English top flight: 10 things to look out for this weekend
Walker faces Garnacho poised for another encounter
Another northwest showdown might be on the cards when the Clarets' Kyle Walker faces the Blues' Alejandro Garnacho at Turf Moor. The wide man is adapting well in west London after his summer move from Manchester United and demonstrated his talents versus Wolverhampton before the national team interval. His key pass for Pedro Neto blended electric speed with a perfect low cross. His creation for Malo Gusto entailed shifting infield before dinking a delivery toward the far post. His celebration with Neto, echoing his previous hug with Kobbie Mainoo and Rasmus Højlund, was a reminder of the pace with which things transform. The previous occasion Garnacho took on Walker? Back when the former found the net for United in their Wembley triumph against Manchester City.
Burnley vs Chelsea, Saturday afternoon half past twelve (start times GMT)
The winger crucial to halting Cherries' slump
Antoine Semenyo is getting the complete rumour-mill focus amid a alleged £65m escape clause for his potential winter exit, the gossip columns setting him up for promotion out of the Premier League's middle class. That is understandable from a attacker who has six goals and three helpers and is delightful to watch. However, his side are in an tricky spot, having engaged in a role reversal: it is the relegation battlers West Ham who arrive with back-to-back victories, while Bournemouth are down seven to one on aggregate in their past two games after an promising start to the campaign. Semenyo saw his attempt stopped from the spot by Emi Martínez in the 4-0 defeat by Aston Villa yet confronting a backline that hasn't kept a goalless game in the league since the start of the season might be the perfect tonic.
Bournemouth against West Ham, Saturday afternoon three o'clock
3. Welbeck a left-field choice for England
It was notable to hear Thomas Tuchel mention Danny Welbeck multiple times during the national team window although the Brighton attacker reaches 35 next week. “Even without knowing him, I understand what he can give me,” commented the England boss. “He can be a stand-in for Harry [Kane] playing a very conventional centre-forward role.” Having won the last of his 42 caps back in 2018, it's entirely possible that Welbeck might be selected to the World Cup assuming he is able to continue his goal-getting performances. The former Manchester United and Arsenal forward can claim additional strikes compared to any English player in the top flight this term on six and remains eager to boost that count as Brighton entertain Brentford in Saturday's match.
Brighton vs Brentford, Saturday three o'clock
Ryan Sessegnon needed as creator and goalscorer
The Ryan Sessegnon tale has provided a degree of warmth to Fulham's uneven beginning. The former Tottenham man, who rejoined his youth team last year following five difficult years at Tottenham, has become a first-team fixture, driving down the left in the absence of the unavailable Antonee Robinson. The concern? On two goals, he remains their joint-top scorer in the Premier League together with Harry Wilson. Raúl Jiménez, their leading man last season, has scored a single goal whereas Rodrigo Muniz is unavailable for an extended period owing to a surgical procedure. Additionally, Sessegnon needing to deliver as a creator replacing Robinson, who supplied ten helpers in the previous campaign. Fulham's next four games take in three of the best five as well as Crystal Palace, who have allowed merely nine strikes this season so far. Trouble awaits for the club that have built a name for consistency in the middle.
Fulham vs Sunderland, Saturday afternoon three o'clock
The moment for The striker to produce for the Merseyside club
The controversy regarding Virgil van Dijk's disallowed goal in the match with Manchester City failed to mask Liverpool's inferiority on the day as they succumbed to a seventh defeat in ten matches. The manager's squad must have a consistent improvement to muscle into the championship chase from this position, along with a dramatic upturn in results, and opportunity emerges with seven from their upcoming ten league games facing sides presently in the bottom ten of the table. The risk is clear from Nottingham Forest, the single club to hand a loss at Anfield to the title holders last season, yet it isn't solely Liverpool's performance when facing long balls and quick transitions that is under the spotlight. Now is the occasion that Alexander Isak to deliver in a Liverpool shirt. The expensive signing has not played for his club over four weeks having sustained a muscle issue while his second consecutive start in four days in Europe victory in Germany. He reappeared from the bench in the Swedish loss against Switzerland but missed the midweek dead rubber versus Slovenia to guarantee his availability for the World Cup knockout rounds. A yellow card in that match could have made him ineligible. He might be short of|lacking|deficient
