Sven Goran Eriksson enjoyed a magnificent return to
English shores as his hastily assembled new-look Manchester City
side beat West Ham 2-0 at Upton Park, while Sam Allardyce returned
to haunt former club Bolton, as Newcastle enjoyed a 3-1 away day
victory.
A Michael Chopra goal in injury time saw Sunderland beat Tottenham
at The Stadium of Light, Derby fought back to secure a 2-2 against
Portsmouth and on Merseyside, David Moyes' Everton were deserved
winners over Wigan.
Mark Hughes takes the managerial accolades, though, as his double
substitution helped Blackburn to a 2-1 victory at
Middlesbrough.
Late
show
In Saturday's late kick-off Liverpool left it to the death against
Aston Villa, as Steven Gerrard struck a brilliant free-kick winner
with just three minutes remaining.
Aston Villa thought they had secured a point when Gareth Barry's
penalty cancelled out Martin Laursen's own goal, but it was not to
be, as Gerrard scored a stunning winner.
Newcastle chief Allardyce enjoyed a magnificent return to The
Reebok Stadium but for Sammy Lee it was the stuff of nightmares, as
his Bolton side slumped to a 3-1 defeat.
Charles N'Zogbia needed just 11 minutes to silence the home crowd
when his free-kick evaded Jussi Jaaskelainen and ten minutes later,
Bolton's woes were compounded, when Obafemi Martins exposed some
dire defending to take the ball on his chest and fire home an
acrobatic overhead kick.
The powerful front man then grabbed his second of a productive
afternoon, when his speculative drive deflected off Abdoulaye Faye
and beyond Jaaskelainen.
In the second period Bolton rallied and pulled a goal back when
Nicolas Anelka took Kevin Nolan's pass in his stride on the
counter-attack, before finding a clinical finish.
Manchester City enjoyed a bright first half at West Ham and
deservedly took the lead when the highly impressive Elano made
inroads down the right flank, leaving Rolando Bianchi to steal in
at the far post to convert his low cross.
There was the odd moment of consternation from an unusually
impassioned Eriksson but his fears proved ill-founded when Geovanni
grabbed his side's second late on with a fine finish.
Sunderland's last sojourn in the top flight saw them need 21
attempts to collect a maximum haul, but not this time around, as
Roy Keane's side secured a dramatic 1-0 victory over a pallid
Tottenham.
Chopra the
hero
In truth the game in its entirety will not live long in the memory
but for Sunderland supporters, second-half injury time certainly
will, as surprise substitute Chopra took down Ross Wallace's cross
with aplomb, before calmly slotting past Paul Robinson from the
penalty spot.
Sunderland's record signing Craig Gordon could not have asked for
an easier debut, as for all their attacking riches, Spurs' forward
line failed to sparkle throughout.
Derby's return to the top flight was an eventful affair as they
kicked-off with a 2-2 draw against Portsmouth.
The home side needed just five minutes to open their Premier League
account against Portsmouth, with Matt Oakley's fine angled finish
beating David James from just inside the box.
Billy Davies' side were good value for their lead but by half-time
found themselves pegged back courtesy of Benjani's stabbed finish
which beat Stephen Bywater, who will feel disappointed with his
efforts to keep the ball out.
John Utaka thought he had marked his debut with a winning goal when
he side-footed home in the 83rd minute but Andy Todd had other
ideas when he scored a bullet of a header just a minute
later.
Everton enjoyed a winning start to their campaign when they beat
Wigan 2-1 at Goodison Park.
Leon Osman broke the deadlock as he sneaked in to expose some poor
Wigan defending to loop the ball over Chris Kirkland in the 26th
minute, before in the second period, Victor Anichebe doubled his
side's advantage.
A late consolation from Antoine Sibierski caused the odd flutter
but at the game's conclusion, Wigan could have few
complaints.
A pair of Blackburn substitutes broke Middlesbrough hearts at The
Riverside, as Mark Hughes' side escaped from their trip to the
North East with a 2-1 victory.
Stewart Downing had the home faithful off their feet when his
free-kick just past the half-an-hour mark went straight through a
poorly assembled Blackburn wall, but in the second period Hughes
changed his front-line to great dividends.
Roque Santa Cruz's brilliant header from David Bentley's cross got
Blackburn level, before Matt Derbyshire took possession on the edge
of Boro's box with just under ten minutes remaining and bent home a
sumptuous curling winner.
Sunderland 1 Spurs 0
Bolton 1 Newcastle 3
Derby 2 Portsmouth 2
Everton 2 Wigan 1
Middlesbrough 1 Blackburn 2
West Ham 0 Manchester City 2
Aston Villa 1 Liverpool 2
