The Post-Match Report

The biggest football stories, transfer updates and trusted reports — verified, credited and condensed into one daily roundup. ⚽🗞️

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ Welcome to The Post-Match Report.

Football news moves quickly. We make it easier to follow.

Every day, we bring together:

✅ Confirmed developments
🚨 Credible transfer reports
🔍 The stories genuinely worth knowing
📝 Clear credit to the original reporters
No recycled clickbait. No pretending rumours are facts.
Just the biggest football stories — verified, credited and condensed.
Follow @_postmatch and never miss the day’s major developments. ⚽

#pmr

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 12 SEPTEMBER

THE PREMIER LEAGUE IS BACK. 🔥

Spurs desperately need a goal, Liverpool’s new attack returns to Anfield, Arsenal put perfection on the line — and the Manchester derby is almost here. 👀

⚪ SPURS: SOMETHING HAS TO CHANGE

Three games.

❌ No wins
❌ No goals
❌ Just one point

After one of the biggest spending sprees in Premier League history, Roberto De Zerbi’s Spurs host Everton today still searching for their first league goal.

And the problems haven’t stopped.

Mykhailo Mudryk is now sidelined with an ankle injury.

For all the talk about Spurs’ £300m+ rebuild this summer…

today feels important already.

🔴 LIVERPOOL ARE STARTING TO CLICK

Two draws to start the league season.

Then:

✅ Ipswich beaten
✅ Atlético beaten

And Alexander Isak has scored three times across those two games.

Today struggling Fulham visit Anfield, with Bradley Barcola also pushing to start after his encouraging Champions League showing.

Iraola’s Liverpool suddenly have momentum.

Now can they build on it?

🔵 CHELSEA 🆚 HULL

This is more interesting than it looked when the fixtures came out.

Chelsea have started strongly under Xabi Alonso.

But Hull?

Seven points from their opening three games. Unbeaten.

After beating Manchester United and refusing to disappear back into the relegation conversation, today’s trip to Stamford Bridge is their biggest examination yet.

Are Hull merely enjoying a brilliant start?

Or are they actually pretty good?

🔴⚪ SUNDERLAND 🆚 ARSENAL

Three Premier League matches.

Three Arsenal wins.

And still ZERO goals conceded.

Then they went to Napoli and won in the Champions League too.

The champions look frighteningly controlled.

But Sunderland away — after their own impressive start to the season — is exactly the sort of fixture where title defences can become uncomfortable.

8pm. Stadium of Light.

🟣 VILLA NEED LIFT-OFF

Aston Villa finally won in Bruges this week.

Now they need to do it domestically.

Villa are still searching for their first Premier League victory after an enormous summer rebuild.

European football may have provided the confidence boost.

Today we find out whether they can bring it home.

🔴 RASHFORD’S UNITED REBIRTH

This might be one of the most interesting United stories of the season.

Marcus Rashford looked certain to leave this summer.

Instead, he stayed.

And reports from Carrington suggest something has changed dramatically: his attitude, punctuality and training performances have impressed Michael Carrick, with Rashford increasingly important again.

He still hasn’t scored this season.

But tomorrow?

Manchester City.

And Rashford has always enjoyed a derby.

🔥 TOMORROW: MANCHESTER UNITED 🆚 MAN CITY

Here we go.

🔴 United — 4 points from 9
🔵 City — 9 points from 9

Carrick’s rebuilt United against Maresca’s rebuilt City.

Šeško has scored in consecutive games.

Haaland has started flying.

United just won 4–0 in Europe.

City haven’t lost a competitive match under Maresca.

And it’s at Old Trafford.

This is the first genuine measuring stick for both Manchester rebuilds.

👀 PMR WATCH: KOBBIE MAINOO

Amid all the summer spending, one of United’s most interesting stories might involve somebody who was already there.

After a frustrating summer with England, Mainoo is emerging as an increasingly important part of Carrick’s midfield.

Tomorrow brings the ultimate examination.

If he starts against City’s new £300m+ midfield?

That’s a matchup worth watching very closely.

📌 TODAY’S THEME: Europe showed us what these teams can do.

Now the Premier League starts asking questions again.

#PMR #PremierLeague #Football #AFC #LFC #CFC #THFC #MUFC #MCFC #ManchesterDerby

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, results and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

@mundodeportivo Olise?

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 11 SEPTEMBER

UNITED HIT FOUR. ŠEŠKO SCORES AGAIN. AND NOW… THE MANCHESTER DERBY. 🔥

A perfect Champions League return for United, a teenage star makes Old Trafford history, Como stun Leipzig — and Richarlison takes his Spurs dispute to FIFA. 👀

🔴 MAN UTD 4–0 SABAH

Exactly what United needed.

⚽ Matheus Cunha
⚽ Bruno Fernandes
⚽ Benjamin Šeško
⚽ Lisandro Martínez

Four goals. Clean sheet. Three Champions League points.

Sabah had one huge opportunity to equalise at 1–0 — but after that, United’s quality took over.

And after an inconsistent start domestically?

This felt like progress.

🎯 ŠEŠKO IS FINDING HIS RHYTHM

This could be important.

After almost three months out with a shin injury:

⚽ Everton
⚽ Sabah

Two goals in two games.

Carrick has highlighted Šeško’s pace, physicality and ability to threaten the space behind defences.

And who’s next?

Manchester City.

Quite a time for your No.9 to start firing.

🌟 JJ GABRIEL — REMEMBER THE NAME

While the senior side were winning 4–0, United’s youngsters were making headlines too.

