1) Van Persie shows signs of both relief and improvement
An hour after the final whistle Robin van Persie was back on the pitch, with a ball at his feet. Except this time he was wearing his Manchester United blazer and polished shoes. Old Trafford was virtually empty and the place was almost in silence as he took a full XI of team-mates’ kids on to the pitch for a little knockabout under the floodlights. He cut a relaxed figure, perhaps unaware at that point that Louis van Gaal had delivered a public rebuke for that shirt-off goal celebration, describing his player as “stupid” for inviting Phil Dowd to show his yellow card for a 10th time.
Van Gaal was right to bring it up bearing in mind Van Persie is now only two bookings away from a suspension but the bigger story here was of a player reminding his audience of the gifts that make him such a feared opponent. Van Persie is still some way short of the form that he showed in his first season in United’s colours but his movement and use of the ball made this one of his better performances in the Van Gaal era. The celebration after his stoppage-time equaliser felt like a release of pent-up emotion and there were at least signs of improvement in his performance. Daniel Taylor
• Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea
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• Barney Ronay: Fellaini in from cold to warm United hearts
• Michael Cox: Van Gaal and Mourinho caution comes at cost
2) Allardyce revels in Mangala’s woes
If the Manchester City manager were named Matty Pilkington, would Sam Allardici have enjoyed West Ham’s victory quite so much? It seems there are few things the West Ham manager likes more than explaining how he outwitted a highbrow foreign coach. His account of West Ham’s toppling of the champions will not make easy listening for Manuel Pellegrini.
Allardyce said West Ham took advantage of the lack of support City give Eliaquim Mangala as the summer signing adapts to the Premier League. West Ham’s first goal was a prime example, as Alex Song dissected the City defence with a superb pass and Enner Valencia darted between Mangala and Gaël Clichy before crossing for Morgan Amalfitano.
“I think they leave him exposed,” said Allardyce of Mangala. “He’s only just joined the Premier League. They don’t protect him and he’s only just got here, the more and more you can get down the side of him, with the space that Clichy leaves. Kompany is used to it, he’s been at this level for such a long time, this lad’s not, he’s finding his feet and, like I said, we made big strides down that left-hand side and we caused them lots of problems.”
Mangala was imperious in his Premier League debut at home to Chelsea in September but has been less convincing since then, notably in the 4-2 win at Hull and again at Upton Park. Allardyce reckons teams will continue to take advantage, especially on the road, if City do not adapt. “They come away from home expecting to win and go and attack you,” he said. “We’ve seen a lot this season how those spaces they leave can be exploited by other teams.”
Mangala’s teething troubles are reminiscent of those endured last season by Martín Demichelis, who seemed ill at ease in his first couple of months in English football but gradually improved to demonstrate what an accomplished defender he really is. Pellegrini no doubt hopes Mangala will get to grips with the Premier League in the same way and, if he does come to anticipate danger as well as the Argentinian, then Mangala’s greater speed and strength will make him a formidable asset. Paul Doyle
• Allardyce: City could not cope with us
• Match report: West Ham 2-1 Manchester City
3) Moses continues to fall short of potential heights
- Appearances
- 7
- Goals
- 0
- Shots
- 9
- Shots on target
- 44%
- Offsides
- 0
Victor Moses had Stoke City’s best moment during their 1-0 defeat at Southampton when he went close to scoring an excellent solo goal, only to shoot tamely at Fraser Forster after shaking off his marker. Yet otherwise he struggled to influence the game and was substituted in the second half. Although Mark Hughes refused to criticise him, saying Moses has done well for Stoke so far, the winger still needs to be more consistent to make the most of his undoubted talent. He has terrific ability, which is why he has played for Chelsea and Liverpool, but there are times when he drifts through matches, the frustration heightened by the sense that he can offer so much more. Jacob Steinberg
4) Costel Pantilimon’s chance at Sunderland has to come
Poor Vito Mannone. After conceding eight goals at Southampton last week Sunderland’s goalkeeper made an appalling stoppage time error to hand Alexis Sánchez Arsenal’s second goal at the Stadium of Light on Saturday. To make such a mistake against his former club only exacerbated Mannone’s evident pain and Arsène Wenger made a point of expressing his post-match sympathy for a good man and, usually, a very good keeper. In recent weeks, though, Mannone has seemed a little more nervous than last season. Perhaps it is because Costel Pantilimon has been waiting, patiently, in the wings. Previously Joe Hart’s understudy at Manchester City, the towering Romanian joined Sunderland in the summer and will surely start what has become an immensely important Premier League game at Crystal Palace next Monday. Louise Taylor
5) It is between the ears for Tottenham
It could have been André Villas-Boas. Or Tim Sherwood. Goodness knows, we have heard the soundbite before from a Tottenham Hotspur manager. But it was Mauricio Pochettino and, as he gave vent to the frustration after the 2-1 home defeat by Newcastle United on Sunday, he covered extremely familiar ground in the lament about the squad’s lack of a winning mentality.
