Samir Nasri scored the first goal with a shot through a crowded United area which deflected off the legs of Gary Neville leaving Van der Sar stranded. He then struck his and Arsenal’s second two minutes into the second half after a good passing move which he finished with a glorious shot into the bottom corner. United substitute Rafael Da Silva struck a brilliant volley late on to give the red devils hope but Arsenal held on take the three points.

In the first minute a back pass from former United defender Mikael Silvestre was picked up by Arsenal keeper Manuel Almunia giving United an early freekick. Anderson’s strike was blocked and Michael Carrick blasted the follow up wide of the post. Dimitar Berbatov had the ball in the Arsenal net after 9 minutes when Almunia parried a low Wayne Rooney strike but it was ruled out for offside by referee Howard Webb. Two minutes later Arsenal had their first chance when Gael Clichy’s cross found an unmarked Nicklas Bendtner in the United area but he could only head over Edwin Van der Sar’s goal.  Soon after another cross, this time from Frenchman Nasri was missed at the back post. Arsenal were beginning to dominate the early stages. Abou Diaby had a shot blocked in the United area moments later.

United were always dangerous on the break. Wayne Rooney should have given United the lead but blasted over from an excellent pass from Cristiano Ronaldo after 17 minutes in a move which saw some great passing form Anderson and Berbatov. United were made to pay as Arsenal took the lead after 22 minutes from Nasri. He blasted through the United defence with the ball deflecting off the legs of Neville leaving Van der Sar rooted to the spot as the ball sailed into the back of the net.

In an exciting end to end game Cesc Fabregas tried his luck form outside the area after a swift Arsenal counter attack, but his shot was deflected wide. United were up the other end five minutes later with Ji Sung Park denied this time from a good Almunia save down to his right. As half time approached United were continuing to pressure the Gunners defence but Arsenal held on to go in 1-0 up at the break.
Two minutes after the break Nasri struck again after a brilliant pass from Fabregas found him unmarked after a wonderful passing move from Arsenal. He dragged the shot across Van der Sar and into the far corner to put Arsenal 2-0 up. Ronaldo missed a great opportunity to immediately pull United back into the game, but he volleyed wide from close range a minute later. United’s front line were looking increasingly frustrated and limited to shots from outside the Arsenal box.

Rooney did manage to penetrate the Arsenal defence but his header was easily saved down low form Almunia on the hour. United needed a change to try to quash the relentless Arsenal pressure. Rafael replaced veteran Neville at right back after a rather unimpressive performance form the United captain. But United’s frustration continued when Carrick was harshly booked when he challenged Almunia to a loose ball. The Spaniard needed treatment for the collision. Ryan Giggs was introduced at the expense of Anderson a few minutes later.

As United continued to press for a way back into the game they were leaving themselves open to the counter attack. Nasri was denied a penalty on 73rd minute when he was pulled down by Nemanja Vidic only for Webb to wave away the appeals. Rooney then came off for Carlos Tevez with the last throw of the dice for Ferguson as Almunia was replaced by Likasz Fabianski following his earlier collision. The breathless pace continued as Bendtner had a shot saved just before Emanuel Adebayor came on for Arsenal.

Rafeal scored late on with a fantastic volley from the edge of the area to test the Arsenal nerves as the assistant signalled 6 additional minutes. But it was too little too late for United as Arsenal held on to take the points in a thrilling encounter. This was far and away the best game of the season so far and a wonderful advertisement for the Premier League. It seems Arsene Wenger has answered the critics as well as putting the Gunners back into the title race.

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Wayne Rooney made it three goals in four days for club and country when he got the first goal with a clinical finish early in the second half. He then turned provider when his pass set up Cristiano Ronaldo to put United two up. Dimitar Berbatov  also got his first Premier League goal for United when he poked United into a 3-0 lead two minutes later. Nani then added a fourth in stoppage time to complete the win.

It never Waynes but it pours

With Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal all winning earlier in the afternoon the pressure was on United to stay in touch at the top of the table.

United had the bulk of the early possession in front of the home fans without really threatening the West Brom defence. The best of the early chances fell to Ronaldo but he could not apply the finish to a flowing United attack after four minutes. His tame shot was easily saved by West Brom keeper Scott Carson.

