The Score is Daniel Storey’s weekly verdict on all 20 Premier League teams’ performances. Sign up here to receive the newsletter every Monday morning. NB Daniel was away this weekend and will return next Monday
Goals may have been at a premium but this was another engrossing weekend of Premier League football, capped off by a thrilling encounter at Anfield where Liverpool rediscovered some of their best.
Their 1-0 win over Manchester City leaves Arsenal four points clear at the top of the table after Mikel Arteta’s men beat Leeds earlier on Sunday by the same scoreline, helped in part by a heavy dose of VAR drama right at the death.
Elsewhere there were wins for the Gunners’ London rivals Tottenham, Chelsea and Brentford, as well as the manager-less Wolves.
At the base of the table, there was less joy for those in the East Midlands with Nottingham Forest and Leicester City’s struggles in front of goal continuing, while Steven Gerrard appears to be clinging onto his job at Villa after another defeat.
This weekend’s results
Friday 14 October
Saturday 15 October
- Leicester 0-0 Crystal Palace
- Fulham 2-2 Bournemouth
- Wolves 1-0 Nottingham Forest
- Tottenham 2-0 Everton
Sunday 16 October
- Aston Villa 0-2 Chelsea
- Leeds 0-1 Arsenal
- Man Utd 0-0 Newcastle
- Southampton 1-1 West Ham
- Liverpool 1-0 Man City
Arsenal
As referee Chris Kavanagh blew his whistle to signal the end of a chaotic encounter, Mikel Arteta and the entire Arsenal bench leapt in wild celebration. There were hugs, high fives and backslaps all round as the Gunners moved four points clear at the Premier League summit.
Whether or not they are capable of proving to be genuine challengers as the season unfolds remains to be seen but that they must be seen as Manchester City’s main threat right now is undeniable.
To go to Elland Road and win is never easy. It was not pretty at times either as Arteta’s side survived a missed penalty from Patrick Bamford and VAR controversies to emerge victorious.
In the end, Bukayo Saka’s strike was enough to send out another forcible reminder that Arsenal, nine wins from 10, deserve to be taken seriously.
As Arteta said: “It’s always very hectic here but the team showed character, personality and desire. There were players struggling after playing on Thursday night in Norway. To then come to Leeds and win says a lot about the team.” – Ross Heppenstall
Aston Villa
Aston Vanilla. That was the complaint of Villa fans, the beige nature of the football driving them to despair. Not against Chelsea, at least in the first half as Villa fashioned a thrilling response delivering the excitement, movement and exhilaration demanded.
Were it not for Kepa Arrizabalaga in the Chelsea goal, and the woodwork, Gerrard might have been talking about a famous victory, or at least the point Villa deserved.
Gerrard praised his team’s display, applauded the reaction, and claimed with justification that Villa had answered the criticisms about excitement and playing the kind of football that brings the crowd with them.
He acknowledged the pickle he is in and Villa’s parlous position in the Premier League, just a point above the relegation zone. He won’t hide from that, he said. If he keeps his job, the challenge will be to get his team to play against the lesser gods like they did against Chelsea for an hour. – Kevin Garside
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Bournemouth
Will Bournemouth’s incoming owner Bill Foley give Gary O’Neil the manager’s job on a permanent basis? Dare he?
So fluid has been O’Neil’s transition from first-team coach to interim manager that any instability risked by extending the 39-year-old’s caretaker stint indefinitely could be outweighed by removing the word “interim” from his job title.
Bournemouth are a united team and squad under O’Neil. They are now unbeaten in his six games in charge after Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Fulham and demonstrating that his predecessor Scott Parker was surely wrong to say that there was insufficient Premier League quality on the Dorset club’s books.
Most managers are nowhere to be seen prior to a game. As a coach fulfilling an interim role, O’Neil was front and centre on the Craven Cottage pitch during Bournemouth’s warm-up.
But would that change if he were made permanent manager? New owners bring new ideas and, invariably, new personnel. For all their excitement about new investment, the Bournemouth fans would quite happily see O’Neil allowed to continue just as he is. – Ivan Speck
Brentford
Ivan Toney‘s brace against Brighton gave Gareth Southgate a double reminder that he could be a wildcard for the World Cup.
