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A far from vintage Premier League weekend ended with Liverpool securing another late win and Manchester City earning local bragging rights over United.
There was also derby delight for Tottenham and Bournemouth on Saturday, while Arsenal beat old foe Ange Postecoglou in his first match in charge of Nottingham Forest.
Below is a piece on analysis on each of the 20 clubs (in reverse table order)…
This weekend’s results
Saturday
Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest
Bournemouth 2-1 Brighton
Brentford 2-2 Chelsea
Crystal Palace 0-0 Sunderland
Everton 0-0 Aston Villa
Fulham 1-0 Leeds
Newcastle 1-0 Wolves
West Ham 0-3 Tottenham
Sunday
Burnley 0-1 Liverpool
Man City 3-0 Man Utd
Wolves pay for a lack of ambition
Wolves began last season with seven defeats in their first eight league games and didn’t get their first win until November. History is in danger of repeating itself with Vitor Pereira’s side losing their first four games.
As was the case 12 months ago, Wolves are struggling to adapt quickly after losing key players over the summer transfer window. Matheus Cunha, Rayan Ait-Nouri and Nelson Semedo departed this year after Pedro Neto and Max Kilman moved on the one before.
Eventually, a patched-up team started to pick up results and points in 2024-25, but is there enough quality in this squad to do so again in 2025-26? Recruitment was uninspiring and late. It looks like Wolves’ weakest squad since promotion in 2018.
Wolves face Leeds, Burnley and Sunderland in their next five games in what already looks a pivotal period in their season.
Goalless Aston Villa set unwanted record
Aston Villa’s goalless streak this season extended to a fourth game. They are the only club in the top seven tiers of English football who are yet to score.
Clearly Villa had an imperfect summer. Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio left and were only replaced on deadline day by Jadon Sancho and Harvey Elliott.
This may be a stretch to say about a player who has played 24 minutes in a Villa shirt, but is Elliott already Unai Emery’s most important player?
John McGinn, a central midfielder and Emi Buendia, who was loaned out in January, played out wide against Everton. Things aren’t clicking for Morgan Rogers and Ollie Watkins.
Can Elliott add some unpredictability into Villa’s frontline? Emery will certainly hope so if others continue to struggle.
Two West Ham concerns for Potter
Two things in particular will greatly concern Graham Potter. The first is West Ham’s complete inability to deal with set-pieces. Pape Matar Sarr had the freedom of the east end to nod Spurs in front from a corner, after Cristian Romero had been unfortunate to have an earlier effort ruled out.
The Hammers have conceded six times from set plays already this season, which is three times more than any other Premier League team. Without wishing to pummel a man while he’s down, it’s hard to think of a summer signing who has endured as tough a start with their new club as Mads Hermansen.
Secondly, they are conceding goals in clusters. Spurs scored all three goals in a 17-minute blitz. Sunderland netted three in half an hour on the opening day. Chelsea scored three in 19 first-half minutes and two in four second-half minutes. Wolves scored in the 82nd and 84th minutes in the Carabao Cup.
When West Ham concede they seem to become instantly more fragile. Heads drop far too easily and opponents are sensing that vulnerability.
A moment of madness costs Burnley
Before the international break, Burnley were level with Manchester United deep into added time, before conceding a needless penalty to throw away a precious point. In their first game back, they did exactly the same thing against Liverpool.
Hannibal Mejri turned his back on Jeremie Frimpong’s cross without tucking his arm in and could have no complaints about the award. He didn’t even plead his innocence, but stood head in hands, lamenting his choices.
Burnley’s fate may not be defined by results against United or Liverpool, but chucking away points isn’t going to help their cause. They should be in mid-table, not just above the drop-zone.
Leeds’s lack of goals is a big worry
Here’s a captain obvious take: if you don’t score any goals, you’re going to struggle to stay in the Premier League.
Leeds have gone three matches without one and have only scored once all season, a penalty from Felix Nmecha against Everton on the opening weekend.
The frustrating thing is that Leeds are doing a lot of other things well. Ignore the 5-0 thrashing to Arsenal and they have conceded just once in their other three, an own goal by Gabriel Gudmundsson at Craven Cottage.
They are managing to have a decent number of shots (10.75 per game) but are really struggling to force saves with enough of them. Their total of seven shots on target is the lowest in the league.
Can Ange really change Forest that quickly?
Saturday was a bit of a free hit for Ange Postecoglou considering he only had one training session with his new team before taking on Arsenal.
Postecoglou has vowed to implement his style of play quickly, though, saying afterwards: “I can’t afford to waste time, this is not a project.”
It was a bullish statement and it will be interesting to see whether or not Forest’s players are able to adapt to his methods quickly given how differently they were set up under his predecessor.
Across the last two Premier League campaigns, Forest ranked 19th for both possession and PPDA (passes per defensive action, a metric that measures pressing intensity). Spurs ranked fifth and first in those respective charts.
