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MAN UTD EASE PRESSURE ON MANAGER SOLSKJAER WITH WIN AT TOTTENHAM

Manchester United eased the pressure on under-fire Ole Gunnar Solskjaer with an easy 3-0 win at Tottenham which saw the heat turned up on Nuno Espirito Santo.

Solskjaer is battling for his job after last weekend’s 5-0 humiliation by Liverpool, but as has been the case so often during his reign at United, his team delivered a result when he needed it the most.

A brilliant goal by Cristiano Ronaldo – his 11th against Tottenham, the most of any English opponent – and second-half strikes from Edinson Cavani and Marcus Rashford saw United coast to the points in north London and gave the Norwegian a bit of breathing space.

He will not be out of the woods just yet, though, with a Champions League trip to Atalanta and the Manchester derby to come in the next week.

While Solskjaer will have enjoyed his evening, the same cannot be said for Nuno as the Tottenham fans turned on their boss Nuno, chanting ‘You don’t know what you’re doing’ and made their feelings clear at full-time with a loud chorus of boos.

The Portuguese seems like a man condemned and with his side toothless in attack and unable to muster a shot on target during the 90 minutes, patience in the fanbase is already running out.

Spurs could have gone into the top four with a win, but that never looked on the cards and with five wins and five defeats from their opening 10 games, a challenge for Champions League qualification looks beyond this team.

Both sides had chances to grab the upper hand in the opening 10 minutes as Son Heung-min had an effort deflected wide and at the other end Cavani’s shot was blocked by Eric Dier.

Tottenham began to grow into the game and should have taken the lead midway through the first half.

After United cleared a corner Lucas Moura’s clipped ball over the top found Son, but the South Korean poked over from close range having taken control of the ball well.

Five minutes later Spurs thought they had taken the lead as Cristian Romero turned in Dier’s header from a corner at the far post, but he was several yards offside.

It felt like it was the hosts who had the momentum, but United wrestled it away in the 39th minute with a moment of quality that was made and finished in Portugal.

Ronaldo cleverly peeled off Ben Davies’ shoulder and his compatriot Bruno Fernandes picked him out with a pinpoint cross.

There was plenty for the 36-year-old still to do, but his finish was superb, sending a low first-time volley across Hugo Lloris and into the far post as he continued his love affair of scoring against Spurs.

He was celebrating a second early in the second half after another emphatic finish, but he went slightly early with his run and it was ruled out for offside.

Tottenham fans were not happy with what they were witnessing and turned on Nuno when he substituted Moura in the 54th minute.

Boos rang loudly around the stadium followed by chants of ‘You don’t know what you’re doing’.

The mood soured even more in the 64th minute as United doubled their lead.

Oliver Skipp was robbed of possession in the centre circle, Fernandes passed to Ronaldo, who played in an onside Cavani and his clipped finish was stylish.

United killed the game four minutes from time as substitute Rashford coolly slotted home after being played in by Nemanja Matic.

That incensed Tottenham fans even further and they chanted for Nuno’s sacking and the removal of chairman Daniel Levy.

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SEAN DYCHE CELEBRATES NINE YEARS AT BURNLEY WITH WIN OVER BRENTFORD

Burnley registered their first win of the Premier League season as they beat Brentford 3-1 at Turf Moor on the day Sean Dyche reached nine years as Clarets boss.

The hosts netted three times without reply in the first half, with Chris Wood lashing the opener past Premier League debutant Alvaro Fernandez in the fourth minute.

Matt Lowton added a header in the 32nd and Maxwel Cornet then struck to make it 3-0 four minutes later.

Brentford substitute Saman Ghoddos pulled a goal back with 11 minutes of normal time remaining, but the visitors were unable to spoil Dyche’s anniversary as his side took maximum points for the first time in 10 league outings this season, and 13 including the end of last term.

It saw Burnley move out of the relegation zone, up a place to 17th, while Thomas Frank’s Bees remain 12th after their third successive league defeat.

Burnley grabbed the lead early when Lowton lofted the ball forward on the right and Ethan Pinnock tried to intercept but could not prevent it running to Wood, who cracked a shot beyond Fernandez.

