This week in the Premier League, Sunday was the day to watch.

A much anticipated, big-six rivalry match between title contenders Liverpool and Arsenal did not disappoint this past weekend.

Arsenal began without key midfielder and captain Martin Ødegaard due to an ankle injury that has sidelined him for the past month. Central defender William Saliba was also absent due to the red card he received in last week’s match against AFC Bournemouth. Ødegaard and Saliba are two pivotal players that have contributed to Arsenal’s success in recent years.

The game lived up to the hype, with visiting Liverpool twice coming from behind by virtue of goals from Virgil Van Dijk and Mohamed Salah, leaving the game all square at 2–2. Arsenal’s young star, Bukayo Saka, who was rumored to be doubtful to play in the week leading up to the match, made his presence felt by opening the scoring with a delicately precise finish in the ninth minute. Mikel Merino also scored his first goal for the club, continuing the hot form that led to his signing this summer on the back of a successful Euro Cup display. This game will certainly have ramifications for the title race, as Manchester City won yet again on Saturday, pulling them one point clear of Liverpool and five points clear of Arsenal at the top of the table. 

Chelsea hosted Newcastle on Sunday and, just as expected, this match was pure entertainment.

There were many storylines coming into this game: Sancho lost his starting position to the Portuguese winger Pedro Neto, Newcastle’s star playmaker Anthony Gordon was out due to an apparent groin injury, plus the question of whether Newcastle could even compete this season lingered. Well, as good games usually have it, all stories found their endings. Pedro Neto proved to be a great option for the Chelsea Blues, assisting star striker Nicolas Jackson in the 18th minute to put Chelsea up 1–0. Chelsea’s fast-paced offense seemed to be too much for Newcastle at first, but 15 minutes later, Newcastle forward Alexander Isak equalized off a cross from Lewis Hall. At the half, the game was all tied up, and it seemed as if Newcastle would be able to prove themselves as a serious squad to be reckoned with. Well, a chilly wind blew over Stamford Bridge and, 75 seconds into the second half, Chelsea’s young phenom Cole “Cold” Palmer bagged a goal from outside the box to put the Blues up 2–1. Newcastle struggled to keep up offensively, feeling the loss of Gordon, and Chelsea was able to keep the lead and eventually the three points to push them to fifth. Newcastle, on the other hand, has fallen to 12th, and it seems fair to now really question if changes need to be made by gaffer Eddie Howe.

Elsewhere in London, a gritty battle ensued as Crystal Palace hosted Tottenham.

Tottenham, without star player and team leader Son Heung-min, entered this game with the goal of capitalizing on last week’s win against West Ham, while Crystal Palace was still fighting to avoid relegation. From the first whistle, the difference in energy levels between the two squads was quite noticeable; the Eagles played with a fiery intensity that the Spurs seemed to lack. If you watch the Premier League, you’ll notice that the teams who find success play with their lives on the line until the final whistle. Tottenham, a decent team with a great squad, lacked this drive, and made poor decisions. The only goal in this game came from a bad defensive mistake. Spurs’ center-back Micky van de Ven missed his teammate’s pass due to lack of concentration, giving Palace back possession. From there, the ball made its way to star player Eberechi Eze and, with a stellar pass to Jean-Philippe Mateta, the ball found its way into the back of the net, giving Crystal Palace the lead and, eventually, the win. The Premier League is fast, and if you don’t play with urgency, it will move past you.  

The thrilling nature of Premier League football was also on display as Brentford hosted newly promoted Ipswich Town, in hopes of maintaining their position in the top half of the table.

Ipswich came out firing with classy goals from Sammie Szmodics and George Hirst, smashing the Bees into a 2–0 lead. They were sitting pretty until the conclusion of the first half, when Brentford Striker Yoane Wissa scored and assisted an own goal to pull the match level at the break. The drama of the second half was on par with the first, beginning when Ipswich’s Harry Clark yanked defender Keane Lewis-Potter down in the box, resulting in a penalty that Brentford star Bryan Mbeumo coolly slotted home for his seventh goal of the season. Only 20 minutes later, Harry Clark was penalized once again, resulting in a second yellow card and his subsequent dismissal in the 69th minute, reducing Ipswich to ten men. At this point, things were looking grim for relegation-battling Ipswich, until, out of nowhere, substitute Liam Delap knocked in a cross to level the match at 3–3. At this point, Ipswich were quite content to see out the draw, down a man, away from home, until their plans were foiled deep in stoppage time when a last-gasp effort from Mbeumo snuck in at the back post to win it for the hosts. Ipswich will look to bounce back next weekend, replicating their successes of the early 2000s to remain in the Premier League for another term.

Looking Ahead

The title race for the Premier League is heating up as we get farther into the season. Back in August, the favorites were reigning champions Manchester City and their angry little sibling, Arsenal. Now, nine weeks into the season, it seems as if Liverpool, under new gaffer Arne Slot, has taken Arsenal’s position battling with Manchester City for the crown, only trailing them by one point. Although Manchester City is still undefeated, Liverpool is collecting big wins and currently boasts a better goal difference. Behind those two, by more than one game, are Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Brighton, and Nottingham Forest. Unless City or Liverpool go on a losing streak, it seems like the latter squads are fighting for a chance to compete in the Champions League next season. 

On the other side of the table, Southampton has dug their grave seven, if not eight, feet deep. With the Wolves drawing with Brighton over the weekend, they remain the last team with only one point. Our guess? We won’t be writing about Southampton next year; to learn about them, you will need to find an EFL championship bi- or tri-weekly update. Crystal Palace’s win over Tottenham kept them just out of relegation, but they will need to find more success if they want to stay that way.

Future matches in upcoming weeks to look out for: On Sunday, November 3, Manchester United will host Chelsea; on Saturday, November 9, Liverpool will host Aston Villa; and on Sunday, November 10, Chelsea will host Arsenal. 

Non-Match News

One of our first ideas when coming up for this week’s update was to write about Manchester United’s head gaffer, Erik ten Hag. The Dutch coach has been at Old Trafford for two seasons and has accumulated a fair number of honors. His first season, he brought Manchester United to a top-three finish and was able to bring home the EFL Cup. Even though this was not bad for a first season, fans and spectators alike questioned him and his tactics. The next season, United flopped, and they flopped hard. After a terrible stint in the Champions League, and a fall-off in standings in the Premier League, it seemed like ten Hag would be fired at the end of the season. However, a miraculous win over United’s Manchester rival in the FA Cup got him more support, and he kept his job entering this season. Oh, how Manchester United must regret that. A terrible start to the season and nothing but complaining to the press: ten Hag’s performance has been a recipe for a sacking. Early Monday morning, it was officially announced that United would be moving on from ten Hag, placing club legend Ruud van Nistelrooy as interim head coach. The fellow Dutch native will face a well-established Chelsea squad next week, so it will be interesting to see if the players can rally around him to try to change the outcome of this season.

Harry Freeland can be reached at hfreeland@wesleyan.edu 

Leo Ferry can be reached at lferry@wesleyan.edu