It’s not quite Fall yet, but Week 5 of the 2024-25 Premier League season harvested hot takes from the top four to the bottom three as intrigue dotted the landscape around England.
Manchester City and Arsenal played as engrossing a first half as you’ll find between big boys only for controversy to cut the wires at halftime, while Manchester United finished their game with a first-choice lineup that said the time for excuses is done.
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Southampton, Ipswich, Leicester, and Everton all flashed hope for their fans, while Newcastle’s mask might’ve fallen off against a Fulham team that’s joined Nottingham Forest as better than many expected.
Chelsea won big, Aston Villa overcame a midweek muscle tax, and both Liverpool and Spurs proved there’s plenty of gas in the tank for entertainment under bosses Arne Slot and Ange Postecoglou.
Here are 10 thoughts about Week 5 from our writers, as Joe Prince-Wright, Andy Edwards, and Nick Mendola share their observations from the latest 10 games of the 2024-25 Premier League season.
Disappointment reigns despite brilliant first half of Man City vs Arsenal
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There’s credit to be given to Arsenal for defending so well after going down a man (again). There’s credit to be given for Man City’s subs helping to deliver an equalizer to the champs at home. And there’s credit to be given to David Raya for another spectacular day between the sticks. Yet we feel deprived of the opportunity to really evaluate a game between two of the best teams in the world. No one wants to watch Arsenal pack it in. No one wants to watch Man City try to dissect 10 men. And no one wants to wait months to get another chance to analyze whether Arsenal have it in them to beat Man City. And that’s because City remain a better team who can flex depth much harder than Arsenal. The Gunners might’ve been leading at halftime off a banger and their yet-to-be-solved corner routine, but it would’ve been so nice to watch them defend that lead on equal terms. Leandro Trossard cost us that when Michael Oliver didn’t let him off the hook (the good ref had a pretty bad day, anyway). The first 45 minutes gave off a buzz we rarely get from two big teams trying to go get a win. More of that would’ve been wonderful. — Nick Mendola
Chelsea’s wealth of attackers thriving on the counter
The way Chelsea dismantled West Ham on the counter with just a couple of passes time and time again showcased their plan to unleash incredible attacking talent under new boss Enzo Maresca. He did this a lot at Leicester last season. Everybody is fixated on their possession-based style, which is important, but like Leicester this Chelsea side is full of pace and direct runners on the counter. Nicolas Jackson, Jadon Sancho, Cole Palmer, and Noni Madueke tore West Ham apart with a lovely mix of speed, quick thinking, and direct passing. They then had Christopher Nkunku, Joao Felix, and Pedro Neto to bring off the bench and continue that theme as every time West Ham gave the ball away or Chelsea connected a couple of passes in midfield they had so many options. In their wins at Wolves, Bournemouth, and now West Ham they have thrived on the break and even if there are questions about their defensive solidity, their fluidity, and directness in attack more than makes up for it. — Joe Prince-Wright
Liverpool ride their luck early, then the goals come
Sometimes you just need a bit of luck and a second chance. Bournemouth started the game well and even had the ball in Liverpool’s goal, but Antoine Semenyo was offside by a couple inches when he scored in the third minute. The Reds looked shellshocked at how quickly the Cherries had started, but that was their wake-up call — loud and clear. Liverpool struck a good balance between controlled possession and the quick counter-attacking football we saw from them under Klopp. The biggest difference — and a huge credit to Slot for reaching this point so quickly — is how comfortable they are to see games out now. Aside from set pieces, Bournemouth had 0.23 xG in the second half despite taking eight shots from open play. Liverpool gave them nothing, rather than giving them any hope getting back in the game. — Andy Edwards
Brennan Johnson silences critics with another winning goal
Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 Brentford
Maybe the midweek League Cup game versus Coventry game did serve one important purpose, as Brennan Johnson was the one to score the late winner on Wednesday before doing the same thing again on Saturday. Make it two winners in two games for the 23-year-old, who just this week deleted his social media accounts after receiving unfair abuse following Spurs’ north London derby defeat to Arsenal. He was hardly the only player who underperformed in that game, but he became the online scapegoat despite scoring five goals and providing 10 assists in his first season at the club. If Johnson hasn’t yet proven to some that he can play for a top-four contender, he might never. But all he has done this season is displace Dejan Kulusevski to midfield (where he is also thriving), held off summer signing Wilson Odobert for a starting spot, and scored two massive goals in the span of four days. A young player’s confidence is absolutely everything.— Andy Edwards
It’s go time for Man United under Erik ten Hag
Crystal Palace 0-0 Manchester United
