. He didn’t even look at the goal. Once again, this didn’t discourage Burnley and they could’ve got themselves back into the game after Bernardo Silva lost the ball sloppily on the edge of City’s box, but Koleosho’s pass was put over the bar by Foster.

Unsurprisingly, the second half started with City dominating and creating more and more chance which were well saved by ex-Manchester City goalkeeper, James Trafford. The £20m man was keeping his side in the game. Burnley continued to keep City at bay until the 75th minute when Foden’s freekick wasn’t cleared by the home side. Scrappy play inside the 6-yard box presented the ball to Rodri who smashed the ball into the goal. A goal and an assist for the Spaniard in the opening game. Only 15 minutes remained of the game, and it was impossible for Burnley to get any form of points, but they continued to show glimpses of why people believe they’re going to do very well this season. Unfortunately, the game ended on a negative for the Clarets when in the 94th minute, Zaroury was sent off for a dangerous tackle on Kyle Walker. A deserved red card for the Moroccan winger really but a dampener on what was a really positive performance for Burnley.

After Friday’s matchup, it was straight into the first weekend of the new season with many big fixtures taking place, such as Chelsea v Liverpool, Newcastle v Aston Villa and Everton v Fulham. But the game that stood out was Brighton v Luton at The AMEX Stadium on Saturday. A newly promoted side against a Europa League side. What could possibly go wrong…

To nobody’s surprise, Brighton started as the better side creating chance after chance but failing to convert any of them. While Luton did create a few chances from crosses, the best chance of the early stages of the game fell to ex-Watford forward, Joao Pedro. A low cross into the box got stuck under his feet and he scuffed his shot wide. The pattern of the game stayed the same as half time approached and Brighton needed to break the deadlock otherwise it could’ve been a tense second half for them. 36 minutes on the clock and Mitoma’s clipped cross landed on the head of Solly March and past Kaminski. A much deserved goal for Brighton was followed by Welbeck being denied by the post to keep Luton in the game. The seagulls headed into half time with a narrow lead but a deserved one none the less.

The second 45 kicked off and Brighton immediately probed for a second goal. March’s back heel was smashed against the post by Gross and minutes later March’s shot was brilliantly saved by the Luton goalkeeper. Around 20 minutes of the game remained, and the score was still 1-0 so the next goal was crucial. Fantastic skill from Mitoma took him past Doughty and presented an opportunity to lay Joao Pedro in. A slipped pass into the Brazilian’s feet was well taken before he was brought down by Lockyer. Penalty to Brighton and no hesitation from the referee. A huge moment in the game to basically put the game to bed was cooly taken by Brighton’s new number 9 as he smashed his penalty into the corner. Joao Pedro loves a goal against Luton. 10 minutes later, Luton had a counterattack opportunity and a chance to give themselves a bit of hope. Brown’s cross deflected off Dunk’s back and onto his elbow. Surely that’s not a penalty. Incorrect. David Coote immediately pointed to the spot and VAR agreed with his decision. One of a few questionable VAR decisions in game week 1. Morris stepped up (arguably Luton’s best and most dangerous player) and calmly placed his penalty past Steele to score the Hatter’s first ever Premier League goal. Luton Town had hope and momentum and pushed for an equaliser but dreadful defending from Mpanzu inside the six-yard box gave Adingra the ball to volley into the near post and restore Brighton’s two goal lead. A first Premier League goal for the Ivorian winger all but sealed the 3 points for the Seagulls. 7 minutes of added time remained, and it was just enough time for Dunk to effortlessly set Estupinan off for one more run down the left. The Ecuadorian fired a low cross to the back post for Ferguson to bundle home. 4-1 Brighton and an easy first game for the South Coast side.