1) De Bruyne challenging for place among Europe’s best



The Dozen: the weekend’s best Premier League photos Read more

Pep Guardiola was lost for words to describe Kevin De Bruyne’s latest exhilarating performance, whereas those in the stands at the Etihad will never tire of praising the Belgian for his skill, passing, finishing and the fact he covered more distance than any other player on the pitch in the 4-1 victory over Spurs. Many were fearful that, without David Silva, City might not be able to dictate the play like they have with the Spaniard in the side. The worries, however, were unfounded as De Bruyne was the instigator of all things positive, exhibiting his constant desire to succeed – an attribute as important as those performed by his feet. Within the space of two minutes he was the victim of a crude challenge, before going on to score a wonderful individual goal which was too powerful for Hugo Lloris, even though it was struck with his supposedly weaker left foot. De Bruyne is one of the best three players in the Premier League and, possibly, all of Europe. Will Unwin

• Match report: Man City 4-1 Tottenham: Sterling completes crushing victory

Play Video 1:01 Manchester City's Pep Guardiola left speechless by Kevin De Bruyne – video

2) Benítez needs to take some blame for bad run

“Luis Aragonés always said that you cannot go to the fifth floor of John Lewis and buy confidence,” said Rafael Benítez after Newcastle’s defeat by Arsenal. While the image of Aragonés stalking the perfume aisles looking for that elusive elixir is amusing, Benítez’s point was clear. Newcastle have lost eight of their past nine, so it is natural that chins might drop a little. But everything else Benítez said pointed the blame for this run elsewhere: most notably, he made numerous references to his squad’s inexperience, a nod to insufficient backing in the transfer market by Mike Ashley and chums. But isn’t Benítez on shaky ground trying to deflect blame when results are this bad? Of course the situation upstairs at Newcastle does not help, but equally this is not a squad full of helpless chumps who have no chance in the Premier League. The sooner Newcastle’s takeover goes through the better, but Benítez cannot use it as an excuse for everything. Nick Miller

• Match report: Arsenal 1-0 Newcastle: Özil’s moment of brilliance proves enough

3) Bournemouth in a relegation battle with tough games to come

For Bournemouth, there is no beating about the bush now: they are firmly in a relegation battle. Eddie Howe said as much. Defeat was not just disappointing but desperately worrying as his side were picked off by Liverpool, who eclipsed them in all departments. It does not get any easier for Bournemouth either, with trips to Chelsea and then Manchester City on the horizon. A point above the relegation zone, the Cherries, winless in six matches, are in trouble. In those half dozen games they have drawn only twice and their last win was in mid-November. Injuries to Charlie Daniels and Joshua King, groin and hamstring respectively, further dampen the mood. “We’re in a difficult situation,” Howe said. “It’s been the same in the first two years in the Premier League. The only thing that has changed is the perception and expectation around us.” Ben Fisher

• Match report: Bournemouth 0-4 Liverpool: Salah on scoresheet again

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho fires in a shot against Bournemouth. Photograph: Dylan Martinez/Reuters

4) Hughton has to make Brighton more ruthless

With only nine points separating Huddersfield Town in 11th place and Swansea City in 20th, there is little justification for any side in the bottom half either to get too downcast or carried away about their current position. While West Ham and Crystal Palace have shown that it doesn’t take much to revive a struggling club’s mood, Newcastle United’s slide into danger is a warning to Brighton, who are a few more disappointing results away from a slump turning into something more serious. They are 13th, but only three points above the bottom three and winless in seven matches, having scored three goals in the process. They have failed to take advantage of some winnable home games, with Glenn Murray’s dismal penalty miss on Saturday summing up their bluntness. Chris Hughton’s side have to be more ruthless and inventive when they host Watford on Saturday. Jacob Steinberg

• Match report: Brighton 0-0 Burnley: wasteful Glenn Murray skies penalty

5) Van Dijk likely to leave Southampton next month

Is Virgil van Dijk finally on his way out of Southampton? He sat on the bench on Saturday. It would have been the Dutchman’s third match in a week had he played and Mauricio Pellegrino was inclined to suggest his star defender was being rested, but the more the manager talked the more he repeated that he “could not control the market”. Southampton were determined to reject all bids for Van Dijk in the summer, intent on breaking the cycle that had seen Saints sell their best players each summer since their return to the Premier League. After having to wait until September to reintegrate him to the side, he has managed 11 starts, games that have included only one win and a solitary clean sheet. It certainly appears the club have not kept a player in the best of form and will now face the prospect of having to accept in the winter what they had insisted would not happen in the summer. Paul MacInnes

