Man Utd can't even get the basics right
Perhaps nothing summed up the plight of Manchester United, who suffered their seventh defeat of the Premier League season, better than opposition head coach Andoni Iraola. “We were solid, not great,” the Bournemouth boss summed up. A damning indictment. You no longer have to be great to triumph at Old Trafford, just solid.
Only Southampton (5) have conceded more than three goals in more home games than Man Utd's four this season, and Saints are bottom of the table. So many – too many – statistics can be used to characterize United's mediocrity. It is endless because the flaws are so many.
One that will dominate the headlines, however, is their pathetic set-piece record, undone again by a simple set-play routine for Bournemouth's easy opener. United conceded seventeen goals in 2024, the most in a single calendar year. The pre-match exercises with Ruben Amorim's assistant Carlos Fernandes clearly fell on deaf ears.
As Amorim acknowledged when he took the United job, there were undoubtedly bumps in the road, but the scale of the task is certainly even more intimidating than he initially expected.
There are so many fundamental things missing, and if you can't handle the basics, the Premier League is a very unforgiving place to be.Laura Hunter
Chelsea just have to push for a point at Everton
Chelsea have shown their quality this season, sweeping teams away with their fluid football, but as rain lashed Goodison Park in the early stages, it quickly became clear this was not going to be one of those occasions. They had to dig in.
They certainly did that. Robert Sanchez produced one of his best performances of the season, while Tosin Adarabioyo dealt well with Dominic Calvert-Lewin before coming up with his crucial late block. So, was it up one point or down two points in the title race?
Even stiff draws can sometimes be the mark of champions, but perhaps this was an afternoon that hinted at the truth of Enzo Maresca's suggestion that such talk comes too soon for his young team. They couldn't get their football going against Everton.
Pedro Neto and Jadon Sancho stretched the game, but Cole Palmer couldn't dictate as he would have liked and Nicolas Jackson wasn't clinical when he needed to be. Marc Cucurella was missed and Malo Gusto couldn't make much of an impact in an advanced role.
Perhaps Maresca could have used his team's depth more effectively, but that's really harsh. Everton is having a hard time. And if you can't win, don't lose. That was why Maresca seemed particularly pleased with what he saw at the end.
“The reason for this is that I was quite worried about this match. It is a difficult match, a difficult stadium, a difficult team. The most important thing is that we have to learn to play different types of matches.” You either win or you learn. And this was a learning day for Chelsea.Adam Bate
Iraola's Bournemouth should be a concern for all visitors
Lightning doesn't strike twice, but Andoni Iraola's Bournemouth does. Their first-ever win at Old Trafford last season was followed by another on Sunday, with the same emphatic scoreline.
The Cherries were everything Man Utd were not. In what was a tense match for an hour, they took their chances, looked solid from set pieces and rarely gave the ball away in dangerous situations. If only their hosts could say the same.
They have looked solid for some time under Iraola and may have pushed them into Europe last year without a difficult start to his first season. This time, there's no reason why they shouldn't.
“We were solid without being incredible,” he said humbly after the game. It keeps the pressure off his players, and in many ways that's true.
Bournemouth's quality goes deeper than stunning performances: they are as streetwise as they are good to watch.
Justin Kluivert bought so many fouls from Man Utd's defense that Craig Pawson might ask Sir Jim Ratcliffe for another whistle, with two of the three goals coming from set-pieces.
The third showed the level of confidence flowing through the team when Antoine Semenyo struck two minutes into their second as they sensed an opportunity and took it again.
Fifth at Christmas, with Crystal Palace, Fulham and Everton next. This could be a very happy new year for Bournemouth.Ron Walker
Guedes can play a key role as Wolves try to get out of trouble
Goncalo Guedes had to wait for his chance at Wolves.
He was loaned out to boyhood club Benfica in early 2023 – midway through the first season following his £27.5m move from Valencia – and to Villarreal a year later – and when he was finally integrated back into the squad for this season, he had to make do with late cameos.
However, in the last two months he has started to show why Wolves paid the money they did for him.
He has scored once and provided three assists in Gary O'Neil's last seven Premier League games but looked in good spirits when new Wolves head coach Vitor Pereira brought him on from the start against Leicester. He undoubtedly has a point to prove and a clean slate to work with.
The 28-year-old showed guile by firing home the opener from the tightest of angles after Jannik Vestergaard bounced a ball into the box, before doing well to avoid trouble and set up Matheus Cunha for the third.
His goal had an xG value of 0.05, while the assist value was only 0.01 xA.
That means he has been directly involved in six goals in his last eight Premier League games, after scoring just two in his first 19 English top-flight appearances.
As Wolves enter a new era, this could be Guedes' time to shine.Dan Long
Ramsdale's return gives watching Juric hope for a big breakout
Ivan Juric was only confirmed as Russell Martin's replacement as Southampton manager late on Saturday afternoon, but that didn't stop the Croatian from watching his new strikers from the stands at Craven Cottage and he must have loved what he saw.
The Saints battled their way to a hard-earned and deserved goalless draw in West London, only their second top finish on the road this season after restricting an in-form Fulham side to an xG of just 1.04.
All new managers look to build using a solid defensive platform and Juric will have seen enough from his perch high in the Cottage to think he has the players at the back to give him a chance to deliver what one of the Premier League managers would be. The League's great escape, with Southampton guaranteed to be bottom by Christmas – and we know what that usually means.
And of particular importance to those plans will be Aaron Ramsdale, back in goal for the Saints after missing the last five league games with a broken finger and an integral part of his team who earned a point with a breathtaking reaction stop to save the volley from Keep Harry Wilson out. halfway through the second half. Rich Morgan
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