Wayne Rooney was looking lively and managed to find the back of the net after 23 minutes, only to have his goal ruled out by referee Mark Halsey for a foul on a West Brom defender. Five minutes later Rooney met a Ryan Giggs corner with a powerful header which was saved by Carson.

United continued to put pressure on the stubborn West Brom defence. They had a hand-ball appeal waved away by Halsey five minutes before the break after the ball appeared to strike the arm of Baggies defender Paul Robinson. Despite the huge amount of possession United were unable to make the breakthrough and West Brom’s resilience was rewarded with a 0-0 half time scoreline.

United’s dominance continued into the second half.  Rooney was at the centre of the action once again. His thunderous drive from the edge of the area was brilliantly saved by Carson after 50 minutes. Four minutes later it was Berbatov’s turn to be denied by Carson.

The United fans could sense a goal and they didn’t have to wait long as Rooney finally made the breakthrough three minutes later. He ran through with composure to put United ahead with a neat finish into the bottom corner of Carson’s goal.

Rooney then turned supplier as his pass found Ronaldo unmarked.  Ronaldo made it look easy as he guided the ball past Carson and into the centre of the goal. Two minutes later Barbatov scored his first Premier League goal for United when he poked in from six yards after the West Brom defence failed to deal with a cross. With the result no longer in doubt substitute Nani added a fourth in stoppage time after a quick United counter attack to round off a fantastic second half display from United. They now move up to fourth in the table.

Based on this performance can United challenge Chelsea and Liverpool for the title? What do you think? Please use the comments box to send us your thoughts.

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The result left Liverpool top of the league after their best ever start to a Premier League season.

They had to wait an hour to take the lead before Torres volleyed through Tim Howard’s legs after a good cross from Robbie Keane.

Minutes later he had his second when he smashed a loose ball past Howard and into the centre of the Everton net to make it 0-2.

Everton had striker Tim Cahill sent off ten minutes from time for a poor tackle on Xabi Alonso.

He became the 17^th player to be sent off in a Liverpool derby since the start of the Premier League in 1992.

Clear cut chances were few and far between in the first half with both teams engaged in a fierce battle for possession.

Everton had an early penalty shout turned down by referee Mike Riley when Martin Skrtel and Yakubu went shoulder to shoulder in the Liverpool box

The first booking came in the 9^th minute when Marouane Fellaini was guilty of a poorly timed tackle.

Liverpool began to gain the advantage with some fantastic one-touch passing.

But Everton looked dangerous on the counter attack.

Jamie Carragher blocked a shot on the line from Fellaini after Reina dropped the ball.

Although the goal would not have counted as Mike Riley had already blown for a foul.

Alonso was booked six minutes before half time for a foul on Mikel Arteta.

A few minutes later Yakubu had the first real shot on goal.

He managed to get away from Skrtel but his shot was wide of the far post.

Just before the half time whistle Cahill was upended in the box but again Riley waved away the penalty shouts from Everton.

Liverpool had the better of the first half possession without either side creating any clear chances.

The only surprise was just two yellow cards in a highly physical first half.

Three minutes into the second half Yakubu was booked for diving in the Liverpool area.

Soon after Torres evened up the card count when he was booked for dissent.

Torres finally overcame his frustration on the hour mark with a volley through the legs of Howard in the six-yard box after a good cross from Robbie Keane.

He added his and Liverpool’s second when a loose ball found him unmarked in the Everton area.

He smashed the ball past Howard and into the centre of the goal.

Everton brought on new signing Lois Saha to try to get back in the game.

It seemed to have little effect as Liverpool then had two goals disallowed.

Dirk Kuyt hit the target but the ball had already gone out for a Liverpool corner.

Seconds later Torres thought he had his hat-trick only for his effort to be ruled out for Kuyt’s push on Lescott in the area.

Phil Jagielka then made a fantastic sliding tackle on Torres as he looked to dribble into the Everton area.

Everton were increasingly unable to penetrate the Liverpool defence.

Arbeloa was booked for a kick at Cahill after 76 minutes.

A minute later a rare Everton chance went begging as a fizzing cross form Lescott was missed at the back post by Yakubu and Fellaini.

But any glimmer of hope soon faded when Cahill was sent off ten minutes from time for a late challenge on Alonso.

