Premier League: ten key points to keep an eye on this round of fixtures
Walker faces Garnacho ready for another battle
A Mancunian rematch might be in store as Burnley's Kyle Walker faces the Blues' Alejandro Garnacho at Turf Moor. The attacker has started to settle in west London after his off-season signing from the Red Devils and displayed his skills in the Wolves match before the national team interval. His key pass for Pedro Neto combined electric speed with a flawless grounded ball. His build-up for Malo Gusto entailed cutting inside before dinking a delivery across the goalmouth. His celebration with Neto, mirroring his prior embrace with Kobbie Mainoo and Rasmus Højlund, acted as a indication of the pace with which circumstances change. The last time Garnacho faced Walker? When the Argentine found the net for United during their cup final win over Manchester City.
Burnley versus Chelsea, Saturday afternoon half past twelve (all times GMT)
The winger vital to ending Bournemouth's slide
Antoine Semenyo is receiving the full transfer speculation treatment due to a reported £65m escape clause for a potential winter exit, the tabloids positioning him for advancement out of the Premier League's middle class. That is to be expected for a wide player with six finishes and three assists and remains pleasurable to watch. Nonetheless, Bournemouth occupy an awkward spot, having engaged in a role reversal: now it's the struggling side West Ham who enter on successive wins, while Bournemouth have lost seven to one over two games over their past two fixtures after an impressive opening to the campaign. Semenyo was denied on the penalty by Emi Martínez in the four-nil loss to Aston Villa yet facing a defence lacking a shutout in the league since the start of the season could be the perfect solution.
Bournemouth against West Ham, Saturday 3:00 PM
The striker a left-field choice for the Three Lions
It proved interesting to listen to Thomas Tuchel mention Danny Welbeck on more than one occasion throughout the international break although the Brighton forward celebrates 35 next week. “Despite not being familiar with him, I understand what he is able to offer me,” said the England manager. “He might act as a back-up for Harry [Kane] in a quite traditional No 9 position.” Having won the most recent of his 42 caps back in 2018, it's entirely possible that Welbeck may be on the plane for the World Cup if he is able to sustain his goalscoring performances. Once of Manchester United and Arsenal attacker boasts more goals compared to any English performer in the top flight this campaign with six and will be keen to boost that count when Brighton host Brentford this weekend.
Brighton versus Brentford, Saturday 3:00 PM
The full-back crucial as assist provider and scorer
The Ryan Sessegnon tale has brought a measure of warmth to Fulham's bumpy beginning. The former Tottenham man, who returned to his boyhood club in 2024 after five tough years at Tottenham, is now a consistent pick, pushing forward on the left due to the injury of the sidelined Antonee Robinson. The issue? With two goals, he is their joint-top scorer this season together with Harry Wilson. Raúl Jiménez, their primary attacker last season, has bagged a single goal while Rodrigo Muniz is out until 2026 because of a hamstring operation. Sessegnon is also having to step up as an assist provider replacing Robinson, who provided 10 assists in the previous campaign. Fulham's following four fixtures feature three among the leading five plus Crystal Palace, who have allowed merely nine scores this season so far. Trouble awaits for the club that have earned a reputation for mid-table stability.
Fulham against Sunderland, Saturday 3pm
The moment for Isak to produce for the Merseyside club
The dispute about Virgil van Dijk's chalked-off effort against Manchester City did not camouflage Liverpool's inferiority in that game as they succumbed to loss number seven over ten fixtures. Arne Slot's side must have a consistent improvement to muscle into the league contest from here, along with a dramatic boost in performance, and the possibility arises with seven of their following ten top-flight fixtures facing teams at the moment in the bottom ten in the standings. The threat is obvious posed by Nottingham Forest, the single club to hand a home league defeat on the champions last season, yet it isn't solely Liverpool's display when facing direct play and fast breaks that is in focus. The moment has come that Alexander Isak to deliver for Liverpool. The big-money forward has not featured for his club over four weeks having sustained a groin injury while his second consecutive start over a short period in the Champions League win at Eintracht Frankfurt. The striker came back from the bench in the Swedish reverse to Switzerland but sat out the midweek meaningless match versus Slovenia to secure his availability for the World Cup qualifiers. A caution in that match might have ruled him out. The striker could be short of|lacking|deficient
