The Premier League is box-office at the moment. Incident-packed games, shock results, VAR controversy – last weekend had it all.
Chelsea‘s 4-1 win against Tottenham was a fitting end to a gameweek that saw only one of the top five claim victory – no prizes for guessing who that was. Sheffield United pricked up their first three points of the campaign. Even Manchester United got a win.
Erik ten Hag‘s side turned in a gutsy performance to begin the weekend and stave off crisis-club headlines for at least a few days. Everton continued their uptick in form and were unfortunate not to beat Brighton.
The same went for Luton, who were undone by a late Luiz Diaz header on his return to the team following the kidnapping of his father.
There were storylines aplenty and thrilling performances to match. Mail Sport will be taking you through the ones we think deserved the most credit in our Power Rankings that unbelievably feature 10 new entries.
Manchester United’s players celebrated wildly after Bruno Fernandes’ huge goal gave them all three points at Fulham – bouncing back from two- straight 3-0 losses
Sheffield United picked up their first win of the Premier League season after beating Wolves
Nicolas Jackson’s hat-trick on Monday evening earned Chelsea a hard-fought win over Spurs
10. Chiedozie Ogbene (new entry)
Ogbene did not score or assist in Luton’s 1-1 draw against Liverpool on Sunday. Indeed, the Hatters opened the scoring just a minute after he left the field. But the work he had done in the preceding 79 minutes gave the newly-promoted side a platform to attack Jurgen Klopp’s top-four chasers.
A case could be made for Ross Barkley or Andros Townsend’s inclusion instead of the 26-year-old but the winger’s contribution in the final third earns him a spot.
Rob Edwards’ side routinely focused their attacks down Liverpool’s right flank where Ogbene terrorised Alexander-Arnold and recorded four successful take-ons from five attempts.
The normally reliable Ibrahima Konate didn’t fair much better against the Ireland international when he came over to support, fouling the speedy wide-man on one occasion before being bamboozled by him on another that should have led to the first goal of the game.
9. Vitaliy Mykolenko (new entry)
Mykolenko has been a mainstay in Sean Dyche’s starting XI since Everton’s defeat by Arsenal in September. Since then the Toffees have lost two of their six games, having been defeated in four of the previous five.
Saturday’s game ultimately ended in disappointment for the home side as a fluke Brighton goal denied them all three points but the manner of their performance showed how much confidence has grown at Goodison Park.
The Ukrainian embodies this above most others. Almost always a diligent defender, Mykolenko grabbed the opening goal of the game against the Seagulls and formed the dogged rearguard that came so close to keeping Roberto Di Zerbi’s side out.
Vitaliy Mykolenko celebrates after his goal in the first half had put Everton in the ascendancy
8. Mohammed Kudus (new entry)
West Ham’s capture of Mohammed Kudus was yet another example of the Premier League’s pulling power. Hammers fans were made to wait a couple of weeks to see the Ghanaian in full swing but they’re finally getting to experience what all the fuss was about.
The 23-year-old followed up his stunning goal in midweek against Arsenal with an even better effort against Brentford. From the corner of the box and with Michail Antonio’s looping cross approaching, Kudus pulled off a acrobatic finish that bent into the Bees net.
Unfortunately for the away side they weren’t able to make the effort count as they went down 3-2 to Thomas Frank’s resurgent side. But in Kudus they have a genuinely special player capable of producing a moment of magic from any scenario.
Mohammed Kudus scored a stunning bicycle kick to cancel out Brentford’s opening goal
7. Bruno Fernandes (new entry)
Saturday afternoon brought a rare moment of sunshine for the Red Devils and their skipper Bruno Fernandes. Manager Erik ten Hag has been taking the majority of the flack in recent weeks. Marcus Rashford has also shouldered a fair bit of blame. But the Portuguese midfielder was finally starting to receive a bit stick for his performances.
That’s why the goal against Fulham was such a big moment. Better still that it handed United maximum points after their week from hell.
On his 200th appearance for the club, the 29-year-old kept his cool to wriggle away from Fulham defenders at Craven Cottage before placing his effort into the corner of the net.
Fernandes turned in a performance with his highest number of successful take-ons, progressive carries and goal-creating actions in his last five games. Time will tell how vital his winner is but for now it quietens at least some of the noise at Old Trafford.
6. Nicolas Jackson (new entry)
The Senegal international scored one of the weirdest hat-tricks in Premier League history in one of its strangest games. Ange Postecoglou’s decision to persist with his ultra high line, despite being down to nine men, resulted in some truly comical images of the game.