The hosts continued to push, with Wood causing further problems for Brentford and penalty appeals being waved away by referee Jon Moss after Ashley Westwood went down in the box.

And Burnley then had the ball in the net again on the quarter-hour mark, Cornet finishing having been teed up by Wood, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside via a VAR check.

An encouraging spell for Brentford followed, in which Ivan Toney brought a good save out of Nick Pope.

But soon after, it was Fernandez doing well to thwart Johann Berg Gudmundsson one-on-one, and moments later Burnley did double their advantage as Lowton rose to head in Charlie Taylor’s cross.

Clarets fans had barely finished celebrating that when Dyche’s men scored again as Cornet, in delightful fashion, notched his fourth goal in five league appearances since joining the club, bringing down a pass from Dwight McNeil and then smashing the ball past Fernandez from the edge of the box.

It could have got even worse for Brentford before the interval, with Wood seeing one shot deflected behind and sending another just over.

Wood then put a header wide shortly after the break, before Pope dived to push away a Christian Norgaard shot.

Lowton and McNeil made unsuccessful attempts with strikes around the hour mark, and Norgaard and Toney were subsequently off-target with efforts at the other end.

After McNeil sent a free-kick wide of the near post, Brentford then reduced the deficit via a superb volley from Ghoddos, but they could not make things any more nervy for Burnley in the closing stages.

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AARON RAMSDALE STARS AS ARSENAL BEAT LEICESTER TO CONTINUE EXCELLENT FORM

Arsenal reaped the benefits of a fast start as they continued their fine run with victory at Leicester on Saturday, with goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale in inspired form.

Gabriel Magalhaes and Emile Smith Rowe – with his fourth goal in seven games – had the visitors on top within the opening 20 minutes at the King Power Stadium and Arsenal headed back down the M1 with a 2-0 win after stoutly defending their advantage.

The victory is a seventh in nine across all competitions for Mikel Arteta’s side, who showed glitz and guile in equal measure to outfox Leicester.

Brendan Rodgers has overseen something of a mini-revival after Leicester’s slow start to the season almost paralleled that of Arsenal, but – after beating Manchester United here last time out in the league – they could not find a way back into the game.

Even Jamie Vardy, fit enough to start following a knee injury, could not inspire a comeback and add to his 10 goals in 12 previous appearances against one of his favourite opponents.

Arsenal set the tone early, with Bukayo Saka – on his 100th appearance for the club – seeing an effort blocked which Daniel Amartey almost inadvertently then steered into his own goal.

Scoring from set-pieces is becoming a regular occurrence for the Gunners and it was a Gabriel header from Saka’s corner which broke the deadlock as the Brazilian celebrated his first goal since March.

Smith Rowe doubled the lead on 18 minutes, continuing his fine form with the latest England squad announcement looming.

With Alexandre Lacazette battling for the ball in the box, it was cleared into the path of the academy graduate, who made no mistake with a clinical finish.

Benjamin White has made a fine start to life at Arsenal and was passed fit to play here after illness, but he conceded a silly free-kick on the edge of his own box as half-time approached.

James Maddison, a reported summer target for Arsenal, bent over a perfect effort which Ramsdale did brilliantly to tip onto the post at full stretch, jumping back up to keep out Jonny Evans’ effort from the rebound.

The save was so good, even Peter Schmeichel, whose son Kasper was in goal at the other end, tweeted that it was the best he had “seen for years”.

Rodgers reacted to the hosts’ first-half display by introducing Harvey Barnes and Ademola Lookman, with the Foxes much brighter following the restart.

Luke Thomas, in for the injured Ricardo Pereira, drove an effort just wide, with Arteta’s response to Arsenal’s loosening grip on proceedings seeing Martin Odegaard replace Lacazette.

Still Leicester pushed as Ramsdale turned a Lookman shot behind, the former Sheffield United goalkeeper becoming increasingly important as he then made himself big to save from Barnes.

Vardy’s chances had been quite limited and he uncharacteristically miscued a header as the game entered the final quarter with Arsenal still holding on.

Evans was arguably lucky to avoid a red card as he dragged Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang down with no other defenders around him but was only booked by referee Michael Oliver.