The goals took Toney’s tally for the season to an impressive eight. The first one – a cheeky flick – was a finish to remember before he enhanced his reputation as an ice-cold penalty taker with a spot-kick second.
Southgate picked Toney in an England squad for the first time for last month’s Nations League double header with Italy and Germany but did not give him a minute of action.
With his preliminary World Cup squad due to be named on Wednesday, the Three Lions boss will certainly be pondering whether Toney should play more of a part in Qatar following Friday’s performance.
Having missed three spot-kicks in the Euro 2020 final defeat Italy, having Toney’s penalty prowess off the bench could be a valuable asset. – Jon West
Brighton
Defeat to Brentford was Brighton’s first game since midfielder Enock Mwepu retired at 24 because of a hereditary heart condition.
Manager Roberto De Zerbi never got to pick the Zambia captain, who last played for the Seagulls in the 5-2 thrashing of Leicester in early September which was also Graham Potter’s last game as Brighton boss.
Mwepu’s misfortune opened the door for Pervis Estupinan to reclaim his place in the starting line-up.
Despite winning nearly 30 caps for his country and appearing in a Champions League semi-final, the Ecuadorian was described as a “rough diamond” last week by De Zerbi.
Asked how he would go about polishing that diamond, the head coach said: “Giving him trust, giving him the chance to make mistakes. And, of course, giving him the chance to play.”
He was then hooked at half-time. With a winnable match against Nottingham Forest coming up before tricky fixtures against Chelsea and Manchester City, De Zerbi now faces a test of his trust in Estupinan with Kaoru Mitoma and Solly March possible replacements at left-back. – Jon West
Chelsea
When it’s your day. Chelsea went ahead with a goal gifted to Mason Mount and relied on the brilliance of the goalkeeper to keep out Villa until Mount added a quite spectacular second.
The problem with great players is losing them. The injury to Reece James, which will keep him in a brace for four weeks, forced Graham Potter into a compromise that on another day might have cost him.
If he didn’t know at the start of the match he did at half time, Raheem Sterling is not a right wing back. The deployment of Sterling in that unfamiliar role was part of the solution to the absence of James. The other was to field a back-three with Marc Cucurella on the left.
Cucurella has yet to find his rhythm at Chelsea and was hooked at half-time along with Kai Havertz, who could write the book about being lost in space since arriving at Chelsea, one Champions League final apart, of course.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was as unproductive and might have gone early as well. On came Kalidou Koulibaly and Cesar Azpilicueta to give the team a much better shape. Azpilicueta’s legs have gone but not his brain. The second half was much quieter as a result. – Kevin Garside
Crystal Palace
Patrick Vieira was one of the refreshing surprises of the season in 2021-22 thanks to Crystal Palace’s new-found central robustness and flair on the wings. Yet while that flair is still there, centrally the team is struggling.
On numerous occasions on Saturday did Leicester play right through the core of Palace’s team. Harvey Barnes and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall were free to run at will. Cheick Doucoure, like in the previous week against Leeds, just couldn’t handle it and was eventually booked for a challenge on Dewsbury-Hall, and subbed off before he was sent off.
Losing the central midfield battle is not something Vieira himself often did in his playing days. And it breaks the dynamic of the team. Forwards are less keen to press if they know there’s a massive hole in the middle of the park, and defenders get nervous and sit back.
Palace were lucky not to concede to a blunted Leicester attack that, while the combinations seem to be working, just can’t find the target. And it was the same against Leeds, where on a worse day they could have been blown away in the first 45 minutes, before the second half revival. – Joe Short
Everton
The varying number of clubs looking ominously like they are being sucked into the relegation whirlpool this season is beginning to stabilise. After a weekend where Brentford pushed further into the top half, Bournemouth and Fulham earned another valuable point apiece, and Crystal Palace avoided defeat to Leicester, it feels as though a middle tier is suppressing six or seven clubs at the bottom.
And Everton are one of these clubs. Saturday’s display against Spurs was typical of a team that is still struggling to find the offensive formula required to escape the clutches of those below them.
Frank Lampard is still getting Dominic Calvert-Lewin back to full fitness, and Salomon Rondon, Neal Maupay, Alex Iwobi and Demarai Gray have scored three league goals between them all season.
