LSTD Premiership Opening Day Live Text

Manchester City 3-3 Leicester City
Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-0 Southampton
Portsmouth 1-1 Arsenal
Aston Villa 2-2 Chelsea
Birmingham City 2-3 Stoke City
AFC Bournemouth 1-0 Hull City
Liverpool 2-1 Manchester United
Everton 1-2 Newcastle United


THE NEW PREMIER LEAGUE SEASON IS NOW UNDERWAY!

1" : An instant breakthrough at Molineux as Wolves, straight from the kick off, catch Southampton completely unawares. Bellerin soars down the right hand side of the pitch and delivers an inch perfect cross on to the head of Dzeko, who finishes calmly. 1-0!

2": Elsewhere, play is getting off to a tentative start in all but one game. The Manchester City v Leicester game has been fiery right from the kick off! Both teams are putting in some real man's man challenges and there has already been a minor scuffle between Rakitic and McCarthy after a less than savoury stamp on the Croat's ankle.

4": Down on the South Coast, Fud's Bournemouth side will be looking to atone for their unsuccessful campaign last time out. Fud has made some cracking introductions to his side but it is Hull City, the visitors, who are having the lion's share of possession. Kampl, in particular, is impressing.

5" CHANCE! The first chance of the fiery Midlands encounter goes to Stoke City. A superb maneuver by Pablo Piatti turns Srna inside out and he hands it on a silver platter to Icardi 6 yards out. Icardi, however, can only look on helpless as his deft flick manages to strike the wrong side of the far post and roll out of play.

6" : First yellow of the new season and it goes to Yaya Toure! The Man City players are already getting riled up at the in-your face approach of the Leicester City team and the Ivorian responds with an elbow to the face of Herrera. Could have been a red.

7": A roundup of the other early action, thus far. Portsmouth and Arsenal are playing out a scrappy affair, both midfields are being cancelled out. Aston Villa are working hard to keep Chelsea at bay, but the Blue tide keeps on pushing. Liverpool are comfortable soaking of pressure in their own half, Man Utd look devoid of options and Newcastle's early barrage is threatening to crack the Everton defence.

8" : I was just saying it, wasn't I? Newcastle have started this game on fire and the pace of Walcott and Sturridge has a lot to do with it. This time, a long ball up top bounces off Sturridge's back but it rolls rather fortuitously in to a space where Walcott can pick it up, pull it back and allow DS an easy tap in.

9" CHANCE! CHANCE! CHANCE! A busy minute across the grounds, it seems! In the City game, Leicester come close as Di Maria manages to find space for a shot - only the intervention of Cahill's head manages to steer it away from goal. In Birmingham, Edinson Cavani unleashes a piledriver from 40 yards that hits the wrong side of the netting and on the South Coast, Hull's possession pays off as Felipe Anderson breaks free of the defence, but his low drive is parried away confidently.

11" Goal at the Etihad! Well it has come against the run of play but you can't discount the quality of this City side! Eriksen works a bit of his magic to shake free of his old team mates before curling an effort in to the far corner from the edge of the box.

13" Sometimes his temper can get the better of him and this is one of those occasions. Paul Pogba loses out to Toni Kroos and swipes the German's legs from underneath him. Unnecessary.

14" Just as LSTD looks to be getting complacent, his side go 1 down! Eden Hazard looks like a one man team at times and he does here again - jinking past 5 different players before slotting through Ryan's legs. The keeper, perhaps, should have done better.

16": Almost! The big man up top Dzeko is like a one man wrecking ball today as he hammers in another header. This one narrowly evades the goal.

16": Speaking of wrecking balls, what happens when the Immovable Object meets the Unstoppable Force? That's what Cahill and Bony are looking to find out as they clatter in to each other time and time again. One of them has to break eventually, surely?

17" Chelsea may have been dominating possession but the tireless workers of Aston Villa are winning on the scoresheet after a quick breakaway leaves the Blues flat footed. Reus drives at the defence before playing a perfect through ball to Lacazette who chips the keeper and, just like that, Chelsea have it all to do!

19" CHANCE! Ooooh so unlucky for Leicester! Di Maria is having a superb time out on that right flank and this time his cross meets a rising Bony, only for his looping header to be palmed over the bar in spectacular fashion. Leicester are by no means down and out!

21" Everton fall further behind! This time, the creator Walcott turns scorer as he pounces on an errant ball before driving it low and hard across goal. Kivrak was absolutely helpless, there.

