English Football Round Up August 2022

English football is now in full flow with the Premier League kicking off on Friday. It’s an early start as the PL tries to cram in as many games as possible before the World Cup disrupts things. Every team in the top five divisions has now played at least one game and the weekend threw up some interesting results. Here are a few of the ones that caught our eye…

Premier League

In our pre-season preview, we wondered if Aleksandar Mitrovic would manage to carry his goal-scoring prowess over, and he answered that with some aplomb. His two goals against Liverpool were enough to grab the Londoners an unexpected point and with it the result of the day. If he can maintain this Fulham might stay up.

The weekend’s other eye-catching result was Brighton’s 2-1 win at Old Trafford. This is Albion’s first-ever win there and exemplifies the problems that Man United’s new manager is facing. Ten Hag was probably looking to stamp his authority by leaving Ronaldo out of the starting lineup but it backfired spectacularly.

Overall It was a good start for the London contingent with Arsenal & Spurs both recording solid wins. The Gunners came through a tricky trip to Selhurst Park winning 2-0. Palace had plenty of possession and chances but failed to capitalise. Tottenham made light work of Southampton despite going a goal behind early. They are top after one game.

Be Afraid Be Very Afraid

Manchester City carried on as they left off despite a raft of high-profile departures. They made a very good West Ham side look pedestrian and Erling Haaland marked his debut with a double strike in their 2-0 win. He was taken off before he got the chance to complete his customary debut hat trick though. On this form, they look odds on to retain their title. Fortunately, there are 37 games to go for something to go wrong.

Must Do Better

Nottingham Forest probably expected to lose at St James Park, however, allowing Newcastle 23 shots at goal while failing to record a single one themselves is not a good look.

 

EFL Championship

Blackburn Rovers & Watford are the only teams still with a 100% record after two games! Rovers cruised to a 3-0 win at Swansea but the final score doesn’t tell the whole story of the game. Swansea had the possession and chances to make a game of this but was pretty inept in front of goal. Watford didn’t play thanks to the state of Coventry’s pitch but they are still in seventh place having only played one game!

Burnley seems to be settling in well under new manager Vincent Kompany. Once again they dominated possession against Luton in their 1-1 draw but struggled to get shots on target. If they can turn this possession dominance into goals they will be a force to be reckoned with.

Win Of The Day

We are giving this to QPR who bounced back from their opening day defeat to Blackburn with a battling win against Promotion hopefuls Middlesborough. They showed a bit more composure in front of goal this time, and just about deserved to cling on for a 3-2 win.

Playoff Final Hangover

Huddersfield who lost in the playoff final last season are propping up the division thanks to a second defeat, this time to Birmingham. This is their third loss this year in all competitions and four in a row with the Playoff Final. It’s very early days but things are not looking very promising.

 

League One

Peterborough kept their 100% record with an easy 3-0 win over likely season strugglers Morecambe. Ben Thompson and Hector Kyprianou both scored on their debuts as the Posh continued their perfect start in League One. They travel to Plymouth on Saturday and will be confident of another 3 points given they won there in mid-week in the EFL Cup.

Six teams are bunched behind them on 4 points. Of These Exeter had the best result winning 4-0 against fellow promoted Port Vale. At the bottom, it already looks like being a tough season for Burton who was thumped 4-0 at home by Bristol Rovers. They only mustered one shot on target in the whole game. If we include their dismal EFL cup loss in mid-week they are averaging one shot on target a game which is a recipe for relegation if there ever was one.

Result of the Day

Bolton 3-0  Wycombe Wanderers. A surprisingly easy win over the team who were top last week. Wycombe had 16 shots at goal and more corners but it was obviously not their day. Too early to say if Bolton’s dark days of late are behind them, but it will at least give their long-suffering fans some hope.

 

League Two

Walsall currently heads the table on goal difference thanks mainly to their opening day 4-0 thrashing of Hartlepool. They did a bit of a smash & grab against Newport on Saturday returning home with all three points despite not having a shot on target!

Crewe &are second thanks to their 3-0 win over Harrogate, who were better than the score suggests. Orient Barrow & Stevenage are the other teams with 100% records. Although Barrow needed a 96th-minute goal!

Game of the Day

Barrow 3-2 Bradford. If you like a bit of trama then Holker Street was the place to be although you wouldn’t have thought so at halftime. The game sprang into life in the 63rd minute when the home side took the lead. However, this only lasted two minutes before Bradford equalised.  Then just as it looked like the game was drifting towards a draw Barrow struck again, only for Bradford to snatch a 95th-minute Equalizer.

However, there was still time for Josh Gordon to pop in a winner to send the majority of the 4012 crowd home happy. That’s his third goal in 3 games. Not bad given he only managed 7 in 43 last year.

 

National League

Solihull Moors top the table after the opening days games thanks to an emphatic 4-1 win at Aldershot. They were 2-1 up at the break and dominated the second half. Promotion favourites Wrexham & Notts County also opened with wins.

Result of the Day

We gave this to Wealdstone who put in a solid performance to battle back for a 3-2 win against Bromley. We still expect them to struggle this year but you can’t knock their effort in this one.

Team To Watch

Dorking Wanderers, made their National League debut on Saturday drawing 2-2 with Chesterfield. They were greatly aided by the Spireites having goalkeeper Lucas Covolan sent off mid-way through the first half. With no keeper on the bench, midfielder Ollie Banks ended up in the nets.  He held out until the 67th minute and then a second goal at 77 meant it was a day to remember for The wanderers.  It has been a meteoric rise for Dorking who were only formed in 1999 and began playing football in a park!

Highlights below…

Pulling In The Crowds

Wrexham had the biggest gate of the day – and by some margin. 9,897 people turned up to watch them come from behind late to beat Eastleigh 2-1. Notts County had over 6,000 and Southend over 5,000 which were bigger than many League Two clubs (and a few in League One manage).

So there we have it, our brief round-up of the opening weeks of the 2022-23 football season.  Lots to look forward to. Before you go why not try one of our football quizzes or have a look at our other football coverage.