It was another weekend of drama and excitement in the English Premier League as week 5 clashes delivered the goods. A late equalizer by Manchester City denied Arsenal a win to go top of the table. Aston Villa climbed into the top three with their fourth win of the season in five games. Here are the biggest talking points from Premier League Week 5:
Heated contest at the top
Arsenal was two points and a place behind league leaders Man City coming into Week 5. Despite Pep Guardiola’s optimism, City were without Kevin De Bruyne who picked an injury against Inter in the Champions League. The North London side were also missing Martin Ødegaard due to injury. While Erling Haaland’s ninth-minute goal gave City an early lead, the Gunners were up 2-1 by the end of the first half thanks to goals from Riccardo Calafiori and Gabriel. However, a Leandro Trossard red card doused Arsenal’s momentum. John Stones snatched a draw for the champions at the death.
Nicolas shines as Chelsea dominate West Ham
Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson continues to silence his critics as he propels the Blues up the table with a man-of-the-match performance against London rivals West Ham. Jackson scored twice and assisted Cole Parmer for Chelsea’s third goal in a comfortable three-nil away win for Enzo Maresca’s men. Jackson has been the target of criticism in the past as the striker struggled to make an instant impact following his move to Chelsea. However, with four goals in the Premier League this season, the Senegalese has justified the club’s faith in him.
Liverpool and Aston Villa overtake Arsenal in the top 4
Liverpool and Aston Villa both continued their impressive form from midweek in their respective Premier League fixtures. Liverpool, after their shocking loss to Nottingham Forest in Week 4 bounced back with a 3-1 win over Milan at the San Siro. The Reds are back to winning ways in the Premier League with a three-nil win over Bournemouth. Luis Diaz scored twice with Darwin Nunez grabbing the third all in the first half. Aston Villa also sealed their fourth win of the season in a 3-1 showdown against Wolves.
Elsewhere, Manchester United’s struggle in front of goal continued as they were held by Crystal Palace to a goalless draw. Tottenham, on the other hand, recovered from their Week 4 defeat to Arsenal to beat Brentford 3-1 and move to the top half of the table while Newcastle were handed their first defeat of the season by Fulham.
