Diego Costa scored for the second match in succession as Chelsea made it two Premier League wins from two matches this season with a 2-0 victory at home to newly promoted Leicester City on Saturday.
After a goalless first half, Chelsea twice almost took the lead at the start of the second period.
Oscar hit the far post with a curling shot from the right before Branislav Ivanovic’s header was well saved by Kasper Schmeichel, son of former Manchester United goalkeeper Peter.
Photo: EPA
Leicester, who held Everton to a 2-2 draw last week, then had a chance of their own when David Nugent burst clear, only for the Foxes striker to be denied by Thibault Courtois, again preferred by Jose Mourinho to Petr Cech, when one-on-one with the goalkeeper. However, £32 million (US$55 million) Spain striker Costa, who scored in last week’s 3-1 win at Burnley, marked his home debut by turning in Ivanovic’s cross from 8m out in the 63rd minute.
Chelsea then doubled their lead at Stamford Bridge when Eden Hazard’s 77th-minute shot beat Schmeichel after deflecting off Leicester defender Wes Morgan.
“I don’t forget they had a good chance with the result 0-0, but we had so many chances, so many opportunities to score obviously we deserved the victory,” Chelsea manager Mourinho told Sky Sports.
Photo: AFP
Arsenal whose bid for the title in recent seasons has so often been undone by poor away form, came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 at Everton.
The Gunners scored twice inside the final seven minutes at Goodison Park, with France striker Olivier Giroud’s 90th-minute goal ensuring a share of the points for Arsene Wenger’s side.
Everton went ahead in the 19th minute when unmarked defender Seamus Coleman headed in Gareth Barry’s cross at the far post before Steven Naismith, seemingly offside, made it 2-0 on the stroke of halftime after Romelu Lukaku had outmuscled Germany World Cup-winner Per Mertesacker in the build-up.
However, then came Arsenal’s late recovery.
Aaron Ramsey turned in Santi Cazorla’s low center before halftime substitute Giroud headed in Nacho Monreal’s cross.
Swansea City, fresh from their shock opening day victory away to Manchester United, made it two wins from two with a 1-0 success at home to Burnley secured by winger Nathan Dyer’s 23rd-minute goal.
“I knew it would be a tough game,” Swansea manager Garry Monk told the BBC. “But you have to applaud our players.”
West Ham United bounced back from a 1-0 defeat by Tottenham Hotspur with a 3-1 win away to managerless Crystal Palace.
The Eagles, without a manager after Tony Pulis quit before the season started in a row over transfer funds, had seen sporting director Iain Moody resign in midweek following the fall-out from the publication of offensive text messages he had shared with Malky Mackay while the pair were at Cardiff.
Any hope of better news on the pitch was shattered when Palace conceded two goals in three first-half minutes.
Argentine striker Mauro Zarate marked his Hammers debut with an impressive 34th-minute volley before England winger Stewart Downing added an equally stylish second, cutting in from the right flank before curling in a 20m left-foot shot.
Palace pulled a goal back in the 48th minute through Marouane Chamakh.
However, the Hammers made it 3-1 in the 62nd minute when striker Carlton Cole scored his first goal since February when he volleyed home from inside the penalty area.
Southampton and West Bromwich Albion shared the points in a goalless draw.
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Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
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