Premier League winners and losers: Van Dijk, Villa and Man Utd in form as De Zerbi spouts nonsense

There is something undeniable about the form of Virgil van Dijk, Aston Villa at home and… Manchester United? And what a disappointment Roberto De Zerbi is…

Dominic Solanke
Having already matched the best-ever scoring season of his Premier League career, the onus is on Solanke to keep pushing that ceiling higher under a manager whose style complements his skillset wonderfully.

Andoni Iraola has endured a difficult start to Premier League life but there were always positive signs for those patient enough to look beyond the results. The high turnovers, the excellent press, the bravery in possession. The bursts of light were replaced with a flick of the switch against Newcastle as everything clicked into place.

At the core of it all was Solanke, the tireless and selfless centre-forward who has had a system built around his strengths rather than being crowbarred into positions that do not particularly suit him. The 26-year-old had 76 shots in the entirety of the last Premier League season (joint-16th overall) and has already taken 33 (joint-8th) this, while his rate of chance creation has reduced along with that responsibility.

Iraola has distilled his role and Solanke is playing the best football of his top-flight career as a result.

Mauricio Pochettino
“Maybe there’s a feeling you won’t score,” was one thought Frank Lampard threw at the wall in hope of inspiration after starting his interim Chelsea reign in April with a 1-0 defeat to Wolves which featured a single shot on target.

He stressed a “need to address it” and after no little investment and a change in manager, the Blues are at least on the right track.

Until this season, Chelsea had not scored four or more goals in a game since April 2022. They have achieved that feat three times within three months of Mauricio Pochettino’s arrival. The last time they scored four or more goals in consecutive games was October 2021 – and with all due respect to Malmo and Norwich, doing it against Spurs and Manchester City is slightly more impressive.

Tempering expectations due to the circumstances in beating the former was fair, but going toe to toe with the latter left no doubt as to Chelsea’s progress. They have scored more Premier League goals in 12 games under Pochettino in 2023 (21) than they did in 23 under Graham Potter, Bruno Saltor and Lampard (19).

Manchester United
The Premier League’s form team; no side has accrued as many points as Manchester United since the beginning of October.

It is perhaps the strangest timeline to inhabit, in which Manchester United are rocked by an injury to Jonny Evans and Raphael Varane still watches the majority of a ropey home win against Luton from the bench. But this is nevertheless the reality of a crisis-stricken side above Newcastle and Brighton, more attractive sides long since assumed to have their ducks in far better order.

Only two goalkeepers have more Premier League clean sheets than error-prone Andre Onana. Walking meme Harry Maguire has kept a clean sheet in seven of his last 11 Premier League starts, which have also included just one defeat. Victor Lindelof and Scott McTominay are far from the most talented members of this squad but the manager namedropped them and not Bruno Fernandes or Marcus Rashford for a reason.

It still feels far from sustainable – no other team has more than four one-goal wins, while each of their seven victories have been by that slender margin – but Manchester United are dealing with an increasing list of absentees with admirable character, even if that is not particularly translating to performances on the pitch. They remain, at the very least, impeccable bullies: all 21 of their points have come against sides in the current bottom half, with Arsenal and Tottenham (19) their closest contenders by that metric.

3PM BLACKOUT: Man Utd dodge nadir, Arsenal do enough, Everton undeniably Dyche’s

Antony and Bruno Fernandes clap the supporters.

Sean Dyche, the traveller

“I’ve been down there, I know what it’s like and every season there have been tough patches for us. It’s hard to explain, but sometimes you sense that a team might have lost how to win a game. I said to them at half time ‘I’m not sure these know how to win a game, away from home particularly’.”

Dyche might be the first manager whose team talk comprises pinning his own comments on the dressing-room wall. His assessment of Everton’s away form was cutting and withering and came in April 2022, after his Burnley side had taken the lead three times to win after being pegged back to 1-1 and 2-2.

“I told them we’ve got to play on that mentality – we do it by playing forward with better quality and being more aggressive in our play. Our passing and trying to get into the front areas of the pitch wasn’t glorious but there were patches and enough patches where we found three goals and I’m pleased with that.”

