Biggest Winners and Losers From Premier League Week 1

The first weekend of Premier League football is in the books and there were some major takeaways.

Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United each backed up their title ambitions with strong showings in their opening matches, while Manchester City struggled against Tottenham despite Jack Grealish’s debut for the club.

Meanwhile, two of the three newcomers won their first matches back in the Premier League, including Brentford -- who stunned Arsenal with a 2-0 victory at home.

Watford also picked up a PL win in their return with a 3-2 win against Aston Villa.

Here’s a look back at the biggest winners and losers from Week 1 of the Premier League season.

Manchester United

There’s little debate that United won the opening weekend in every sense of the phrase. The Red Devils were absolutely dominant against a strong Leeds side and Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes exemplified just how dangerous United’s attack can be this season once Jadon Sancho gets settled.

Trevoh Chalobah

Chelsea reportedly has been shopping for Sevilla defender Jules Kounde all summer, but perhaps a center back isn’t in the cards for the Blues as Chalobah’s rise continues. In both the team’s UEFA Super Cup and Premier League matches, it’s easy to argue Chalobah was one of the best players on the pitch. He commands respect at the defensive end and also possesses the ball extremely well moving forward.

Brentford

The Bees were buzzing after a dream start in their first Premier League match in over 74 years. Brentford’s incredible atmosphere and supporters were equally matched by the play of their squad against one of England’s premier teams. Even without Ivan Toney scoring in his first Premier League match, Brentford looked more than competent going forward and they certainly made life uncomfortable for Arsenal at the back.

Arsenal

The Gunners were without two star attackers in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette, but that still doesn’t excuse their poor showing against newcomers Brentford. The Bees held their own at home and raised serious questions about Mikel Arteta’s side, especially on the defensive end after spending a significant sum on Ben White this summer.

Jack Grealish

The former Aston Villa man struggled to find a rhythm in his Man City debut, and obviously that’ll change given Grealish’s immense talent. In his debut, Grealish forced one shot out of Hugo Lloris and was largely ineffective otherwise.

Leeds’ Backline

Marcelo Bielsa has instilled a unique and fast-paced attacking approach at Leeds that fans have become accustomed to enjoying, however, the team still struggles to defend. Last season, the team’s defending was the one thing that held them back from finishing higher up in the table, and after allowing five goals to Man United in their opener it’s difficult to see things improving for Leeds any time soon.