The Premier League’s Super Sunday clashes saw Nigerian duo Ola Aina and Wilfred Ndidi suffer defeats with their respective teams, Nottingham Forest and Leicester City.
Aina’s Forest fell 1-3 to Newcastle United at home, while Ndidi’s Leicester City were trounced 3-0 by Manchester United.
Despite these losses, the Super Eagles players will shift their focus to international duties in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying series.
The international break provides an opportunity for Aina and Ndidi to regroup and rediscover their form.
London derby
In the highly anticipated London derby, Chelsea and Arsenal shared the spoils with a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge.
The result keeps both teams in the top four heading into the international break.
Arsenal’s Gabriel Martinelli opened the scoring against the run of play, but Chelsea’s Pedro Neto equalised with a stunning strike from outside the penalty area.
Leandro Trossard missed a golden opportunity to seal the win for Chelsea in the final minutes, misfiring at point-blank range.
The draw satisfies neither side, but maintains Chelsea’s lead in the Premier League over Arsenal on goal difference.
Other matches
In the clash at Old Trafford, Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes marked his 250th appearance with a goal and two assists in their 3-0 victory over Leicester City.
Fernandes’ impressive performance will likely impress new manager Ruben Amorim, who takes charge during the international break.
Fernandes put United into the driving seat with a 17th-minute strike, following an eloquent flick by Amad Diallo.
He then contributed to the second goal, stooping to head Noussair Mazraoui’s cross, which resulted in an own goal by Leicester’s Victor Kristiansen.
Substitute Alejandro Garnacho sealed the points with a fine strike eight minutes from time.
In another surprising result, Ipswich Town stunned Tottenham Hotspur 2-1, securing their first Premier League victory in 22 years.
Ipswich will host Amorim’s Manchester United in two weeks, buoyed by this historic win.
Tottenham’s slow start at home proved costly, as Sammie Szmodics and Liam Delap scored for Ipswich.
Rodrigo Bentancur reduced the deficit, but Spurs fell to their fifth league defeat in 11 games, slipping to 10th in the standings.
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