Copy and paste those lines for use in November 2023. Much has been made of Dyche’s interpretation of “direct” football but for Idrissa Gueye’s winner in particular, the “get, turn, play forwards” philosophy was clear to see. Coach Dele will be happy.

Everton are fifth in a Premier League away table, with more goals on the road than Arsenal, more points on their travels than Liverpool, and as many away points this season already as they cobbled together in that 2021/22 season when Dyche so publicly shamed their form beyond the confines of Goodison Park. They certainly know how to win those games now – which is a good job when James Tarkowski decides to be silly in the closing stages.

Virgil van Dijk
Liverpool needed to win that. The Luton draw was a blip and the Toulouse defeat deeply frustrating, but the Reds could hardly afford to close the week with a third unconvincing game in the space of a week, in the build-up to an international break after which they face Manchester City away at Jurgen Klopp’s favourite footballing time of all: Saturday lunch.

Brentford gave them precisely the sort of stern challenge Liverpool needed to re-establish their focus, with the hosts’ quality telling in the end. Going forward, of course, with that blossoming partnership between Mo Salah and Darwin Nunez, but particularly in defence with Van Dijk thriving again.

The ‘greatest centre-half in Premier League history’ debate is deeply, profoundly tiresome so let’s please not. But Van Dijk has embraced his role as captain and returned to his imperious defensive best. No centre-half has made more tackles this season (13) without being dribbled past once; Mads Andersen is the Dutchman’s closest contender on six.

READ MORE: Liverpool in ninth, Spurs in 10th in only Premier League table that matters

Aston Villa
If only their home form counted, Aston Villa would still be 9th with more goals than Manchester United and every team from West Ham down.

Atletico Madrid (15) are the only side in Europe’s top five leagues on a longer current win streak at home, and that is absolutely impeccable company for Aston Villa to keep.

Consecutive away games immediately after the international break provide an opportunity to correct their course on the road, before the chance to equal and then break a club record for successive home league wins in the space of one December week.

Unai Emery and his players will have to work for it, but if Chelsea can put four past Manchester City then who knows what havoc can be wreaked upon the champions before the chance presents itself to enact revenge on Arsenal, the last visiting team to take any points from Villa Park at all back in February.

Sheffield United
Momentum is difficult to establish but crucial to harness when the opportunity arises. It can work both ways: losing begets losing as poor results chip away at the collective and individual confidence. But sometimes it just takes one positive result to turn that tide and ride the wave.

Not since July 2020 had Sheffield United avoided defeat in consecutive Premier League games. They needed a fortuitous stoppage-time penalty against Wolves and a moment of Brighton foolishness resulting in a red card, but the Blades still had to make the most of those situations and use them to their advantage.

Paul Heckingbottom described his side as “forceful” after the game and that encapsulates not only what Sheffield United have been since the turn of the month, but what teams have to be to thrive at any level. Points are not handed out, they have to be claimed by exploiting these sorts of openings. The belief and fighting spirit that generates could be invaluable.

Pablo Sarabia
In suggesting Wolves might be tempted to recall Daniel Podence from a fruitful Olympiacos loan if at all possible, the subtext was clear: their reliance on Pedro Neto and Hwang Hee-chan was broadly fine but presented obvious problems for Gary O’Neil to consider.

Before this weekend, their last 15 Premier League goals had been either scored or assisted by Neto or Hwang. The previous Wolves strike not laid on or finished by either was a Toti header from a Ruben Neves corner to beat Aston Villa in May under Julen Lopetegui. Six months is a long time.

Depending largely upon two players for chance creation and conversion is neither particularly rare nor, in isolation, an issue. But sharing that attacking burden naturally eases any concerns that might surface when such a substantial portion of a side’s attacking threat can be entirely nullified through one player’s unavailability, as was the case when Neto missed the insipid Sheffield United defeat.

Europe’s leading assist provider was again absent at home to Spurs and it seemed the result would be the same, but the introduction of Pablo Sarabia in the 87th minute sparked an unlikely turnaround. Never before had any player both scored and assisted after coming on so late in a Premier League game; the last Wolves player to score and assist in the same league match was Francisco Trincao against Leeds in March 2022.