22": First real chance of the game at Portsmouth but it's almost an own goal! A looping corner evades everyone until it meets the head of Illaramendi. He tries to head it away but misjudges the ball and manages to strike his own post before hoofing to safety.

24" He's atoned for his earlier mistake, there! Pablo Piatti once again has the beating of Srna but this time his cross is wayward. Icardi, however, reacts beautifully and shifts his bodyweight before striking home a beautiful right footed volley.

25" And again! Birmingham attack from the kick off but they run in to trouble in midfield. Gabbiadini is sent running with the ball down the right and his cross takes a deflection off a defender, hits the post, rebounds of Icardi's shin and rolls in to the goal. Some luck that boy Rex is having!

26" We haven't forgotten about the action at the Etihad, which has been almost non-stop! Leicester City refuse to lie down, bombarding City's defence which just will not break. City, on the other hand, are looking very dangerous on the counter.

28" Updates down south: At Fratton Park, Arsenal are starting to calm the tempo of the game down. Content with keeping the score as it is. In Bournemouth, Hull look silky on the ball but there is very little end product against a solid midfield.

30" Leicester City have the equaliser their play has deserved and Di Maria has the goal he deserves! From a throw in, Di Maria collects and drops the shoulder to come inside. Instead of playing in to the centre, however, he spots a gap in the Man City line and bursts through it before hammering the ball in at the near post. Wonderful strike!

32" At Anfield, despite that blip, Liverpool are still looking confident and are playing some nice football, just with little end product against a stoic defence.
Birmingham, on the other hand, are having plenty of chances but must be cursing their luck. The game is not nearly as one sided as the scoreline suggests!

35" Penalty! Foolish from Hummels. He allows Benzema to roll around him with the ball and decides to pull him back in the box. Great chance for Arsenal.

36" Finished with some aplomb by Ronaldo

37" As we are nearing half time, lets get a round up of the action across the grounds.

The Etihad is seeing the most entertaining game so far. Both teams are playing a high line and are very aggressive in their pressing which is leading to tough tackles and plenty of opportunities.

Wolves are looking comfortable against Southampton. Have the Saints even turned up?

Going behind has inspired Portsmouth as their energetic midfield is beginning to take a hold of the game.

Villa are energetic and that is having a massive effect here. Chelsea are looking frustrated. In fact, Vidal has just been brandished a , too.

Birmingham are in the ascendancy. They have a lot to do to get back in to the game but they have a potent strike force.

Bournemouth are holding off Hull well. The Yorkshire Tigers are looking magical in possession, though.

Liverpool, inspired by tough words from LSTD, are starting to grab the game by the throat. Matic, too, has grabbed the game by the throat .

Everton, despite giving a really good go of it, look beaten now. Their possession game is causing Newcastle problems but how can they come back from this?

39" Earlier, I compared Bony and Cahill to the Irresistible Force and the Immovable Object. Well, the Irresistible Force has just destroyed the object in an aerial duel. Draxler's early cross had both contesting for it. Bony won the header, scored the goal, and gave Cahill a suspected broken nose.

41" At Anfield, Liverpool have put their midfield strength to good use as Matic goes in for three challenges in a row, wins them all, then plays the ball out to Griezmann. Griezmann has the beating of his man down the flanks and crosses the ball in low for Diego Costa. Costa gets in front of his man and taps the ball in.

At St Andrews, Birmingham have pulled one back and what a way to do it! A stray long ball finds it's way to Casillas who, rather than wait and catch the ball, rushes out and heads it away. Koulibaly challenges Cavani for it and the ball goes up in the air again. The Uruguayan shifts his weight and leathers the ball as it drops, whistling over the backtracking Casillas and completing a 35 yard wonderstrike!

43" CHANCE! Chelsea are not out of this yet by any means as Alexis weaves this way and that before unleashing a shot from the edge of the box. ter-Stegen gets down well to parry it on to the post and Shaw clears it.

44" Chance and a In the Everton game, Fred has put in one too many naughty challenges and comes away with a booking.
In the Villa game, Chelsea are very much on top as Neymar, Aguero and Sanchez continue to drive at Villa's threadbare defence. This time, it's Neymar's curling effort that goes narrowly over.

45" HT at Bournemouth, Everton and Manchester City.

45" A late chance for Man Utd before the whistle goes! Mandzukic has found himself isolated too often today but he manages to get on the end of a deep cross from Hazard. His header goes over, though, and the half time whistle goes. HT at Liverpool, Portsmouth and Wolves.

