Manchester City moved to the top of the Premier League for the first time since the opening weekend after a convincing 3–0 win over West Ham United, while Liverpool edged past nine-man Tottenham Hotspur in a dramatic encounter in north London on Saturday.
At the Etihad Stadium, Erling Haaland once again led the way for City, scoring twice as Pep Guardiola’s side extended their winning run to seven matches in all competitions. City dominated from the outset, with Haaland opening the scoring after following up his own saved effort. Tijjani Reijnders doubled the lead in the 38th minute, finishing off a move created by Haaland.
The Norwegian striker sealed the result in the 69th minute with a simple tap-in after another defensive lapse from West Ham. The goal took Haaland to 104 Premier League strikes in just 114 appearances, overtaking Cristiano Ronaldo’s tally of 103 goals, which came in 236 games. City now sit on 37 points from 17 matches, one ahead of Arsenal, who have a game in hand.
West Ham’s struggles continued, with the London club now winless in six matches and sitting 18th in the table on 13 points.
Later in the day, Liverpool claimed a 2–1 victory away to Tottenham in a match defined by red cards and late drama. Spurs were reduced to 10 men in the first half when Xavi Simons was sent off following a VAR review for a studs-up challenge on Virgil van Dijk. Liverpool took control after the break, with Alexander Isak opening the scoring in the 56th minute after being set up by Florian Wirtz.
The visitors doubled their lead through Hugo Ekitike, whose powerful header from Jeremie Frimpong’s cross marked his eighth non-penalty league goal of the season. Tottenham refused to fold and were given renewed hope when Richarlison scored from close range in the 83rd minute.
Any chance of a dramatic equaliser faded when Cristian Romero was sent off in stoppage time for kicking out at Ibrahima Konate, leaving Spurs to finish the match with nine men. Liverpool held on to secure their third consecutive win in all competitions, lifting them to fifth in the table, level on points with Chelsea but behind on goal difference.
Elsewhere, Newcastle United surrendered another winning position as they were held 2–2 at home by Chelsea, while Burnley ended a seven-match losing streak with a late equaliser at Bournemouth. At the bottom, Wolverhampton Wanderers’ miserable run continued with a 2–0 home defeat to Brentford, their 10th straight league loss, leaving them without a win after 17 games.
