A spectacular strike from substitute Daniel Sturridge two minutes from time salvaged a point for Liverpool as Jurgen Klopp’s side maintained their unbeaten start to the Premier League with a 1-1 draw at Chelsea.
Eden Hazard had given Chelsea the lead at Stamford Bridge just four days after his superb solo strike knocked the Merseysiders out of the League Cup.
The Chelsea captain started the move with a clever flick in the middle of the pitch and a quick passage of play allowed Mateo Kovacic to release the Belgian who finished with a left-foot drive that Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker should have done better with.
Liverpool had their chances to level, with Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino both having efforts cleared off the line.
It looked as if Liverpool were heading for a second defeat in as many games until Sturridge, on for James Milner, took aim from 20 yards and hit a shot that flew over Kepa Arrizabalaga and into the far corner.
Manchester City’s victory earlier in the day against Brighton & Hove Albion saw Pep Guardiola’s side leapfrog Liverpool at the top of the table.
Harry Kane believes Tottenham Hotspur have moved on from an early season slump as they moved up to fourth in the table with a 2-0 win at struggling Huddersfield Town.
Kane scored both goals, the second a penalty, as the London side made it two league wins in a row after winning at Brighton & Hove Albion last Saturday. Before that Tottenham had lost three games in a row in all competitions, two of them in the league.
“It’s a long season, we’ve had a few games we didn’t get the result, but we’ve played some good teams. Liverpool and Inter Milan are no easy games,” the Spurs captain said.
“It was a grind out there, the kind of games where it feels good when you win, a battle, tough defenders. It was a tough game but pleased we ground it out.”
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Arsenal had to be patient against Watford before clinching their fifth league in a row, running out 2-0 winners at the Emirates Stadium.
The game was goalless for the first 80 minutes, with both sides guilty of wasting good chances. But a Craig Cathcart own goal and a Mesut Ozil strike gave Unai Emery’s side the three points.
The game also saw the league debut of goalkeeper Bernd Leno, who came on for the injured Petr Cech during the first half, and the German admitted that he and his teammates are still not the finished article.
“I think we have to improve,” he said. “We need time but we tried to play football from behind and we have to concentrate as not everything was perfect.”
Newcastle United manager Rafa Benitez is still confident his side will avoid relegation despite defeat to Leicester City that leaves them still searching for a first league win. A Jamie Vardy penalty and a Harry Maguire header consigned them to a 2-0 loss at St James’ Park.
“Last year we were in the bottom five in January and finished 10th so we are clear what can happen,” said Benitez, who side are 18th in the table with only two points from seven games. “When we saw the fixtures we knew the start of the season could be tough.”
Wolverhampton Wanderers continued their impressive return to the top flight as goals from Ivan Cavaleiro and Jonathan Castro Otto gave them a 2-0 victory over Southampton.
Wolves, promoted as champions from the Championship in the summer, are eighth in the table, with just one loss, and manager Nuno Espirito Santo said: “We believe in our identity and our style of play. I expect the best from my team and they work very hard.”
Two goals from Gylfi Sigurdsson, which came after he had earlier missed a penalty, ended a run of four games without a win for Everton as they ran out comfortable 3-0 winners over Fulham.
Cenk Tosun scored the other goal for Marco Silva’s men in the clash at Goodison Park.
