Florian Wirtz was supposed to take the Premier League by storm but Liverpool's £116m summer signing has so far shown signs of struggling to adapt to this new challenge.
The German hit stratospheric heights while at Bayer Leverkusen; a player who could seemingly do it all. But in the hustle and bustle of England's top flight, he is yet to get up to speed.
He was surprisingly benched for last weekend's Merseyside derby but, back in the team at Selhurst Park, it was another underwhelming outing for Wirtz - with a big chance missed, too. It's no goals, no assists from his eight Liverpool appearances.
Throughout the first half he struggled to find space in significant areas to receive the ball. And when he did he was pounced on by numerous Palace defenders. He has the technique to retain possession in those moments but rarely could he turn and go at goal.
With Liverpool taking control after the break, there were more touches - only Mohamed Salah and Alexander Isak had fewer than the playmaker in the first half - but the spark which he has brought to the pitch in his career to date was still missing.
Perhaps the story would have shifted had he flicked the ball in from five yards - but the fact he could only send it at Dean Henderson seemed to sum up Wirtz's afternoon and his underwhelming start at Liverpool.
Peter Smith
Jeremy Doku now has three assists in his last three Premier League games for Manchester City, more than he had managed in his previous 17 appearances in the competition. The Belgian received a standing ovation when announced as the player of the match.
Erling Haaland bagged his goals late on but Doku looked the man most likely to make the difference for City throughout. Pep Guardiola has long called him the fastest player around over five metres, unstoppable in those small spaces, but he is in the form of his life.
What has changed? "I have the feeling that Jeremy, his decision-making in the final third improved a lot comparing to the past," said Guardiola afterwards. And Doku has become indispensable to City when they are trying to break down teams in a low block.
"Now he is reading when the opponents go two or three, the other men would be free." Guardiola added: "The second goal is a perfect example of that." Doku did not put the cross in himself for that goal but he did pick out a team-mate in the build-up to it.
He also set up the first goal and the last one. This time, he did not score. And, technically, he only registered one assist in the game. But Doku is rightly described as "very important" by his manager and was City's outstanding player on the day.
Adam Bate
It was once again so obvious that United's set up was a massive issue at Brentford.
Forget criticism of playing three at the back, others have shown it is no impediment to success, it is Ruben Amorim's insistence on leaving his two-man midfield pivot exposed that comes back to bite him time and again.
Brentford changed from a back five to a back four against Amorim's three at the back system, while keeping a midfield three of Jordan Henderson, Yehor Yarmoliuk and Mikkel Damsgaard.
Not for the first time this season, United's midfield pivot of Bruno Fernandes and Manuel Ugarte were overrun by Brentford, who richly deserved the three points.
Amorim did not seem to want to acknowledge those issues after the game. "It's always the same, when we win it's not the system, when we lose it's the system," he said. "It's more that we play this game the way Brentford wants to play it."
So far, we've yet to see Amorim's United dominate a top team in the Premier League that has a full accompaniment of players. After Casemiro's red card last week, Chelsea made United sweat for the win.
Brentford boss Keith Andrews, who was in charge of set-pieces in the club's set up under Thomas Frank last season, explained after the game how his side overloaded United's midfield.
"It's the natural way you prepare for games," said Andrews, when asked if he targeted United's midfield. "You try and create overloads.
"One of which would be if we have a three-man midfield, they have a two. But you could flip it and say 'if their wide players tuck in, then they have a four'. But I certainly felt how we tried to entice them onto us and try and play around, or through [them], at times, would be on."
Andrews, in his first season as a senior head coach, demonstrated the value in adaptability on Saturday, while Amorim finished the game with Bryan Mbeumo and Mason Mount as his wing-backs.
Zinny Boswell
"You can't continue to make mistakes. They are game-changing mistakes."
Enzo Maresca's frustrations were clear after Chelsea's 3-1 defeat against Brighton at Stamford Bridge.
For the second successive week in the league Chelsea had to find answers after going down to 10 men, and they failed as they slipped to a second straight defeat.
Maresca continued to hit the message home in his post-match press conference. He said: "The message that we just said inside has been quite clear: against any team in the Premier League you cannot continue to give away presents, because what we are doing in this moment is to give away presents in terms of red cards, that is a big mistake because the game completely changed."
The Blues have now won just one of their last five games in all competitions and pressure is starting to increase on Maresca.
Things don't get any easier for Chelsea either this week with Jose Mourinho returning to west London with Benfica before a clash with league leaders Liverpool.
Maresca knows his young side will have to learn from the mistakes of the last few weeks quickly, otherwise change might be afoot at Stamford Bridge.
Oliver Yew
Danny Welbeck reminded everyone of his quality with a match-winning display at Stamford Bridge. Introduced from the bench, he brought Brighton level with a trademark header before striking again in stoppage time to secure all three points in a dramatic turnaround.