15-year-old JJ Gabriel scored a HAT-TRICK as United’s U19s beat Sabah 5–0 in the UEFA Youth League.

Fifteen.

A European hat-trick.

There are worse ways to introduce yourself. 😮‍💨

🇮🇹 COMO 4–1 RB LEIPZIG

What a story.

Como’s first EVER Champions League match.

Result?

A 4–1 demolition of RB Leipzig.

Cesc Fàbregas has taken a club that was in Serie B only a few years ago onto Europe’s biggest stage — and they certainly didn’t arrive quietly.

One of the results of the week. 👏

🇩🇪 BAYERN 5–0 BODØ/GLIMT

Meanwhile, Bayern did what Bayern tend to do on Champions League opening nights.

Five goals.

Michael Olise scored twice, with Harry Kane, Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies also on target.

Europe’s established giants have started strongly.

⚪ RICHARLISON TAKES SPURS TO FIFA

Now this could get messy.

Richarlison is seeking FIFA intervention to terminate his Tottenham contract after being omitted from Spurs’ 25-man Premier League squad.

The Brazilian wants out and is exploring a return to Brazil with Vasco da Gama.

If FIFA sides with the player?

This could have implications considerably beyond Tottenham.

🔥 NEXT: THE MANCHESTER DERBY

Sunday. Old Trafford.

🔵 City: 9 points from 9
🔴 United: 4 points from 9

City have been excellent.

United have been inconsistent.

But United have just scored four, Šeško has scored in consecutive games and Old Trafford suddenly has something to build on.

For all the summer spending and rebuilding…

this is the first real Manchester measuring stick.

👀 PMR WATCH: BENJAMIN ŠEŠKO

Haaland versus Šeško.

Not because they’re currently equals — Haaland’s record speaks for itself.

But United finally appear to have a striker capable of giving defenders a completely different problem.

If Šeško scores in the derby?

The conversation around United’s start changes very quickly.

📌 TODAY’S THEME: Confidence can take weeks to build.

Sometimes four goals does the job in 90 minutes.

#PMR #Football #ChampionsLeague #MUFC #MCFC #ManchesterDerby #THFC #Como #UCL

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, results and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 10 SEPTEMBER

ENGLISH CLUBS ARE PERFECT IN EUROPE. 🌟

Arsenal win in Naples, Liverpool fight back at Anfield, PSG score SIX — and tonight Manchester United complete the Premier League’s opening Champions League programme. 👀

🔴 NAPOLI 0–1 ARSENAL

This Arsenal side just keeps winning.

Naples. Champions League. Difficult opponent.

Same outcome.

Martin Ødegaard produced the winner after 75 minutes as Arsenal dominated for long periods but struggled to turn their superiority into goals.

Four competitive wins.

Four clean sheets.

And now a Champions League away victory.

The champions look ominously settled.

🔴 LIVERPOOL 2–1 ATLÉTICO MADRID

This was more like it.

Atlético took the lead through Marcos Llorente, but Liverpool responded.

⚽ Szoboszlai
⚽ Mac Allister

Andoni Iraola’s first Champions League match as a manager ends with a comeback victory at Anfield.

After an uncertain start domestically, this felt important.

Anfield + Champions League. Still a powerful combination.

🇫🇷 BARCOLA INJURY FEARS EASED

Liverpool’s £123m signing made his first full start last night — but limped off before the hour.

The good news?

Iraola says it was cramp rather than an injury.

After spending that sort of money, Liverpool supporters can breathe again. 😅

🔴🔵 PSG 6–1 SLOVAN BRATISLAVA

The holders have sent a message.

Ferran Torres: hat-trick.
Ousmane Dembélé: two goals.

PSG were 5–0 up after 57 minutes.

They’re chasing a THIRD consecutive Champions League title.

On this evidence?

They’re not planning on giving it up quietly.

🔵🔴 BARCELONA 5–1 FEYENOORD

Another European giant started with a demolition.

Raphinha scored twice, with Lamine Yamal, Karim Adeyemi and former Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus also scoring.

Ten goals between Barcelona and PSG on the same evening.

Europe’s heavyweights have arrived.

🔴 MAN UTD 🆚 SABAH — TONIGHT

Now it’s United’s turn.

Old Trafford.

Champions League football.

And an opponent almost nobody expected to see here.

Azerbaijan’s Sabah came through FOUR qualifying rounds to reach the league phase.

United will be without several players, including Carlos Baleba, Amad Diallo and Matthijs de Ligt.

But there are no excuses here.

After four Premier League points from nine, Carrick needs a convincing performance before Sunday’s Manchester derby.

⚖️ THE PREMIER LEAGUE ADMITS ANOTHER VAR ERROR

The new transparency system is already producing some interesting admissions.

The independent KMI Panel says 76% of major on-field decisions were correct in Matchweek Two, rising to 90% after VAR.

But it also identified one incident where VAR should have intervened and didn’t.

Publishing these numbers every week might end up being one of the league’s most important changes this season.

👀 PMR WATCH: MANCHESTER UNITED

City: ✅
Villa: ✅
Arsenal: ✅
Liverpool: ✅

Four English clubs.

Four Champions League victories.

United now face comfortably the least-established opponent of the five.

Win convincingly and attention immediately turns to Sunday.

Struggle?

That Manchester derby suddenly feels even bigger.

📌 TODAY’S THEME: Premier League clubs spent billions building these squads.