• Match report: Chelsea 1-0 Southampton: Alonso scorcher secures nervy victory

6) Hodgson insists Zaha is not a diver

Roy Hodgson maintains that he did not deserve the flak he got for his management of England, insisting that judgments were distorted by one bad match against Iceland. He is fooling no one. But, equally, no one can deny he has done a fine job so far at Crystal Palace, who won 3-0 on Saturday. After a brilliant performance by Wilfried Zaha, Hodgson was keen to rectify what he believes to be another false impression. “He doesn’t dive, it is a fact,” he said of the forward. “After people unbalance him, he works very hard – harder than most – to stay on his feet. I don’t think it’s incumbent on other managers to make comments on other team’s players. I don’t do that. Referees should be allowed to make their own decisions and up to now no referee has admonished Wilfred Zaha for diving. I don’t know where the stories are coming from, it might be biased newspaper people.” Paul Doyle

• Match report: Leicester 0-3 Crystal Palace: Benteke sparks end of away drought

7) Pochettino covering up for stumbling Tottenham

Tottenham are the latest challengers floored by the Manchester City problem | Jonathan Wilson Read more

Tottenham Hotspur’s trouncing by Manchester City leaves Mauricio Pochettino’s team 21 points behind the leaders, yet the manager seems to be in denial. “I think you cannot measure the difference between points,” he said. “If you finish second it’s the same to finish one point or 20 points behind. They [City] are doing so well, at the moment they are performing and for many clubs it will hurt a lot because the gap is massive. But we are doing a fantastic job in the last few seasons and the team is doing what it needs to do – learn, improve, step by step, to one day try to be in the place that Manchester City are in today.” This is a team that after finishing above City, in second place last year, are languishing in seventh. Pochettino said: “In the Premier League we are not in the position we wanted but we are fighting for the top four.” Spurs, though, were expected to contend for the title. Jamie Jackson

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Dele Alli and Tottenham lie 21 points adrift of Manchester City. Photograph: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

8) Moyes and Arnautovic both proving people wrong

These are still early days but you wonder when one or two people might begin to revise their opinions of David Moyes’s managerial qualities. It is all very amusing to create caricatures of an incompetent but that does not reflect the reality and Moyes has proved that so far at West Ham, forging a unit that works hard for the cause but can also play a bit. The job he is doing with Marko Arnautovic is worthy of particular praise. Arnautovic had, Moyes says, left people at the club “a bit disappointed” after arriving from Stoke but is buying into the new manager’s work ethic. Before the 3-0 win against Arnautovic’s former employer Moyes told him “to make sure you don’t get wound up”; the response was exhilarating, suggesting the Austrian may have found a manager who can harness his mercurial talent. Player and coach are both on the way to proving their disparagers wrong. Nick Ames

• Match report: Stoke City 0-3 West Ham: Noble helps Hammers get a lift

• Mark Hughes defiant after fans vent fury

9) Deeney damage all his own doing

Troy Deeney did not hold back when he spoke about Arsenal’s mental fragility after Watford’s win against Arsène Wenger’s side in October. “There’s a reason why they lost,” Deeney said. “It’s a bit of cojones, a bit of nuts.” But Watford’s captain has been left looking a little hubristic since then. He received a retrospective ban for a clash with Stoke City’s Joe Allen a fortnight later and he is facing another long absence after his red card in the 4-1 home defeat by Huddersfield Town. Michael Oliver, who refereed the Stoke game, did not miss the seriousness of Deeney’s offence this time, dismissing him for a rash lunge on Collin Quaner. Watford were already trailing 2-0 and perhaps the forward was frustrated. Maybe he wanted to set an example with a macho show of commitment. But there are more productive ways for footballers to demonstrate their toughness. Jacob Steinberg

• Match report: Watford 1-4 Huddersfield: Mooy strikes twice to shock Terriers

10) Pardew must find striker for chance of West Brom survival

These are worrying times for West Bromwich. They are second from bottom, without a win for four months, and a change in manager has failed to deliver the “bounce”, or maybe that should be “boing” in this case, that so often happens. Alan Pardew’s four games in charge have produced two points and one goal. There were some positives to cling to at the end of the defeat against Manchester United, not least the way they finished a game that looked to be beyond them at half-time, yet there is no getting away from the fact that Albion, who have scored only 13 goals in 18 matches, badly need a proven goalscorer to either partner Salomón Rondón or play up front on his own. Finding one will be easier said than done in January, of course, but Albion’s Premier League status – they have been in the top flight since 2010 – could hinge on it. Stuart James

• Match report: West Brom 1-2 Manchester United: Lukaku sets United on way