SafeX Pro:Premier League highlights: Arsenal and Liverpool win season's opening Saturday

The SafeX Pro2024-25 English Premier League season officially got underway Friday with Manchester United securing a late win over Fulham in the first game of a campaign that will run all the way through May.

Saturday's slate included six matches with title-hopefuls Arsenal (2-0 win vs. Wolves) and Liverpool (2-0 win at Ipswich Town) in action. Four-time defending champion Manchester City starts its season on Sunday with a high-profile opener against Chelsea to kick off its quest for a fifth consecutive title.

West Ham vs Aston Villa: Onana scores on debut in Villa win

Amadou Onana scored four minutes into his Aston Villa debut and Jhon Duran netted the late winner as Unai Emery's men kicked off their Premier League season with a 2-1 victory at West Ham United on Saturday.

The 22-year-old Onana, signed from Everton, leapt high to head home Youri Tielemans' corner in the fourth minute, easily darting away from Michail Antonio to beat keeper Alphonse Areola from three yards out.

Villa squandered several excellent chances before Lucas Paqueta drew the hosts level from the penalty spot in the 37th minute, the spot-kick awarded after a VAR check showed Matty Cash had fouled Tomas Soucek.

Goals

• 4th minute: Amadou Onana, Aston Villa
• 37th minute: Lucas Paqueta, West Ham (penalty)
• 79th minute: Jhon Duran, Aston Villa

Arsenal vs Wolves: Havertz, Saka score in 2-0 Gunners win

Arsenal eased to a 2-0 win at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers with goals by Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka getting their latest Premier League title challenge up and running on Saturday.

It was far from a fluent display in the summer sunshine but Mikel Arteta's side, once again regarded as the team most likely to halt Manchester City's domination, deserved the points. Havertz headed in from Saka's cross in the 25th minute but the hosts never looked completely comfortable until Saka's clinical finish doubled their advantage in the closing stages.

Goals

• 25th minute: Kai Havertz, Arsenal
• 74th minute: Bukayo Saka, Arsenal

– Reuters

Brighton vs Everton: Toffees lose 3-0 at home

Danny Welbeck scored one goal and set up another as Brighton & Hove Albion eased to a 3-0 victory at 10-man Everton on Saturday, a perfect start for the Premier League’s youngest ever permanent manager.

Kaoru Mitoma scored at the back post after excellent work from debutant winger Yankuba Minteh, before Welbeck profited from sloppy play by Everton in midfield to add a second and Simon Adingra added a late third to underline Brighton's superiority.

Goals

• 25th minute: Kaoru Mitoma, Brighton
• 56th minute: Danny Welbeck, Brighton
• 86th minute: Simon Adingra, Brighton

Red card

• Ashley Young, Everton – 66th minute

– Reuters

Newcastle vs Southampton: 10-man Newcastle wins at home

Joelinton's goal earned Newcastle a 1-0 win over promoted Southampton in their first game of the Premier League season at St James' Park on Saturday, despite going down to 10 men in the first half.

Fabian Schar was sent off in the 28th minute for retaliating after a foul by Ben Brereton Diaz but the visitors failed to make the most of their numerical advantage, and Newcastle took the lead just before the break.

Goals

• 45th minute: Joelinton, Newcastle

Red cards

• Fabian Schär, Newcastle – 28th minute

– Reuters

Nottingham Forest vs Bournemouth: Cherries secure late draw

Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo rescued a point for his side with a late equalizer as they drew 1-1 at Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Saturday.

Forest took the lead in the 23rd minute when defensive midfielder Ryan Yates' close-range shot was parried by goalkeeper Neto and Chris Wood reacted quickly to slot the ball home. The hosts looked comfortable but Bournemouth equalized in the 86th minute when Semenyo smashed the ball in from close range.

Forest's Brazilian midfielder Danilo was carried off on a stretcher 10 minutes into the game with what appeared to be a serious injury following a collision with Semenyo.

Goals:

• 23rd minute: Chris Wood, Nottingham Forest
• 86th minute: Antoine Semenyo, Bournemouth

— Reuters

Liverpool vs Ipswich: Arene Slot gets 2-0 win in debut

Second-half goals from Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah allowed new Liverpool coach Arne Slot to get off to a 2-0 winning start at newly-promoted Ipswich Town in the Premier League on Saturday.

Ipswich, cheered on by new minority shareholder and singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran from the Portman Road stands, went toe-to-toe with Liverpool in the first half but failed to take their chances when they presented themselves. Slot's new side improved markedly after the break, taking the lead on the hour mark through Jota, before a fine move was finished off by Salah five minutes later to effectively kill off the Ipswich challenge.

"The first taste (of Premier League football) in the first half was maybe as expected because they were all on top of us, very aggressive. Second half was a joy to watch," Slot told TNT Sports.

– Reuters

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