The end of Man Utd’s Bruno experiment?
I wrote after United’s draw against Fulham that the Bruno Fernandes central midfield experiment wasn’t getting anywhere near the best out of the playmaker.
That remains the case and I wonder whether Ruben Amorim has accepted that it is no longer a viable option, particularly in big games.
Fernandes played the best part of an hour in that position alongside Manuel Ugarte, up against three City midfielders, including the reigning Ballon d’Or winner. Is it any wonder he and United struggled to gain a foothold?
Amorim’s rigidity is holding them back. The squad is not suited to his 3-4-2-1 formation and yet he has no inclination to change it. This is starting to feel a little doomed…
Minteh a bright spark for Brighton
Brighton were a long way from their best at Bournemouth, trailing in all of the key metrics: xG, shots, shots on target, possession.
And yet, they will feel hard done by to have lost. Both of Bournemouth’s goals were contentious. Maxim De Cuyper was off the pitch injured as Alex Scott fired the Cherries in front and Jan-Paul Van Hecke was unlucky to be penalised for the penalty scored by Antoine Semenyo.
Too many Seagulls had an off day, but Yankuba Minteh’s performance was good. The Gambian set up Kaoru Mitoma’s equaliser, had three shots and completed two dribbles.
With Brighton struggling for goals from centre forward, Minteh and Mitoma will need to continue chipping in.
Brentford’s long throws reap rewards
“I think there’s a little bit of snobbery in the game around scenarios like that but if the big boys do it, it seems to be accepted.”
Keith Andrews might have had a point about long throws, which have crept back into fashion across the top-flight but been an attacking staple of Brentford’s for many years. Since August last year, they have scored seven Premier League goals from long throws, five more than any other team.
Thomas Gronnemark, the renowned throw-in expert, who previously worked with Brentford, is adamant that there exist “world-class” throw-in takers in the game: those who combine length with velocity.
On the evidence of Saturday’s draw, the Bees have at least two in Michael Kayode and Kevin Schade, the latter of whom delivered the arrow that culminated in Fabio Carvalho’s last-gasp equaliser.
Long throws are sexy again and Brentford have a head-start on most given their work on them for years.
Fulham’s new cult hero
We need to talk about Kevin. Marco Silva bemoaned Fulham’s transfer activity at the start of the season, but good things come to those who wait.
Fulham paid a club-record £34.6m to buy the Brazilian winger from Shakhtar Donetsk on deadline day and he made an instant impression off the bench on his debut.
Kevin completed two dribbles, had a shot and created a chance in a lively 20-minute cameo. It was his attempt on goal that forced the corner that Fuham scored from.
“Kevin made a massive impact in the way we were playing,” Silva said. “He was one of the main targets for the position and we are pleased to have him with us.”
Woltemade makes instant Newcastle impact
The Magpies failed to win any of their first three games of the season as the unseemly Alexander Isak saga rumbled on, but have their first victory in their first game since his departure. That seems significant. That it was his long-term replacement who scored the winner made it doubly satisfying.
Nick Woltemade is renowned for having a great touch for a big man™, a 6’6 giant with nimble footwork who was nicknamed “Wolte-Messi” in the Bundesliga. So of course, his first Premier League goal was a towering back-post header.
The 23-year-old was deemed a less ready-made successor to Isak than the Premier League-proven Yoane Wissa, but with the former Brentford man out with a knee injury, the responsibility falls on the German’s shoulders for now. A successful debut will do him the world of good.
Haaland back to his best
There have been signs in recent weeks that Erling Haaland is getting back to his unstoppable best and he monstered Manchester United’s defence in the derby.
Both of his finishes were quintessential Haaland. The first a perfectly weighted dink over the keeper, the second a clinical side footer into the corner after opening his body up.
He somehow passed up the easiest chance of the lot, trying to be too clever to avoid Mathijs De Ligt on the goal-line by skewing a shot past him and onto the post. Haaland should have had an assist too after slipping Tijani Reijnders through on goal.
Clearly he heard Arne Slot’s comments about Alexander Isak being the world’s best striker and took them personally…
Roefs to the rescue for Sunderland
Signing Robin Roefs and installing him as No 1 straight away was risky for two reasons: 1) his inexperience at just 22 and 2) the additional pressure on him to perform given the role Anthony Patterson played in Sunderland’s promotion.
He has been exceptional so far, justifying Regis Le Bris’s faith. The Dutchman ranks third in the league for Post-Shot Expected Goals minus Goals Allowed, which basically means he is doing a very good job of saving shots he shouldn’t be expected to.
No player contributed more to Sunderland’s impressive point against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park than Roefs, whose six saves included one from point-blank range to deny Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Can Pino replace Eze’s Palace output?
Have Crystal Palace brought in enough goalscorers to adequately replace Eberechi Eze?
It would be unfair to make a snap judgement after one game but the Eagles missed some big chances on Saturday, two of which fell to their new No 10 Yeremi Pino.
