The weekend saw us treated to another action-packed gameweek of Premier League matches and no shortage of drama.
Twenty-one goals were scored across the 10 top-flight games in another enthralling set of fixtures.
It was a derby-filled weekend, as Arsenal claimed the bragging rights in north London, and Manchester United earned a controversial victory over their neighbours Manchester City.
The weekend saw us treated to another action-packed gameweek of Premier League action
Manchester United and Arsenal both managed to claim the bragging rights in their derbies
There were wins at the bottom of the table for Southampton, Wolves and Nottingham Forest
Liverpool were also humbled 3-0 by in-form Brighton as their season went from bad to worse
The Gunners’ victory was a huge statement of intent as they raced eight points clear at the top of the league after an assured performance against Antonio Conte’s side.
Elsewhere, Liverpool’s season went from bad to worse as they were humbled by Brighton, while Brentford stretched their unbeaten run to seven league games.
There were also crucial wins at the bottom of the table for Southampton, Nottingham Forest and Wolves.
Meanwhile, Chelsea eased the pressure on Graham Potter with a battling win over Crystal Palace, and Newcastle and Aston Villa also secured victories.
With all that in mind, here’s the latest top 10 of Sportsmail’s Premier League Power Rankings.
10 – Harry Kane (down seven)
It was a tough week for Harry Kane and Tottenham as they were thoroughly outclassed at home against their north London rivals on Sunday.
Kane was starved of service as the Gunners dominated the first half, before Antonio Conte’s side improved in the second period and their talisman forced Aaron Ramsdale into two good saves.
The defeat saw Spurs drop five points off the top four – and they need to get Kane more involved if they are to claw back the deficit.
Nevertheless, England’s captain is enjoying a fine Premier League season with 15 goals in 19 league games, and he is on course to match his career-best 30 tally of league goals from the 2017-18 campaign.
It was a tough week for Harry Kane and Tottenham as the striker was starved off any service
9 – Casemiro (non-mover)
In every passing week Manchester United’s £70m summer signing continues to prove he is worth every penny of that outlay, and his fantastic performance in Saturday’s memorable win over Manchester City was no different.
Casemiro was superb in shutting down City’s midfield, particularly nullifying Bernardo Silva as he was tasked with man-marking the Portuguese star.
His calmness and experience has clearly transmitted throughout the whole team as they continue to go from strength-to-strength under Erik ten Hag, helped in part by the defensive shield of Casemiro.
‘There are no words,’ United centre-back Raphael Varane said post-match when describing Casemiro’s performance.
‘He covers so much ground. He runs so much. He’s aggressive when he wants the ball, yet calm when he has the ball.
‘He was incredible.’
Casemiro (left) was brilliant yet again as he helped to shackle Man City’s midfield playmakers
8. Brennan Johnson (new entry)
Steve Cooper continues to work wonders at the City Ground as Nottingham Forest picked up another huge win against Leicester City and rose to 13th place.
One man crucial to their resurgence has been Brennan Johnson, and the homegrown star scored two brilliant goals on Saturday.
The sublime assists from Morgan Gibbs-White also deserve a mention, but Johnson’s pace and trickery caused problems throughout for the Foxes.
Johnson has been criticised by Forest fans at times this season, but with six goals and one assist in all competitions, he is now showing all of his undoubted quality.
After picking up 11 points from their last five league games at home, things are looking up for Forest ahead of the second half of the campaign.
Brennan Johnson scored two fine goals to help give Nottingham Forest another crucial win
7. James Ward-Prowse (new entry)
What a week it has been for Southampton – three wins in three separate competitions and the mood under Nathan Jones has been completely transformed.
No one has been more crucial to that resurgence than James Ward-Prowse who is a modern-day Southampton legend and closing in on 400 club appearances.
Pushed forward into a No 10 role by Jones, the 28-year-old stepped up to the big occasion in their crunch relegation six-pointer against Everton on Saturday.
He equalised for the Saints with a fantastic bit of skill, before he secured the win late on with a sublime free-kick that outfoxed Jordan Pickford.
It was a huge three points for Southampton and Jones could barely hide his admiration for his captain.
The Southampton boss said: ‘He’s been outstanding. He’s been absolutely world class for me. He’s one of the best technicians I’ve ever seen, the consistency he shows is world class.’
James Ward-Prowse stepped up to the plate for Southampton in their huge win over Everton
6 – Erling Haaland (down two)
It was a tough day for Erling Haaland on Saturday as he struggled to impact the game at all in what could be a damaging defeat for Manchester City.
The Norwegian had just two shots in the whole game and touched the ball only 19 times, evidenced by how deep he was dropping to try and become involved.
Furthermore, on several occasions the forward made runs in behind and his team-mates failed to play the ball through.
With an astounding 21 league goals in 17 games, it seems ridiculous to give credence to various theories that City are better without Haaland – and he will surely recapture his form in no time – but Pep Guardiola’s side have plenty of work to do in the title race.
