Morgan Rogers saluted Aston Villa's quick response to falling behind early on after his side came back to beat Fulham 3-1.
Rogers scored the equaliser after nine minutes to get the visitors back on level terms after Raul Jimenez had put Fulham ahead early at Craven Cottage.
Ollie Watkins's header and Issa Diop's own goal in the second half secured the win that moved Unai Emery's side into fourth on 17 points, only behind Arsenal and Manchester City on goal difference.
Rogers lauded how important the quick response was to taking all three points in London.
"It was massive to respond how we did so quickly. It helped settle the nerves and we were generally playing well and to get it so quick did help," he told PLP.
"They scored in the first five minutes, but we knuckled down after that and we dominated pretty much most of the game. We should have scored a few more, but in the second half we put our foot on the gas, and we deserved the win.
"After the international break you start fresh with a clean slate and to get the win is massive. We have an important week and it's just the start of it."
While level at 1-1, Emiliano Martinez saved Andreas Pereira's penalty to keep Villa in the game after Matty Cash had handled the ball in the box.
"That's why [Martinez] is the best. That's what he does. If it goes 2-1 anything can happen in the game," praised Rogers.
Fulham's Kenny Tete emphasised the defeat rested on more than the penalty miss on what proved to be a wasteful day for the hosts.
"It happened and you have to push for more - it is what it is. [At] half-time, we changed the game-plan, it was a bit better. Then it goes 2-1 and you know it is going to be difficult," he reflected.
"We could have had a bit more luck, but I don't want to point to that. It wasn't our day and we could have done better. We can look in the mirror and we have to do better and train harder. Frustrated."
Fulham had the better expected goals (xG) total at full-time with 1.78, compared to Villa’s 1.68, though this was impacted by their penalty.
The hosts also had to play 26 minutes of the match with 10 players after Joachim Andersen received his marching orders, while Villa also saw Jaden Philogene dismissed in the 93rd minute.
"Obviously a disappointed feeling. I think we started well. Then we were unlucky with the own goal. But, we get a penalty and we didn't score it. It was going to be a difficult afternoon," added Tete.
Juventus 1-0 Lazio: Late Gila own goal breaks 10-man visitors' resistance
Mario Gila's late own goal handed Juventus a 1-0 home win against 10-man Lazio in Saturday's Serie A clash.
Gila edged Juventus in front in the 85th minute when he attempted to block Juan Cabal's cross, diverting past his own goalkeeper Ivan Provedel instead.
Lazio had battled hard for over an hour after defender Alessio Romagnoli was sent off for a last-man tackle on Pierre Kalulu.
The referee initially failed to deem Romagnoli's challenge as a foul, though a VAR review saw Juve awarded a free-kick and veteran centre-back Romagnoli dismissed.
Victory leaves unbeaten Juventus second on 16 points, level with leaders Napoli and two points above third-placed Inter Milan, who both have a game in hand.
Data Debrief: Defence key for magic Motta
Motta's strong start to his Bianconeri tenure has been built on a remarkable defence, with Juve only conceding once in the league through their first eight Serie A matches.
That is the fewest goals Juve have ever conceded through as many league matches to start the campaign, bettering the two in the 1966-67, 1986-87, 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons.
This win may have come as no surprise, too, considering Juve have beaten Lazio 87 times in the competition, their most against one opponent in history (also level with Inter).
'An accident waiting to happen' - Arteta rues Saliba's red card
William Saliba's red card marked Arsenal's third dismissal in just eight Premier League games, leaving Mikel Arteta frustrated by the mistakes that led to their 2-0 defeat to Bournemouth.
The France centre-back was sent off following a VAR review in the 30th minute for bringing down Evanilson and denying him a goalscoring opportunity.
Despite digging in, Arsenal were unable to maintain their unbeaten start, as Ryan Christie and Justin Kluivert's second-half goals subjected them to a first defeat of the season.
It is the first campaign since 2011-12 that the Gunners have had as many as three players sent off in their opening eight matches of a Premier League season.
In fact, since Arteta's first game in charge of Arsenal on Boxing Day 2019, they have been shown 18 red cards in the top flight, at least five more than any other side.
While they managed to hold onto results against Brighton and Manchester City after going down to 10, Arteta admitted it was going to cost them eventually.
"It's very difficult to win in the Premier League with 10 men for 60-70 minutes, it's just an accident waiting to happen. We have had to go through it in three games and that cost us the game," he told BBC Match of the Day.
"We had the big chance and the moment in the game to score and have a different result, and then we conceded a goal. We try to stick to the rules. The three [red cards] have been different ones and three very different outcomes.
"The team tried, the effort with 10 men was fantastic, but today it was not enough to win the game. It took us a while to understand what we had to do in the first 15 minutes to start with, then we grabbed the game, but after 30 minutes, the game changed."
Bournemouth secured just their second-ever Premier League victory over Arsenal in 15 meetings, and their first since January 2018, when they won 2-1.
Andoni Iraola's substitutes did the damage for the Cherries, with Kluivert both scoring and assisting in a Premier League game for the first time.
Iraola was delighted by the maturity shown in his team's performance as they bounced back from a disappointing loss to Leicester City before the break.
"It was quite a mature win because it is a tricky situation [playing against 10 men]," Iraola told Sky Sports.
"We started well for the first 30 minutes and then the red card changes the game. We had to control the game, attack but not lose our minds, as even with 10 men, set plays, free-kicks they could be a threat. Luckily for us, we took the benefit of having one man more.
"Before half-time, we missed a couple of chances and at the beginning of the second half we managed not to finish, so we had to have patience to take the benefit of having one more player without losing our heads.
"We were playing very well the first 30 minutes. It was a very level game, which is very good when you face this opposition. It became easier with 11 v 10 but everything is not done, you have to finish the job, and we did it."
Girona 0-1 Real Sociedad: Oyarzabal seals away win
Girona's indifferent start to their LaLiga campaign continued as they slipped down to 13th following a 1-0 loss to Real Sociedad.
Coming off a gutsy victory over Athletic Bilbao, last season's surprise package Girona have failed to string consecutive wins together this term and have 12 points from 10 league games.
The visitors went ahead when captain Mikel Oyarzabal headed home Ander Barrenetxea's cross from the left for his first goal of the season.
Arnaut Danjuma had some presentable opportunities to restore parity, but the former Villarreal, Tottenham and Everton forward failed to bury any of his three shots.
Indeed, without Bryan Gil and Yaser Asprilla, who were injured, Girona failed to test La Real too much, accumulating only 0.38 expected goals (xG) from their eight attempts as they slumped to a fourth league defeat of the season.
Data Debrief: La Real continue to get the better of Girona
Girona have played more games against La Real without winning (P9 D6 L3) than they have against any other opponent in LaLiga.
Indeed, La Real have not lost any of their last five games against Girona in all competitions (D3 W2).
Girona boss Michel has managed eight games in all competitions against La Real without a win, too.
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