45+2" It has been coming for quite some time but Sergio Aguero has finally got the Chelsea equaliser. Typical, then, that it comes as a lapse in concentration from an otherwise solid Villa side. Smalling is caught in possession by the diminutive forward, who makes no mistake in netting the one-on-one opportunity. Half time there.

45+4" That leaves us with St Andrews. Where play is delayed due to a knock to Joao Moutinho.

45+8" Nothing comes of the additional minutes, despite plenty of effort from both sides. Half time across the country.

SECOND HALF

45" Once again, Newcastle fire straight out of the blocks and nearly catch Everton napping. More brilliant link up play between Sturridge and Walcott leads to a chance for the former to put the game beyond the Toffees. However, he fluffs his lines and Kivrak collects.

46" Well it didn't take long for Chelsea to get in front. Sanchez is the assisting player as he feeds through Neymar. Neymar beats Shaw for pace and drives his shot across the face of goal. Things are looking up for Fan.

48" And just like that, it's game over! Dzeko once again meeting a cross, but this time from Monreal, as he towers over the Southampton defence and finishes the fixture.

49" McCarthy has been walking a thin line with his challenging and he is finally booked.

50" At Anfield, the game has devolved in to a kicking contest between Strootman, Nainggolan, Kondogbia and Matic. All three are booked, the big Serb escapes without further punishment.

51" More terrific action at the Eithad. This game has started as it finished, with brilliant end to end play. Bony's shot rattles the bar at one end and the ball goes all the way up the pitch for Kane to do the exact same! A great exhibit of the Premier League!

52" Hull City and Bournemouth are continuing in the same vein as well. Hull are looking pretty on the ball, Bournemouth are looking industrious.

53" Equaliser at Fratton Park! Jesus Navas makes the most of the space that he is afforded to bomb down the wing. The Arsenal defence is all over the place as Navas cuts the ball back and the onrushing Lewandowski finds himself with a clear sight of goal. He smashes the ball in to the roof of the goal.

45" Do not adjust your monitors, the time is correct. The Birmingham City match restarts a little later due to the delayed finish and Birmingham come out roaring. Berardi charges down the flanks, cuts inside and takes a shot which Casillas can only parry as far as Cavani. Cavani strikes but Casillas makes a brilliant reaction save. However, Hamsik is there on the rebound and buries it. Third time lucky.

55" After weathering yet another onslaught, Everton are once again looking good in possession. They are finding some good passes but they just can't break through the Newcastle defence.

57" Manchester City are starting to come out on top now as Leicester being to tire. They've performed admirably but can they keep it up?

59" Damn right they can! It's that man Bony, again. He's got the beating of Cahill today, but this time not in the air. Herrera runs up with the ball and plays it in to Bony's feet. Bony spins with it, nutmegs Cahill and slots the ball in to the corner of the goal.

60" It's looking a little desperate for Arsenal, now. Half their team seem to be playing once style, the other half another and the manager is shouting out entirely different tactics. It's a miracle that Pompey having taken the lead yet!

62" Whoever thought the favourites going in front would put the game to bed certainly didn't tell Villa! They have shades of Leicester City about them as the press high up in great numbers and have forced a lot of uncharacteristic mistakes out of Chelsea's midfield 3. A little too tenacious, through. As Khedira goes in the book.

64" A couple of chances around the grounds. Turan buries a shot in to the side netting, Rossi chips a lovely through ball narrowly over and Llorente holds up play well before miscuing his shot and blazing it over.

66" The come back is on! Harry Kane, off the back of a brilliant breakthrough season, finds himself on the end of a weighted through ball from Eriksen. The young English striker makes no mistakes with this gift and calmly tucks it in to the goal. Goals galore!

67" It may be getting a little forgotten because of the ease of the fixture but Wolves are looking, once again, like a force to be reckoned with. They are organised and play for each other. It's a pleasure to see.

59" In the late restart, things are beginning to mellow out at 2-2. Neither team seems willing to take the risk.

70" Substitutions: Clasie on for Höjbjerg; Balottelli on for Toure; Jese for Draxler; Inler for De Rossi; Salah for Cavani; Negredo for Martinez; Perez for Nasri; Iturraspe for Grenier; De Bruyne for Khedira; Asamoah for Navas; Oscar for Coutinho; Rodrigo for Perez; Mata for Nainggolan; Gabriel for Rossi

71" Goal! Instant impact for Gabriel Barbosa! Superb interplay with Lamela leaves him through on goal against the goalkeeper. He sells the keeper with a fake shot, rounds and slots in to the empty goal. Game on!

