Winners
Manchester United
It was a busy end to the transfer window for the Red Devils, who splashed cash on Portuguese midfielder Bruno Fernandes before signing former Watford striker Odion Ighalo on loan until the end of the season.
Ighalo steps in as the temporary fix to United’s problems up front, exacerbated by Marcus Rashford’s back injury and failure to replace Romelu Lukaku at the start of the season.
Both Fernandes and Ighalo offer plenty of promise to the Red Devils who currently sit in seventh – six points outside the top four.
Fernandes scored 50 goals in all competitions last season and is capable of filling several roles in midfield – playing as either a number ten or dropping into a midfield three.
Ighalo, meanwhile, is no stranger to the Premier League – scoring 33 goals in 82 games for Watford.
The 30-year-old was the top scorer in last year’s African Cup of Nations and be the short-term fix United has been looking for to return to the top four.
Western Sydney Wanderers
Those searching for a summary on the Wanderers’ season only have to look at the past week.
While this season has been tumultuous to say the least – Wanderers fans had a reason to smile at the weekend as their side saw off a fast finishing Central Coast Mariners away from home.
In Jean-Paul de Marigny first game in charge, all three of Western Sydney’s strikers – Mitchell Duke, Nicolai Muller and new recruit Simon Cox – getting on the scoresheet.
At the other end, Daniel Lopar was at his brilliant best to deny the Mariners, who had their tails up after Matt Simon’s 82nd minute penalty to restore some life back in the side.
It was far from a perfect Wanderers performance, but a great way to lead into next week’s must-win Sydney derby.
Tottenham Hotspur
We may as well add Liverpool list after this morning’s result.
Not only has Tottenham taken a massive scalp in defeating Manchester City, but ensures Liverpool finishes the round 22 points clear of Manchester City.
New recruit Steven Bergwijn got his Spurs career off to the best possible start – dramatically opening the scoring in the 63rd minute, before South Korean superstar Son Heung-Min sealed the win eight minutes later.
Losers
Melbourne City
It was a night to forget for Melbourne City.
Not only did the ghost of last year’s FFA Cup final come back to haunt them, but it took two of their starting centre backs with it.
Both Harrison Delbridge and Scottish international Jack Hendry will miss Friday’s Melbourne derby, with Delbridge receiving his third red card of the season while Hendry went down with a knee injury in the last 15 seconds of play.
This throws a large spanner in the works for Erick Mombaerts, who will have to look at filling the void with one of Josh Brillante or Rostyn Griffiths.
The City boss would also have been disappointed with his side conceding three goals from corners on the night, as their search for consistency this season continues.
Leeds United
It’s starting to look all too familiar for Leeds United.
Sitting comfortably inside the top two of the Championship for so long – a poor run of results has seen them lose their grip and at risk of having to go via the play-offs to complete their Premier League return.
Despite still remaining inside the top two, an unexpected loss to 22nd placed Wigan Athletic has amplified concerns and the significance of their next match against fellow promotion hopefuls Nottingham Forrest.
AS Roma
Things could not have started any worse for Roma in their match away to Sassuolo.
A Francesco Caputo brace saw the home side jump out to an early lead inside the first 16 minutes before Filip Djuricic gave Roma plenty to think about when he added a third just 26 minutes in.
Roma did pull goals back through Edin Dzeko and Jordan Veretout, but their momentum was halted by Lorenzo Pellegrini’s sending off which allowed Sassuolo to score a fourth and record an important victory.
The loss could prove costly for Roma’s Champions League ambitions, with Atalanta replacing them inside the top four on goal difference.