So far, Europe is seeing exactly why. 🌟

#PMR #ChampionsLeague #UCL #Football #AFC #LFC #MUFC #MCFC #AVFC

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, results and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 9 SEPTEMBER

ENGLAND STARTS STRONGLY IN EUROPE. 🌟

Haaland does what Haaland does, Villa FINALLY win, Mourinho starts with three points — and tonight Liverpool and Arsenal enter the Champions League. 👀

🔵 PORTO 0–2 MAN CITY

Four competitive games.

Four wins for Enzo Maresca.

City faced arguably their toughest test yet in a hostile Porto — and Erling Haaland simply took over.

⚽ Haaland
⚽ Haaland

Two second-half goals. Three Champions League points.

And City’s enormous summer rebuild keeps winning.

🤖 HAALAND IS RIDICULOUS

Another night. Another record.

Haaland’s double took him to 59 Champions League goals — moving beyond Thomas Müller — while matching Sergio Agüero’s Manchester City record of 36 Champions League goals for the club.

And he’s still only 26.

We’re watching one of the great Champions League goalscorers in real time.

🟣 CLUB BRUGGE 2–3 ASTON VILLA

VILLA HAVE WON A FOOTBALL MATCH. 🙌

After a miserable domestic start, Unai Emery’s side found their spark in Europe.

McGinn. Buendía. Nicolas Jackson with his first Villa goal.

And perhaps the most unexpected statistic?

Pau Torres: TWO assists.

Villa had to survive a second-half onslaught — but three points could be exactly what this rebuilt side needed.

🤍 REAL MADRID 2–1 INTER

Mourinho + Real Madrid + Champions League.

Of course they won.

Kylian Mbappé and Federico Valverde scored as Madrid punished two Inter mistakes at the Bernabéu.

Inter actually controlled large periods.

Thibaut Courtois was excellent.

But Madrid did what Madrid seemingly always do in this competition:

found a way.

🔥 LIVERPOOL 🆚 ATLÉTICO — TONIGHT

Now this should be fun.

Liverpool’s first Champions League night under Andoni Iraola.

Anfield.

Atlético Madrid.

And a Liverpool attack featuring Isak, Barcola and Gakpo.

After an uncertain start domestically, this feels like a huge opportunity to make a statement.

8pm. Anfield.

🔴 NAPOLI 🆚 ARSENAL

The champions of England begin their European campaign in Naples.

Arsenal have started the Premier League perfectly.

Now comes a very different examination.

Winning England is one thing.

For this Arsenal side, the next frontier is obvious:

win Europe.

⚖️ VAR GOT ONE WRONG

And away from Europe, the Premier League’s new refereeing transparency has already produced its first admission.

The independent Key Match Incidents Panel has concluded that Brentford should have been awarded a penalty against Leeds for Jayden Bogle’s challenge on Kevin Schade.

The on-field decision was no penalty.

VAR didn’t intervene.

The panel says they got it wrong.

Whatever your view of VAR, publishing these decisions is going to create some fascinating conversations this season.

👀 PMR WATCH: ARSENAL

City have started with a European away win.

Villa have started with a European away win.

Now it’s Arsenal’s turn.

They’ve conquered England.

They’ve spent heavily.

They’ve started perfectly.

Is this finally the Arsenal side capable of conquering Europe too?

📌 TODAY’S THEME: Premier League money built the squads.

Now Europe gets to judge them. 🌟

#PMR #ChampionsLeague #UCL #Football #MCFC #AVFC #AFC #LFC #RealMadrid

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, results and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 8 SEPTEMBER

THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE IS BACK. 🌟

City begin life after Guardiola in Europe, Villa return to Bruges, Mourinho starts another Real Madrid Champions League campaign — and English football enters the next phase of the season. 👀

🏆 PORTO 🆚 MAN CITY — TONIGHT

Here we go.

Three wins from three in the Premier League.

Now Enzo Maresca takes his rebuilt Manchester City into Europe for the first time.

And this isn’t an easy opener.

Porto have won all five of their league games and conceded just once.

City will also be without Jérémy Doku and Nico O’Reilly.

New manager. New midfield. Same expectation:

Win the Champions League.

🟣 CLUB BRUGGE 🆚 ASTON VILLA

Villa’s season needs a spark.

After a turbulent summer and a difficult start domestically, Unai Emery takes his rebuilt squad back into the Champions League tonight.

And there’s some history here.

Brugge beat Villa 1–0 at this ground in the 2024/25 competition.

5:45pm. Belgium.

A big opportunity to reset the mood.

🤍 MOURINHO. REAL MADRID. CHAMPIONS LEAGUE.

Some combinations just belong together.

José Mourinho begins his latest Champions League campaign as Real Madrid manager tonight against Inter Milan.

Madrid are chasing European Cup No.16.

Mourinho is chasing Champions League No.3.

Whatever happens…

this is box office.

🔴 LIVERPOOL NEXT

Tomorrow night:

Liverpool 🆚 Atlético Madrid.

Barcola’s arrival has transformed Liverpool’s attacking options, Isak is already scoring, and now Andoni Iraola gets his first taste of Champions League football at Anfield.

Atlético at home isn’t a gentle introduction.

🌍 FIVE ENGLISH CLUBS. ONE TARGET.

England sends:

🔴 Arsenal
🔴 Liverpool
🔴 Manchester United
🔵 Manchester City
🟣 Aston Villa

After another extraordinary summer of Premier League spending, the question now changes.

Not who won the transfer window?

Can England dominate Europe?

❤️ MCTOMINAY PROCEDURE SUCCESSFUL

Some reassuring news away from tonight’s matches.

Former United midfielder Scott McTominay has undergone a successful planned procedure to correct a mild, benign heart arrhythmia.

He’s expected to rest before returning to training in around two weeks.

