Key events
There was a fabulous WSL game at the Academy stadium in Manchester last night. City were made to work very hard by an improving Liverpool side, with the defending champions scoring two in stoppage time to edge a 4-2 thriller. Here’s Tom Garry’s report:
Elsewhere in the Championship, Wrexham host Southampton with the Welsh side looking to bounce back from that harrowing 6-0 shellacking at West Ham eight days ago.
Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, Wrexham’s co-chairmen, have previewed the game with the Saints with this video …
Possibly more interesting is the progress of the new Kop Stand at the Racehorse Ground. Which you have to say looks magnificent.
Plenty of Championship storylines to go around today – as per – but the headline act is definitely Millwall v West Ham. It is the fierce rivals’ first clash in 14 years, and their 100th competitive meeting. Jacob Steinberg has penned this excellent preview:
The mood will still be tense. There is an odd dynamic to the game. West Ham have at times found it awkward because some of their fans care far more about beating Chelsea and Tottenham. But a trip to Stamford Bridge or N17 is a familiar experience. Going south of the river to Millwall is somehow viewed as different, the short train ride from London Bridge treated as an intrepid journey into some hostile alien planet.
Very early days, of course, but this is the current Premier League table. That’s quite the top six, even at this stage of the season.
Let’s start with Brentford’s drubbing of neighbours Chelsea, who were soundly beaten 3-0. Quite a funny result for the neutral, but Brentford are no joke these days. Thiago is a starting striker for Brazil, Vitaly Janelt has just been called up by Jürgen Klopp to the Germany squad, Mikkel Damsgaard remains criminally underrated, Kevin Schade is quietly turning into one of the most efficient forwards in the Premier League and Jannik Schuster – signed for around £14m in the summer from RB Salzburg – has apparently inherited the spirit of Franco Baresi.
This is what Jonathan Wilson, at the at the Gtech Community Stadium on Friday, had to say about Brentford’s victory:
Those early-season thoughts that Chelsea might be the team best-placed to challenge Arsenal are beginning to look extremely over-optimistic. The two chaotic wins with which they began were always difficult to read: they might have been useful points picked up on the way to a more solid structure, or they might have represented evidence of significant problems. After three games without a win, and 12 goals conceded in five games this season, it’s beginning to look like the latter.
At the final whistle, Keith Andrews tipped his head back and roared at the sky, celebrating Brentford’s first home win over Chelsea since 1938. They remain unbeaten, coherent and disciplined, and moved up to third in the table. The comparison is impossible not to draw: as one side flail in an orgy of structured spending, their far less wealthy neighbours thrive with a clear plan and sense of direction. “It was a performance I felt was bubbling,” said Andrews. “I could see it in the players’ eyes over the last two days. They were very focused, very determined.”
Preamble
The last weekend before the international break. The final beer of the holiday. Savour it, drink in the sunset (Millwall v West Ham), ignore the kids screaming in the background (Tottenham v Aston Villa) and reminisce about all the memories you have created (Brentford 3-0 Chelsea).
There is, of course, plenty more besides to enjoy. We’ll have WSL, a full set of Scottish and Football League fixtures, four more Premier League matches, Bundesliga, Serie A, La Liga and Ligue 1. You’ll be a lot of things today, but one thing you won’t be is bored.