Supporters returned to English top-flight matches for the first time since March on Saturday.
England's coronavirus restrictions have seen fans banned from sporting venues until now.
On Saturday, West Ham became the first to host a top-flight match with spectators present in their clash with Manchester United in East London.
Government restrictions mean just 2,000 fans were allowed to watch the match at the London Stadium, which Manchester United 3-1 thanks to goals from Paul Pogba, Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford.
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West Ham v Manchester United ratings
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WEST HAM RATINGS: Lukas Fabianski - 7: Not huge amount to do in first half until saving well from Martial just before break. No chance with ruthless United finishes. EPA -
Fabian Balbuena - 6: Showed excellent anticipation to break up United attacks and carried the ball out from defence well in first half. Vital tackle deflected Rashford shot wide just before hour mark. Like rest of defence, struggled to cope with United’s attack in second half. Getty -
Angelo Ogbonna - 6: Part of Hammers backline that barely gave Cavani, Martial and Greenwood a kick in first half. But was easily beaten by Greenwood as United attacker set-up Pogba's crucial opening goal. Left for dead again three minutes later as same player produced sublime touch and finish to make it 2-1. EPA -
Aaron Cresswell - 7: Always a willing runner down the right with one lung-bursting 60-metre sprint in first half that Masuaku decided to ignore. Lovely free-kick late on well saved by Henderson. AFP -
Vladimir Coufal - 6: Flashed ball across box just after break, when he should really have went for goal himself, that Bowen couldn’t turn in on the stretch. Found Rashford's pace too hot to handle when United substitute came on. Getty -
Declan Rice - 7: Breaks down play and distributes so well in the centre of the park. Lovely flick-on header that was heading for the net until poached on line by Soucek. Fantastic determination to chase down and tackle Rashford in full-flow with 15 minutes to go. Long-range effort easily saved by Henderson as Hammers chased game. Reuters -
Tomas Soucek - 7: Could have earned early booking for crunching tackle on McTominay. Tapped home from a couple of centimetres after Rice header to open scoring for his second league goal of season. PA -
Arthur Masuaku - 6: Good cross from left into box after 15 minutes was wasted by Haller. Failed to take advantage of a couple of excellent Cresswell overlaps. Didn’t offer enough of a threat down left. AFP -
Jarrod Bowen - 8: Brilliant first half. Cut in from right in first couple of minutes and his deflected shot almost set-up Fornals with quickfire opener. Finished confidently after being put through a few minutes later but was rightly ruled offside. Scintillating wingplay down right to skin Telles followed by excellent ball into middle that Fornals could only head into side netting. Could, and probably should, have made it 2-0 just after half-time but couldn’t finish on the stretch. Ran out of steam in second 45. EPA -
Pablo Fornals - 7: Denied by Henderson with first chance of game. If he’d found Bowen with through ball after 20 minutes, teammate would have been one-on-one with Henderson. Could only head into side netting after great Bowen cross on half-hour mark then prodded shot against post minutes later. PA -
Sebastien Haller - 6: His pass on the stretch set up Fornals for chance that Spaniard hit against post in first half. Lovely touch followed by cross from left to Bowen on other side of penalty area. Deserved a goal when he rounded Henderson, cut back onto his right foot only to lose his footing and fall over. Disappeared in second half. Reuters -
Said Benrahma - (On for Fornals 75’) 7: Looked sharp when he came on and curled one delicate chip just over bar with 10 minutes left. AFP -
Manuel Lanzini - (On for Bowen 76’) N/A. AFP -
Ben Johnson - (On for Coufal 85’) N/A -
Dean Henderson - 7: First Premier League start and a ropey first half where United struggled to defend corners. Fine, if controversial, pass down the line led to Pogba’s equaliser. Getty -
Aaron Wan-Bissaka - 6: Smart pass in United’s first proper attack after 18 minutes. Superb recovery tackle in second half where he showed pace not seen in the stadium since Usain Bolt won gold. Still needs to cross better. Getty -
Victor Lindelof - 6: Struggled like the rest in first half as West Ham surged forward on the counter attack, but far better in the second in another confusing, captivating performance. EPA -
Harry Maguire - 6: As slow as the rest in the first half. With his forwards not doing it, desperately tried for an equaliser. It would come from those forwards in the end. PA -
Alex Telles - 5: Poor awareness, outclassed by Bowen and his worse game so far in a United shirt. More involved as team surged forward. Getty -
