10 thoughts from feverish weekend of Premier League action

theScore examines the most important developments and discusses the biggest talking points from another rip-roaring weekend in England’s top flight.

Ten Hag gets in Manchester United’s way

Erik ten Hag set Manchester United up to fail Sunday at the Etihad Stadium. Benching two players with 10 Champions League medals between them, Ten Hag believed Manchester United were better off without Casemiro and Cristiano Ronaldo, flouting conventional wisdom to field a side short of any substantial presence in midfield. Manchester City, of course, were happier for it.

City were unquestionably great. No defense in the world could have stopped Kevin De Bruyne’s beautiful pass to Erling Haaland for the second of the Norwegian’s three goals. But Ten Hag’s side didn’t even put up a fight. It surrendered the middle of the park, rolling out the red carpet for De Bruyne, Phil Foden, and Bernardo Silva. Haaland feasted on the chances they created in virtually open space. City could have scored 10. The final 6-3 score flattered United.

Maybe Ten Hag thought his team was better than it was. Maybe he thought Scott McTominay and Christian Eriksen could hold the fort and spring Marcus Rashford and Antony on the counterattack. Ten Hag learned the hard way it’s not that simple, especially against opponents who cover space and move in harmony.

Forget all the progress United had made under the Dutchman. That’s gone now. He’ll have to face the same critics who questioned him when his team slumped to consecutive defeats at the start of the season. He can’t chalk this loss up to a “lack of belief,” as he attempted to do in his post-match interview with BBC Sport’s Match of the Day. He has to take responsibility.

How could he neglect to start Casemiro, by all accounts the best midfielder in his ranks? The Brazilian has yet to start a Premier League match since joining United for a reported £60 million. If Ten Hag doesn’t think Casemiro fits his system, his system is wrong. United needed a player with his calmness and confidence in the tackle to stymie City’s attempts in midfield. They needed someone to establish some rhythm. They needed leadership. They had none of that.

Ten Hag can’t only consider his interpretation of football and the players who fit it. He can’t let his philosophy keep good players from playing. No team can make meaningful progress without a solid backbone. And until Casemiro makes regular starts, United can’t sustain any success.

One could reasonably argue that United are better off without Ronaldo. But it does the dressing room and the club no good to have him on the bench during a game of this magnitude. Ten Hag used five substitutions, and Ronaldo wasn’t close to being one of them. Instead, down 5-1, the coach capitulated, bringing on defensive midfielder Fred for Jadon Sancho.

Ten Hag later said he was protecting the 37-year-old’s legacy. In reality, he was making a point to one of the best players in history: For better or worse, this is Ten Hag’s team now.

Haaland’s historic stats

Haaland did his best to deflect some of the praise showered on him after a historic showing. For the Norwegian, it was fellow hat-trick hero Foden who deserved the match ball despite Haaland’s heroics in his first Manchester derby.

But after an afternoon the blue side of town will remember for years to come, it’s impossible to ignore the importance of Haaland’s record-breaking hat-trick that helped lift Manchester City to a decisive 6-3 victory over Manchester United.

Here’s a breakdown of some of the incredible statistics behind Haaland’s memorable day:

1: Haaland’s onslaught against the Red Devils made him the first player in Premier League history to score hat-tricks in three consecutive home games.

3: In just eight games, the 22-year-old has as many hat-tricks in England’s top flight as Ronaldo.

5: Haaland had a hand in five of City’s six goals on Sunday, totaling three goals and two assists.

12: The former Borussia Dortmund star had his way in threatening positions all afternoon with 12 touches in the United penalty area.

13.6: A stat that’s bound to give Premier League opponents nightmares: Haaland is averaging a goal every 13.6 touches per match.

14: Along with leading the Premier League by a mile with 14 goals this season, Haaland is also the top scorer across Europe’s top five leagues.

60: Haaland is on pace to not only shatter Mohamed Salah’s Premier League record (32) for goals in a 38-match season but also to break Dixie Dean’s record of 60 goals in a season; Dean reached the milestone for Everton in the late 1920s.

Can new coach turn Wolves around?

Wolverhampton Wanderers fired manager Bruno Lage on Sunday, less than 24 hours after a 2-0 defeat to West Ham United saw the club plunge into the relegation zone. The search for his replacement is underway, with another Portuguese tactician, Pedro Martins, among the candidates. Naturally.

Though Lage found some success after replacing Nuno Espirito Santo in June 2021 – he guided the club to an admirable 10th-place finish last year – things deteriorated quickly. Wolves have lost nine of their last 15 league matches dating back to last season, a run that includes just one victory in eight games to open the current campaign.

Despite summer spending exceeding £100 million, Wolves have a pitiful three goals on the season. That’s not entirely Lage’s fault, of course. Wolves are underperforming relative to their expected goal numbers, while injuries have found virtually all of their strikers – including a season-ending knee ailment that summer signing Sasa Kalajdzic sustained on his debut. Some of that is just bad luck.