Pino was lively on his full debut but lacked the killer touch that Eze often provided. At 22, he is still finessing his game, but his goalscoring record compares unfavourably to the man he is replacing.
Pino scored 14 league goals in his final three seasons with Villarreal; Eze managed 29 in his final three in south London. With Ismaila Sarr out injured, there’s a huge onus on Mateta to deliver.
Everton disappointment a sign of progress
It is a testament to the progress Everton are making under David Moyes that they will have been disappointed by failing to beat Aston Villa at home.
The Toffees registered 20 attempts on goal (although only two were on target) and were an Emi Martinez wonder-save away from taking three points.
Despite the blank in front of goal, Jack Grealish and Iliman Ndiaye showed flashes of their quality, completing five dribbles and creating five chances between them.
Everton were deeply uninspiring in attack pre-Moyes. Now they have one of the most exciting winger double-acts in the Premier League.
Does Maresca trust his Chelsea squad?
Making a triple substitution at half-time is usually an admission from a manager that they got their starting line-up wrong.
Enzo Maresca tweaked his team with Wednesday’s encounter with Bayern Munich in mind, but the stand-ins struggled to impress.
Summer signings Facundo Buonanotte and Jorrel Hato were all hauled off (so was another Jamie Gittens later) as was fit-again Wesley Fofana. There is an obvious drop-off in quality between Chelsea’s first-picks and their reserves.
That didn’t matter last season when the Blues were in the Conference League, but it will test them more now they are in the Champions League. Does Maresca trust his squad players to step up? The jury is out based on Saturday’s evidence.
Sensational Semenyo’s mixed afternoon
Antoine Semenyo is one of my favourite players to watch and is undoubtedly now one of the most exciting players in the Premier League. He can pretty much do everything: dribble at pace, create chances, manufacture shooting opportunities off either foot, win headers and apparently, convert penalties.
He established himself as one of the best wingers in the country last season and seems to be getting even better, with five goal contributions (three goals, two assists) to his name already this term.
However, as much I’m a registered member of the Antoine Semenyo fan club, his shove on De Cuyper, which led to the Belgian careering into the advertising hoardings and injuring himself, was completely unnecessary. Less of that, more of the good stuff, please.
Tottenham’s two key improvements under Frank
There was much for Frank to be pleased with on Saturday, not least Tottenham’s set-piece threat and another clean sheet banked already.
Set-pieces didn’t seem to be too much of a priority for Ange Postecoglou, certainly not to the same extent that they are under Frank, who has brought his Brentford marginal gains approach to a bigger club with better players.
Spurs have already scored two so far this campaign, including the opener from Sarr on Saturday and had another one ruled out for a foul. They caused havoc with their in-swinging corners all afternoon, peppering poor Mads Hermansen.
At the other end, Spurs have been solid, recording three shutouts in their first four league games and conceding only one goal. They have kept more Premier League clean sheets in 2025 under Frank than Postecoglou.
Under Postecoglou, Spurs scored plenty and conceded plenty. So far, Frank has struck a better balance between attack and defence, and they look all the better for it.
Arsenal have serious squad depth
From the 19th minute onwards, when Martin Odegaard was forced off with a shoulder injury, Arsenal’s team contained none of their five most prominent attackers over the past couple of years: Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz, Odegaard, Gabriel Jesus are all injured, and Gabriel Martinelli was on the bench.
That would have been a major issue last season or the one before that but is far less so now given their transfer business over the summer, allied to the emergence of academy prospects Ethan Nwaneri and Max Dowman. Mikel Arteta now has an enviable amount of attacking talent at his disposal.
A new-look front three of Noni Madueke on the right, Eberechi Eze on the left and Viktor Gyokeres through the middle caused Forest all sorts of problems.
Eze assisted Gyokeres with a superb pass flashed across the goal face, and Madueke was exceptional, leading for both dribbles and chances created (both five). Both of Forest’s left-backs for the day (Morato and Neco Williams) were cautioned for fouling Madueke, who is quickly winning Arsenal fans around.
Salah is in a funk, despite late winner
If winning when playing poorly is a sign of champions then Liverpool may well defend their crown. They’ve not convinced in any of their four games so far and yet are the only team with a 100 per cent winning record.
Perhaps they will just keep finding late winners, but the attack isn’t functioning as Arne Slot would like. Mo Salah has been especially quiet on the right wing and barely produced anything of note before slamming home his penalty.
The Egyptian’s shots per game average has plummeted compared to last season. In 2024-25, he was firing off 3.4 per match; he is currently on 1.3. His touches are coming far wider too, possibly as a consequence of Liverpool having a natural No 9 in attack.
An inconsequential strike late on against Bournemouth and a far more crucial strike on Sunday have papered over the cracks. Salah is in a bit of a funk. That Liverpool are winning while their best player is out of sorts should concern everyone else.