MANCHESTER UNITED beat Chelsea 2-1 in a chaotic match at Old Trafford on Saturday to earn vital breathing space for beleaguered manager Ruben Amorim as Liverpool stayed perfect in the Premier League.
But Graham Potter’s future as West Ham boss appears bleak after a fourth defeat in five matches left the club firmly rooted in the relegation zone.
All eyes were on a rain-lashed Old Trafford for the early evening kick-off, with Amorim in desperate need of a win after a terrible start to the season.
The home side were given a huge helping hand when Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez was sent off in the fifth minute of a stormy encounter.
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca made frantic personnel changes to compensate for the loss of Sanchez but the match immediately became an exercise in attack versus defence.
United captain Bruno Fernandes made the breakthrough in the 14th minute, prodding home from close range in his 200th Premier League game.
Casemiro doubled the lead before the Brazilian midfielder was shown a second yellow card on the stroke of half-time for tugging back Andrey Santos.
Trevoh Chalobah brought Chelsea back into the match with a bullet header 10 minutes from time.
But United survived some nervy moments to record just their second win of the season, lifting them into ninth place as Chelsea suffered their first league loss this term.
“Every win especially in this moment is important, against a great opponent,“ Amorim said.
“We started the game in the right way, really aggressive. The red card helped us dominate the game but we were already there.
“We scored two goals and then we tried to complicate our game again. It’s always complicated with us. It should have been different, this game.”
Perfect Liverpool
In the early kick-off, Arne Slot’s Liverpool were two up against Everton inside half an hour through Ryan Gravenberch and Hugo Ekitike and seemingly coasting to a fifth straight league win.
But they had to withstand an impressive fightback from their Merseyside rivals to secure a tense 2-1 victory.
The champions took the lead in the 10th minute when Gravenberch collected Mohamed Salah’s lifted cross before hooking a rasping shot over Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
France international Ekitike finished off a silky move in the 29th minute, with Gravenberch turning provider.
Liverpool have not made things easy for themselves this season, relying on a series of late winners, and Everton made them sweat when Idrissa Gueye pulled a goal back in the 58th minute.
But Liverpool held on to make it six victories out of six in all competitions as they hunt down a record 21st English title.
“We needed mentality today in a different fashion than the few times before,“ said Slot, who left Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak — costing a combined £225 million ($303 million) — on the bench.
“You can see how well we can play when we are fresh in the first 45 minutes. We ran out of energy a bit but we didn’t run out of mentality.”
West Ham boss Potter admitted that his side’s 2-1 loss to Crystal Palace was a “tough moment” as he fights to keep his job.
Asked whether he felt he still had the support of the Hammers’ hierarchy, he replied: “I’ve no reason to think not.
“But I also understand the environment and the results. But I have no complaints about the support I have had.”
Tottenham came from two goals down to draw 2-2 with Brighton, climbing to second in the table.
Goals from Yankuba Minteh and Yasin Ayari gave the home side a cushion before Richarlison pulled one back shortly before half-time and Jan Paul van Hecke’s own goal made it all square.
Newly promoted Leeds recovered from conceding the first goal to beat Wolves 3-1, leaving the Midlands club without a single point from their five matches.
Ange Postecoglou secured his first league point as Nottingham Forest manager in a 1-1 draw at Burnley.
Fulham secured their second win this season with a 3-1 victory against west London neighbours Brentford at Craven Cottage. – AFP