But as Wolves’ performances became increasingly sterile, it was clear something had to change. Fair or not, the manager is almost always the first to bear the brunt of that change. Lage’s replacement faces a difficult task.

Here are the main talking points from Saturday’s matches …

Xhaka reborn as a leader – yes, for real

As the crowd roared and limbs flailed in wild celebration of Arsenal’s opening goal in Saturday’s north London derby, Granit Xhaka – yes, Granit Xhaka – gathered his teammates in a huddle and implored them to stay calm.

Considering his history at Arsenal – namely, that he was mercilessly booed by Gunners fans and subsequently stripped of the captaincy in 2019 – it was an extraordinary scene that highlighted the Swiss midfielder’s rebirth at the club.

Xhaka, so often maligned throughout his Premier League career, has been outstanding for table-topping Arsenal this season. He’s playing higher up the pitch, and his added attacking freedom is bearing fruit. Through eight matches, Xhaka – who scored the third goal in Arsenal’s 3-1 victory over hated rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday – has already been directly involved in more goals this season (five) than he was in each of the three previous campaigns.

Always considered a deep-lying passer who should operate at the base of midfield, Xhaka has seen his new No. 8 role accentuate his talents and, crucially, hide his defensive shortcomings; Mikel Arteta has put him in a position to succeed.

“Sometimes, you have to take players out of their comfort zone and open a different door to explore how the team will react to it and what the opposition will do,” the manager explained when he made the change last season.

But Xhaka’s growth as a leader has been more impressive. During a typically fierce derby that saw a red card handed out and a penalty awarded for a poor tackle, Xhaka was the coolest head on the field. The same fans who once jeered him were literally singing his praises after Saturday’s win. What a turnaround.

North London derby remains unrivaled

North London is red again thanks to a convincing Arsenal victory over 10-man Tottenham. It was a contest that lived up to the hype, as Thomas Partey opened the scoring with a sensational goal that Harry Kane later negated from the penalty spot. Gabriel Jesus restored Arsenal’s lead minutes into the second half before Emerson Royal’s straight red card preceded Xhaka’s game-sealing strike.

But north London could be set for another makeover after these sides meet again in January.

If recent history has taught us anything, this famous rivalry is unlikely to produce the same outcome on consecutive occasions. Since 2020, Arsenal have painted the town red with entertaining victories at the Emirates Stadium, while Spurs have shown off their white brushes after comfortable triumphs at their new stadium.

Goals obviously help fuel interest, and there’s been plenty of them lately in what’s become one of the most consistently entertaining fixtures in club football:

Scoring aside, drama remains a crucial ingredient for endearing any derby to the masses. Along with 35 yellow cards shown over the last seven games – an average of five per match – three of the last four meetings have seen red cards shown to players on the losing side.

That combination of tension and entertainment has helped the north London derby confirm its status as one of the best rivalries around.

Liverpool must go back to basics

For years, Liverpool pressed teams with unyielding ferocity. Jurgen Klopp’s forwards defended from the front, and his midfielders ran marathons chasing every loose ball. None of Liverpool’s opponents seemed comfortable on the ball. There wasn’t enough time to make a good decision.

But somewhere along the line, Liverpool lost their way. They’re regressing in real time.

Brighton & Hove Albion showed just how brutally a side can now bully the Reds. The Seagulls owned the first 20 minutes of Saturday’s 3-3 draw at Anfield, creating chance after chance as Liverpool backpedaled into their area. The hosts conceded first for the fifth time in seven Premier League matches, and though they mounted a comeback, it was short-lived. Klopp’s side just couldn’t keep Brighton at bay.

“With all the good things we did during the week, (our) confidence is a little flower, and when someone stamps on it, it is really difficult,” the German manager told BBC Sport.

Some of his best players have let him down, and they’ve shown little improvement if any. Trent Alexander-Arnold remains skittish on the right flank, and even Virgil van Dijk, Liverpool’s de facto leader at the back, has wilted under pressure.

It’s no coincidence Brighton’s three goals came from Liverpool’s right side. Roberto De Zerbi, who officially replaced Graham Potter earlier this week, likely instructed his players to attack Alexander-Arnold, knowing he’d struggle to cope with the pace of their combination play. If that was the plan, it worked like a charm. Alexander-Arnold couldn’t clear his lines or keep up with runs down the flank.

Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher castigated his old team after its embarrassing 4-1 defeat to Napoli in September, blaming its midfielders for allowing the Italians to run rampant. Carragher made a good point: Liverpool may look amateur at the back, but their biggest problem lies in the middle of the park. They can’t possibly play a high line without being compact. Their shape is too loose to carry out any pressing game.