Chelsea constantly made a meal of a situation you’d imagine they would have perfected at Under 10s football and Jackson was one of the main culprits. The 22-year-old lost possession five times, lost seven of 10 duels, had just 26 touches and missed with a header from about three yards.
But ultimately, he did score a hat-trick. Even if the chances for his first two goals were more presentable than scenarios he would have in training. Or the fact he appeared to score in spite of himself with his indecision baffling Vicario for his hat-trick goal.
Still, it was a three goals in a Premier League match nonetheless and a vital trio for a forward in desperate need of confidence.
5. Cole Palmer (new entry)
During the opening exchanges of Monday’s game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium when the home side were rampant and looked like scoring with every attack, Palmer was the sole Chelsea player who kept his composure.
Manchester City’s decision to let their academy product leave for a fellow Premier League big boy seemed slightly odd in the moment and Palmer is performing like a player desperate to show Pep Guardiola what he’s missing.
Now, it’s unlikely the Spaniard is losing too much, if any sleep over the 21-year-old’s departure, but that shouldn’t diminish the winger’s impact at Stamford Bridge.
Palmer kept his cool to score Chelsea’s opening goal against Spurs and then proceeded to wander wherever he fancied to create chances for the Blues. He was responsible for at least a couple of the one-on-one chances Mauricio Pochettino’s side squandered and did manage to get assist on the night as well.
Cole Palmer found the back of the net from the penalty spot in the 35th minute of the game
4. Guglielmo Vicario (new entry)
As odd as it is to have a hat-trick-scoring striker sixth on this list, it’s even stranger to have a keeper who conceded four times two places higher.
Postecoglou’s aforementioned mad tactic when Spurs were down to nine players relied on Vicario’s ability to sweep up like we’ve hardly ever seen before. The 27-year-old completed seven run outs against Blues and all were successful.
He also made three stunning saves, was a whisker away from stopping Palmer’s penalty and finished with a touch map reminiscent of a central defensive midfielder rather than goalkeeper.
The former Empoli star has seamlessly addressed the club’s issues in the position after a few shaky seasons with Hugo Lloris and he appears to be every bit as important to their great start as James Maddison, Yves Bissouma or Micky van de Ven.
Despite conceding four goals on Monday night, Guglielmo Vicario thwarted Chelsea on several occasions
3. Anthony Gordon (new entry)
Anthony Gordon was one of only three players Eddie Howe selected from the start to face Manchester United and Arsenal last week and the 22-year-old more than repaid his manager’s decision.
The forward has taken his Golden Ball-winning U21 European Championship form into the season and is emerging as one of the brightest young stars of the division.
The strike against Arsenal was his fourth of the campaign but his impact for the Magpies has gone beyond goals and assists. His pace, energy and intelligence are a constant nightmare for defenders and are necessitating a move in-field.
Howe’s started the former Everton youngster in the centre of his front three at Old Trafford and his goal against the Gunners came after he shifted into the middle following Callum Wilson’s substitution. It’s the same position in which he proved so effective for the Young Lions and could be the area where he can be most devastating.
2. Bernardo Silva (new entry)
Manchester City’s 6-1 demolition of Bournemouth was in large part down to the player who tops this list but Silva wasn’t far behind in terms of impact on Saturday.
The 29-year-old, like the team as a whole, has just clicked into gear over the last week and produced a couple of stellar performances that should silence talk of anyone but the Cityzens winning the league again.
Silva grabbed himself a brace against the Cherries with a second goal that wreaked of a player full of confidence. The delightful shimmy past the defender wasn’t enough, the 29-year-old had to go and dink it over the keeper for good measure.
Bernardo Silva scored twice for Man City as he continued his excellent form this season
1. Jeremy Doku (new entry)
Jeremy Doku looked to be just a speedy winger with a freakish ability to consistently beat his defender but he’s already showing he’s much more than that. The Belgian completed a remarkable feat against Bournemouth after being directly involved in the home side’s first five goals.
On a day when conversation could easily have been taken up by Erling Haaland’s early exit from the game, the 21-year-old ensured he was all anyone would be discussing.
Doku completed all five of his dribbles in addition to his goal contributions. Jack Grealish is going to find it very hard to get back into this team.
Jeremy Doku opened the scoring on the half-hour mark before laying on City’s next four goals