Manchester United failed to deliver a goal and a win at Palace but the Red Devils were the better team on the day and were better finishing or poorer Palace goalkeeping away from getting an expected three points. Fine. It happens. But there is officially no time left for Man United wobbles under Erik ten Hag. They arrive to the Europa League this week with depth on the bench and their best new players healthy for selection. We saw Manuel Ugarte and Rasmus Hojlund enter as subs at Palace, and Matthijs de Ligt looks very good at center back next to Lisandro Martinez. Consistent performances at least on the level of Saturday’s need to be the bare minimum with this expensive XI on the field. If the Dutchman can get them, the wins will surely come as there’s top-four talent in the side. If he doesn’t, he won’t be there much longer. — Nick Mendola
Something’s not right at error-prone Newcastle
The Magpies entered Saturday as an unbeaten Premier League team, and Harvey Barnes said during the week that it was a good sign that their 3W-1D record came despite performances being not where they needed to be for a Champions League push. Well, that record feels a bit more appropriate now after a loss to Fulham that was both well-won by the hosts and well-fed by the visitors. The defending was miserable on Fulham’s first goal — well-taken by Raul Jimenez — and then Nick Pope made a very poor error on another defense-optional half-chance conceded by Newcastle. By the time Bruno Guimaraes gifted Reiss Nelson the punctuating third Fulham goal, Harvey Barnes’ goal to make it 2-1 was a memory. The Magpies need Sven Botman back to be sure, but they also need a heaping dose of humility — Premier League games aren’t easy because you’ve won a little in the past. The players and staff haven’t done enough to expect to win with inferior effort. — Nick Mendola
Iliman Ndiaye the main hope for Everton
It has been an ugly, disappointing start to the season for Everton but Iliman Ndiaye has enjoyed a wonderful start to life as a Toffee. The Senegalese playmaker arrived from Marseille this summer with big expectations and he’s lived up to them already. He now has his first goal for Everton and it was a beauty as he played a great give-and-go with Ashley Young and somehow squeezed it home. He nearly scored another superb solo goal in the second half and his elegance and quality on the ball will be crucial for Everton in their scrap against relegation. Ndiaye has the ability to pick out Calvert-Lewin and McNeil around him and that trio combined well, especially during the first half, as Everton got themselves into a good position. They couldn’t hold on for their first win of the season but Ndiaye proved that the Toffees have plenty of quality to drag themselves out of this sticky situation. — Joe Prince-Wright
Properly entertaining 2-2 split serves as Sunday precursor to City-Arsenal
Brighton 2-2 Nottingham Forest
Few had Brighton and Nottingham Forest both sitting pretty and unbeaten after four weeks — let alone five — but hopefully those still waiting to crown the Seagulls and Tricky Trees as legitimate sides will have been pushed by Sunday’s early match. And it’s fitting that those at Fan Fest in Chicago would’ve gotten this match as an appetizer for Manchester City vs Arsenal because Fabian Hurzeler’s Brighton played the role of possession-based, fluid machine while Nuno Espirito Santo’s Forest were the angry team prepared to fire forward but only when the priority of holding firm had been met. It was a big game with big goals and big fouls, and there’s reason to believe that both clubs will fight to live as high in the top half as possible this season. — Nick Mendola
Aston Villa are an established power
The coach is there. His system is there. The well-managed depth is there. And now Villa can say the experience of returning to the Premier League from the travel of a Champions League week is there. Villa might’ve looked leggy to start the game, but there was no question who was better by the hour mark. Granted Wolves at home are a fine opponent to shake out the midweek-stressed muscles, but Villa’s rotation of forwards and heart from everywhere else should encourage everyone that Unai Emery can lead the side deep into Europe without sacrificing their chance to finish in the top four again. — Nick Mendola
Saints have to find a killer instinct
Over the course of a relatively comfortable second half for Southampton, it still seemed inevitable that Ipswich would somehow find an equalizer at St Mary’s on Saturday. It came in a cruel way, with Sam Morsy’s shot deflecting into the top corner in the 95th minute, but Southampton were punished for not being ruthless, as veteran Adam Lallana had led the way in a composed, confident display but they couldn’t grab the crucial second goal. Cameron Archer hit the post and struck another shot straight at Arijanet Muric from close range, while Matheus Fernandes and Ben Brereton Diaz both snatched at big chances. Ipswich had big opportunities too as Aaron Ramsdale made a couple of great stops, but this win was there for Southampton. Saints didn’t seize the moment and didn’t manage the game properly, as a needless free kick given away in the 94th minute led to Ipswich’s equalizer. The small margins really do count for so much in the Premier League. Both Ipswich and Southampton have shown they can more than hang in there in the top-flight this season — the brilliance of Tyler Dibling and Omari Hutchinson will give them hope — but both are still searching for their first victories as we head into late September. Southampton will be feeling sick after being unable to close out this game and grab what would’ve been a big win to finally give them lift-off back in the Premier League. — Joe Prince-Wright