No one can criticize the team’s attitude. Liverpool will always make a game out of it, no matter how badly they play. But they must make changes. They can’t play the way they’re used to playing – not until they get the basics right. There’s no point playing high-risk football without confidence.

De Zerbi builds on Potter’s foundation

De Zerbi’s Brighton debut represented a reinvention more than a total transformation. The Italian manager – who arrived as Potter’s successor amid much hype and excitement – clearly knows that his predecessor, now at Chelsea, crafted an impressive squad and style before departing.

Rather than rip that up and try to change everything, De Zerbi seems intent on building upon the foundation Potter implemented. At least after one match.

The former Shakhtar Donetsk and Sassuolo bench boss – a noted disciple of Pep Guardiola and Marcelo Bielsa – has largely used either a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 formation throughout his career. He employs a possession-based system that emphasizes intricate, quick passes, with wide players cutting inside and combining in narrow areas to create scoring opportunities.

Potter, of course, preferred to use three central defenders for much of his spell with the Seagulls. De Zerbi stayed the course in Saturday’s manic 3-3 draw against Liverpool, opting for a 3-4-2-1 setup.

“Potter deserves some credit because he has left to me a great team,” De Zerbi said after the match. “I have tried to not make any damage and add my idea on top.”

It’s wise, at least early on, for De Zerbi to convey as much consistency as possible during a period of upheaval for the club. That approach will help his players adapt to their new coach gradually, putting everyone in the best position to succeed long term.

Gallagher’s time to shine under Potter

There was a hint of a smile, but Conor Gallagher ultimately did well to contain his excitement under difficult circumstances after scoring a dramatic winner against Crystal Palace. For Chelsea’s young midfielder, though, there was plenty to smile and be excited about after a memorable afternoon against his former club.

In scoring his first goal with the Blues – and first since February with Palace – Gallagher may have done more than seal an important 2-1 win at Selhurst Park; he may have also bolstered his case for more opportunities and an increased role with a magical moment in Chelsea’s maiden Premier League outing with Potter at the helm.

Coming on as a substitute with less than 20 minutes remaining in a tight contest at his old stomping ground, Gallagher unleashed a sensational, match-winning strike in the 90th minute to hand his former squad a heartbreaking loss.

It was a moment long in the making for the 22-year-old, who struggled for playing time under Chelsea’s previous coaching regime led by Thomas Tuchel. But Gallagher’s world-class talents were impossible to ignore after a wildly successful season on loan at Palace, a season that earned him a spot with the Blues for the 2022-23 campaign.

After showing his new boss what he’s capable of, Gallagher was deservedly beaming with optimism to close out his unforgettable Saturday.

“It’s massive, just to get that confidence back up a bit,” he said. “I want to kick on from here.”

Double whammy for Vieira, Palace

Watching former standout Gallagher score a last-gasp winner wasn’t the only pain point for Patrick Vieira and Crystal Palace on Saturday.

The Frenchman was left fuming after referee Chris Kavanagh decided not to send Thiago Silva off in the first half; the veteran defender, while stumbling to the ground, stretched out his arm and appeared to intentionally claw the ball away from Jordan Ayew to deny the Palace forward a possible scoring opportunity.

Kavanagh only showed Silva a yellow card, a decision that was upheld after a VAR review. Vieira, incensed, was booked for his protestations. To make matters worse, Silva assisted Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s goal only five minutes later, rising up to knock a header into the striker’s path before Aubameyang smacked the ball into the bottom corner.

“Regarding the incident with Thiago, it’s something I don’t want to talk about. It’s difficult for me to understand it and accept it. It’s better sometimes to be quiet and not talk about it,” Vieira said after the loss.

“I don’t want to talk about it because I believe the referee got it wrong. If I say what I think, I will be in trouble, so it’s better for me not to talk about it.”

Jose Mourinho would be very proud.

Fulham’s no good, very bad day

One probably couldn’t have scripted a more disastrous outing for Fulham ahead of Saturday’s 4-1 defeat against Newcastle United.

At every possible turn, the Cottagers’ day went from bad to worse. Nathaniel Chalobah being sent off in the eighth minute turned out to be merely the tip of the iceberg, as Callum Wilson opened the scoring for the visitors three minutes later.

By the time the halftime whistle mercifully came around, Fulham were 3-0 down – a score that included a stunning Miguel Almiron volley – and, of the utmost concern, had watched leading scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic exit with an apparent ankle injury. Debutant Layvin Kurzawa picked up a first-half knock, too.

Almiron, rubbing salt in the wounds, added another goal in the second half.

Bobby De Cordova-Reid’s late tally was scant consolation for Fulham, who must hope Mitrovic’s ailment isn’t significant. One bad day at the office shouldn’t make Marco Silva too anxious, but a serious injury to his talisman would be cause for extreme concern.