Matheus Cunha’s curling ball played Sarabia in for his stunning equaliser, before the substitute underlined his willingness to assume more responsibility with his sumptuous pass for Mario Lemina to complete a wonderful stoppage-time comeback.

Leandro Trossard
“He’s so intelligent. He moves in the spaces in ways that attract people and generates spaces and options for people,” said Mikel Arteta, who said that the attack “flows” better when Trossard is in place to “connect” everything.

The sample size is small but Arsenal have won each of the five games the Belgian has started at centre-forward and played more than an hour of since joining, scoring 13 goals and conceding just two. Trossard himself has two goals and six assists in those matches.

It does exclude the 2-2 draw against Fulham in which he was substituted at half-time, and the Sporting stalemate which precipitated their Europa League exit in March. But he is quite clearly Arsenal’s best back-up plan to Gabriel Jesus, if not an entirely viable equal technical alternative in the right circumstances. Gabriel Martinelli links far better with Trossard than when Nketiah deputises, and his chemistry with Bukayo Saka is undoubted.

Saka is the only player with more Arsenal goal involvements (20) than Trossard (15) since he joined, which is startling given his inconsistent opportunities and lack of a defined, fixed position. It truly was a phenomenal signing.

James Ward-Prowse
Only Johan Bakayoko, Florian Wirtz and Joey Veerman have provided more assists in all competitions this season for a team in Europe’s top five leagues, and each a) have played more games, and b) are in their national team’s squads for the November break.

“I’m quite pleased because he’s going to get a wee bit of rest this week,” said David Moyes. We’ll bloody bet he is.

17 – Since the start of the 2020-21 campaign, James Ward-Prowse has 17 dead-ball assists in the Premier League; the only other player in double figures during this period is Aaron Cresswell (10). Premium. pic.twitter.com/jyhYGLd6s6

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 12, 2023

Losers

Roberto De Zerbi
Two teams are on six-game winless runs. Spot the manager in charge of the one that isn’t Luton.

De Zerbi has enjoyed his status as flavour of the month for more like a year, but his bitter and bizarre diatribe against 80% of Premier League referees only emphasised the increasing pressure he faces to maintain the high standards he and Brighton have set.

It was an illogical attack, not least because De Zerbi literally acknowledged that Mahmoud Dahoud was justifiably sent off for stamping on Ben Osborn’s ankle. The Italian then choosing to use the ‘they haven’t played the game’ card was dispiriting. Suggesting the standards are better in other leagues was nonsensical. And frankly we need a list of the 20% of referees he does like.

There have been attempts to explain and interpret De Zerbi’s comments as a part of his wider and well-established frustrations with officials, rather than a hot-headed reaction specifically to the weekend’s red card and subsequent squandering of a lead at home to perhaps the worst team in the entire division. But if De Zerbi is racking up yellow cards at a faster rate than his fellow managers then perhaps there is a need to look in the mirror at his own “behaviour”.

Brighton share another thing in common with Luton: the lack of a Premier League clean sheet all season. That requires deep introspection as opposed to joining the current referee pile-on. De Zerbi is a phenomenal coach and has been A Breath Of Fresh Air in England; what a shame to see him deploy the same stale deflection tactics as everyone else when the sheen wears off slightly.

Tottenham
Ange Postecoglou tried to palm it off as “all understandable stuff given the line-up we had out there,” but after soaking in the applause after a valiant 4-1 defeat to Chelsea earlier in the week, the Wolves excuse did not wash.

There is plenty of sympathy in regards to team selection. A makeshift defence, stodgy midfield and ineffective attack came within a whisker of delivering a creditable result, if not a resounding display. At least a couple of those players were openly considered surplus to requirements in the summer but gave passable Postecoglou performances.

But the sheer absence of intelligent game management was far from “understandable”. This might have been the first match in which Spurs truly missed Harry Kane – not for his goalscoring brilliance but the way he would relieve pressure with his hold-up play or by buying fouls.