Everton were wasteful with the meagre chances they created in north London – Amadou Onana spurning the best of the lot – and this will begin to cost them.
Goals aren’t just a problem for Lampard, though. The entire whirlpool is struggling for out-and-out scorers, for the Aleksandar Mitrovics or Ivan Toneys of this particular season.
Leeds still haven’t got Patrick Bamford firing yet, Wolves are averaging less than half a goal a game, neither Aston Villa nor Southampton’s central strikers have scored more than twice, Leicester look out of ideas and Nottingham Forest are still trying to find any sort of respectable set-up.
Life will be fairly squalid at the foot of the table this term, and entertainment scarce. If Lampard can’t prise a single lead goalscorer from his pack then Everton are destined to get sucked in. – Joe Short
Fulham
Late summer optimism over Fulham’s encouraging start to their latest return to the Premier League is giving way to a few autumnal jitters about what lies ahead.
Their previous two campaigns among England’s elite have been characterised by defensive looseness and winless runs.
Nine goals conceded in collecting just one point from their three games led to murmurs of anxiety at Craven Cottage on Saturday, lending a sense of urgency and trepidation about their next three games, coming as they do against Aston Villa, Leeds and Everton.
While Marco Silva’s side can point to refereeing decisions costing them in the defeats to Newcastle and West Ham, they were hampered against Bournemouth by their inability to prevent their opponents scoring twice on swift counter-attacks.
Left-back Antonee Robinson said: “You’d like to go into a big break on the back of a good run of results. Our last two games before the World Cup are against [Manchester] City and United, who are high-calibre teams.
“These next three games are more likely that we can pick up points in them, so they are going to be massive. If we can get a couple of results, it will take the pressure off.” – Ivan Speck
Leeds
For Leeds United, it is proving enough of a struggle to pick up points right now, but their worrying tendency to self-harm is making life even more difficult.
Time and again in recent weeks, Jesse Marsch’s team have shot themselves in the foot through defensive lapses, ill-discipline and poor decision-making.
Rodrigo, their Spain international who has blown hot and cold since arriving from Valencia in a club-record £26m switch in August 2020, was the villain of the piece against Arsenal.
He carelessly hacked the ball across the pitch and it fell to the feet of Bukayo Saka, who swapped passes with Martin Odegaard before unleashing a ferocious right-foot shot which flew past Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier’s near post and into the roof of the net.
Nevertheless, particularly in light of Bamford’s penalty miss, it is problems at the other end of the pitch that worry Marsch most after a run of six games without a win. “Rodri’s decision leads to a moment which cost him and the team, but we need him to get hot and to score goals – and Patrick [Bamford] too.
“We’ve had a number of games where we’ve been the better team, but we’ve not found the goals to match. We have to get better in the final third and capitalise on our chances.” – Ross Heppenstall
Leicester
All eyes are on James Maddison and whether or not he can earn a very late England call-up. But Leicester really don’t need their brightest spark to be jetting off to Qatar for a month when all hands are needed on deck back home.
Leicester have finally lost the guarantee of goals that Jamie Vardy had provided for so many years. He managed 17 across all competitions last season but is yet to find the net this term. He is averaging just one shot a game.
Patson Daka is no Vardy. And so Maddison is having to shoulder more responsibility in the attacking third. Against Palace he was the creator in the middle of the pitch, exploiting the space afforded to him but crucially not breaking the deadlock.
Can he do this regularly and to the consistency Rodgers needs? He has scored five goals this season but his brace in the 4-0 win over Nottingham Forest have been consolations.
The question for England, too, is what more Maddison would bring that Jude Bellingham, Mason Mount or Phil Foden wouldn’t? The answer isn’t much.
And right now it would probably suit Leicester to have Maddison working on their relegation fight than preparing to be a squad player in Qatar. Unless Rodgers is backed in January, he’s their only hope. – Joe Short
Liverpool
Politically, it has been quite a week for U-turns and the notion that Liverpool are no longer able to compete with state-owned football clubs may have to go the way of the mini budget.
The theory that Liverpool are at a permanent, perhaps fatal, disadvantage to those with the budgets of Manchester City and Newcastle was, admittedly, floated by Jürgen Klopp.
