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Alex Iwobi and Calvin Bassey avoided opening-day defeat after Fulham struck deep into stoppage time to draw 1-1 with Brighton at the Amex Stadium on Saturday.
The Nigerian duo featured in a dramatic contest that kept the London side from starting the season empty-handed.
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Brighton looked set for victory after Matt O’Reilly converted a penalty early in the second half, sending Bernd Leno the wrong way following a foul by Sander Berge on Georginio Rutter.
Bassey completed the full match, while Iwobi was replaced in the 66th minute as Fulham pressed for an equaliser.
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Kenny Tete missed a good chance, and Emile Smith Rowe went close with a deflected strike.
The breakthrough finally came in the 96th minute when Rodrigo Muniz reacted quickest to Harry Wilson’s corner, firing home to rescue a point for Fulham and send their travelling fans wild.
Man City begin title chase in style
At Molineux, Manchester City began their bid to reclaim the Premier League crown from champions Liverpool with a commanding 4-0 win over Wolves.
Erling Haaland picked up where he left off, scoring twice to continue his remarkable streak of netting on every Premier League opening weekend since joining City.
His tally of seven opening-day goals ranks behind only Mohamed Salah (10) and a handful of all-time greats including Alan Shearer, Jamie Vardy and Wayne Rooney.
New City signing Tijjani Reijnders also impressed with a goal and an assist, while French youngster Rayan Cherki also got on the scoresheet just seven minutes into his debut, becoming the club’s second-youngest debut scorer in the league.
Elsewhere in the Premier League, newly promoted Sunderland marked their top-flight return with a stunning 3-0 victory over West Ham United at the Stadium of Light. Tottenham also put behind their Super Cup heartache as they cruised past Burnley 3-0 in North London.
The early kick-off between Aston Villa and Newcastle United ended goalless in a cagey contest at Villa Park.
READ ALSO: How Nigeria can use sports to solve youth unemployment – Fashola
Sunday’s Fixtures
Action continues in the Premier League on Sunday, with the standout clash seeing Manchester United host Arsenal at Old Trafford in what promises to be a fiery Super Sunday showdown.
There is also a London derby at Stamford Bridge where Chelsea welcome Crystal Palace, while the Nigerian duo of Ola Aina and Taiwo Awoniyi will be aiming for a bright start to the season as Nottingham Forest play host to Brentford.