It means he’ll miss Napoli’s Champions League opener against Arsenal — but, most importantly, the procedure was successful.

Wishing him a smooth recovery. 🙏

💰 PREMIER LEAGUE FACES A SPONSORSHIP PROBLEM

And an interesting off-field story today.

Around half of Premier League clubs reportedly have sponsorship or advertising arrangements involving gambling operators not licensed in the UK.

Proposed government rules could outlaw those deals — potentially costing clubs millions.

With front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship already being phased out, football’s relationship with betting is coming under increasing scrutiny.

👀 PMR WATCH: MAN CITY

We’ve spent weeks talking about City’s rebuild.

Tonight is where the examination changes.

Enzo Fernández. Ayyoub Bouaddi. Elliot Anderson. Iliman Ndiaye.

Domestic football is one thing.

Can Maresca make this new City work in Europe?

📌 TODAY’S THEME: The summer was about building squads.

The Premier League was the introduction.

Europe is where reputations are made. 🌟

#PMR #ChampionsLeague #UCL #Football #MCFC #AVFC #LFC #AFC #MUFC #RealMadrid

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, results and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

@Muppetiers Hi, thanks for the insight. Manchester United will always attract attention but on this occasion, honestly, they were undone by two excellent strikes. They’ll be disappointed but hey, it’s football!

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 7 SEPTEMBER

Arsenal make an early title statement. United throw away another lead. Liverpool’s new attack clicks — and Infantino refuses to walk away. 👀

🔴 ARSENAL 2–1 CHELSEA

That felt significant.

Chelsea took the lead through Morgan Rogers, but Arsenal responded through Kai Havertz before Martin Ødegaard completed the comeback.

Three Premier League games.

Three wins. Nine points.

And after beating one of the sides expected to challenge them?

The champions already look extremely difficult to shift.

🔴 UNITED DENIED IN THE 90TH MINUTE

Everton 2–2 Manchester United.

United thought they’d won it when Benjamin Šeško headed home in the 88th minute.

Two minutes later?

New Everton signing Ainsley Maitland-Niles smashed in a 30-yard equaliser.

United have now taken just four points from their opening three games.

There are improvements under Carrick.

But learning how to control matches might be the next big one.

🔵 GREALISH MAKES AN IMMEDIATE IMPACT

Jack Grealish is back at Everton — and already making a difference.

His second Goodison spell began yesterday and he immediately added creativity and personality to Everton’s attack.

Five points from three leaves Everton unbeaten.

After their frustrating end to the transfer window, that’s not a bad start at all.

🔴 ISAK ×2. GAKPO CREATING.

Liverpool finally got the performance their new attack needed on Friday night.

Alexander Isak scored twice against Ipswich, with Cody Gakpo heavily involved creatively.

After all the Deadline Day discussion about whether Gakpo would leave?

Keeping him may prove every bit as important as signing Barcola.

🔵 CITY’S NEW BOYS ARE ALREADY DELIVERING

Three games.

Nine points.

Enzo Fernández assisted Haaland on debut last weekend — and Iliman Ndiaye impressed immediately following his £65m move from Everton.

Hundreds of millions spent.

An enormous amount of change.

So far?

City haven’t dropped a point.

🌍 INFANTINO: I’M STAYING

Away from the Premier League, the pressure on FIFA president Gianni Infantino continues.

But despite calls for him to step down, Infantino has now confirmed he intends to stand for re-election in March.

With several national associations demanding reform, this could become one of football’s biggest off-field battles this season.

🔥 NEXT UP: THE MANCHESTER DERBY

And this is where things get interesting.

Manchester United 🆚 Manchester City — Sunday.

City: 9 points from 9.

United: 4 points from 9.

United have a week to prepare.

City arrive perfect.

After everything both Manchester clubs changed this summer…

this is our first proper comparison.

👀 PMR WATCH: ARSENAL

It’s not simply that Arsenal have nine points.

They’ve beaten Chelsea.

They’ve won away at Villa.

And they’ve already shown they can win comfortably and come from behind.

That is beginning to look like the profile of a team very comfortable carrying the target on its back.

📌 TODAY’S THEME: New managers. New signings. New systems.

The same teams are already setting the standard.

#PMR #PremierLeague #Football #AFC #CFC #MUFC #EFC #LFC #MCFC

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, results and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

Everton away is tough. Manchester United have been undone by two moments of individual brilliance.
#EVE #MUN #EVEMUN #PL

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 6 SEPTEMBER

Arsenal and Chelsea collide in an early title test, United face a tricky trip to Everton, Spurs’ £300m attack STILL hasn’t scored — and some huge names remain available for NOTHING. 👀

🔥 ARSENAL v CHELSEA — TODAY

This already feels bigger than Matchweek Three.

Arsenal have started perfectly and haven’t conceded a Premier League goal.

Chelsea arrive with six points themselves — and one of the league’s most exciting attacks.

There are fitness concerns around Moisés Caicedo for Chelsea, while Arsenal hope to welcome Declan Rice and Bruno Guimarães back.

Champions vs challengers.

4:30pm. Emirates Stadium.

This could tell us plenty.

🔴 UNITED FACE THE NEXT TEST

Everton v Manchester United — 2pm.

United finally exploded into life against Ipswich last weekend, with Bruno Fernandes inspiring Carrick’s side to their first league victory.

Now comes a very different examination away from home.

And with the Manchester derby coming next weekend…

United could really do with some momentum.

⚪ THREE GAMES. ZERO GOALS.

Tottenham’s extraordinary start continues — for all the wrong reasons.

Nottingham Forest 0–0 Spurs.