Schmeichel made a big save of his own soon after, keeping out Aubameyang’s effort from five yards out, with Leicester unable to find a way through in the closing stages as Arsenal held on for the three points.

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BARCELONA’S SERGIO AGUERO TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL AFTER CHEST PAIN EXPERIENCE

Barcelona striker Sergio Aguero has been admitted to hospital for a cardiac exam after experiencing chest pain during Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Alaves.

Aguero, 33, had to be taken off before half-time after being attended to on the Camp Nou pitch by Barca’s medical team for a lengthy period of time.

The Argentina international was eventually able to walk off the field before being transferred to hospital where he underwent tests to determine the nature of the problem.

“The first team player Sergio Aguero reported chest discomfort and has been admitted to the hospital for a cardiac exam,” Barca said in a brief statement after the game.

Aguero will continue in hospital on Sunday to undergo further exams after suffering an arrhythmia during Saturday’s game.

Barca also lost Gerard Pique to a calf strain against Alaves to further increase their injury woes. Sergi Roberto, Ronald Araujo, Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, Ansu Fati, Ousmane Dembele and Martin Braithwaite all missed Saturday’s game with various fitness issues.

Aguero, who joined Barca from Manchester City in the summer on a free transfer, only made his debut for the club earlier in October after he injured his calf in preseason training.

He scored his first goal in the Clasico defeat to Real Madrid last weekend and followed that up with his first start in Wednesday’s surprise loss to Rayo Vallecano.

The game against Alaves marked his second start in a week as Barca’s winless run stretched to three games in LaLiga.

With interim coach Sergi Barjuan on the touch line following the dismissal of Ronald Koeman in midweek, Memphis Depay gave Barca the lead in the second half.

Luis Rioja equalised almost immediately for Alaves to earn a point for the Basque side and leave Barca languishing in ninth in the league table with 16 points from 11 games.

“It’s a bad point,” defender Jordi Alba told reporters after the game. “Anything other than three points is bad for Barca, but especially now seeing where we are in the standings.

“We did enough but we are struggling to score and it takes very little for teams to score against us. We are all trying but it’s tough.”

Barjuan will remain in charge for Tuesday’s must-win game against Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League as the search for a new manager goes on.

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IBRAHIMOVIC NETS 400TH LEAGUE GOAL AS AC MILAN EDGE AS ROMA

Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored his 150th Serie A goal as AC Milan inflicted Jose Mourinho’s first home defeat in the Italian top flight with a 2-1 win over AS Roma at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday to keep pace with Serie A leaders Napoli.

The 40-year-old striker rifled a low free kick into the bottom corner in the 25th minute to put the visitors ahead after a lively start, his 400th goal in total in domestic leagues.

Ibrahimovic had a brilliantly finished second ruled out for offside after the break, just like team mate Rafael Leao in the first half, before going down under Roger Ibanez’s challenge to earn a spot kick that Franck Kessie converted in the 57th minute.

Milan were reduced to 10 men for the final 25 minutes after left-back Theo Hernandez was shown a second yellow card, but Stephan El Shaarawy’s stoppage-time strike was not enough to rescue the game for Roma.

Victory leaves Milan second, level on 31 points with leaders Napoli, and 12 points ahead of fourth-placed Roma.

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TEN-MAN MANCHESTER CITY SLIP TO 2-0 HOME DEFEAT TO CRYSTAL PALACE

Manchester City suffered a shock 2-0 defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.

Wilfried Zaha scored early while Conor Gallagher grabbed a late second as City finished the game with 10 men after Aymeric Laporte was sent off in the first half.

Pep Guardiola’s side slipped to only their second Premier League defeat of the season on his 200th game in charge at the club.

City remain third in the league table while Palace move up to 13th position.

“It was about getting in their faces and not letting them play,” Zaha said postmatch. “We know how good they are, we wanted to show them what we could do.

“I scuffed it but a goal is a goal. I was just buzzing to see it go in so I was happy. Conor Gallagher brings a lot of energy and I needed people to link up with and it makes a mass difference when he helps out.

“I feel like we have had a threat but the difference now is that we keep the ball from the back and build and make our chances. We are exploiting our talent.”