Tottenham had a corner in the 88th minute at 1-0 up, didn’t play it short to keep possession and conceded the equaliser within three minutes. For the winner, the closest anyone got to tracking Lemina was when Giovani Lo Celso fouled him in the centre circle, after which no Spurs player had the wherewithal to obstruct a quickly-taken free-kick to Sarabia in acres of space, before Lemina strolled undetected past a defensive line that was still too high at that stage in the game. Nothing Spurs did after the 90th minute was in any way “understandable”. And there will be no pats on the back or moral victories to console them this time, just more injury and suspension worries.

READ MORE: Spurs shelve style for substance before shooting themselves in the foot again

Newcastle
“How many injuries have we got?” asked Kieran Trippier, and if anyone honestly offers 11 as an answer then they should be forced to write 500 words about how Javier Manquillo’s groin problem has contributed to Newcastle’s recent struggles.

There are enough issues within a thinning squad without having to embellish them. Eddie Howe and his players would have mentally prepared themselves for the unique challenge of balancing the demands of another competition, but only so many provisions can be taken to handle that physical load.

Newcastle were running on fumes at Bournemouth and perhaps that is the trade-off to accept when relying on such a high-energy style. That cannot possibly be maintained each week, never mind two or three times a week, and their away form presents a separate issue in terms of not having that symbiotic St James’ Park passion to feed off.

But ultimately, Howe was right to pinpoint the specific absence of Bruno Guimaraes. Newcastle have now failed to win any of the seven games he has played no part in since joining in January 2022. Maybe hunting a booking against Arsenal to get his suspension out of the way in the midst of an injury crisis wasn’t the brightest idea?

Anthony Gordon looks massively frustrated during Bournemouth vs Newcastle.

Crystal Palace
Splitting the season into four-game segments between international breaks, Palace’s form has slowly dipped. Leading into the September pause they were 7th, their form between that and the October one was 13th-best, and then heading into November’s it has dropped to 17th.

The return of Eberechi Eze has already paid dividends and Michael Olise ought to have a similarly positive impact after his substitute cameo, while the hope is that Cheick Doucoure’s absence is nothing even vaguely long-term.

It’s just a bit all or nothing – very uncharacteristic of Hodgsonball – considering they have kept the joint-most clean sheets but also only Burnley (six times), Bournemouth (five) and West Ham (four) have conceded three goals or more in more games than Palace (three) this season.

Nottingham Forest
No side picked up fewer points, scored fewer goals or had a worse defensive record in Premier League away games last season than Nottingham Forest.

Their Stamford Bridge smash-and-grab offers a slightly kinder reflection of their travel travails in 2023/24 but still, only Sheffield United and Bournemouth have fewer away points this season, and neither have played as many such games as Forest.

Leicester (15) and Southampton (14) both still have more Premier League away points than Forest (12) since the start of last campaign. Steve Cooper has publicly accepted the problem but there remains no apparent solution.

READ MORE: Every Premier League team ranked by points dropped from winning positions

Brentford at Anfield
Thomas Frank’s side have held their own in pretty much every other situation the Premier League presents, but they are yet to even score away at Liverpool since promotion, never mind swindle as much as a point.

Fulham
Twelve games into the season, only two teams boast a top league scorer on as few as two goals. And matching Sheffield United by any meaningful measure is likely to result in a relegation battle.

A truly pivotal week in the race between Antonee Robinson scoring own goals and every Fulham striker combined scoring actual ones. though. They are neck and neck in mid-November; the Cottagers have 10 goals altogether, while Aleksandar Mitrovic alone had eight at this point in 2022/23.

God bless Marco Silva for thinking a consolation goal scored into a basically empty net is going to inspire Raul Jimenez to drag them out of this mess.

Burnley
Bullied by Arsenal into conceding from a cross and two corners. Saka had never won more than three aerial duels in a club game before making his 196th Arsenal appearance at the weekend. He contested four aerial duels against Burnley and won each of them.

Look how they massacred Dyche’s boy by having Zeki Amdouni mark William Saliba. It’s a sick joke is what it is. At least they don’t face a fresh Ward-Prowse’s West Ham immediately after the international break.