Howard made a brilliant save from a Steven Gerrard shot with five minutes to go.

Louis Saha went close for Everton when he blasted a shot just wide of Reina’s post.

But in the end Torres’ quality proved to be the difference in a game where the away team were rarely tested.

Soloman Kalou’s late goal protected Chelsea’s 84 match unbeaten record at Stamford bridge with a 1-1 draw against Manchester United.

United will be in trouble with the FA after collecting seven bookings in a passionate and frantic game.

Park Ji Sung Opened the scoring on 18 minutes after a shot from Berbatov was parried by Petr Cech.

The game was played at a scintillating speed as Chelsea pressed for the equaliser.

Their efforts finally paid off when substitute Kalou headed in a freekick after Wayne Rooney fouled Ashley Cole.

The omens didn’t look good for Chelsea even before the kick-off when Deco was injured in the warm-up and had to be replaced by Michael Ballack.

The pace was high from the outset and in the sixth minute Owen Hargreaves found himself in acres of space.

He delivered a good cross to Darren Fletcher who shot just wide of the far post.

Three minutes later Petr Cech lost the ball outside his box as Dimitar Berbatov passed to Rooney who lobbed the ball just wide of the post

It was end to end stuff as a minute later a mistake by Patrice Evra allowed Joe Cole clear through but he shot into the side-netting.

Chelsea’s injury problems continued as Ricardo Carvalho was taken off with a knee injury to be replaced by Alex.

Cech made a fantastic save from a powerful Rio Ferdinand drive on the quarter hour mark after a good pass from Wayne Rooney.

United made the first breakthrough after 18 minutes when Park Ji Sung scored after a parry by Cech.

Tempers where heightened on and off the field when a penalty shout was dismissed by referee Mike Riley after Flourent Malouda was brought down by Edwin Van der Sar in the box.

Van der Sar picked up an injury in the collision and was substituted for Tomasz Kuszczak five minutes later.

Paul Scholes was the first player in the book after 35 minutes when he was yellow carded for a kick at Michael Ballack.

As half-time neared,  a long range shot by Alex was spilled by Kuszczak and was scrambled away by the United defence.

Soon after a quick Chelsea attack ended in Nicolas Anelka hitting a powerful shot just over.

United received another yellow card just before half-time when Ferdinand was booked for dissent.

Phil Scolari brought on Didier Drogba before the second half but he was refused entry to the field for wearing a bracelet that the referee wasn’t happy about.

He eventually came on for Malouda as Chelsea looked to add weight to their attack.

The pace of the first half continued into the second as Chelsea pushed for the equaliser.

Cristiano Ronaldo made his second substitution appearance of the season when he came on for Scholes in the 56^th minute.

Gary Neville was the third United player booked for a foul on Anelka by the corner flag after 57 minutes.

Two minutes later Berbatov became the fourth United name in the book.

Jon Obi Mikel became the only Chelsea player in the book after he fouled Ronaldo on the edge of the area.

Anelka missed a huge chance for the equaliser when he missed the ball from three yard out.

Soloman Kalou came on for Ballack as Chelsea continued to press for a goal with 20 minutes to go.

Alex Ferguson responded sending on John O’ Shea for Park Ji Sung to bolster the United defence in the last 15 minutes.

Chelsea began to leave themselves open to the counter attack as Rooney missed a good chance when he shot wide from Ronaldo’s cross in the 77^th minute.

Rooney became booking number five for United two minutes later for his tackle on Ashley Cole.

Chelsea finally got their goal 10 minutes from time when Kalou headed in a freekick.

He almost scored again two minutes later at the end of a Chelsea counter attack but his shot went sailing over and into the stands.

United received their sixth yellow card when Evra was booked four minutes from time.

Swiftly followed by the seventh for Ronaldo who was booked for dissent in injury time.

Ferdinand collided with Drogba as the final whistle went.

Both teams will be happy with a point after a highly entertaining match.

Premier League Results

Blackburn Rovers 1-0 Fulham

Bolton 1-3 Arsenal

Hull 2-2 Everton

Liverpool 0-0 Stoke

Man City 6-0 Portsmouth

Sunderland 2-0 Middlesbrough

Tottenham 0-0 Wigan

West Bromwich Albion 1-2 Aston Villa

West Ham United 3-1 Newcastle United

Spain winning Euro 2008 has pushed our reputation as underachievers further down the lav. And like such great philosophical musings as; Why are we here? Is there a god?

