English top flight: ten highlights to look out for this matchday
Walker faces Garnacho poised for another encounter
A Mancunian rematch might be in store as Burnley's Kyle Walker faces Chelsea's Alejandro Garnacho at Turf Moor. The attacker has started to settle in west London following his close-season transfer from Manchester United and displayed his talents against Wolves prior to the fixture pause. His key pass for Pedro Neto combined rapid acceleration with a perfect along-the-deck delivery. His creation for Malo Gusto involved moving onto his right before chipping a delivery toward the far post. His joyous moment with Neto, echoing his earlier embrace with Kobbie Mainoo and Rasmus Højlund, served as a indication of how quickly circumstances change. The most recent instance Garnacho took on Walker? Back when the Argentine scored for United in their Wembley triumph against Manchester City.
Burnley versus Chelsea, Saturday half past twelve (start times GMT)
The winger crucial to halting Cherries' slide
Antoine Semenyo is receiving the entire gossip column focus amid a claimed £65m buyout clause for a possible mid-season move, the gossip columns positioning him for graduation out of the Premier League's average tier. This is to be expected for a winger who has six goals plus three setups who is pleasurable to watch. However, Bournemouth find themselves in an awkward position, having engaged in a role reversal: it is the bottom-half team West Ham who enter on successive wins, while Bournemouth have been beaten seven to one on aggregate over their last two fixtures following an impressive beginning to the campaign. Semenyo had his effort saved on the penalty by Emi Martínez during the four-nil loss by Aston Villa but confronting a backline lacking a clean sheet since August may prove the perfect solution.
Bournemouth vs West Ham, Saturday three o'clock
The striker a surprise shout for England
It was intriguing to hear Thomas Tuchel reference Danny Welbeck on more than one occasion during the fixture pause despite the fact that the Brighton striker reaches 35 next week. “Even without having met him, I know what he could provide,” stated the England manager. “He might act as a stand-in for Harry [Kane] as a quite orthodox No 9 role.” Earning the final 42 England games back in 2018, it's entirely possible that Welbeck might be on the plane for the World Cup assuming he can continue his goal-getting performances. Once of Manchester United and Arsenal forward has additional strikes than any other English footballer in the top flight this season with six and is keen to boost that total as Brighton entertain Brentford on Saturday.
Brighton vs Brentford, Saturday 3:00 PM
4. Sessegnon crucial as playmaker and finisher
The Ryan Sessegnon tale has offered a degree of positivity to Fulham's bumpy opening. The 25-year-old, who came back to his former side recently following five tough years with Spurs, has become a consistent pick, operating on the left due to the injury of the sidelined Antonee Robinson. The issue? With two goals, he is their top goalscorer in the Premier League alongside Harry Wilson. Raúl Jiménez, their primary attacker last season, has bagged a single goal while Rodrigo Muniz is unavailable for an extended period due to hamstring surgery. Sessegnon must also needing to deliver as a creator instead of Robinson, who registered 10 assists last season. The Cottagers' upcoming four games feature three among the leading five plus Crystal Palace, who have allowed merely nine goals in the Premier League so far. Danger looms for a team that have earned a standing for mid-table stability.
Fulham against Sunderland, Saturday afternoon 3:00 PM
The moment for Alexander Isak to produce for the Reds
The controversy surrounding Virgil van Dijk's ruled-out strike against Manchester City failed to mask Liverpool's deficiencies in that game as they succumbed to their seventh loss in 10 games. Arne Slot's team must have a sustained recovery to enter the championship chase from this position, along with a major boost in performance, and the possibility presents itself as seven of their next 10 Premier League matches against clubs at the moment in the bottom half in the standings. The threat is evident from Nottingham Forest, the sole side to deliver a defeat on their own turf on the champions in the last term, but it is not only Liverpool's performance when facing aerial passes and fast breaks that will be in focus. It is time for Alexander Isak to perform in a Liverpool shirt. The expensive signing has been absent for his club in a month after picking up a muscle issue when making his second start in quick succession in the Champions League triumph at Eintracht Frankfurt. He reappeared off the bench in Sweden's defeat by Switzerland but was rested the subsequent dead rubber with Slovenia to ensure his readiness for the upcoming World Cup playoffs. A booking on Tuesday would have made him ineligible. Isak may be short of|lacking|deficient
