There were more than a few curveballs thrown on Matchday 12 of the Premier League, with big hitters striking out.
It was a weekend of great excitement, with some expected results overshadowed by the division’s so-called “smaller” clubs taking hold of potential title contenders.
Fans had to endure the last seven days of international week, where Scotland were successful in World Cup qualifying, as were Wales and the Republic of Ireland, while England had fun.
But things were good again on Saturday and Sunday, when Manchester United faced Everton on Monday evening.
There was more than one potential banana peel match on the calendar for the big hitters, with the North London derby the clear highlight and title rivals Manchester City taking on Newcastle United away.
Liverpool had the chance to take the lead again against Nottingham Forest in front of a packed home crowd, with relegation battles ongoing for the clubs at the bottom of the table.
We at FootballBlog dug into the weekend’s action and looked at a handful of things we learned from matchday…
Ebere Eze shines as Arsenal thrash Spurs
The Gunners have been excellent so far this season and have largely been in charge since the start of the season. Mikel Arteta must finally be thinking this could be his year after finishing second in the last three years. Arsenal’s clean sheet helped.
The derby between Arsenal and Tottenham is always one of the key moments that both players and fans look forward to on the fixture list and it was Thomas Frank’s first attempt at the rivalry since taking over in the summer.
It was also a chance for die-hard Arsenal fan and summer signing Eberechi Eze to establish his authority on the match he dreamed of playing in. Coincidentally, the former Crystal Palace star wasted little time in writing his name into the history books.
The England international became the first player since Alan Sunderland in 1978 to hit a hat-trick in the match when he single-handedly swept aside Spurs after Leandro Trossard had opened the scoring and before Richarlison had scored a consolation.
Speaking of a statement win, Arsenal once again showed they mean business while everyone around them hesitated…
Manchester City fails at Newcastle
Speaking of which, Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City were determined to keep an eye on their foes after starting the day with a four-point lead.
They faced a Magpies team that hadn’t exactly had the best of seasons under Eddie Howe so far and the Englishman had come under scrutiny for the first time.
His boys silenced those critics, however, as Harvey Barnes, who could be called up for the World Cup in Scotland, produced a superb strike either side of a surprise strike from Ruben Dias to take three points at St James’ and hamper City’s lead at the top.
Newcastle moved up to fourteenth, while City fell into third place behind Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea.
Daniel Farke is having a hard time at Leeds United
Leeds United once again failed to gain any momentum in the league as they were defeated 2–1 at home to Aston Villa. The Villans had their doubters earlier this year, but Unai Emery has done well, as most expected of him, and has taken his players to fourth, not far behind the chasing players.
Daniel Farke now finds himself in a sticky situation, with some fans believing his position is untenable for now with the Whites in a precarious 18th spot in the drop zone and no improvement in sight.
The German will have to do his best to bring some order to life at Elland Road to win points or risk both his job and the club’s season, with only Burnley and Wolves worse off at the moment.
Liverpool and Arne Slot in trouble
If you had told anyone before the start of the campaign that Liverpool would be in this situation under Arne Slot, many might have chuckled and waved you away.
But the Reds are in the midst of a disastrous run of form, having dropped to 11th in the Premier League despite spending a staggering amount of money in the summer transfer window and being clear favorites to retain their title this season in May next year.
They faced Nottingham Forest, who have certainly experienced a new managerial bounce under Sean Dyche. But no one expected the visitors to score 3-0 on Saturday thanks to goals from Murillo, Nicolo Savona and Morgan Gibbs-White.
Mo Salah has been criticized and offered little, while Alexander Isak has been as good as a man down at times. That could be what £125 million can get you.
Liverpool is not only in danger of ending up in second or third place behind Arsenal. They risk finishing outside the top 10 if their form continues.
They scored twenty goals in the Prem and scored eighteen, while losing six and winning six of their twelve games so far.
Certainly not a European form.
#learned #EPL #Week #Eze #arrived #Arsenal