What we've learned from Matchweek 16

Amorim introduces a back four – bringing out the best and worst in Man Utd

One of the most extraordinary Premier League matches in recent history was surprisingly readable from a tactical perspective: Ruben Amorim’s formation(s) created the all-out attacking football Manchester United fans have been craving but also a new vulnerability at the back.

The movement and interchanges of Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Mason Mount were superb, creating numerous chances in the first half in particular, during which Leny Yoro’s positioning all the way out to the right-back position created a “secret back four”, in the words of Sky Sports co-commentator Gary Neville.

In the first half United produced the second-highest non-penalty xG (2.49), most shots (17) and joint-most touches in the opposition’s box (30) of any side in the Premier League this season.

But it was after Bournemouth had taken a 3-2 lead early in the second half that Amorim then went for broke with a system that initially worked like a charm - but opened the floodgates at both ends.

Moving to a 4-2-4 formation, there was no “secret” anymore: this was Amorim’s Man Utd playing with a back four. The result was constant transitional football, with as many four-on-fours at the Bournemouth end as the Man Utd end.

Amorim may blame individual defensive mistakes for the goals conceded and certainly a case can be made for lapses in judgement for all four concessions, but his kamikaze 4-2-4 is the main reason why Bournemouth came back into the match after going 4-3 down and why David Brooks had two golden opportunities to snatch a late winner.

In all that chaos, it’s hard to know quite what Amorim and his team will take from this, although whatever happens next, Monday night’s game was a significant moment in the project.

Amorim has crossed the Rubicon by finally deploying a back four. Rather than sate his detractors, the move will only embolden critics to demand its permanent implementation.

Spurs' sharply declining form is now slipping below Ange levels

Here’s an alarming statistic for Tottenham Hotspur supporters. Spurs’ 22 points from 16 Premier League matches this season is their lowest tally at this stage since 2008/09, when their poor start led to the departure of manager Juande Ramos.

This stat means Spurs are actually doing worse, in mid-December, than Ange Postecoglou’s side a year ago. Let that sink in.

The worst of Postecoglou’s 2024/25 began at precisely this moment and his team went on to collect 15 points from the final 22 matches, so the current comparison to Thomas Frank isn’t quite as distressing as it first appears.

Then again, Frank’s side have won just 13 points from their last 12 games and hit a new nadir on Sunday afternoon; by the time Spurs defender Archie Gray made a huge error for the opener, Nottingham Forest could already have been two or three goals ahead.

And away form used to be the one thing Spurs could rely upon. Before the weekend, Spurs were the only Premier League team who had scored in every away game this season. At Forest, they recorded just a single shot on target.

Mistakes are increasing (20 errors leading to shots is the league’s most), confidence is waning and Spurs are beginning to look more and more like the Postecoglou side that fell away in the first half of 2025.

Arsenal supporters may worry about signs of fatigue

The 94th-minute own goal that gave Arsenal a narrow 2-1 victory at the Emirates could be one of the most important moments of their season. It was a goal of pure relief and one that arguably made the performance that preceded it irrelevant.

But once the dust has settled, some Arsenal supporters will feel a little worried, even keeping in mind the mitigating circumstances that explain their team's laboured performance against bottom club Wolverhampton Wanderers.

On the one hand, injuries at both ends of the pitch have made it very difficult for Arsenal to play fluid football. On the other, those injuries don’t appear to be going away.

If facing the team in 20th place is this hard, this physically draining, then how are Arsenal going to cope with the Festive Fixtures beginning this weekend?

Arsenal have more injuries (nine) than any other Premier League side right now. They are stretching the squad to its limits and looking at the flurry of matches over the next couple of weeks, there isn’t a single banker among them: Everton (A), Crystal Palace (H), Brighton & Hove Albion (H), Aston Villa (H) and Bournemouth (A) will all be hugely demanding opponents.

Those five games come in the space of two-and-a-half weeks; this challenging period will define Arsenal’s season.

Gusto's impact reveals Maresca's great tactical contribution to the Premier League

Chelsea were 2-0 up by half-time on Saturday but the scoreline did not reflect how the game was going. Everton had been the more threatening team, dominating their opponents' left side, while David Moyes’ man-to-man press was stopping the hosts from playing.

But Chelsea scored twice regardless, the goals coming out of nowhere courtesy of excellent play from Malo Gusto; first an outstanding through-ball for Cole Palmer’s opener, then a smart finish from a Pedro Neto cross.

Gusto often seems to appear out of nowhere. It is the great trick of Enzo Maresca's tactical system and Saturday’s game was the perfect example of the tactical innovation he has contributed to the Premier League, which, until opponents catch up, will continue to see Gusto (and Marc Cucurella) pop up in a dangerous area unchallenged.

Maresca deploys his full-backs like No 8s, taking the fullbacks-as-midfielders innovation of his mentor Pep Guardiola one step further than anyone else.

Gusto and Cucurella are expected to making arcing runs through central midfield, attacking space and piercing opposition lines in such an unusual way that opponents can’t work out how to stop them.

Moyes’ man-to-man system was designed with this in mind but try as he might, Charly Alcaraz could not stay close to his designated man, Gusto. Few players and few teams, ever can.

Salah story has distracted from Liverpool quietly recovering form

Mohamed Salah was inevitably the story at Anfield, from his initial appearance on the bench and early introduction, right up to his assist and enigmatic applause to the supporters after the final whistle.

Salah now has 277 goal involvements for Liverpool in the Premier League (188 goals, 89 assists), which is the all-time record by a player for a single club in the competition, overtaking Wayne Rooney's 276 for Manchester United (183 goals, 93 assists).

