Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho should play Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford together while Harry Kane adds scruffy goals to his collection - 10 THINGS WE LEARNED

  • Manchester City moved five points clear at the top of the Premier League
  • Second-placed Manchester United crashed to a first defeat at Huddersfield
  • Harry Kane scored twice as Tottenham thrashed Liverpool at Wembley 

Manchester City opened up a five-point lead at the top of the Premier League as their rampant form in front of goal continued against Burnley on Saturday.

Manchester United fell to their first defeat of the season at Huddersfield, while Arsenal and Tottenham thrashed Everton and Liverpool as north London reigned supreme on Sunday.

Here, Sportsmail's RALPH ELLIS shares 10 things he learned from the weekend's action throughout the leagues... 


 
Jose Mourinho should look to bring Anthony Martial into the team alongside Marcus Rashford

Jose Mourinho should look to bring Anthony Martial into the team alongside Marcus Rashford

1) Jose Mourinho should rethink his apparent view that Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford can’t fit in the same team. 

When the Manchester United manager brought Rashford on for Martial at half-time at Huddersfield it was the eighth time out of 14 matches in all competitions that one had replaced the other. 

They have played together for just nine minutes in the Premier League (against Leicester), and 64 minutes against Burton in the EFL Cup. 

In that short time Rashford has scored three goals and Martial one, so clearly they don’t always get in each other’s way.

 
Harry Kane added two scruffy goals to his growing collection of spectacular strikes

Harry Kane added two scruffy goals to his growing collection of spectacular strikes

2) Harry Kane’s second goal against Liverpool might turn out to be significant if he is to win the Golden Boot for the third year in a row. 

When the Tottenham and England star pounced on a rebound to volley home from close range it was only the second (of eight) he's scored from less than 10 yards.

If Kane, 24, starts collecting some scruffy goals to go with the spectacular ones he already scores he could well threaten the record of 34 for a Premier League season currently shared by Andy Cole and Alan Shearer.

 

3) Jordan Pickford spent most of last season on the hairy end of a coconut shy as Sunderland crashed to relegation, but any hopes he had of an easier life after his £25m move to Everton look seriously misplaced. 

The 23-year-old had to make nine saves against Arsenal as well as picking the ball out of the net five times. 

So far this season he’s faced 50 shots in nine matches – an average of 5.6 per game that’s only fractionally less than the 6.3 per match that came his way as the hapless Black Cats finished bottom.

Jordan Pickford is facing an average of 5.6 shots per game at Everton this season

Jordan Pickford is facing an average of 5.6 shots per game at Everton this season

 

4) You can’t afford to take a moment’s rest if Chelsea win a corner – especially if Cesc Fabregas is anywhere near the ball. 

The Spaniard’s quick thinking helped his side catch Watford off guard as while they were still debating the award he played the ball to Eden Hazard who set up Pedro’s early goal in the 4-2 win. 

A week earlier he’d taken another quick corner, picking out Tiemoue Bakayoko to score at Crystal Palace.

 

5) Mark Hughes needs to do some work on basic organisation from kick-offs because four times in as many games they have now conceded twice within five minutes. 

Against Bournemouth following Andrew Surman’s strike Darren Fletcher played a sloppy pass almost straight from the kick-off that went out of play. Then nobody reacted as the throw-in resulted in Benik Afobe winning a penalty. 

 They were guilty of similar mini-collapses twice in the 7-2 thrashing at Manchester City and also in the 4-0 home defeat by Chelsea.

 
Southampton targeted West Brom midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak at St Mary's on Saturday

Southampton targeted West Brom midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak at St Mary's on Saturday

6) Southampton made targeting Poland international Grzegorz Krychowiak one of the key tactics in their 1-0 win over West Bromwich Albion.

The 25-Year-old, whose loan move from PSG was one of the best coups of the summer transfer window, was given little time on the ball and was fouled four times. 

The close attention meant Krychowiak got only 39 touches in the 90 minutes, the least he’s had in any game this season.

 

7) Leicester’s next manager will have the good fortune to have a fully fit Vicente Iborra available to him. 

The £12m signing from Sevilla missed the early part of the campaign with a hamstring injury and the lack of his defensive midfield ability didn’t help in the run that cost Craig Shakespeare his job. 

The 29-year-old showed in the 2-1 win at Swansea that he can make a difference, making most forward half passes (20), competing in most duels (15) and winning most tackles (4).

Vicente Iborra showed at Swansea he can make the difference going forward for Leicester

Vicente Iborra showed at Swansea he can make the difference going forward for Leicester

 

8) A lack of discipline might be a worry to stop Wolves building on their early-season surge to the top of the Championship. 

Other managers in the league are already muttering about Molineux boss Nuno Espirito Santo and how his staff on the bench can be a bit excitable – there have been shoving matches in the technical areas against both Bristol City and Aston Villa. 

Saturday’s bad tempered 3-2 win over Preston ended with a melee between players of both sides during stoppage time.

 

9) Ahmed Kashi is making up for lost time at Charlton after missing 22 months with an achilles injury. 

Five managers have come and gone at The Valley during the time the Algeria international was out, but he’s become a key fixture under Karl Robinson. 

The 28-year-old, signed from Metz in 2015, is one of only three outfield players to have appeared in all of the 14 games that have taken the Addicks to fourth in League One following their 1-0 win at Bradford.

 

10) Shaun Derry had his job title changed from ‘manager’ to ‘head coach’ by Cambridge in the summer and when his side took just seven points from their first six games many wondered if the former QPR, Leeds and Palace defender would survive. 

Instead, at the start of next month Derry, 39, will celebrate two years in charge with his team quietly climbing the table – the 2-1 win over Chesterfield moved them to within two points of the play-offs.

After a tough start Shaun Derry has led Cambridge within two points of League Two play-offs

After a tough start Shaun Derry has led Cambridge within two points of League Two play-offs