Donny van de Beek - 4: Struggled to compete with Rice. Club felt he’d take time to settled physically in Premier League. That was clear at West Ham. Subbed at half time – though any of the outfield players could’ve been. Reuters -
Scott McTominay - 6: Poor first half in a midfield three which hadn’t played together before. Shot wide after positive move in second and better with Bruno. Weren’t they all? Getty -
Paul Pogba - 6: First start in over a month, except he didn't start playing until his 66th minute goal – a curling world class finish. Loose in possession and as anonymous as the rest until he scored. Different player afterwards. AFP -
Mason Greenwood - 6: Limited contribution but then outstanding first touch and powerful finish to put United ahead – and get his first PL goal of the season. Youngest player to reach 20 United goals since Norman Whiteside. Wasted a late chance. He can be forgiven. EPA -
Anthony Martial - 4: Shot before half time United’s best moment of first half. But did nothing on his 25th birthday and went off injured. Getty -
Edinson Cavani - 5: Better movement than the other players, but no service to find him. Taken off at half time with an injury. PA -
SUBS: Marcus Rashford - (On for Cavani 46’) 8: Struck post when he should have made it 3-1, but then dinked in a lovely 77th minute third. Four shots on target, constantly running at West Ham. Made a huge difference. Getty -
Bruno Fernandes - (On for Van de Beek 46’) 8: The team’s best player, he made a huge impact with his presence, passing and vision. Set up Pogba to put United ahead. AFP -
Juan Mata - (On for Martial 62’) 6: Neat interplay, played his part and more effective than the man he replaced. Perfect pass for Rashford goal. Getty
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Chelsea's game against Leeds United at Stamford Bridge in West London also had 2,000 fans present.
It was the first time Chelsea fans had seen their team play live in nine months due to Covid-19 restrictions, and those in attendance went home happy as the Blues came from behind to secure a 3-1 victory to go top of the Premier League.
Asked if Chelsea fans are right to consider them title contenders, Lampard told reporters: "There's certainly nothing wrong with the fans thinking that.
"It's great to have them back, their input was huge, the noise huge. You can see how excited they are at the end that we are top of the league," he said.
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Chelsea v Leeds ratings
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CHELSEA RATINGS: Edouard Mendy 6 – Was partially at fault for Leeds’ opener. He came off his line when he might have been better off not committing, and he was rounded by Bamford. Otherwise pretty solid. EPA -
Reece James 7 – Was effective at both ends of the pitch. He delivered a scintillating cross for Giroud to volley home the equaliser, and he was also strong in the air and in the challenge in defence. AFP -
Kurt Zouma 7 – if Mendy was at fault for the Leeds goal then it could be argued Zouma was too. His hesitation may have caused a bit of confusion. However, he more than made up for it by heading home the winner. Reuters -
Thiago Silva 7 – Another classy performance. Was solid at the back and effortless in possession. At one stage, he played a delightful and precise volleyed pass. On another, he made a key block to deny Raphinha. AFP -
Ben Chilwell 6 – Showed his propensity for getting forward but was not as his best. Chilwell definitely helps Chelsea attack with pace, but his passing on this occasion was sometimes wayward. AFP -
Kai Havertz 5 – A poor first half, but Havertz improved in the second and he almost scored with a header, but he sent his effort over when a deft touch probably would have been enough. Overall: gave the ball away too easily too often. EPA -
N’Golo Kante 8 – Back to his best sat in front of the back four. Snuffed out attacks, intercepted passes and quickly started attacks by playing the simple ball. Reuters -
Mason Mount 8 – Another passionate and energetic performance from the attacking midfielder. Never stopped running, was strong in the challenge too, and contributed a number of key passes, including the cross for Zouma’s winner. AFP -
Hakim Ziyech 6 – Came close to scoring in the first minute when he controlled Thiago Silva’s long pass before driving a low shot straight at Keisler. Was involved in the first goal but limped off soon after. EPA -
Olivier Giroud 8 – Came close on several occasions before hitting his fifth goal in two games thanks to his neat movement and deadly finish. Did a lot of work off the ball and certainly boosted his chances of starting more regularly. Reuters -
Timo Werner 6 – A mixed game. He hit the crossbar when it seemed impossible to miss. He played on the right, and struggled, but still manage to carve out three further goalscoring chances and crossed for Christian Pulisic to tap home at the death. EPA -
SUB: Christian Pulisic (Ziyech) 7 – Looked bright when he came on and his positive runs caused Leeds a number of problems. Capped a fine performance with a goal late on. Reuters -
