The best stats from Saturday's Premier League action
Sunday 12 August 2018 11:17, UK
We take a look at five killer stats from Saturday’s Premier League fixtures – including Richarlison’s instant impact for Everton.
Richarlison was the hero as 10-man Everton claimed a 2-2 draw against much-fancied Wolves at Molineux. The Brazilian, a £40m signing from Watford in the summer, found the net with his first two shots for Everton having failed to score with any of his last 53 shots as a Watford player.
It was a perfect start after a big-money transfer which raised plenty of eyebrows. Richarlison shone in the first half of last season at Watford but struggled badly after that. The fee seemed high after such a dramatic loss of form, but following a summer off, the 21-year-old looks sharper than ever under his old mentor Marco Silva.
Maurizio Sarri's Chelsea were outclassed in last weekend's Community Shield against Manchester City, but they kicked off their Premier League season with a commanding 3-0 win over Huddersfield. It was the largest margin of victory under a new manager since 2008, when Luiz Felipe Scolari oversaw a 4-0 win over Portsmouth.
N'Golo Kante, new signing Jorginho and Pedro were the scorers at the John Smith's Stadium, with Sarri insisting there is a lot more to come from his side after the game. It seems Chelsea supporters have plenty to be excited about.
Wilfried Zaha picked up where he left off last season, putting a summer of transfer speculation behind him and netting his 23rd Premier League goal for Crystal Palace in their 2-0 win over Fulham, making him the club's joint-highest scorer in the competition along with Chris Armstrong.
Brighton finished last season on a high, beating Manchester United at the Amex Stadium as they clinched survival with two games to spare, but their away form remains a serious cause for concern.
Chris Hughton's side were listless in their 2-0 defeat to Watford, and are now without a win in their last 14 Premier League away games - the longest such run of any side in the division. "We've got a lot of work to do," conceded Hughton afterwards.
Wolves' starting line-up against Everton was dominated by their high-profile signings, but there was still room for long-serving full-back Matt Doherty. It was the second Premier League appearance of the 26-year-old's career but came 2,513 days after his first - as a half-time substitute in a 2-1 defeat to Liverpool in September 2011.
In the history of the Premier League, only two outfield players have had a longer wait for their second appearances. Darren Pratley waited 2,835 days, while Erik Nevland waited 3,667 days. Doherty will be hoping to add to his tally over the course of the campaign.