It was the kind of all-action performance that epitomised the striker at his best: intelligent movement, clinical finishing, and relentless energy. Booked for whipping off his shirt in celebration after his second, Welbeck won't care. This was his day, and his double underlined just how important he remains to Fabian Hurzeler's side.
Welbeck clearly relishes facing Chelsea. He has now been directly involved in seven goals (five goals, two assists) in eight Premier League appearances against them for Brighton, more than against any other side in the competition for the Seagulls.
Maxim De Cuyper has had to be patient for his opportunities since arriving in the summer, but this was his breakthrough moment in a Brighton shirt. His close-range header to give the Seagulls the lead showed bravery and composure, qualities that will endear him to fans quickly.
For all the late drama, Brighton could have made life easier for themselves had they been more ruthless earlier in the contest. Kaoru Mitoma and Ferdi Kadioglu both had promising openings but failed to trouble Robert Sanchez in the Chelsea goal. Against 11 men, those wasted chances might prove more costly. Brighton's attacking depth is impressive, but turning dominance into goals more consistently remains a challenge Hurzeler will want to address.
The win was also historic. Brighton have now won consecutive Premier League games against Chelsea for just the second time (also April 2023). They've taken four victories from their last seven against the Blues, losing three, after failing to win any of their first 10 in the competition.
Sam Cohen
Depth proved to be the keyword when Leeds hosted Bournemouth at Elland Road, with Leeds’ lack thereof and Bournemouth’s strength in numbers separating the sides in the dying minutes of the game.
Eyebrows were raised when Andoni Iraola chose to start Ryan Christie, Justin Kluivert and Amine Adli in place of Alex Scott, Marcus Tavernier and David Brooks. Not a single one of those players would raise concerns ordinarily, and for a manager as universally adored by fans as Iraola, the changes didn’t prompt too many angry reactions, but after successful performances against Brighton and Tottenham Hotspur, fans were rightfully confused.
When the game kicked off, it was clear something was missing. Bournemouth’s usual high-intensity, relentless press was nullified by Leeds, who looked to steal pockets of possession to generate chances.
On the hour mark, Iraola hauled off his three changes, returning to the side that faced Newcastle last time out. Two more changes followed with the youthful injections of Ben Gannon-Doak and Junior Kroupi and, suddenly, Bournemouth looked more like themselves.
While Daniel Farke’s side were undeniably the better team and will have been devastated to see their almost-certain three points slip away, it was their depth that was thrown into question, not their quality.
It was a strong performance from the hosts. They kept Bournemouth quiet, they created dangerous chances and scored scintillating goals, but in the dying minutes of the game when Iraola threw out the tactics board and focused on changing the pace, it felt like Leeds had nothing left to give.
When they go up against big teams later in the season, it’ll be this depth that defines whether or not Leeds can push on.
Katie Catherall
Crystal Palace have lost two world-class players - Michael Olise and Ebere Eze - in two successive summers. Manager Oliver Glasner had to put his job on the line to stop a third, Marc Guehi, going to Liverpool this summer.
And yet, here Palace are, sitting prettier than ever in the Premier League. Glasner has masterminded an FA Cup win, a record-equalling 18-game unbeaten run and, on Saturday, a deserved win against the champions.
This Palace side are just as resourceful in their tactics as they are in their transfers. The Austrian has designed a system which suits his players perfectly: the towering back three of Richards, Guehi and Lacroix, the dazzling Adam Wharton pulling the strings in midfield, and the clinical Jean Phillipe-Mateta in attack. Today, it all came to a head in one of their finest performances to date.
"I think it was the best half since I arrived," said Glasner of the second period. "When you play the champions, you always know you can slide back and they score late goals.
"But we kept our heads up and turned the momentum again. It makes me really proud of the group. It was such a team effort today."
No matter which players they lose, it's hard to believe that Glasner won't find a way to make it work for Palace. Time will tell if - and for how long - he can keep the Eagles soaring.
Noah Langford
Regardless of how long Ange Postecoglou has been at Nottingham Forest, pressure is now beginning to ramp up at the City Ground.
Five games, two draws and three losses. It is not quite the new manager bounce Forest fans were hoping for.
"When there are droughts, we tend to see that there is this almost self-perpetuating cycle of low confidence and low performance," a performance psychologist recently told Sky Sports about the impact winless runs can have on a team.
The unwanted record will now be looming over Forest heading into every fixture, compounding those doubts and fears, and there is no let-up in terms of their upcoming opponents.
They host Midtjylland on Thursday and then travel to Newcastle, live on Sky Sports, for their next Premier League outing. Chelsea then make the trip to the East Midlands after the international break.
Frustration is already creeping in from the fanbase, which could be amplified if Nuno Espirito Santo starts well at West Ham.
Postecoglou cannot let this run stretch to eight games.
Patrick Rowe