Three Premier League games.

❌ 0 goals
❌ 0 wins
❌ 0 shots on target yesterday

After spending more than £300m this summer, De Zerbi has an attack packed with talent.

Right now?

It simply isn’t working.

🔵 CITY KEEP WINNING

Not spectacular.

Still perfect.

Manchester City 1–0 Coventry.

Erling Haaland scored his 300th top-flight club goal, with £125m debutant Enzo Fernández providing the assist.

Three games.

Nine points.

City’s enormous rebuild is already producing results.

😬 FULHAM: CRISIS ALREADY?

Three Premier League games.

Three defeats.

Fulham twice led Crystal Palace yesterday — and still lost 3–2.

Álvaro Arbeloa is asking supporters for patience, but with Liverpool and Manchester United coming up…

things aren’t getting any easier.

🆓 THE WINDOW IS CLOSED… BUT THESE PLAYERS CAN STILL SIGN

Some extraordinary names remain free agents:

🏴 Jadon Sancho
🇫🇷 Paul Pogba
🏴 Dele Alli

Free agents can still join clubs despite Tuesday’s deadline.

For a club that suddenly discovers a hole in its squad?

There are some fascinating options available.

🏆 THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE IS COMING

The transfer window dominated August.

Now September brings Europe.

Arsenal. Liverpool. Man City. Man United. Aston Villa.

And after the money Premier League clubs spent this summer, expectations will be enormous.

This is where those rebuilds start getting properly tested.

👀 PMR WATCH: ARSENAL v CHELSEA

Arsenal’s defence hasn’t conceded.

Chelsea’s attack has been flying.

Something has to give.

And with City already sitting on nine points…

neither will want to blink first.

📌 TODAY’S THEME: Summer told us which clubs built the most exciting squads.

September starts telling us which ones built the best teams.

#PMR #PremierLeague #Football #AFC #CFC #MUFC #MCFC #THFC #TransferNews

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, results and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 5 SEPTEMBER

City stay perfect. Haaland hits 300. Spurs STILL can’t score. Palace produce a comeback — and tomorrow brings Arsenal v Chelsea. 👀

🔵 MAN CITY 1–0 COVENTRY

Three games. Nine points.

It wasn’t comfortable, but Erling Haaland’s winner maintained City’s perfect Premier League start.

And there was a little glimpse of the new era too:

Enzo Fernández assisted Haaland on his City debut.

Oh — and that was Haaland’s 300th top-flight club goal.

Ridiculous numbers.

⚪ SPURS STILL HAVEN’T SCORED

Nottingham Forest 0–0 Tottenham.

After spending more than £300m this summer, Spurs have now played three Premier League games without scoring.

Today?

Not a single shot on target.

One point from nine.

De Zerbi has an enormous amount of attacking talent — but right now, it simply isn’t functioning.

🦅 PALACE FIGHT BACK

Fulham led twice.

Palace won 3–2.

A huge first victory of the season for Palace — and another painful afternoon for Fulham, who have now lost all three Premier League games under Álvaro Arbeloa.

Early days.

But already some pressure building.

🍒 BOURNEMOUTH MAKE HISTORY… SORT OF

Three Premier League games.

Three times Bournemouth have scored first.

And somehow…

ZERO wins.

They drew 2–2 at Newcastle today after surrendering the lead again.

An extraordinary early-season pattern.

🐯 HULL REMAIN UNBEATEN

Another point for Hull following a draw with Aston Villa.

The promoted side have now taken seven points from their opening three matches and remain unbeaten.

After beating United on opening weekend, this is becoming more than just a nice start.

Hull look like they belong.

🔥 TOMORROW: ARSENAL v CHELSEA

Now THIS is interesting.

Two unbeaten teams.

The champions against Xabi Alonso’s new-look Chelsea.

Arsenal have started with maximum points and haven’t conceded.

Chelsea have scored seven in two.

And following Enzo Fernández’s Deadline Day departure, Chelsea’s rebuilt midfield faces its biggest examination yet.

Early title-race statement incoming?

🔵 EVERTON v MAN UTD

Before that, United travel to Everton.

Carrick finally got his first league victory against Ipswich last weekend after that nightmare at Hull.

Now comes the test:

was that the beginning of something — or just one good afternoon?

👀 PMR WATCH: TOTTENHAM

Forget the transfer fees.

Forget the names.

Forget winning the window.

Three games without a goal is the story.

With Savinho, Marmoush, Mudryk and Solanke available to De Zerbi, Spurs have too much attacking talent for this to continue.

Something has to change.

📌 TODAY’S THEME: £3.46bn was spent this summer.

Turns out you still have to build a football team.

#PMR #PremierLeague #Football #MCFC #THFC #CPFC #HCAFC #AFC #CFC #MUFC

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, results and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 3 SEPTEMBER

The transfer window is closed.

Now the football takes over. ⚽

Premier League refereeing goes public, Wrexham make a statement in the Championship, Everton face questions after their Deadline Day collapse — and Arsenal vs Chelsea is already beginning to feel enormous. 👀

⚖️ THE PREMIER LEAGUE OPENS UP ON REFEREEING

This could be one of the most interesting changes of the season.

For the first time, the Premier League is publishing the findings of its independent Key Match Incidents Panel every week.

From Matchweek One:

➡️ 21 major refereeing incidents reviewed
✅ 90% of original on-field decisions judged correct
📺 Both VAR interventions judged correct
✅ After VAR: 100% of final decisions correct

Even more interesting?

Nine separate handball penalty appeals were rejected.

The message appears clear: expect a higher threshold and fewer soft handball penalties this season.

