Huddersfield continues dream start
Print Edition
PROMOTED Huddersfield Town made it two wins out of two in the English Premier League as a superb Aaron Mooy strike gave it a 1-0 home win over Newcastle United yesterday.
The hosts built on last week’s 3-0 win at Crystal Palace, which marked their return to the top flight after a 45-year absence, when Australian Mooy grabbed the winner in the 50th minute.
Newcastle, which also won promotion from the Championship last season, should have equalized in the 68th minute but Ayoze Perez wasted a chance from close range.
Rafa Benitez’s Newcastle remains without a point following its home loss to Tottenham Hotspur last week.
There was a buzz of anticipation around the John Smith’s Stadium as Huddersfield, three- time champion in the 1920’s, prepared to welcome England’s elite once more.
German manager David Wagner, whose team won promotion through the playoffs, has energized the Yorkshire town, injecting optimism and excitement into a club that had been struggling in the second-tier Championship when he took over in November, 2015.
Signs of “We are Premier League” were displayed outside the ground and former players, such as ex-England international Frank Worthington, savored the occasion in the stands.
A series of new signings, mainly from Europe, during the offseason has given Huddersfield a fighting chance of survival and its opening-day win at Palace only added to the optimism of the Terriers faithful.
Not surprisingly in such an atmosphere, Huddersfield attacked from the outset but there were few clear chances and a Tom Ince snap-shot in the 13th was its first real effort on goal.
A minute later, Newcastle threatened with their Scottish international winger Matt Ritchie forcing a fine diving save out of home keeper Jonas Lossl.
Huddersfield took the lead in outstanding fashion five minutes after the break with Australian midfielder Mooy playing a neat one-two with Elias Kachunga and then curling a fine shot past the helpless Rob Elliot.
Benitez took off the ineffective Dwight Gayle, replacing him with Spanish forward Joselu, and that, combined with greater urgency, saw Newcastle apply some pressure.
Perez should have brought Newcastle level in the 68th when he fired over the bar from five meters out and although Newcastle battled hard at the end, it lacked craft and ingenuity.
On Saturday, Manchester United netted four goals for the second consecutive week to rout Swansea City 4-0 and ensure its highest-scoring start to a season for 110 years.
United manager Jose Mourinho said he “let the horses run freely” at the Liberty Stadium but his old foe Arsene Wenger was left frustrated after his Arsenal thoroughbreds were shackled in a 0-1 defeat at Stoke City.
Liverpool struggled to squeeze past Crystal Palace 1-0 and promoted Brighton and Hove Albion suffered its second defeat in two games, 0-2 at Leicester City.
Goals flowed at Southampton, which snuffed out an astonishing comeback by 10-man West Ham United to win 3-2.
The Red Devils completed their victory with a devastating late burst in which Romelu Lukaku, Paul Pogba and substitute Anthony Martial scored between the 80th and 84th after Eric Bailly had netted late in the first half with his first goal for the club.
United, which scored twice late on to beat West Ham by the same score last weekend, has one of the strongest benches in the league and it was Martial’s 75th-minute introduction that began the mayhem. “It was 1-0 and we thought let’s go for more and exploit the fragile morale of the opponent. Our bench is really good — the players have a lot to give,” Mourinho said.
Martial capped the rout with a delightful strike after he picked the ball up 35 yards out, cut inside and thumped the ball past a despairing Lukasz Fabianski.
Arsenal’s early-season optimism after its opening day win over Leicester was dissipated quickly after Jese, Stoke’s new loan signing from Paris Saint- Germain, capped a fine debut by scoring the winner 90 seconds after the break.
The home side, revelling once again in being Arsenal’s bogey team, then produced a magnificent rearguard action to keep out the Gunners, who had an equalizer from Alexandre Lacazette ruled out for offside.
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