Spurs fans happy with 'one-nil'

Spurs fans happy with 'one-nil'

The chant "one-nil to the Arsenal'' to the tune of Go West has been a familiar sound on the terraces going back to the days of George Graham in the 1990s.

But after three consecutive 1-0 victories for arch-rivals Spurs which have put them top of the league, we may well soon be hearing renditions of "one-nil to the Tottenham".

Arsenal fans would give a lot for a 1-0 victory at the moment and would probably even settle for a 1-1. Their worst start since 1954 sees them rock bottom with no points and no goals.

They will most likely haul themselves out of it in a few weeks but nonetheless it has put manager Mikel Arteta in a very uncomfortable position and the body language of his players has not been good.

The manner in which the Gunners crumbled against Manchester City was quite disturbing for Arsenal fans as Pep Guardiola's men enjoyed a 5-0 romp without stretching themselves.

If Arsenal don't get a result against fellow cellar-dwellers Norwich City next week Arteta's days could well be numbered.

Spurs' new boss Nuno Esperito Santo, on the other hand, probably can't believe his good fortune.

Few predicted he would have such a positive start and he will certainly have noted that his former club Wolves have lost their first three game coincidentally all by 1-0.

Despite their high-flying start, Spurs have not been playing that great and Nuno knows there is a lot of work to do.

Their latest victory over Watford came down to Song Heung-Min's free-kick which deceived goalkeeper David Bachmann.

In a message more directed at their North London rivals than Watford, Spurs fans cheekily chanted "you're going down with the Arsenal."

It's early days of course, but there are hints of what's to come.

Perhaps the Manchester United players were affected by all the fuss concerning the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo but they were fortunate to beat a Wolves side that had dominated the game.

The fact that the United fans spent most of the time singing "Viva Ronaldo" indicated they weren't doing much on the pitch until Mason Greenwood salvaged a late winner.

Wolves manager Bruno Lage must be wondering what his team have to do to get a win.

Adama Traore ran through the United defence as if it wasn't there and it was much the same story against Spurs the previous week, but the result was the same.

In the big match of the weekend, Chelsea came away the most satisfied by holding Liverpool to a 1-1 draw despite playing the second half with 10 men.

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel will be happy how his defence, led by veteran Thiago Silva, coped.

He will also be encouraged by the performance of goalscorer Kai Havertz who could become an influential player for the Blues this season.

One thing Tuchel will not be happy with however is the way Antonio Rudiger brazenly roughed up the penalty spot before Mohamed Salah's successful kick. A red card would put an end to that sort of nonsense.

Another player who needs to grow up is the talented but temperamental Richarlison who was involved in an unseemly squabble with Everton teammates over who should take the penalty against Brighton.

Fortunately for the Toffees, the Brazilian was put in his place and Dominic Calvert-Lewin converted from the spot.

Manager Rafael Benitez must be pleased with his team's start to the season and especially the performances of winger Demarai Gray who has already scored two well-taken goals.

During his time at Leicester, Gray had been confined to bit-part roles but could well blossom at Everton.

It's hard not to feel for Steve Bruce at Newcastle. Just when it looked like the Magpies had grabbed a precious three points with an injury-time goal from the always entertaining Allan Saint-Maximin, Southampton were rescued by a 96th minute penalty, slotted home by James Ward-Prowse.

It looks like it could be another long season for Bruce who never seems to be able to satisfy the demanding Newcastle fans, despite being a Geordie himself.

Things are also not looking great at Norwich who are leaking goals just as they did last time they were in the Premier League.

Mind you, their next fixture is away to Arsenal, the only team below them in the league.

Well, you never know.

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