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However, the fact remains that since February, Manchester City have lost three times to English teams and on each occasion the club that has beaten them has been Liverpool.
This was not as emphatic as last season’s victory in the FA Cup and may not be as illusory as the one in the Community Shield that opened this campaign. However, as Klopp returned after the final whistle to drink in an atmosphere laced with red smoke and song, it was probably the most satisfying, marred only by an injury to Diogo Jota. – Tim Rich
Man City
Sometimes even the greatest of coaches in footballing history get things wrong.
Despite Jack Grealish’s bright start to this season, Pep Guardiola went against his attacking principles and named workhorse Bernardo Silva in his place, and went with a three-man backline, plus Joao Cancelo in a midfield four, behind a front three that pushed Kevin De Bruyne out onto the right wing.
Even Pep’s own midnight tactical voices in his head would have struggled to decipher the City lineup as they took to the pitch at Anfield.
Liverpool looked nervous. Even their rout of Rangers in midweek did little to settle the jitters. Their passing was errant early on, but City, normally so ruthless with even the mere suggestion of weakness, failed to capitalise.
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It was just too lopsided a system. While De Bruyne linked up well with Cancelo down the right, there was just no threat down the other flank, given no recognised left-sided full-back or wing-back started the game, with Bernardo the nearest team-mate to Phil Foden.
As the first half petered out with Erling Haaland the only player to have tested Alisson in the Liverpool goal, you just felt that City, and Pep, missed a trick.
It was a big-call from Jurgen Klopp to name ageing veteran James Milner at right back in such a pivotal game, but Guardiola’s system simply meant he was not tested enough. – Pete Hall
Man Utd
When Christian Eriksen is absent, Manchester United’s midfield are unable to find a balance, sitting too deep for long periods, nullifying Bruno Fernandes’ threat and relying on a combination of an overlapping Luke Shaw and Jadon Sancho down the left for their main channel of influence.
That is why Sancho is so central to Ten Hag’s plans. The manager has called on his winger to be more forthcoming in one-on-ones, and promised he would work to create “an overload around the ball… it gets more simple for them [Sancho and Antony] when they have options to play around”.
That nearly bore fruit on Sunday when Sancho believed he was tripped by Sean Longstaff in the area. No penalty, said Pawson, and VAR agreed that his fall was a little too theatrical to convince.
What was not in doubt, however, was that United are still struggling to thread together flashes of individual inspiration into something more coherent.
With no Eriksen, their contingency plan was including 17-year-old Kobbie Mainoo, one of the stars of the club’s 11th Youth Cup-winning team, on the bench.
Unlike against Everton a week before, even Cristiano Ronaldo could not tip the game in United’s favour, replaced by Marcus Rashford for the last 20 minutes. In moments like this, it is not always clear who the game-changer is supposed to be. – Kat Lucas
Newcastle
Good news is in short supply for England right-backs at present. The exception to that rule is Kieran Trippier, who stands to benefit from Reece James being ruled out of the World Cup, with Kyle Walker’s tournament also in serious doubt.
The main threat Trippier posed at Old Trafford was from set pieces; not always through the most direct route. One botched free-kick, hit straight at the wall, wasn’t cleared. Trippier had a second attempt, this time looked over the United back-line to Joelinton for his two headers against the woodwork.
Yet Trippier also coped reasonably well with Sancho, quietening him down in the second half. Gareth Southgate will have had no complaints and neither can Eddie Howe.
This was not the most inspiring weekend of Newcastle’s season, but Trippier was among their most impressive players. The Magpies look increasingly capable of challenging the “Big Six” – a big shift given their normally woeful record at Old Trafford. – Kat Lucas
Nottingham Forest
Forest defender Harry Toffolo was the latest Premier League player to fall foul of the complex, and seemingly incomprehensible, layers of VAR interpretation.
Referee Thomas Bramble used VAR and his pitchside monitor in awarding one penalty to Wolves – scored by Ruben Neves – and another to Forest, which was taken by Brennan Johnson and well saved.
But, after Toffolo was judged to have blocked an Adama Traore shot with his hand, Forest veteran Steve Cook admitted players are as confused by the system as supporters or pundits.
