Manchester City’s malaise continued with defeat to rivals Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal slipped up and Tottenham bounced back with a resounding victory.
In addition, two coaches were sacked on another dramatic weekend of Premier League action.
But who was the standout star? Our Player of the Week is…
By his usual standards, Ismaïla Sarr has had a slow start to the season since returning to the Premier League.
Certainly in terms of his numbers if not his individual displays.
But he exploded into life in the most important game of the campaign for Crystal Palace, delivering a match-winning performance in their derby showdown with Brighton.
Oliver Glasner’s side left the coast with all three points following a 3-1 win in which Sarr was involved in every goal.
His presence in the penalty area caused enough problems as Brighton struggled to deal with a corner, allowing Trevoh Chalobah to slam home, with Sarr being credited with an assist.
A wonderful arcing header from Tyrick Mitchell’s deep delivery double their lead before he extinguished any hope in the closing stages with his second of the afternoon.
It inflicted upon their rivals a first home defeat of the season and continued the recent improvements, while leaving Lewis Dunk and co. with nightmares about him.
And the main reason for it was the performance of their summer signing from Marseille with the kind of display which made him such a force of nature during his spell with Watford.
So good was his performance that after the game, his coach was quizzed on whether Sarr could be compared to Michael Olise, who left Selhurst Park for Bayern Munich during the summer.
“He’s different. We knew that we couldn’t replace Michael one for one because he has his own profile and qualities,” Glasner told reporters.
“Ismaïla is more of a direct runner with a lot of pace. We knew that if we got him into the right areas at the right moments then he would get chances to score goals.
“I don’t even think it was his best performance. He had fantastic performances in other games. He always had a very positive impact at the beginning of the season as a substitute.
“He could have had six or seven assists already too but we missed the chances he created. He’s getting better and better but now isn’t the time for him to relax. He’s showing why we signed him and deserved all the credit.”
Only Mohamed Salah has had more away games this season with a goal and an assist, putting the 26-year-old in good company.
Can he build on this breakout display?
📸 GLYN KIRK – AFP or licensors
