Son Heung-min leads Tottenham to yet another win, Ollie Watkins shines with a hat-trick in Aston Vila’s thumping 6-1 vs Brighton… while Erling Haaland has a rare off week – but who claims top spot in this week’s POWER RANKINGS?
- Tottenham’s win over Liverpool was marred by controversy due to a VAR
- Meanwhile, both Manchester clubs lost while Arsenal beat Bournemouth 4-0
- Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s podcast It’s All Kicking Off!
Another week of Premier League football has come and gone but there are still plenty of major talking points from the weekend’s action.
Tottenham’s 2-1 win over Liverpool was marred by controversy after VAR made a catastrophic error failed to incorrectly disallowed Luis Diaz’s opener for offside, with the Reds forward clearly played on by the outstretched leg of Spurs’ Cristian Romero.
Meanwhile, both Manchester clubs fell to disappointing losses with Pep Guardiola’s City suffering a shock 2-1 defeat by Wolves while United fell at home to Crystal Palace.
Arsenal cruised to a 4-0 win over Bournemouth while Aston Villa smashed six past Brighton in a thumping win.
But now the dust has settled, who features in Mail Sport‘s latest Power Rankings?
Arsenal ran riot at Bournemouth on Saturday, with the Gunners putting four past the Cherries
LAST WEEK’S TOP 10 RANKINGS
10. Jonny Evans
9. James Maddison
8. Bruno Guimaraes
7. Kieran Trippier
6. Kaoru Mitoma
5. James Ward-Prowse
4. Bukayo Saka
3. Son Heung-min
2. Mohamed Salah
1. Erling Haaland
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10. Joachim Andersen (new entry)
While his goal alone would be enough to get him in our Power Rankings, Joachim Andersen’s performance on top of that made sure of the fact.
The centre back showed the passing range of creative midfielder but then displayed the finish of a top striker as he volleyed home Eberechi Eze’s free-kick.
And alongside Marc Guehi in defence, Andersen managed to shut out United’s attackers to claim a clean sheet and exact revenge for their Carabao Cup exit at the hands of the Red Devils just days before.
Joachim Andersen (right) celebrates after scoring a superb volley against Manchester United
9. James Maddison (non-mover)
While there was no direct goal contribution this week, James Maddison was at the heart of Spurs’ attack against Liverpool and made them tick in their 2-1 win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Maddison was relentless in his press and continues to embody exactly how Ange Postecoglou wants his team to play.
The win at the weekend means Spurs keep their unbeaten streak in the league, and Maddison continues to play a crucial part in Postecoglou’s majorly impressive start to life in north London.
James Maddison pulled the strings during Tottenham’s 2-1 win over Liverpool in north London
8. Alisson (new entry)
Speaking of brilliant performances at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this weekend, it’s tough to see Alisson on the losing side after his masterclass performance in goal.
The Brazilian was in sensational form, pulling off a string of top quality saves to deny Tottenham on multiple occasions and looked to have rescued his side a point in the dying moments, despite the visitors being down to nine men.
While Jurgen Klopp’s men did concede twice, it truly doesn’t paint the full picture, as the Reds defended resolutely up until Joel Matip’s unfortunate own goal which Alisson had no chance in preventing. He really deserved more.
Alisson put on a goalkeeping masterclass to deny Spurs on multiple occasions in the 2-1 defeat
7. James Ward-Prowse (down one)
It’s harsh to drop James Ward-Prowse down a position in this week’s Power Rankings after the midfielder once again put in another fine display in West Ham’s 2-0 win over Sheffield United.
It says everything that the Hammers’ No 7 was ‘disappointed’ that they didn’t beat the Blades by a bigger margin, showing that David Moyes’ side aren’t settling for anything this season.
Ward-Prowse was West Ham’s biggest attacking threat on Saturday and made six key passes in the game at the London Stadium, although none of them led to an assist.
James Ward-Prowse continues to shine at West Ham after starring in a 2-0 win over the Blades
6. Ollie Watkins (new entry)
Aside from Harry Kane, is their a more in-form English striker right now that Ollie Watkins?
The Aston Villa frontman was relentless against Brighton on Saturday as he bagged himself a brilliant hat-trick in their 6-1 drubbing of high-flying Brighton. Watkins show that desire to always get a shot at goal but unlike other strikers who are trigger-happy in front of net, he’s actually able to convert his chances. He also got an assist for his troubles.
His display was vindicated when he found out England boss Gareth Southgate was in attendance to watch his performance but it may be difficult to displace Three Lions skipper Kane at this point.
Ollie Watkins bagged a brilliant hat-trick as Aston Villa hammered Brighton 6-1 at Villa Park
5. Mohamed Salah (down three)
While Liverpool will feel harshly done by for the huge error by VAR in denying what should’ve been their opening goal, Mohamed Salah will probably feel they could’ve done more against the high line of Tottenham if not for their early sending off.
There were moments of excellence by the Egyptian, showing superb control of the ball and tight dribbling to put Spurs’ defenders on alert but Curtis Jones’ red card changed the way Liverpool had to set up, meaning Salah had to drop back.
Diogo Jota’s two yellows in a matter of minutes also didn’t help and it left Salah to play a more subdued role as they tried to cling onto a point.
Mohamed Salah struggled to make an impact as Liverpool lost in controversial circumstances
4. Erling Haaland (down three)
Having sat at top spot for the last two weeks, Erling Haaland’s quiet display in front of goal against Wolves have seen him drop out of this week’s top three.
The Norwegian goalscoring machine struggled to make any sort of impact and was barely involved as Wolves secured a huge three points at Molineux.
Haaland is still the Premier League’s top scorer this season with eight goals but he’s going to have to forgot about this performance quickly with RB Leipzig in the Champions League up next.
Erling Haaland had a quiet day at the office as Man City fell to a shock 2-1 defeat by Wolves
3. Bukayo Saka (up one)
Once again among the goals, Bukayo Saka is enjoying a stellar start to the new season.
Scoring two goals in as many games, Saka’s opener against Bournemouth showed he’s popping up in the right spaces at the right times after Gabriel Jesus’ header crashed off the post and fortunately fell straight into his lap to head in.
That’s now six goal contributions in his first seven league games – and he doesn’t appear to be slowing down any time soon, should he stay fit.
Bukayo Saka (left) broke the deadlock for Arsenal, scoring his second goal in as many games
2. Son Heung-min (up one)
Like his north London counterpart, Son Heung-min is also enjoying a hot start to the season, relishing life as a central striker under Postecoglou.
The South Korean is carrying a slight injury but he showed a burst of pace to sprint past Liverpool’s defenders to tap home Richarlison’s cross into an empty net.
That’s six goals in seven games for Spurs in the Premier League this season and looks to have really taken to his new role as captain, leading from the front.
Son Heung-min (right) scored Spurs’ first goal against Liverpool as he continues his good start
1. Martin Odegaard (new entry)
There was only one player that was getting top spot in this week’s Power Rankings, and it is Martin Odegaard.
The Arsenal skipper was involved in all four of the goals against Bournemouth, picking out Jesus at the back post which eventually fell to Saka for the opener before he dispatched a penalty to make it 2-0.
In the second half the Norwegian playmaker was fouled inside the box to win another penalty but put the team above his own ego by handing the spot-kick to Kai Havertz, allowing him to get his first goal for the club.
It was a classy move from Odegaard before he put the icing on a brilliant display by setting up the Gunners’ fourth from a free-kick, getting himself two assists and a goal at the Vitality.
Martin Odegaard was the star of the show for Arsenal after playing a part in all four goals
IT’S ALL KICKING OFF!
It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.
It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.
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