The visitors took a shock lead when Gallagher dispossessed Laporte to play in Zaha to score his 50th Premier League goal for Palace.

Following the opener, Palace defended well and City failed to create many clear-cut chances throughout the first half.

Just before the break, the hosts were reduced to 10 men after Laporte brought down Zaha and was shown a straight red card for denying a clear goal-scoring opportunity.

Palace should have doubled their lead five minutes into the second half but Marc Guehi failed to hit the target with a close-range header.

Within the space of two minutes, both sides had goals ruled out for offside. Zaha thought he scored his second of the day but his strike was disallowed.

Moments later, Gabriel Jesus put the ball in the back of the net but after a lengthy VAR check, the goal was ruled out as Phil Foden was offside in the build up.

With two minutes remaining, Gallagher sealed an impressive win for Palace with a curling finish past City goalkeeper Ederson.

“They have good players. I knew it would be a real tough game,” Guardiola said. “I saw the Brighton and Arsenal games. I knew how difficult they would be. They showed it today.”

When asked about Laporte’s sending off, Guardiola added: “Could be yellow card, could be red it depends on the decision of the boss, the referee.. unfortunately today, many, many things went wrong and we lost the game.”

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WESTHAM THRASH 10-MAN ASTONVILLA

West Ham won 4-1 at Aston Villa to move into the top four in the Premier League and round off a wonderful week for David Moyes’ side.

The Hammers defeated London rivals Tottenham last weekend and reached the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup with a penalty shoot-out victory against holders Manchester City, before putting 10-man Villa to the sword.

Villa boss Dean Smith will feel everything that could go wrong did go wrong as his team slipped to a fourth successive Premier League defeat.

Long-range strikes from Ben Johnson and Declan Rice saw Moyes’ men head into half-time in front, after Ollie Watkins had equalised for the hosts.

Ezri Konsa’s red card shortly after the break gave Villa an uphill task and further goals from Pablo Fornals and Jarrod Bowen inside the final 10 minutes settled the contest.

Leon Bailey was handed his first Premier League start as Smith made four changes, with Jacob Ramsey, Kortney Hause and Marvelous Nakamba also coming in.

On the cusp of making his 100th Premier League appearance, Tyrone Mings was the highest-profile casualty of Villa’s change of shape following three successive defeats, reverting to a 4-3-3 with Hause partnering Konsa at the heart of the defence.

West Ham boss Moyes named the same team that started the win against Tottenham, meaning there were eight changes from the side that defeated City in the cup on Wednesday night.

The change of shape saw Villa make a nervy start and Said Benrahma had already had a sight of goal before West Ham went ahead with just seven minutes on the clock.

Rice sprayed a pass out to the right flank for Johnson, who was in all sorts of space and cut inside on to his left foot before curling a low shot into the far corner of the net.

Villa were dealt another setback when Ramsey hobbled off injured just a quarter of an hour in, although the resulting free-kick brought the hosts’ first chance as Bailey watched a cross all the way onto his foot at the far post before volleying into the midriff of Lukasz Fabianski.

Some superb defending from Matty Cash denied West Ham a second goal as he twice blocked driven efforts by Bowen, bravely heading clear the second attempt from just in front of his goal line, before Watkins levelled things up in the 34th minute.

John McGinn and Emiliano Buendia combined down the right, with Buendia turning Fornals to get to the byline inside the penalty area where his low cross was steered home by Watkins from around the penalty spot.

Villa’s delight was short-lived, however, as Rice restored the visitors’ lead with a 25-yard shot that bobbled its way into the back of the net via a touch off the post just four minutes later.

Things got worse for Villa at the start of the second half with Konsa’s red card. A mess defensively for Dean Smith’s side, Hause caught Fornals in the face on the run before Konsa was then booked for knocking Bowen to the ground right on the edge of the box.

VAR took a look at both incidents and decided that Hause had no case to answer, while Konsa saw his yellow card upgraded to red after referee Chris Kavanagh had been to look at the monitor.

Mings was introduced for his milestone appearance, with Buendia sacrificed.

Against the odds, Villa were almost level again just before the hour when Watkins’ shot brushed the fingertips of Fabianski and crashed against the crossbar.

