The signs of the times were everywhere. The minute of silence for the victims of the COVID-19 pandemic that had halted the Premier League for more than three months. All of the players and referees on the field taking a knee in support of Black Lives Matter; the jerseys bearing that creed as well, in place of the players’ names. And then there were, of course, the jitters and miskicks we’ve seen all over Europe as soccer teams that spent months sitting at home got back to playing.
Otherwise, things weren’t much different as the world’s most popular sports league resumed in earnest Wednesday when Manchester City beat Arsenal 3-0, following the earlier dud between Aston Villa and Sheffield United.