Erling Haaland struggled in the Manchester derby and touched the ball just 19 times all game
5. Luke Shaw (new entry)
Since being dropped after Manchester United’s embarrassing 4-0 defeat to Brentford, Luke Shaw has had a superb renaissance this season.
Shaw was replaced in the team by Tyrell Malacia, but he has been brilliant since regaining his place for the away victory over Everton in October.
He impressed for England at the World Cup and since the Premier League restart has been an ever-present – excelling at left-back – while also filling in at at centre-back as was the case on Saturday.
Shaw has struck up a promising partnership with Varane and the pair managed to keep Haaland quiet at Old Trafford.
Testament to his form is the fact that Lisandro Martinez, Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof were all on the bench watching on, with Ten Hag instead putting his faith in Shaw alongside Varane.
Luke Shaw was brilliant at centre-back for United and he continues to enjoy a fantastic season
4. Solly March (new entry)
It was a damaging defeat for Liverpool on Saturday but this shouldn’t mask how exceptional Brighton were at the Amex Stadium.
The Seagulls repeatedly cut through the Reds with ease and a key part of that was the performances of their wingers Solly March and Kaoru Mitoma, who gave Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold torrid afternoons.
March in particular was superb – and he scored twice and assisted Danny Welbeck’s goal.
The winger’s second strike was also a fantastic finish that gave Alisson no chance.
He has now scored four goals and added two assists in his past four games, having previously netted four times in 156 Premier League games.
The homegrown Brighton star is clearly loving life under Roberto De Zerbi. ‘It’s one of the best performances I can remember for a long time,’ March said post-match.
‘It’s a great day and if we keep playing like that then we’ll do well, that’s for sure. I love playing for Roberto – he’s great. He puts his arm around you and tells you you’re a good player. Maybe that’s what I needed.’
Solly March was in fine form as he scored two goals and laid on an assist in Brighton’s victory
3. Bukayo Saka (up two)
Arsenal continue to show their title credentials as they passed yet another test on Sunday by beating their arch-rivals Tottenham – just eight months on from last season’s damaging 3-0 defeat – in what was effectively a Champions League play-off.
Mikel Arteta’s side have been transformed this year and one of the major reasons for that has been Bukayo Saka.
The 21-year-old was simply sublime on Sunday as he tormented Ryan Sessegnon and consistently created chances.
It was his run and cross that forced Hugo Lloris to concede a disastrous own goal, before he also assisted Martin Odegaard’s fantastic strike.
The Gunners purred at times throughout the first half – and with six goals and seven assists in 18 league games – Saka is so crucial to this team.
He is a star of the present and the future and it is quite frightening the impact he is having when you realise how young he still is.
With the Gunners racing into an eight-point lead over Manchester City, Saka’s form will be key as they aim to win a first league title in 19 years.
Bukayo Saka tormented Ryan Sessegnon in Arsenal’s 2-0 win over their north London rivals
2 – Marcus Rashford (non-mover)
Marcus Rashford is not only back – he is scaling new heights – as he became the first Manchester United player to score in eight consecutive home games at Old Trafford since Wayne Rooney in 2010.
The England forward was brilliant again on Saturday as he continually caused the City defence problems – although he was guilty of missing a big chance in the first half.
Rashford was controversially involved in Bruno Fernandes’s equaliser, before he netted the winner from Alejandro Garnacho’s cross.
The 26-year-old now has 16 goals and six assists in 26 games in all competitions and is enjoying a stellar campaign after a tricky few seasons.
Marcus Rashford scored for the eighth home game in a row as United beat Manchester City
Rashford’s match-winning contribution on Saturday was all the more impressive after he had looked to be injured in the first half.
Nevertheless, he fought on and Erik ten Hag was full of praise for his star man post-match.
He said: ‘He knows that in top football you have to suffer, sacrifice, and have painful moments. Especially a player like he is, he’s unstoppable, opponents will go tough against him to stop him. But you have to deal with it, and I think he’s capable of it.
‘He keeps investing, he keeps going, he keeps focusing for his chances and in the end he got a reward and the team got his reward.’
1 – Martin Odegaard (non-mover)
Is there a better midfielder in the Premier League on form right now than Martin Odegaard?
The Arsenal skipper guided his side to yet another victory on Sunday as he put in an excellent performance at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
His goal was a piece of individual brilliance and helped Arsenal to turn their first half dominance into an important second goal.
Since the post-World Cup restart, Odegaard has scored twice and added three assists, helping the Gunners to extend their unbeaten run in the Premier League to 12 games.
Gunners star Martin Odegaard excelled again and helped to extend their lead to eight points
He is looking every inch the player who Real Madrid signed aged 16 for £3.5m, and Arsenal’s acquisition of Odegaard from the Spanish giants for £29m in the summer of 2021 now seems an absolute bargain.
Speaking after the game, Arteta hailed the performance of skipper as he said: ‘(He was) terrific. Especially the first half I think he was incredible.
‘He’s really showing a different kind of presence in the way he’s influencing the game, just the feeling, the way he moves what he transmits on the pitch is different. To do what he’s done here today, big credit to him.’
