Amad Diallo's performance against Manchester City was impressive even before he had won the penalty for the equalizer, let alone scored Manchester United's winner. Even the underlying numbers help explain why this was a historic individual showing.
It was only the second time that a team had more touches in the opponent's penalty area than Manchester City in a Premier League match at the Etihad Stadium that had supporters in the stadium. They had 10 players to a large share of the others and still won.
But it was Amad's own numbers that were remarkable. He hit the ball ten times in City's penalty area. That was twice as much as anyone on the field. It has been more than seven years since an opponent had more ball contacts than in a Premier League match at City.
It was a product of the urgency in his playing – a naked enthusiasm that contrasted with much of the lethargy around him. Amad made 26 sprints in the race. Predictably enough, it was more than anyone else. He has brought some energy to Ruben Amorim's team.
United are a team on the move under their new coach, a point illustrated by the decision to omit Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho from the squad for the Manchester derby. Amad had already won Amorim's trust by making a fist of the wing-back role.
That willingness to work back brought him his chance against City. With Noussair Mazraoui at wing-back against the Premier League champions, Amad was pushed into a more advanced role in the front three and seized his opportunity in spectacular fashion.
It is a little baffling that Amad, the hero of their epic FA Cup quarter-final win over Liverpool in March, was not given more minutes under Erik ten Hag. He has been on the bench for each of the Dutchman's last four Premier League games.
But Amorim has seen someone who wants to flee from him. Amad has made 159 quick runs under the new boss, more than anyone else. In the only Premier League match Amorim has sidelined him for so far, at Arsenal, he brought him on at half-time.
There is still a feeling that few in this United team naturally fit into the system this coach wants to use. But by showing that he is already an option in at least two positions, Amad already appears to be the first big winner of the new regime.
Gibbs-White's death
Morgan Gibbs-White completed 94.4 percent of his 54 passes for Nottingham Forest in their 2-1 win over Aston Villa on Saturday evening, the highest accuracy he has ever had in a Premier League appearance for the club.
That's unusual for a player as creative as Gibbs-White and what's really interesting about his performance is that it wasn't that high because he had chosen to be more risk-averse in his work in this particular game. It was just that everything he tried failed.
Genius IQ's data can track each player's locations on the field to calculate the expected completion percentage of each pass. Gibbs-White's completion percentage was 10.49 percentage points higher than expected, given the difficulty of those passes.
No player performed better than him in terms of expected completion percentage over the Premier League weekend. He is the one who helps Forest move higher up the pitch and add that spark to their game, and that was very evident in their comeback win.
Even if Chris Wood's goal had not been disallowed due to Anthony Elanga being marginally offside, Gibbs-White would not have been credited with an assist. But the build-up consisted of not one but two crisp passes from Forest's playmaker to open up the lead.
Gibbs-White did get his assist for Nikola Milenkovic's equalizer, only his second of the Premier League season, having registered his first in beating Manchester United last time out, a match in which he also scored. A return to top form for an entertaining player.
Doucoure is busy
There were Everton supporters who complained about Abdoulaye Doucoure delaying too long in clearing his shot against Arsenal, denying their clearest opening in their goalless draw against the Gunners at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
While that frustration is understandable, Doucoure also deserves credit for his role in his team's point. Everton became the first team to let Arsenal score on their home field in a competition this season. Without Doucouré this would not have been possible.
The Malian's pressing play is second to none. He put pressure on the ball 93 times during the match, far more than any other player during the Premier League weekend. Sean Dyche knows he is special. This is what he said about Doucouré last season.
“That energy and commitment to press and take the game higher up the pitch, that's what he's very good at. He can read the game. It's not just his energy, it's also his awareness, his tactical insight, the lines when he presses to prevent the opposition from passing.”
Last season, those long legs ate up a total of 15.85 kilometers when putting pressure on the opposition – more than any other Premier League player. Doucoure's quality on the ball can be variable. But he always covers the ground. He is still important for Everton.
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