That was Villa’s big chance to get something from the game and Martinez made a couple of fine saves either side of the midway point of the second half, pushing away a Rice free-kick and a shot from Bowen on the angle.

Villa were still in the match entering the final 10 minutes but the Hammers gave themselves some breathing space when Fornals tapped in the rebound from close range after Martinez had done well to save Bowen’s initial shot.

Bowen added a fourth goal after 84 minutes with another simple finish after being unselfishly set up by substitute Manuel Lanzini.

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NORWICH MISERY CONTINUES AS RAPHINHA AND RODRIGO HIT LEEDS TO VICTORY

Raphinha and Rodrigo grabbed second-half goals to earn Leeds a 2-1 win that continued Norwich’s nightmare return to the Premier League.

A crazy four-minute spell after the break settled the game as Marcelo Bielsa’s men picked up a second top-flight victory of the season.

Raphinha opened the scoring in the 56th minute before Irish defender Andrew Omobamidele levelled, but the Canaries succumbed to Rodrigo’s long-range effort that slipped through Tim Krul’s grasp as their winless run in the Premier League extended to 20 matches.

Daniel Farke reacted to the 7-0 horror show at Chelsea by ditching the five at the back formation which had been used in the last four games and handed opportunities to Omobamidele and Kieran Dowell, who were both making only their second league starts this season.

While Leeds created the first chance, it was largely the Sky Bet Championship winners who dominated the opening exchanges.

Daniel James, minutes after he survived some half-hearted penalty appeals for handball, came close to a first goal for Bielsa’s side since a summer switch from Manchester United..

Stuart Dallas played the Welshman through in the eighth minute and James rounded Krul before he fired towards goal from a tight angle but Norwich captain Grant Hanley got back on the line to clear.

It was not a sign of things to come, with Teemu Pukki firing wide after a poor clearance by James while Max Aarons and Mathias Normann tried their luck but did not trouble Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier.

For all the Canaries’ huffing and puffing, the visitors were slowly beginning to click into gear with Diego Llorente heading over before Rodrigo shot straight at Krul.

There was still time for Milot Rashica to test Meslier with a long-range shot which had been going wide and Normann drilled off target from the resulting corner to ensure it was goalless at half-time.

After a lack of clear-cut opportunities during the opening 45, that all changed at the beginning of the second period.

First Raphinha produced the type of quality which had been lacking throughout when he rifled home for his fourth goal of the season.

James passed out to the Brazilian on the right and Leeds’ number 10 cut inside Omobamidele and Hanley before he fired back across goal into the bottom corner.

Norwich responded two minutes later after Meslier passed the ball out for a corner, which Rashica whipped in for Omobamidele to head home for his first professional goal.

It would not last long however with Leeds retaking the lead on the hour mark following a critical error.

Kalvin Phillips passed into the path of Rodrigo, who was given too much time and let fly from 30-yards with a swirling left-footed drive which slipped through Krul and found the net.

Bielsa’s internal delight was briefly interrupted when Raphinha clattered into his manager after trying to keep the ball in play but his side were able to hold out for an important three points.

Rashica’s free-kick into the wall was the closest Norwich came to an equaliser despite a flurry of substitutions by Farke as the Canaries suffered an eighth league defeat of the term and were booed off.

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BRGHTON PEG BACK LIVERPOOL AT ANFIELD

Brighton came closest of any opponent in six months to ending Liverpool’s 24-match unbeaten run as Graham Potter’s side recovered from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Anfield.

After last week’s demolition of Manchester United, the sight of the hosts establishing what appeared a comfortable advantage after only 24 minutes thanks to Jordan Henderson and Sadio Mane appeared to spell trouble for the Seagulls.

However, pre-match Jurgen Klopp had said he expected a tough examination and that is what he got as Enock Mwepu’s first Premier League goal just before half-time was followed by a Leandro Trossard equaliser and in fairness Brighton had better chances to win it from that point.

Part of their success was becoming only the second team this season after Burnley – here in August – to stop Mohamed Salah find the net as his 10-match goalscoring run was brought to a halt with his only chance seeing an effort ruled out for offside.