More transparency around refereeing?

Long overdue.

🐉 WREXHAM WIN 3–0 AT MILLWALL

That’s a result.

Wrexham went to The Den last night and came away with a 3–0 Championship victory.

After years of headlines surrounding everything happening off the pitch, results like this are another reminder:

Wrexham’s footballing story isn’t finished yet.

Elsewhere:

QPR 2–1 Cardiff
West Brom 1–1 Charlton
Burnley 1–1 Middlesbrough

🔵 EVERTON’S DEADLINE-DAY FALLOUT

This story isn’t going away.

Everton’s own Fans’ Forum has publicly questioned the club’s recruitment after a chaotic end to the window.

They sold Iliman Ndiaye to Manchester City but failed to land a replacement striker after Folarin Balogun’s £40m move collapsed following his medical.

Everton now head into the autumn dangerously short in attack.

Sometimes the most important Deadline Day story isn’t who you signed.

It’s who you didn’t.

🔴 LIVERPOOL BACK THEIR REBUILD

Interesting noises coming from Anfield.

Despite criticism from some supporters, Liverpool’s hierarchy reportedly believe they achieved what they wanted from the summer window.

And financially, this wasn’t a quiet rebuild.

Liverpool recorded the largest net spend in the Premier League — around £218m.

Barcola was the headline.

Now Iraola has to make all the pieces fit.

🏆 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: FIVE DAYS TO GO

The Champions League league phase begins next week.

And Premier League clubs have some huge European nights coming immediately.

For Liverpool, that includes Atlético Madrid at Anfield.

We’re about to discover very quickly whether those enormous summer rebuilds were designed merely to compete domestically…

or to conquer Europe too.

🔥 ARSENAL vs CHELSEA IS COMING

Sunday.

The champions against perhaps the most exciting team we’ve seen during the opening weeks.

Arsenal: six points, zero conceded.

Chelsea: six points, seven goals scored.

And after Chelsea sold Enzo Fernández without landing their intended midfield replacement, this is suddenly a fascinating early examination of Xabi Alonso’s squad.

This feels much bigger than Matchweek Three.

👀 PMR WATCH: THE POST-WINDOW ERA

£3bn+ spent.

Squads rebuilt.

Record transfers completed.

No more rumours. No more negotiations. No more “personal terms agreed.”

From here, every £50m, £80m and £100m signing gets judged on one thing:

what happens on the pitch.

📌 TODAY’S THEME: The transfer window creates expectations.

Football decides whether they were justified.

#PMR #PremierLeague #Football #AFC #CFC #LFC #EFC #Wrexham #ChampionsLeague

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, transfers and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 2 SEPTEMBER

THE WINDOW IS CLOSED. 🔒

City land Enzo in a £125m blockbuster, Chelsea’s replacement deal collapses, Arsenal miss out on Álvarez — and Premier League clubs finish a record-breaking £3.46 BILLION summer. 🤯

🔵 ENZO → MAN CITY: DONE

The biggest move of Deadline Day.

Manchester City have completed the signing of Enzo Fernández from Chelsea for £125m.

After weeks of speculation, City finally made their move — and Chelsea accepted.

Elliot Anderson. Ayyoub Bouaddi. Enzo Fernández.

City haven’t replaced their old midfield.

They’ve built another one.

🔵 NDIAYE → MAN CITY

And City weren’t finished.

Iliman Ndiaye joins from Everton for £65m, completing a staggering £190m Deadline Day double.

City’s total summer spending?

Approximately £458m.

Enzo. Ndiaye. Anderson. Bouaddi. Allan.

This is one of the most aggressive rebuilds we’ve ever seen.

🔵 CHELSEA’S CAMARA DEAL COLLAPSES

This is peak Deadline Day.

Chelsea sold Enzo and moved for Monaco midfielder Lamine Camara as his replacement.

But the deal collapsed amid a bizarre chain involving Monaco and Everton’s pursuit of Folarin Balogun.

Everton’s Balogun deal then collapsed too.

So…

❌ Balogun → Everton
❌ Camara → Chelsea

One failed transfer effectively helped derail another.

Deadline Day. 😂

🔴 NO ÁLVAREZ FOR ARSENAL

After an entire summer of speculation, Arsenal’s pursuit of Julián Álvarez ended without a deal.

Their late attacking movement instead came in the opposite direction:

➡️ Gabriel Jesus → Barcelona
➡️ Ethan Nwaneri → Dortmund on loan

Arsenal nevertheless finish an enormous window having added Bruno Guimarães, Ezri Konsa, Christos Tzolis and Piero Hincapié among others.

🔴 GAKPO STAYS. BARCOLA ARRIVES.

Liverpool resisted City’s move for Cody Gakpo.

And after completing the blockbuster signing of Bradley Barcola from PSG for an initial £107m, Liverpool decided enough was enough.

Keeping Gakpo while adding Barcola?

Their attacking options suddenly look ridiculous.

🔴⚪ FOFANA → SUNDERLAND

Don’t overlook this one.

Sunderland completed the signing of Malick Fofana from Lyon for £31m.

For a club that finished seventh last season and now has European football to offer, this feels like another significant step forward.

Sunderland aren’t behaving like a club happy simply to be here anymore.

💰 £3.46 BILLION

That’s the number.

Premier League clubs have broken the summer spending record AGAIN.

Around £3.46bn spent.

And remarkably, roughly 38% of transfers were between Premier League clubs themselves.

The English market increasingly isn’t just buying talent from Europe.

It’s buying from itself.

👀 PMR WATCH: CHELSEA

Forget transfers now.

