English top flight: ten highlights to keep an eye on this matchday
1. Garnacho and Walker ready for another clash
A Manchester reunion might be in the offing as Burnley's Kyle Walker lines up against the Blues' Alejandro Garnacho at Turf Moor. The winger has started to settle with Chelsea following his off-season signing from Old Trafford and demonstrated his talents in the Wolves match before the fixture pause. His setup for Pedro Neto mixed blistering pace with a ideal low cross. His creation for Malo Gusto required moving onto his right before dinking a cross across the goalmouth. His celebration with Neto, replicating his previous embrace with Kobbie Mainoo and Rasmus Højlund, acted as a testament of how quickly situations evolve. The previous occasion Garnacho took on Walker? During the youngster netted for United in their Wembley triumph against Manchester City.
Burnley versus Chelsea, Saturday afternoon 12.30pm (kick-offs GMT)
2. Semenyo key to stopping Cherries' slump
Antoine Semenyo is receiving the full gossip column focus amid a reported £65m escape clause for a possible mid-season move, the gossip columns preparing him for graduation out of the Premier League's mid-table ranks. This is understandable from a winger with a half-dozen strikes and three setups and is delightful to watch. However, his side are in an awkward situation, experiencing a body swap: now it's the struggling side West Ham who enter on consecutive triumphs, while Bournemouth have lost 7-1 combined in their past two games following an strong start to the season. Semenyo saw his attempt stopped from the spot by Emi Martínez during the 4-0 defeat to Aston Villa but facing a backline lacking a clean sheet in the league since the start of the season could be the best solution.
Bournemouth against West Ham, Saturday three o'clock
The striker an outside option for the Three Lions
It proved notable to listen to Thomas Tuchel mention Danny Welbeck on more than one occasion during the national team window despite the fact that the Brighton attacker celebrates 35 soon. “Without even being familiar with him, I am aware what he can provide,” commented the England coach. “He might act as a stand-in for Harry [Kane] in a quite conventional striker position.” Earning the final 42 international appearances back in 2018, it's entirely possible that Welbeck might be in the squad for the World Cup provided he manages to maintain his goalscoring feats. Once of Manchester United and Arsenal forward can claim more goals than any other English performer in England's top division this term with six and is keen to increase that count when Brighton entertain Brentford this weekend.
Brighton vs Brentford, Saturday afternoon three o'clock
4. Sessegnon needed as creator and finisher
Sessegnon's story has provided some comfort to Fulham's inconsistent opening. The left-sided player, who came back to his youth team recently after five difficult years at Tottenham, has become a first-team fixture, operating on the left due to the injury of the sidelined Antonee Robinson. The issue? On two goals, he's also their top goalscorer in the Premier League as well as Harry Wilson. Raúl Jiménez, their leading man the previous campaign, has scored once while Rodrigo Muniz is out until 2026 due to hamstring surgery. Sessegnon must also needing to deliver as a creator in place of Robinson, who supplied ten helpers last time round. Fulham's upcoming four fixtures feature three of the leading five as well as Crystal Palace, who have allowed merely nine scores in the Premier League this season. Trouble awaits for the club that have earned a reputation for mid-table stability.
Fulham versus Sunderland, Saturday afternoon 3:00 PM
5. Time for Alexander Isak to produce for Liverpool
The debate surrounding Virgil van Dijk's disallowed goal versus Manchester City did not camouflage Liverpool's deficiencies in that game as they fell to loss number seven over ten fixtures. Arne Slot's team must have a consistent improvement to enter the league contest from this position, along with a significant upturn in results, and a chance emerges with seven from their next 10 Premier League matches versus clubs at the moment in the bottom half in the standings. The threat is evident posed by Nottingham Forest, the single club to deliver a defeat on their own turf to Liverpool last season, yet it isn't solely Liverpool's display against direct play and quick transitions that is in focus. The moment has come that Alexander Isak to deliver in a Liverpool shirt. The expensive signing has not played for his club over four weeks following a groin problem during his second consecutive start over a short period in Europe triumph in Germany. The striker came back as a substitute in the Swedish loss by Switzerland but sat out the midweek dead rubber versus Slovenia to ensure his readiness for the upcoming World Cup knockout rounds. A yellow card on Tuesday would have made him ineligible. The striker could be short of|lacking|deficient