Credit must go to the visitors, and their manager, who never cowered in the face of Liverpool’s pressure and had by far the better of the second half to be fully worthy of their point.

They are in good company as only title contenders Chelsea and Manchester City have left Anfield with anything other than a defeat this season and to have Liverpool’s nerves jangling as they did in the last 20 minutes was an indication of how their focused and committed approach paid dividends.

It was a complete turnaround from the opening 45 minutes when confidence exuding from every Liverpool player meant even a couple of early Brighton scares with Solly March breaking clear and an Yves Bissouma shot – both dealt with by Alisson Becker, tipping the latter onto a post – did not affect their performance.

An early goal helps and when Virgil Van Dijk’s pass out to the right isolated Salah against Marc Cucurella, the Egypt international weaved one way and then the other before cutting back for Henderson to plant a side-footed finish past Robert Sanchez.

With Roberto Firmino dropping deep to link play with quick lay-offs and one-twos, Klopp’s side produced some quick, incisive passing moves which had Brighton chasing shadows.

Firmino was guilty of unnecessary over-complication when he tried to lob Sanchez from 14 yards after Mane and Naby Keita had combined but there was nothing but an efficient simplicity about the second goal.

Keita, who had recovered quickly from being carried off at Old Trafford last Sunday, lasted 19 minutes but his replacement Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain made an immediate impact.

Within five minutes of coming on his inviting cross dipped at just the right angle to drop between Brighton’s two centre-backs for Mane to head home his fourth in five league matches at Anfield.

A sprawling Lewis Dunk blocked Firmino’s shot while VAR denied Mane a second when the Brighton centre-back put his goalkeeper under pressure under his own crossbar and he was only saved when replays showed the ball had bounced up off Mane’s body and onto his arm before going in.

And the hosts sustained a double blow when Mwepu whipped an angled effort up and over Alisson to reduce the deficit just before half-time.

Salah’s hopes of scoring in an 11th successive match were dashed by an offside flag early in the second half but much of the fluency had gone from their game as Brighton pushed back with some success led by the indefatigable former Red Adam Lallana.

With Liverpool no longer in full control nor creating the chances they did before the break, Brighton sensed they had an opportunity and they duly seized it.

The way the hosts were carved open down their left will have infuriated Klopp, and it resulted in Henderson and Oxlade-Chamberlain having a heated exchange about who was at fault for allowing Lallana the time and space to tee up Trossard in the 65th minute.

The momentum was all with Brighton and Trossard was denied what he thought was the winner, which on their second-half performance would not have been undeserved, by an offside flag.

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IFAB RECOMMENDS MAKING FIVE SUBSTITUTIONS RULE PERMANENT

The International Football Association Board’s advisory panel has recommended five substitutions be implemented on a permanent basis in the sport.

During a virtual meeting chaired by FIFA on Wednesday, IFAB’s Football and Technical Advisory Panels (FAP-TAP) made the suggestion to bring in five changes permanently following a number of requests by confederations, associations, leagues and other key stakeholders.

An IFAB statement read: “FAP-TAP today recommended that competitions should be able to decide on increasing the number of substitutes according to the needs of their football environment, while the current number of substitution opportunities (three plus half-time) should stay the same.”

An increase to five substitutions was introduced on a temporary basis in May, 2020 in response to the coronavirus pandemic and the congested fixture list once football returned.

In May it was extended for a further 18 months until the end of 2022, when the World Cup in Qatar will be completed.

But the Premier League decided against using it for the 2020-21 campaign and reverted back to three substitutions, which remains the case for the current season after clubs voted on the issue.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola and Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp have remained vocal critics of the move not to allow five changes, especially with that number being allowed in European competitions in addition to the Carabao Cup and FA Cup in England.

Other topics discussed during IFAB’s advisory panel meeting were clarification over the next edition of the laws of the game, namely to confirm that a goalkeeper must be on the goal line before a penalty is taken.

Meanwhile, the global trial with additional permanent concussion substitutions has been extended beyond the initial end date of August, 2022 to gather more relevant data whilst a CONMEBOL request to increase half-time intervals from 15 minutes to 25 minutes was met with concern over player welfare and safety from several IFAB members.