Pochettino says that “physically and tactically” the team has improved since he took over in the summer, which is a moot point in itself, but he remains desperate to erase the kind of game management lapses that allowed, in this case, the opposition to equalise from a long ball six seconds into the second half and turn the game.
But how can such psychological issues be best tackled? “We need to speak, we need to create a different situation on the training ground and work,” Pochettino said. “We know how but, always, you need to spend time to work in this area. It is not the same as in physical or tactical situations. It is a different area.”
The answers continue to be elusive. David Hytner
• Tottenham 1-2 Newcastle
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6) Why only Mario?
Let’s give Mario Balotelli a break for a while. What about the rest of Liverpool’s summer signings? Adam Lallana was substituted against Hull after failing to impose himself on the game, not for the first time this season. Emre Can was tidy but anonymous in midfield and also departed early. Dejan Lovren helped keep a much-needed clean sheet but was not up against the most determined of attacks and has spent most of the season so far struggling to live up to his £20m price tag. That is a lot of money for a defender and Liverpool spent the same on Lazar Markovic, who has yet to suggest he can be more than a bit part player or impact substitute.
The total cost of the above foursome is £75m, almost exactly what Liverpool received for Luis Suárez. Replacing the Uruguayan was always going to be tricky but in the overall scheme of things the £16m shelled out on Balotelli is neither here nor there. The Italian makes a convenient scapegoat or distraction – “whipping boy” was Steve Bruce’s description – but again the question needs to be asked: why always him? Or more to the point, why only him? Paul Wilson
• Balotelli leads Rodgers up blind alley
• Rodgers defends goal-shy Balotelli
• Match report: Liverpool 0-0 Hull City
• Suárez: me and my big mouth
• The exclusive first extract from Suárez’s book
7) Neil Warnock should accept officials’ failings
It is true that Crystal Palace were on the wrong end of some poor refereeing decisions against West Bromwich Albion but that does not make Neil Warnock’s complaints about Mark Clattenberg any less risible. Referees do not make deliberate mistakes but they do make mistakes; that is in the nature of football and not necessarily to its detriment. And, in any event, the only way to deserve to win a game is to win a game; a team must be good enough to eliminate the influence of officials from this equation. If only managers were as strident in criticising themselves and their players as they are decisions made in good faith; those who accept responsibility are more likely to take responsibility. Daniel Harris
8) Will Burnley win a game this season?
Derby County were the worst team in Premier League history. Their side of 2007-08 mustered a mere 11 points. But even they won a game. A quarter of the way into the current campaign, Burnley have four draws, five defeats and no victories. They have been ahead for only three minutes, scored only five goals and looked like a wonderfully committed side who just lack the quality that every opponent possesses. “Burnley are very unfortunate they have not got more wins because their effort deserves wins,” said Roberto Martínez after his Everton side won 3-1 at Turf Moor. But effort alone is not translated into points and, with every game, it is getting harder to see when and where their elusive win will come. While it seemed premature when José Mourinho was fielding questions about Chelsea becoming Invincibles, it may be similarly early and very unfair to pose the question: Will Burnley complete their Premier League campaign without beating anyone? Richard Jolly
9) Garry Monk’s unlikely transfer coup
- Appearances
- 9
- Free Kicks
- 14
- Corners
- 17
- Crosses
- 17
- Assists
- 7
When Swansea brought Gylfi Sigurdsson back to the Liberty Stadium in the summer, with Ben Davies and Michel Vorm moving in the opposite direction to Tottenham, many felt the Welsh club had got the raw end of the deal. Yet here we are, nearly into November, and, while Sigurdsson has thrived in his second spell in south Wales, Davies and Vorm have yet to start a Premier League fixture for Spurs. Sigurdsson’s influence was clear to see against Leicester; he was a central creative force in both goals. For the first he brilliantly anticipated Wilfried Bony’s backheel and then unselfishly returned the ball to the striker to score. It was Sigurdsson’s seventh assist of the season. For the second his slide-rule pass sent Jefferson Montero scurrying into the Leicester box to tee up Bony again. On this evidence Swansea and Garry Monk may have pulled off one of the transfer coups of the summer. Andrew Gwilym
10) West Ham on Song against the champions
What on earth is Alex Song doing at West Ham? OK, Song was not quite up to it at Barcelona but there is no shame in that and it is a surprise that bigger clubs did not show more interest in him once it became clear that he was available. But credit to West Ham for pulling that deal off. Song has been excellent since making his debut last month, comfortable on the ball and leading by example, and ran the midfield against Manchester City, going toe-to-toe with Yaya Touré and Fernando and coming out on top. He even had the audacity to pull a rabona out of the bag, which led to an opportunity for Stewart Downing in the second half. He is clearly enjoying playing again after two forgettable years in Spain. Jacob Steinberg
• Match report: West Ham 2-1 Manchester City
• City struggled with our quality, says Allardyce
