Doc showed Haaland wasn’t alone.
One interesting statistic from the match between Manchester City and Liverpool was that Burnley’s Maxime Esteve was City’s second highest scorer in the Premier League this season, as a result of two own goals in City’s 5-1 win in late September.
This statistic remains, as Nico Gonzalez and Jeremy Doku’s goals in City’s 3-0 win were their first goals in the competition this season, but City’s all-round performance, and Doku’s in particular, showed they had more than Erling Haaland.
The livewire winger was responsible for many of the strengths of Josep Guardiola’s side in this showdown with their long-time rivals. He was unstoppable, whether he found a yard of space when Liverpool were in a low block or darted into space.
City have picked up the most points of any Premier League team since April, and Mikel Arteta and Arsenal are unlikely to lose that with Guardiola’s side on their shoulders. Reports of their deaths may have been greatly exaggerated.
Adam Bate
Newcastle look overwhelmed by away team
When you watch Newcastle at St. James’ Park, you’ll see that they have one of the best atmospheres in English football, and they often play with pride.
Elsewhere, it looks like it’s falling apart. I was scared. I was overwhelmed.
The Magpies were unable to establish themselves at G Tech and played the game Brentford wanted them to, losing 3-1.
Let’s take a look at some of their qualities. Kieran Trippier, Bruno Guimarães, Sandro Tonali. It just looked disjointed. Will Eddie Howe’s stable rotation prevent him from building the relationships he needs on the pitch? Or are they just having trouble executing their game plan outside of their own cauldron?
That being said, what is their game plan? There was no pattern of play. There is no attempt to control the tempo or hit breaks. The ball was played into Nick Woltemade, but the players closest to him were wide on the flanks and could offer little support.
To solve this problem, it is necessary to take advantage of the international break. Howe has been criticized many times in the past. But for now, he seems to be short on solutions.
Callum Bishop
Liverpool’s resurgence unravels at City
It was a punishing experience for a Liverpool team who may have believed they were returning to their best following wins over Aston Villa and Real Madrid. Here they were unable to match the energy of Manchester City, who dominated from the start.
Given that Arne Slott has said that managing multiple games each week is a problem for some players, it is perhaps surprising that he chose to stick with the same starting lineup rather than shake things up. Will he regret that call now?
Florian Wirtz continues to look decent without having the impact on the game that you would expect from a player of his price, while Hugo Ekitike has been silent and Mohamed Salah continues to struggle to maintain his form. Rear sluggishness was once again evident.
There were some controversial decisions against Liverpool, but this was not an odd-goal defeat like the last four Premier League games. It was emphasized. It was their seventh upset in 10 games in all competitions, dropping the reigning champions to 8th place.
Adam Bate
Aston Villa are on their way back, but not quite there yet
Two late goals against Bournemouth gave Aston Villa their biggest ever victory over the Cherries and vaulted them above the visitors in the Premier League table at the end of a week that has been completely profitable for Unai Emery.
With three wins from four in the Premier League and a strong showing in Europe, which put them in a good position to automatically qualify from the group phase of the Europa League, they have turned around what even their head coach admitted was a “bad start” to the season, and are currently second in the chasing pack, four points behind.
They gradually regained their energy and confidence and returned to the high-pressing, high-energy Villa they had become accustomed to under Emery, having evaded them both collectively and individually in the first few weeks.
But don’t remove the champagne from the ice bucket just yet. The team needed two goals from a free kick and a corner kick to achieve such a comprehensive victory. The latter was particularly fortuitous. The first two goals were both great, but you don’t score every week.
It was a day when almost everything they tried didn’t work. Despite scoring 0.5x fewer goals than in the corresponding match last season, he scored an additional 3 goals.
And that’s something Emery still needs to do. This was Villa’s strongest attacking performance of the season, but they are still far from their fluid best.
Morgan Rodgers, who has recently returned to form, and the tireless efforts of Man of the Match Ollie Watkins, even if he doesn’t score, will be a big help. With five wins from six games in the Premier League, this could not be a worse time for Emery to consider his next step.
Ron Walker
Substitutions prove to make a difference at the City Ground
Nottingham Forest manager Sean Dyche’s first win in the league, and the club’s first win since opening, was a huge contribution to the management of Nottingham Forest, who won 3-1 at home against Leeds.
His triple change in the 59th minute really changed the game in his team’s favor. Omari Hutchinson replaced the helpless Nicolas Dominguez with a brace, Ryan Yates slotted into midfield with Ibrahim Sangare limited by a yellow card, and Taiwo Awoniyi proved more of a force for the Leeds defense than Igor Jesus.
Dyche has plenty of quality at his disposal and will be able to utilize it in very important matches to encourage the City Ground faithful to start moving up.
But his opposite number on Sunday, Leeds manager Daniel Farke, failed to make the same impact with his substitution. In fact, they worked against him.
Substitute Jack Harrison converted a penalty in the 82nd minute, clinching their fourth defeat in five league games.
Substitute Dominic Calvert-Lewin also missed a number of chances. In his past 32 appearances in all competitions, he has only scored twice.
Away form and away goals are a big issue for Leeds, who have won just three of their last 25 Premier League away games.
Sunday’s result at the City Ground felt like a shift in momentum for both clubs, with Dyche making a breakthrough in the league while Leeds continued to head in the wrong direction.
Declan Olley
Cambot shows the palace that life after Guehi can also be successful.
Marc Gehi did not join Liverpool on deadline day as Crystal Palace were unable to sign a replacement. Yet Jaydee Cambot has arrived at Selhurst Park and looks every bit the next man up.
The teenage defender signed from Toulouse on September 1 and made his first Premier League start in Sunday’s 0-0 draw with Brighton.
Guehi’s injury gave Palace a glimpse of what life would be like without the England international, but if the answer is Kanvot, then so be it.
The 19-year-old was excellent throughout, showing confidence and command in Guehi’s absence. He ranks first in Palace’s squad for passing, while also showing an excellent ability to read the game in terms of clearances.
It was a big moment for the youngster, who made a mistake against AEK Larnaca’s winner in his first start for Palace in Palace’s 1-0 defeat in the Conference League last month.
He was also unfazed by his involvement in the incident in which Brighton’s penalty was canceled. Instead, he continued to kick.
Cambot was helped by the presence of Tyrik Mitchell next to him, who also produced an incredible performance to win the Player of the Match award.
And Palace’s second clean sheet shows that Oliver Glasner’s progress and vision at the Eagles could outlast Guehi’s expected departure.
Sam Blitz