73" It's at Villa Park and it's Marco Reus! That man Kevin De Buryne is at it again. On the pitch for 3 minutes and he's already notched up an assist! A curving through ball from out wide carves open the Chelsea defence and Reus has no problems sticking it away!

75" Coquelin for Modric; Guilavogui for Toulalan; Garcia and Mitrovic for Griezmann and Aubameyang; Krychowiak for Schweinsteiger; Coman for Turan; Vela for Koke; Welbeck for Hernandez; James for Marchisio; Morata for Aguero

77" The introduction of Coquelin and Krychowiak in the Pompey v Arsenal game has effectively ended the likelihood of either team snatching a winner. Both seem willing to settle for a draw.

79" There's still everything to play for in the Liverpool v United game. A repeat of the Europa League semi-final from last year, both teams are desperate to show that they've improved since then. It's a very open game!

81" Well not any more, it isn't! LSTD's faith in Raul Garcia once again pays off as he brings down a high ball and practically fights Man Utd's entire midfield for control of it. Eventually, he manages to get a pass away and finds none other than Diego Costa, hungry and in space, who rifles the ball in to the top corner from 23 metres out. Liverpool will undoubtedly shut up shop now!

82" A red card! The Bournemouth v Hull game has managed to escape most of the attention today but it's firmly in the spotlight now! Hull looked comfortable on the ball but a misplaced pass by Kampl allowed Bournemouth to break. They did just that, and with some speed, with Kranevitter finding himself as the last line of defence. He tried to make the tackle on Schneiderlin but clipped his ankle instead. Outside the area but a red nonetheless. Hull will be kicking themselves that they didn't put this one away earlier.

83" Well that is quite special! The resulting free kick is taken by Cabaye and he curls it right over the wall and the ball nestles in to the bottom right hand corner (keeper's perspective). An absolutely superb free kick and quite a way to make the breakthrough!

85" A few games look like they are drifting towards the final whistle now. That is not the case at the Etihad, St Andrews or Villa Park, though. Those are still all action!

86" CHANCE! Oooh, Chelsea almost claim it near the end of the match. The super sub Morata picks the ball up at the half way line and rushes towards goal. He jinks left and right, beats three players but his well struck daisy cutter flashes wide. I don't think ter-Stegen would have got there!

87" Goal for Leicester!!! NO, IT'S OFFSIDE! Bony thought he'd got his hat trick there, picking up on a smart cut back by Di Maria. The Argentinian winger, however, was adjudged to have been offside when the pass was made by Herrera. City take the free kick quickly.

89" Oh lord they've done it! City take their free kick quickly and race up the field without a second to spare. They catch Leicester on the back foot and some brilliant passing play leads to Balotelli collecting the ball. Balotelli swivels and sets himself for a piledriver but it's just a juke! He cuts past Manolas and hits and unstoppable drive in to the roof of the net. 3-3! WHAT A GAME!

90" Full time around all the grounds except at St Andrews. 8 minutes to go there!

83" It's end to end action at St Andrews. Has been all game, save for a brief lull. A quick look at the statistics shows 25 shots with 11 on target for Birmingham, 13 shots with 9 on target for Stoke. The crowd are loving it.

86" CLOSE! Oh Mohammed Salah, what are you doing? A breakaway from Birmingham finds him through on goal but he completely mishits his shot and falls over. He wrong foots the keeper but sees the ball bobble just wide

Rex must be thanking his luck there!

89" That man has a mercurial touch, I'm sure of it. Who the heck is providing this luck for him? The game looks as good as Birmingham's until a freak occurrence happens. A hopeful hoof upfield by Stoke falls down to Garay, who looks to nod it back to his keeper. Except he isn't there! Only Joe Hart will be able to explain why he was standing 10 yards wide of his goal but it won't matter much as he and the rest of the Birmingham players looked on in utter disbelief as the ball bounced in to the empty goal. The Stoke fans are ecstatic, but Birmingham have been hard done by.

90+2" And as the full time whistle goes, that's your lot for the opening week of action in the LSTD Barclays Premier League. I hope you've enjoyed yourself and this live thread.

Congratulations to the winner, commiserations to the losers and a thank you to the dullards who played out draws.