Premier League: Five questions heading into Gameweek 2

With Gameweek 1 in the books, here’s a five questions to ponder as we enter the second week of competition in the Premier League…

After a long summer and much anticipation, the 28th edition of the English Premier League got underway last weekend. Powerhouses Liverpool and Manchester City cruised to comfortable victories, as did Manchester United who impressed in a 4-0 mauling of Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur delighted their home crowd to a come from behind 3-1 victory against newly promoted Aston Villa.

One thing is for certain. There is no shortage of engaging storylines throughout the Premier League season. Whether it’s following the race for a top four finish, the battling among teams in the middle of the table or the fight to avoid relegation, there’s always something to keep fans tuned in and talking about.  In the early goings of the season, here is a group of five questions to consider as we enter Gameweek 2…

5. Will one of the newly promoted sides get their first victory of the PL season?

It’s no small feat winning in the Premier League, no matter who you are. Matches can be decided by the slimmest of margins, and when you’re a newly promoted side taking a step up in class, the margins can be that much more minuscule that any break you get needs to be capitalized on.

Gameweek 1 of the season saw two of the three newly promoted sides face a top six team. Norwich City traveled to Anfield to face reigning European champions Liverpool, ultimately falling to the Reds 4-1. One of the lone bright spots for the Canaries came in the 64th minute when Emi Buendia was able to slip through a beautifully weighted pass to Teemu Pukki who beat backup Liverpool keeper Adrian to the left corner for the club’s only score of the night. Some of Norwich’s mistakes were self-inflicted and should be easily correctable moving forward.

Aston Villa stunned Spurs early on in their match with John McGinn scoring in the 9th minute. However, the Lions were unable to keep up the pace throughout the second half, as the arrival of Christian Eriksen in the 64th minute all but spelt the end to Villa. His ability to pull the strings in the middle of the park lead to Spurs scoring three times, the equalizer coming from the newest Spur, Tanguy Ndombele, with Harry Kane adding two late goals to secure three points for the London side.

Finally, Sheffield United went toe-to-toe with Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth squad and gave the Cherries all they could handle for 90 minutes. United were able to stifle a potent attack lead by Callum Wilson, Ryan Fraser and Joshua King, ultimately earning a 1-1 draw with some late heroics by club legend Billy Sharp who was able to find the back of the net following a set piece just outside the 18-yard box amid a scrum in front of the keeper.

All and all, it wasn’t a horrible start for Norwich City, Aston Villa and Sheffield United. They all showed signs as to why they were able to earn promotion last season, albeit in small samplings. They will have to put together more complete performances, and this weekend could be the weekend to do it. All three clubs will have their home openers, stacked up against Newcastle, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace respectively, all very winnable fixtures. It will be fun to see how they fare against these sides at the weekend.