Premier League games are coming thick and fast over the next few weeks, meaning there is barely any time to reflect on the excitement of gameweek 13.
Chelsea’s dramatic 1–1 draw with Arsenal brought an entertaining end to what was an enthralling weekend of Premier League action which featured broken records, comeback victories and splashes of individual brilliance everywhere you looked.
Here are the 10 best performers of the round according to the FotMob match ratings.
A traditional left back by trade, Maxim De Cuyper has occasionally played further forwards down the left throughout his career and he was given his first start as a winger for Brighton & Hove Albion in Sunday’s trip to Nottingham Forest.
He looked more like a striker as he raced through the centre of the pitch to fire home the first of his side’s two goals in what ended up being an impressive, hard-fought victory.
Despite Forest coming out on the losing side, the highest rating of the game went to midfielder Elliot Anderson, who continued his upwards trajectory with another delightful individual showing.
Not only did he create a game-high six chances, but the well-rounded England international also chimed in with 12 duels won and six completed dribbles, leading the match in both statistics as well. It’s no surprise teams are starting to circle around Anderson.
Aston Villa made it five wins on the bounce across all competitions with a 1–0 triumph over Wolverhampton Wanderers which was inspired by Scotland international John McGinn.
McGinn played the (admittedly routine) pass to set up Boubacar Kamara’s stunning winning goal, just one of the match-leading four chances he created for Unai Emery’s in-form outfit.
Liverpool’s 2–0 win over West Ham United featured a number of high-profile storylines. Alexander Isak scored his first Premier League goal for the Reds, Florian Wirtz put in one of his best performances of the season and Lucas Paquetá’s late red card has dominated the post-match narrative, meaning Cody Gakpo’s sensational individual performance has flown under the radar.
It was his assist which handed Isak his goal on the hour mark and, with West Ham looking dangerous in pursuit of an equaliser, Gakpo was the hero with a stoppage-time strike to remove any doubt about the result for Liverpool.
Sunderland continue to punch well above their weight in the Premier League, roaring back from two goals down to seal a 3–2 win against a Bournemouth outfit also making plenty of noise during the early months of the season.
Midfielder Enzo Le Fée netted the penalty that kick-started Sunderland’s comeback and finished it off with an assist for Brian Brobbey’s headed winner.
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Saturday’s Premier League action began with two more goals for Brentford striker Igor Thiago, whose tally of 11 goals in 13 games is bettered only by the 14 of Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.
All four goals of Brentford’s 3–1 win over Burnley came in the final 10 minutes. Thiago’s penalty started things off 81 minutes in and, after Zian Flemming tied things up from the spot, a thumping strike put the Bees back ahead on a day in which he caused constant problems for Burnley’s defence.
Things looked set to go disastrously wrong for Manchester United once again on Sunday when Crystal Palace were questioning how their lead was only one goal at half-time. 20 minutes and two Bruno Fernandes assists later, the tables had turned completely.
A smart free kick set up Joshua Zirkzee’s equaliser, before another quick decision from a dead ball allowed Mason Mount to drive home what proved to be the winning goal. That’s now five assists for the season for Fernandes, who leads the Premier League in that regard.
Two nasty injuries across 2024 have left 19-year-old Lewis Miley playing catch-up in a fledgling career which seemed certain to have already reached superstardom by this point if he had remained fit and healthy.
Saturday’s 4–1 thumping of Everton was just Miley’s third start of the season for Newcastle United, but he made it a memorable one with an excellent performance which yielded a goal, an assist and some sensational defensive work for good measure.
Phil Foden netted the fastest goal of the season so far just 59 seconds into Manchester City’s dramatic 3–2 win over Leeds United—a record which stood just a matter of hours—and managed to pop up with the winner a full 90 minutes later.
“Phil has that [mentality] … ‘Give me the ball, I want to dribble, I want to score and win the game.’” City manager Pep Guardiola reflected. “He has this ambition and mentality since he was a little boy and I’m happy for what he did. He was the man to win the game.”
The man to snatch Foden’s record away, Malick Thiaw rose highest to head Newcastle in front just 56 seconds into their emphatic win over Everton. There was plenty of time for him to add another thumping header to seal the Magpies’ first away win of the season.
It wasn’t all about goals for Thiaw, however. Six aerial duels won and five headed clearances up against the same Thierno Barry that won 15 duels of his own against Man Utd last time out completed what was a dominant performance from the 24-year-old.
