Premier League action returned after the international break this past weekend, and it delivered on all counts, with a few shocks and surprises, and exciting football.
At the end of the fifth round of the 2019-20 Premier League season, only one team is undefeated – Liverpool; Jürgen Klopp’s men remain top of the table with 5 wins in 5, and have a five-point lead over Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City team.
Let’s take a look at the 5 talking points from Matchweek 5:
Manchester City sorely miss Aymeric Laporte
Manchester City were made to pay the price for some costly defensive lapses as the Premier League champions lost to newly-promoted side Norwich City at Carrow Road on Saturday.
Teemu Pukki scored the decisive third goal in the game, as the Canaries took the few opportunities that came their way, while City dominated possession but were stopped by a resolute Norwich side.
What makes Norwich’s victory even more remarkable is that they missed several of their first-team players due to injury. City, meanwhile, had a torrid time at the back as the defensive duo of Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones were exposed by the Norwich attack.
Guardiola will be worried by the form of his defenders, especially with the injury to his best defender Aymeric Laporte, who will be out for a few months.
Arsenal defence in shambles again
Manchester City weren’t the only top 6 team to put up a horrible defensive display this weekend as Arsenal too were poor at the back.
The Gunners took a two-goal lead against bottom-placed Watford in the first half, thanks to a brace from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but Unai Emery’s side were pegged back by Watford who scored two second-half goals.
Both of Arsenal’s central defenders, Sokratis and David Luiz, were at fault for the two goals conceded on Sunday, with the former’s pass causing the first goal and the latter giving away a penalty late in the game.
Emery needs to find a solution to his defensive problems soon or Arsenal can say goodbye to a possible top 4 spot.
Chelsea’s young guns shine
Frank Lampard has rejuvenated his young Chelsea team after the 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Manchester United in gameweek 1 of the Premier League.
The Blues dominated against Wolves at Molineux, as Lampard changed formations and went to a back three.
Three of Chelsea’s home-grown products, Fikayo Tomori, Mason Mount, and Tammy Abraham scored against Wolves, with Abraham scoring a hat-trick and is the joint top scorer of the Premier League with 7 goals.
Lampard’s talented young players are coming good, and with the likes of other home-grown talents like Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ruben Loftus-Cheek set to return soon, we could very well see a young and exciting Chelsea side.
New contenders for top 6 slot?
Wolves, Everton and Leicester City were touted by many to get into the top 6 this season, uprooting the likes of Manchester United or Chelsea from the European spots, but it seems that there may be new contenders as well.
Wolves have struggled in the Premier League so far and are second from bottom in the league with two draws and three losses, while Everton slumped to a defeat to Bournemouth, leaving them 7 points in 5 games and in 11th place.
West Ham United, after a decent start to the season and with a strong side, could be one team that could possibly push their way into the top 6, while Bournemouth may also have a chance after their decent start to the season.
Leicester City’s top 6 audition
This weekend was to give us an indication if Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester City were good enough to make it into the top 6 when they faced Manchester United.
On paper, the Foxes looked like the dominant team with the lion’s share of the possession, but in reality, they didn’t trouble the Red Devils.
Rodgers’ side couldn’t penetrate the United backline as they couldn’t get the ball in behind the United defence to find Jamie Vardy.
The former Liverpool and Celtic manager will need a plan B when teams sit deep and try to hit them on the counterattack.