Will Robbie Savage ever get a haircut? We are left with the greatest question of all; With all the money, loyal fans, young talents….why can’t we win anything?

Like many who saw our demise at the hands of Croatia, there was almost a mild sense of relief by the fact that we had escaped the usual blind optimism forthcoming whenever we do manage to qualify for a major tournament.

For the first time since the notorious turnip-ridden back pages of 94, we were able to enjoy the beautiful game with fingernails intact.

But again WHY? Some blame player egos, foreign takeovers, the need for immediate financial returns because of high wages and signing fees….

Are there too many foreigners in the Premier League? Is it stopping the young talents emerging? Would we benefit from a foreign player restriction rule?

Michel Platini recently stoked the fire by saying Manchester United and Chelsea had reached the Champions League final on the ‘never, never’ regarding their success based on debts. If this is the truth then what are some of the latest solutions?

Platini called for Champions League football not to include the buy now pay later vein of clubs, but where would that leave us? Who wants to watch the greatest club football competition without the greatest football clubs?

Should there be caps on player wages and values? The price of players has rocketed over the last 10 years. Compare Alan Shearer’s £15m transfer to Newcastle in the summer of 1996 with the current prospect of Cristiano Ronaldo joining Manchester City for a speculated £135m.

To buy the current cream of the crop, it’s now necessary to have an owner with pockets of Gran Canyon depths and with suitably long arms to reach the bottoms.

As it stands, like a dog with rabies, the circle seems to be growing ever more vicious. Best brace ourselves for another 42 years of hurt.

The usual new season optimism was in short supply at Everton on Saturday.

Never mind the last-minute defeat by Paul Ince’s Blackburn, that was merely salt in the wounds for a club whose preparations for the 2008/09 campaign could barely have been worse.

After recording sixth and fifth-placed finishes in the previous two seasons, Everton’s hopes of continuing that momentum look doomed already when you consider the scant options available to manager David Moyes.

If modern football is a squad game then what hope does Moyes have when he could call on only 10 senior players for the first game of the season?

The Scot had no option but to give a first start to a 17-year-old in central midfield and later introduced a 16-year-old debutant upfront, plucked from a bench filled with untested teenagers.

How could a team in the so-called richest league in the world be so ill-prepared?

The absence of a handful of injured players – plus another away on Olympic duty – has not helped Moyes but the real question is why Everton have not signed a single player during a close season where five first-teamers departed, including defensive midfielder Lee Carsley and England striker Andrew Johnson.

The economic downturn has affected Premier League clubs with spending down notably on last year – even Everton’s neighbours Liverpool have had to sell before they could buy – but Everton’s case is the most extreme.

Unfortunately, the future looks increasingly uncertain for a club who, on limited resources, have gone as close as anyone to threatening the dominance of the ‘big four’ in recent seasons.

Their planned move to a new stadium in Kirkby looks in doubt after the government’s decision to call a public enquiry, owner Bill Kenwright has declared he is willing to sell up to a “billionaire” and Moyes himself is stalling on signing a new contract.

If new signings do not appear soon, the Goodison gloom could well deepen.

PHOTO: Everton coach David Moyes and Blackburn Rovers boss Paul Ince watch their English Premier League soccer match, Aug. 16. REUTERS/Nigel Roddis

Normally it would be silly to judge a side on the first match of the season, but in United’s case there was clearly something missing in the 1-1 draw with Newcastle…a certain Cristiano Ronaldo.

United fans will be relieved that he is only absent through injury and not because of a departure to Real Madrid. 

However, the lack of a cutting edge in the final third and Chelsea’s impressive 4-0 drubbing of Portsmouth has heralded renewed calls for United to up their efforts to sign Tottenham’s Dimitar Berbatov.

Bayern were equally unconvincing in a 2-2 home draw with Hamburg in Juergen Klinsmann’s first league match in charge. Supporters are already counting the days until injured duo Luca Toni and Franck Ribery are back fit.

Real Madrid, who start their title defence at the end of the month, lost the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup 3-2 at Valencia.

Is the world order about to change? Let’s leave it a few more games to decide.