Chelsea sold Enzo Fernández for £125m…

…and failed to land his intended replacement.

That’s left Xabi Alonso with a very different midfield from the one he started Deadline Day with.

How Chelsea solve that might be one of the first big post-window stories.

📌 TODAY’S THEME: The spreadsheets are closed. The negotiations are finished.

Now we find out who actually won the transfer window.

#PMR #TransferNews #DeadlineDay #PremierLeague #MCFC #CFC #AFC #LFC #SAFC

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🚨 THE POST-MATCH REPORT | DEADLINE DAY: MIDDAY UPDATE

We’re halfway through Deadline Day — and things are moving FAST.

City make their move for Enzo, Liverpool shut the door on Gakpo, Sunderland pull off an ambitious signing and Chelsea prepare for the possibility of losing their midfielder. 👀

💰 MAN CITY BID FOR ENZO

This morning it was talks.

Now there’s a bid.

Manchester City have made an offer for Enzo Fernández, although Chelsea’s valuation remains around £120m.

And Chelsea are already working on what comes next…

🔵 CHELSEA MOVE FOR CAMARA

Chelsea have made a move for Monaco midfielder Lamine Camara.

Their opening offer — reportedly around £38.5m — has been rejected.

The timing is impossible to ignore.

Enzo → City. Camara → Chelsea?

There’s your Deadline Day domino. 👀

🔴 GAKPO STAYS AT LIVERPOOL

One major move appears to be OFF.

Liverpool have rejected Manchester City’s approach for Cody Gakpo and now expect the Dutchman to remain at Anfield.

And after completing the £123m Barcola deal, Liverpool aren’t expecting any further first-team arrivals either.

Their window may be finished.

🔴⚪ FOFANA → SUNDERLAND

This is some statement.

Sunderland have agreed a deal to sign Malick Fofana from Lyon, reportedly worth up to around £30m.

The winger had attracted interest from considerably bigger clubs this summer.

Sunderland have European football.

And they’re using it. 👏

🐯 HULL AREN’T FINISHED

Six points from six.

And still shopping.

Hull have completed a move for Ilyas Ansah and are also working on deals for Brooke Norton-Cuffy, Tim Iroegbunam and Robinio Vaz.

Promotion hasn’t changed their ambition one bit.

🚜 IPSWICH FIND THEIR FORWARD

Remember the ? we had next to Ipswich yesterday?

We can fill it in.

Ipswich are moving to sign Zian Flemming from Burnley, while Tammy Abraham has decided to remain at Aston Villa despite interest from Portman Road.

That’s exactly why we didn’t force a name yesterday. 👀

⚫⚪ NEWCASTLE ADD ANOTHER

Newcastle have secured Matias Fernandez-Pardo from Lille in a deal potentially worth around £55m.

Their summer spending now moves beyond £260m.

Whatever you think of the money involved…

Newcastle have completely reshaped this squad.

🔴 NWANERI → DORTMUND?

One to watch this afternoon.

Ethan Nwaneri is increasingly likely to join Borussia Dortmund on loan.

The 19-year-old has already spent time away at Marseille — and another season of regular football could now await in Germany.

👀 PMR WATCH: MAN UTD

Interestingly… relatively quiet.

United’s remaining business appears to depend largely on whether Joshua Zirkzee leaves.

A left-back is still being discussed — with Jorge Salinas, David Raum and Antonee Robinson among the names linked — but there’s no indication yet of an advanced deal.

Could United actually be finished?

⏰ THE BIG ONES STILL TO WATCH

🔵 Enzo Fernández → Man City?
🔴 Julián Álvarez → Arsenal?
🔵 Lamine Camara → Chelsea?
🔵 Jack Grealish → Everton?
⚪ Mykhailo Mudryk → Tottenham?
🔴 Ethan Nwaneri → Dortmund?

11 HOURS TO GO. 🍿

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 1 SEPTEMBER

DEADLINE DAY IS HERE. 🚨

Arsenal keep winning, Villa still can’t score, Barcola is officially a Liverpool player — and some enormous transfers remain unresolved with less than 16 hours to go.

🔴 ASTON VILLA 0–1 ARSENAL

Two games. Two wins. Two clean sheets.

Bukayo Saka scored the only goal as Arsenal ground out another classic 1–0 victory at Villa Park.

Villa improved enormously from their 4–0 defeat at Brighton — but the worrying statistic remains:

Two Premier League games. Zero goals. Zero points. Zero shots on target.

Arsenal, meanwhile, join City, Chelsea and Hull on six points.

🔴 BARCOLA → LIVERPOOL: DONE

One of the summer’s biggest transfers is complete.

Liverpool have signed Bradley Barcola from PSG for £106m, potentially rising to £123m.

The 23-year-old has signed a five-year contract after making it clear Liverpool was the move he wanted.

An enormous investment.

Now comes the interesting question:

what happens to Cody Gakpo?

🔵 MAN CITY → ENZO FERNÁNDEZ

Here we go.

Manchester City have opened talks with Chelsea over Enzo Fernández.

Chelsea are already looking at potential replacements, while City continue one of the most dramatic squad rebuilds we’ve seen from a reigning heavyweight.

If this happens today…

it could be THE deal of Deadline Day.

🔴 ARSENAL → JULIÁN ÁLVAREZ

Still alive.

Arsenal have spent all summer pursuing Álvarez and have now created space in their attack — but Atlético’s reported €150m asking price remains the enormous obstacle.

Arsenal are also considering Malick Fofana as an alternative.

One final push? 👀

🔵 NDIAYE → MAN CITY: AGREED

Another big one has moved.