SUB: Tammy Abraham (Giroud) N/A – didn’t do a lot wrong when he came on but wasn’t as effective as Giroud when it came to disrupting the Leeds defence. Reuters -
Mateo Kovacic (Havertz) 6 – Came on with 23 minutes to go and looked tidy in possession when he had the ball. Reuters -
LEEDS UNITED RATINGS: Illan Meslier 6 – The youngster could do little to keep out Giroud’s equaliser or Zouma’s winner. He got lucky in the first half when a poor pass put Luke Ayling under pressure. He made up for it with a superb triple save in the second half. AFP -
Luke Ayling 6 – A fabulous attacking presence for Leeds who looked a danger when striding forward on the overlap. Had his hands full when battling with Timo Werner throughout, but an otherwise solid performance. Reuters -
Robin Koch N/A – The defender had been short of match fitness coming into this game and the decision failed to pay off as he was replaced by Llorente in the opening 10 minutes. AFP -
Liam Cooper 5 – Looked like the weak link in the side. Gave the ball away on numerous occasions and was often out of position, like when Giroud equalised. Made some key interceptions, but not consistent enough. EPA -
Ezgan Alioski 5 – Substituted with 20 minutes left on the clock, he found it hard when facing Werner or Pulisic and offered very little at either end. Reuters -
Kalvin Phillips 7 – Another classy performance from the midfielder, who delivered the perfect pass to slice open Chelsea’s defence for Bamford’s goal. Enjoyed a tremendous battle with N’Golo Kante. Reuters -
Raphinha 6 – Leeds rarely threatened Mendy’s goal but Raphinha came close twice in a matter of seconds. His first effort was blocked by Thiago Silva, his second blazed over the bar. Found space hard to come by. EPA -
Mateusz Klich 5 – A key part of Bielsa’s system, he was snuffed out by the combination of Kante, Mount and Havertz in the Chelsea midfield. Reuters -
Stuart Dallas 5 – Dallas played both at the back and in midfield in different phases of the game but looked lost throughout. Like Klich, he struggled against Chelsea’s effective midfield. Reuters -
Jack Harrison 5 – A quiet game on the left-hand side, as Leeds’ main attacking play came on the other side.. Harrison’s crossing let him down when he did have the ball. AFP -
Patrick Bamford 6 – Gave Leeds the lead with a well taken goal. He managed to evade the oncoming Edouard Mendy to side foot into an empty net but was subsequently well marshalled by Silva and Zouma thereafter. EPA -
SUB: Diego Llorente (Koch) 6 – Did OK when he came on, though almost gave the ball away when he miskicked an attempted clearance across the face of his own area. EPA -
SUB: Rodrigo (Alioski) 7 – Gave Leeds a bit more of an attacking presence when he came on and though he failed to create any goalscoring chances, he boosted his chances of starting next time around. EPA -
SUB: Ian Poveda-Ocampo (Harrison) 6 – Looked bright on the right-hand side and had calls for a penalty when he was clipped – but didn’t go down – inside the penalty area. AFP
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The English Football Association has condemned fans of London second-tier club Millwall for booing as players from their team and visitors Derby County took a knee before their Championship match on Saturday.
The game was among the first matches to see a return of supporters to stadiums since the start of Britain's Covid restrictions in March.
Players throughout English football have been taking a knee since July, initially in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, although both the Premier League and the Football League (EFL) have since said the gesture is now linked to their own anti-racism campaigns.
Video footage of the start of the game contained loud booing from the 2,000 fans inside Millwall's The Den stadium as the players took the knee.
In response, the FA said in a statement: "The FA supports all players and staff that wish to take a stand against discrimination in a respectful manner, which includes taking of the knee, and strongly condemns the behaviours of any spectators that actively voice their opposition to such activities."
On Friday, Millwall players had released a statement saying:
"As a squad we are fully supportive of the entire football family’s efforts in ridding the sport, and society generally, of all forms of discrimination.
"The gesture of taking the knee before matches provides an opportunity for us to do exactly that and continues to allow all those playing to publicly showcase their support – on behalf of the whole squad – for the fight against discrimination," read the statement.
“We wish to make clear that taking the knee, for us, is in no way representative of any agreement with political messaging or ideology. It is purely about tackling discrimination, as has been the case throughout.
“We will continue to do this until the start of the New Year when a new and comprehensive anti-discrimination strategy will be announced by the club.”
