Rolling Stone India Pitch: Mourinho Gets One Over Guardiola

Matchday nine of the Premier League saw Manchester City defeated away to Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool winning comfortably at home to Leicester City and more.

Whenever Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola come up against one another, there’s always excitement in the air. This past weekend was no different as the Portuguese coach and his Spurs side took on the Spaniard’s City team. It was early knockings for the hosts from London as Son Heung-min gave them the lead in the first five minutes. Although City dominated in terms of possession and attempts on goal, a Mourinho masterclass was on display as his team sat deep and played on the counter for the most part. A Giovani Lo Celso goal midway through the second half was enough for Spurs to see out the win in the end.

The victory sent Spurs to the top of the table and speaking to BBC Sport after the game, Mourinho said, “We are not fighting for the title, we are just fighting to win every match. But we are going to lose matches, we are going to draw matches.” Guardiola on his part said, “We knew before the game that you cannot give them the first goal. We had more chances than them, but we lost. Mourinho’s teams are like this, you make a mistake and they punish you on the counter-attack.”

The other top of the table clash included Liverpool and Leicester City at Anfield. The champions – who were playing their former manager and now Foxes coach Brendan Rodgers – saw past their opponents with relative comfort even with key players missing due to injury and COVID-19. An own goal from former Manchester United defender Johnny Evans, as well as goals from the in-form Diogo Jota and the engine that is Roberto Firmino sealed another three points for the Merseyside outfit.

Talking after the game, Klopp said, “There were a lot of good things. I can’t pick one that pleased me most – may be the performance of James Milner at right-back. He played an exceptional game, first there and then in midfield. That is what we expect from ourselves.” The German added, “The injuries were a massive shock in that moment, but the boys have to offer solutions. We have center-halves, they are really young. They are not experienced; you saw the bench tonight.”

Elsewhere around the grounds, Chelsea picked up a 2-0 win over Newcastle United at St. James’ Park while Manchester United won 1-0 at home to West Brom thanks to a Bruno Fernandes penalty. Arsenal had to play much of their second half against Leeds United at Elland Road down to 10-men due to a wreckless headbutt from Nicolas Pépé that saw him see red for the first time in his career. The Gunners were lucky to get out with a 0-0 draw after Leeds dominated proceedings and even hit the woodwork a number of times. When asked about the sending off and Pépé’s conduct, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta told Sky Sports, “It is unacceptable.”

Coming up in game week 10, Mourinho takes on his former side Chelsea, Liverpool travel to Brighton, Manchester City host Burnley, Southampton play Manchester United at home, Arsenal entertains Wolves and more.

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