Premier League Round-up: City and Liverpool pounce on Chelsea slip as Rangnick makes winning United start

When Mason Mount rifled in one of the goals of the season so far – side-foot volleying into the bottom corner after a raking, pinpoint-accurate Hakim Ziyech cross-field pass – Chelsea will have felt their place atop the Premier League was secure for at least another weekend.

The England midfielder’s magnificent strike had put Thomas Tuchel’s side 2-1 up in the 44th minute, after Thiago Silva‘s headed opener had been equalised by a Manuel Lanzini penalty.

But the Blues’ afternoon didn’t go according to plan in the second half. A sweet Jarrod Bowen finish from the edge of the penalty area drew West Ham level once more, before substitute Arthur Masuaku sliced an 87th-minute cross, sending his centre swerving into the box and eluding Chelsea keeper Edouard Mendy at his near post.

It was only Chelsea’s second league defeat of the season, and the three goals they conceded increased their goals-against figure for the campaign by 50 per cent, but so tight is it between the three leading title contenders that the loss in east London means the reigning European champions have lost their top spot and slipped to third in the table.

Chelsea are now available to back at 6.611/2 on the Betfair Exchange in the market.

West Ham, meanwhile, are just one place behind the title-chasing Blues. David Moyes‘ men can be backed at 4.94/1 in the Exchange’s top four market.

Liverpool quickly capitalised on Chelsea’s slip, beating Wolves in a 3pm kick-off the same afternoon. But for all their dominance and the multitude of chances Jurgen Klopp’s side created at Molineux, they required a Divock Origi strike deep into stoppage time – is there any other kind of Origi goal? – to earn a 1-0 victory.

Former Wolves forward Diogo Jota saw the best of Liverpool’s scoring opportunities, but the Portuguese conspired not to find the net even when his compatriot and opposition goalkeeper Jose Sa was stranded far from his posts. Jota carried the ball toward the gaping net before slamming it into the thigh of the backtracking Conor Coady from close range.

Still, Liverpool prevailed and the result, on the balance – or imbalance – of play, was more than justified, with the 2019-20 champions generating chances worth an expected goals (xG) total of 2.42, compared to the home side’s measly 0.10, according to understat.com.

The win was enough to move Liverpool into second, one point above Chelsea, and they are now available to back at 4.1 to win the title this season.

It was Manchester City who benefitted most from Chelsea’s defeat this weekend, and in Saturday’s late kick-off at Vicarage Road, the reigning champions were in untouchable form, dishing out a drubbing that could easily have yielded a greater winning margin than the eventual 3-1.

Bernardo Silva was the star of the show, scoring twice to taking his Premier League tally for the season to seven, making him City’s top scorer.

The diminutive Portuguese playmaker is arguably playing the best football of career this season after a couple of sub-par campaigns, and if his outstanding form continues, he’ll be a worthy rival for Mohamed Salah in the running for the PFA Player of the Year award. Silva can be backed at 7.06/1 on the Exchange.

And City, now a point clear at the top of the pile, can be backed at 1.695/7 in the Exchange’s title betting.

Red Ralf

The result was anything but spectacular, but there were many encouraging signs in Manchester United‘s 1-0 win over Crystal Palace at Old Trafford on Sunday that suggest better days are ahead for the 20-time champions now that Ralf Rangnick has taken temporary charge.

The German tactician had only a matter of days to prepare for his first game at the helm, so he will not yet have gotten the chance to fully implement his gegenpressing style, but already United look more organised and structured than they had recently under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Fred scored the game’s only goal in the second half, and United’s new-look 4-2-2-2 shape, with Jadon Sancho and Bruno Fernandes scheming behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcus Rashford, showed real promise.

The result moves United up to sixth in the table, and they can be backed at 1.8810/11 on the Exchange to clamber into a top four spot by season’s end.

Surging Spurs

Another top-four contender has emerged in the shape of the rejuvenated Tottenham Hotspur.

Spurs thumped bottom-placed Norwich City 3-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday afternoon – with Lucas Moura, Davinson Sanchez and Son Heung-min the scorers – to record their third successive Premier League victory under new manager Antonio Conte.

Tottenham now sit fifth, just two points behind West Ham and – thanks to last week’s snowed-off fixture against Burnley – have a game in hand over their rivals for a Champions League berth.

Spurs are available to back at 4.77/2 in the Betfair Exchange top four market.