Manchester City have agreed a £65m fee with Everton for Iliman Ndiaye.

And Everton aren’t sitting still either…

They’ve agreed a £40m fee for Monaco striker Folarin Balogun.

Deadline-day dominoes already falling.

⚫⚪ WOLTEMADE → JUVENTUS

Newcastle’s £69m club-record signing is already heading out.

Juventus have agreed a loan deal for Nick Woltemade, just one year after he arrived from Stuttgart.

No option to buy.

Eight league goals last season and now seemingly outside Matthias Jaissle’s plans.

Football moves quickly. 😬

👀 PMR WATCH: GAKPO

This might be the domino to watch.

Barcola is through the door at Liverpool.

Manchester City want Cody Gakpo.

Liverpool now have a decision to make.

And if City also manage to land Enzo Fernández…

their Deadline Day could completely reshape the title race.

⏰ THE CLOCK IS TICKING

The Premier League transfer window closes at:

11PM TONIGHT.

Álvarez.
Enzo.
Gakpo.
Sarr.

And almost certainly one name we aren’t expecting yet. 🍿

📌 TODAY’S THEME: Months of scouting. Weeks of negotiating.

Now clubs have hours to make the decisions that could define their season.

#PMR #DeadlineDay #TransferNews #PremierLeague #AFC #LFC #MCFC #CFC

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, transfers and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

🗞️ THE POST-MATCH REPORT | 31 AUGUST

Bruno produces a captain’s performance, Chelsea’s chaos continues to entertain, Watkins officially leaves Villa — and the pressure builds with just two days of the transfer window remaining. 👀

🔴 BRUNO. BRUNO. BRUNO.

Manchester United finally have lift-off.

After falling behind against Ipswich at Old Trafford, Bruno Fernandes scored a hat-trick as United stormed back to win 5–2.

United had 31 shots and, after last weekend’s miserable defeat at Hull, this looked far more like the attacking football Michael Carrick will want.

One game doesn’t fix everything.

But your captain dragging you out of trouble?

That’s a pretty good place to start.

🔵 CHELSEA 4–3 BRIGHTON

Chelsea might be the Premier League’s must-watch team.

They raced into a 3–0 lead inside 32 minutes through Romeo Lavia, Pedro Neto and João Pedro.

Brighton fought back. Cole Palmer made it four. Brighton scored again.

Final score: 4–3.

Two league games. Two wins for Xabi Alonso.

Going forward? Frightening.

Defensively? Chelsea have now gone 18 league games without a clean sheet.

Never boring.

🧤 MARTÍNEZ MAKES HIS CHELSEA DEBUT

And Chelsea wasted absolutely no time using their new goalkeeper.

Emi Martínez started against Brighton barely 48 hours after arriving from Aston Villa for around £7.5m.

He made several important saves — and Xabi Alonso highlighted the experience and presence his new No.1 brings.

At that price?

This could prove outstanding business.

🟣 WATKINS → AL-HILAL: DONE

Ollie Watkins’ Aston Villa career is officially over.

Al-Hilal have completed the signing of the England striker for a reported £51m.

He leaves Villa after six years with 108 goals in all competitions and as their record Premier League goalscorer.

Morgan Rogers. Emi Martínez. Ezri Konsa. Youri Tielemans. Now Watkins.

This isn’t a refresh at Villa. It’s a rebuild.

⚫⚪ SUNDERLAND KEEP SURPRISING

Another story that deserves some attention.

Sunderland 1–0 Fulham.

Wilson Isidor got the winner as Sunderland responded to last weekend’s defeat at Ipswich with their first victory of the season.

After finishing seventh last season and qualifying for Europe, anyone expecting them to simply fade away might need to reconsider.

🌍 THE PRESSURE ON FIFA INTENSIFIES

This could become a major story.

The Dutch FA wants an international summit to completely overhaul FIFA and has called for Gianni Infantino to be replaced by 2027.

The KNVB says it has lost confidence in the FIFA president and wants structural reform rather than simply a change at the top.

Given everything already happening around FIFA governance…

this is becoming much bigger than one controversial deal.

⚽ TONIGHT: ASTON VILLA 🆚 ARSENAL

Villa’s new-look squad faces an immediate examination.

Arsenal arrive having won their opener comfortably, while Unai Emery is trying to integrate an enormous amount of change.

And after everything Villa have lost this summer?

Tonight should tell us quite a bit.

👀 PMR WATCH: DEADLINE DAY

The window closes at 11pm tomorrow.

Enzo Fernández. Cody Gakpo. Villa’s rebuild. Tottenham’s outgoings.

There are still some enormous decisions waiting to be made.

And this is usually the point where the market gets silly. 😅

📌 TODAY’S THEME: Two weeks ago, everyone was judging transfer windows.

Now we’re starting to judge football teams.

#PMR #PremierLeague #Football #TransferNews #MUFC #CFC #AVFC #SAFC #AFC

📲 Follow @_postmatch for daily football news, transfers and analysis.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

Copying this response to another post who also made the same mistake as you…

According to @StatmanDave , Tielemans covered more distance (11.9km) and created more chances (4) than any other player on the pitch vs. Ipswich Town.

So in fact, it was he that quite literally ran the midfield.

Mainoo had an excellent game though.

[The Post-Match Report @_postmatch]

@Toffeec7li @lauriewhitwell According to @StatmanDave , Tielemans covered more distance (11.9km) and created more chances (4) than any other player on the pitch vs. Ipswich Town.

So in fact, it was he that quite literally ran the midfield.

Mainoo had an excellent game though.