“No, not really,” Cook said when asked if he understood current handball legislation. “I’ve seen some teams get them, some teams not. Yes, it just looks harsh to me. The lawmakers want goals and defenders suffer for it.
“As a defender now, you haven’t got much of a chance. If you go to block a ball, the natural thing is to have your arms out as well. It’s very harsh. I’ve seen a lot of handballs given and not given and I’m not sure anymore what is a penalty and what isn’t.” – Ian Whittell
Southampton
There have been few positives for Southampton this season but one has certainly been the arrival and subsequent form of Armel Bella-Kotchap. In his short time at St Mary’s, the 20-year-old has made his full international debut for Germany and helped to steady a defence which shipped 67 goals last season.
His partnership with Mohammed Salisu has been promising but Ralph Hasenhuttl suffered a blow when Bella-Kotchap left the field against West Ham in considerable pain with what is thought to be a dislocated shoulder after he made an excellent interception to deny Gianluca Scamacca. He will now be replaced in the team by Duje Caleta-Car who was steady as he helped Southampton to a point.
More worrying is how few goals the team are scoring. Che Adams was again industrious and proved a real handful for West Ham but the one excellent chance which did come his way in the first half was wasted. Southampton tried and failed to sign Cody Gakpo from PSV Eindhoven on deadline day. That looks like being a costly miss. – Tom Prentki
Tottenham
Antonio Conte celebrated Spurs’ comfortable 2-0 win over Everton like they had just reached the Champions League final. Fist pumps all round, whipping up the crowd before a quick handshake with Frank Lampard and then on to further jubilations.
Conte is one of the Premier League’s more expressive managers and that raw dedication and passion – the secret sauce that inspires teams to go out and win trophies for him, before they are inevitably consumed by exhaustion – is now firmly in these players.
Spurs may have lost the north London derby to Arsenal a fortnight back but they are motoring along just fine. The impact of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min interlinking with speed had Everton defenders floundering all afternoon – throw in Richarlison and they had no chance.
Kane’s penalty to open the scoring was perhaps a little soft. Jordan Pickford knew he had strayed into unforgiving territory when scrambling for a loose ball in the box, and his England teammate made him pay.
Sat just behind Arsenal and Manchester City, Spurs look good for third place this season. But Conte will expect higher than that. Spurs are playing as well as they have done since the peak of the Mauricio Pochettino era – and when the Italian gets his players in this mood, trophies usually follow. – Joe Short
West Ham
West Ham’s season has been slow to get going but since Gianluca Scamacca has started scoring David Moyes’ side look a lot more threatening. What was notable in the 1-1 draw at St Mary’s was the partnership the Italian is forming with Lucas Paqueta.
The Brazilian joined from Lyon for a club-record fee at the end of the summer transfer window. He is still adjusting to the pace of the Premier League but looked menacing throughout as he occupied the space just behind Scamacca and frequently ran beyond him, instinctively reading the striker’s movements.
The Hammers needed a deeper squad to manage the rigours of the Europa Conference League and benefited from a strong bench at St Mary’s where Moyes called on Said Benrahma, Manuel Lanzini and Michail Antonio to freshen up the attack as his team tired.
Paqueta was one of those withdrawn late on but before that, he came close to scoring with a header at the end of the first-half and forced a good save from Gavin Bazunu with a volley in the second. There is plenty for Hammers fans to be excited about. – Tom Prentki
Wolves
Goalscoring remains a chronic problem for Wolves – Ruben Neves’ penalty was their fourth goal in 900 minutes of Premier League football this season – but at the other end of the field, fortunes are improving.
Goalkeeper Jose Sa made a superb save to keep out Brennan Johnson’s potential equaliser from the penalty spot, despite continuing to play with a broken bone in his wrist, an injury collected against Fulham two months ago.
It was his second consecutive penalty save of the season, after failing to save any of the 10 he faced last term.
“Now it’s better. But after I did it against Fulham we played Tottenham and it was difficult,” Sa said. “But this is our life – we have to be like warriors to help the team.
“Yes it hurt at the time and yes I needed painkillers. Sometimes it still hurts. But I came out for a punch immediately after the penalty and used my right fist and it was okay.
“It was painful before but it was an important time for the team and that’s why I took the decision to continue.” – Ian Whittell
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