But the Salah situation has overshadowed something just as significant happening at Anfield.

Liverpool have won eight points from their last four Premier League matches, an unbeaten run that represents a dramatic shift from the six defeats in seven that preceded it.

Things are finally stabilising, releasing some of the pressure on Arne Slot and although many people have pointed to Salah’s absence as a contributing factor, just as important has been restoring Hugo Ekitike to the side ahead of Alexander Isak.

Ekitike has scored seven goals in his 10 Premier League starts, with only Daniel Sturridge (eight) scoring more in his first 10 starts in the competition for Liverpool.

Long before a decision is made on Salah’s inclusion, Ekitike ought to be the first name on the team sheet.

Man City feel even closer to Arsenal despite a weekend of no change

Arsenal, Manchester City, Aston Villa and Chelsea all won, meaning nothing really changed at the top, aside from Maresca's side moving above Crystal Palace.

So why does it feel like there has been a psychological shift? Why does it feel like Man City are now even closer to Arsenal?

Perhaps it’s because Erling Haaland’s double and the apparent ease with which Pep Guardiola’s side navigated a thorny trip to Selhurst Park, was in such stark contrast to Arsenal’s last-gasp win against Wolves.

This is the time of year when Man City typically begin to accelerate away. Their history of gearing up is ominous for Arsenal fans with scar tissue of title battles past. Ominous is the right word, too, for the familiar feeling of the Gunners struggling to cope with an injury crisis.

How Arsenal cope with the pressure applied by Man City is the big question that hangs over this season. Weekends like this one – in which nothing actually changed, but it felt like it did – show just how intense that pressure could get.

Emery corrects tactical errors to provoke second-half comeback

Aston Villa have a habit of scoring screamers this season but although long-range strikes are helping Unai Emery’s side out of tight spots, their lofty league position owes as much to the manager’s consistent ability to read a game and change its patterns.

On Sunday afternoon, in anticipation of West Ham playing a very narrow 4-3-1-2 formation, Emery instructed wingers Morgan Rogers and John McGinn to hug the touchlines, a pretty substantial shift from the narrowness with which Villa usually play.

It didn’t work, and Villa were 2-1 down at the break, their passive football - shuffling the ball from one wing to the other - barely disturbing Nuno Espirito Santo’s compact low block.

From the very beginning of the second half, it was clear Emery had changed tack.

Suddenly, Villa’s centre-backs were playing long balls up to Ollie Watkins and the midfielders were looking for runners in behind.

It was a couple of these longer, direct passes that put Matty Cash in the position to cross for Rogers’ equaliser.

At this point, Emery shifted again, bringing Emiliano Buendia on and instructing Rogers to invert centrally with Buendia, flipping the system on its head.

With Villa now ultra-narrow, West Ham scrambled to react to the change – but could not.

Another substitute, Donyell Malen, turned the dial even further (on both directness and narrowness). West Ham were pulled around the pitch and eventually Villa’s double No 10s found room.

Rogers’ winner was a brilliant individual goa, but if you note the amount of space he was in (as shown below), it was also a tactical victory for Emery’s second-half changes.

Newcastle struggling to juggle UCL and Premier League

A moment of sheer elation for Sunderland supporters and the perfect way to end a decade of pain, is the headline takeaway from the Tyne-Wear derby as our analysis highlights.

But for Newcastle United, a tired performance here felt reminiscent of their difficult 2023/24 season, when juggling Uefa Champions League football with the Premier League was a little too much for Eddie Howe’s high-energy tactical setup.

Newcastle have not done badly in matches immediately after the Champions League – 10 points from six games – but the overall impact of playing so many matches has Howe’s team looking increasingly tired.

Sunday’s game had the fewest shots (11) and lowest Expected Goals (xG) total (0.53) of any Premier League match this season, while the Magpies have now gone nine matches without keeping a clean sheet.

The congested league table keeps them close to the European spots but a return of 22 points from 16 matches is certainly below pre-season expectations. Howe needs a strong festive period.

Calvert-Lewin helps open path to Leeds pulling clear

Dominic Calvert-Lewin has scored in four consecutive Premier League matches for the second time in his career, last doing so in 2020.

It is starting to look as though Daniel Farke has rediscovered the Calvert-Lewin of old, which, if true, means Leeds have the star striker most promoted clubs simply cannot afford in their first season back in the top flight.

Calvert-Lewin’s goals have helped Leeds United go unbeaten in their last three, a run that tentatively opens up the possibility they can pull clear of the relegation battle.

The gap to West Ham is only three points but with Crystal Palace and Sunderland in the next two, a firing Calvert-Lewin might just leave Leeds in a superb position on Christmas day.

Fulham’s impeccable promoted-club record is keeping them afloat

Fulham’s win at Burnley might not feel particularly significant to neutrals, who assume the Cottagers are floating around in mid-table and in no danger of the drop.

But supporters know that they are becoming increasingly reliant on matches against promoted clubs. Fulham have won five of them in a row for the very first time, adding victories over Burnley, Sunderland and Leeds in this campaign to Southampton and Ipswich last season.

Four of Fulham’s six wins so far in 2025/26 – and 12 of their 20 points – have come against the three promoted sides and bottom club Wolves.

In other words, Marco Silva’s team are reliant on winning points in the supposed easier matches.

There’s nothing especially wrong with that, as long as it continues, but Fulham fans are under no illusions: every time a game like Saturday’s comes up, they know it is imperative that Fulham get the job done.