Premier League winners and losers: Kane is back, Ox is struggling
By Ty Finch
The Premier League is back after a week off due to World Cup qualifying, and it was sorely missed. Here are the winners and losers of week four.
It seems cruel to take away the Premier League just three weeks into the new season. While international soccer has its own merits outside of the major tournaments, it simply doesn’t compare to club competition. League play is more intricate, planned out and conceptualized than internationals, and that proved to be the case again in week four. Players scored their first goals of the season, and clubs did the same. Others experienced the first taste of dropped points.
Here are the winners and losers of the fourth week of the Premier League season.
Winner: Brighton
Before Saturday, Brighton hadn’t scored a goal in the Premier League. Up against a stingy defensive side in West Brom, it looked like the Seagulls may once against come up empty in their fourth match. Instead, they notched their first three goals of the season, including a brace from new signing Pascal Gross.
Gross started his career with Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga but made his mark with Ingolstadt, appearing over 150 times for the side. The German played more of a creator role for his sides over the years, but on Saturday he proved to be more than just a set-up man. Gross scored Brighton’s first two Premier League goals of the season and set up their third in a man of the match performance.
Brighton’s first goal came from their record signing, a deflected shot from just outside six yards right before halftime. The buildup play deserved a goal even if the finish was lucky. Gross added a second to his tally minutes after the second half began. After a great bit of hold-up play from Tomer Hemed, Gross strode confidently forward and lashed the ball home from 25 yards out. That proved to be the winning goal, but Brighton added a third for insurance later on.
Brighton will likely struggle to score goals all season. To stay in the Premier League, they simply have to bunker defensively and hope to grind out results. Performances like the one Gross put on against West Brom are necessary for their top-flight survival. For now, the Seagulls will just be enjoying their first three points of the season.