The second weekend of the Premier League season is now behind us, and attention quickly shifts to Gameweek 3. With early narratives beginning to take shape, we take a closer look at what we discovered from the second round of fixtures.

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❓Questions for Pep Guardiola and Unai Emery 

Manchester City fell to a 2-1 defeat at the Amex Stadium despite taking the lead in the first half through Erling Haaland. The defeat marks the third consecutive game in which City have failed to beat Brighton, with Rodri coming out after the game and admitting that this current City side ‘isn’t at the level’ to compete for the big trophies.

The game was flipped on its head by a quadruple substitution on the 60th minute mark by Fabian Hurzeler, with two of these players in Milner and Gruda, being the ones to get the goals that got Brighton all three points on Sunday afternoon. Up until those changes, Brighton only had one shot in the game - the lowest total they’ve managed in the first half of a game at the Amex for 10 years.

Pep Guardiola looked shell-shocked on the touchline when Gruda rounded Trafford and tucked away the winner for Brighton, with the Spaniard claiming that his side lacked pace at the back in the final stages of the game with Khusanov going off injured. However, it was not this incident alone that cost City the game who only had five shots in the second half with three of these attempts coming in the last 10 minutes.

James Trafford was forced into making five stops in the game so it wasn’t really a smash-and-grab effort from Brighton with it more being a case of City capitulating in the second half to the Brighton changes and Guardiola failing to find an answer. I think this City side is really lacking in a clear identity and Guardiola doesn’t even know his best eleven. Plenty for the most successful manager in history to ponder over the international break.

Unai Emery’s Aston Villa side look really stale at the moment. They are the only side in the league yet to score a goal and their 3-0 defeat at home against Crystal Palace ended a period of dominance at Villa Park, which has raised serious questions about the direction of this Villa side and their recruitment this summer.

Villa did look slightly brighter in forward areas with the likes of Guessand and Malen on the pitch, Villa need that speed and spark in the side. However, I think they really missed Boubakar Kamara. Palace were able to easily play through Villa’s midfield and with Emery’s side unable to carry a real attacking threat of their own, it was almost a straightforward assignment for Oliver Glasner’s side.

Villa failed to make the most of a period in the second half where they suffocated Palace with Marc Guehi’s wonder strike, puncturing any chances that Villa had of mounting a comeback. They have to be more clinical in those situations, but they don’t really have a player who can produce those moments right now. This responsibility feel at Morgan Rogers’ feet last season but he looks a little disinterested at the moment which is a worrying sign for Villa.

Villa’s recruitment this summer has been underwhelming, but this start is worse than anyone expected from a side that has been so consistent under Emery for the last few years. It looks a bit like the squad needs a refresh and with the transfer window now closed, it could be a rough first half of the season for Aston Villa.

⭐ Brilliant Bournemouth 

Bournemouth’s 1-0 win over Tottenham away from home was the most impressive performance of the weekend for me. Andoni Iraola’s side pressed the Lilywhites into submission and limited Thomas Frank’s side to just three shots in total whilst the Cherries had 19 efforts on goal.

We shouldn’t really be surprised by this Bournemouth display. There were concerns over the losses they suffered at the back in the window but Iraola is the type of manager to adapt to these circumstances with ease, and their new additions look solid.

Bournemouth’s frontline is not only a real danger in terms of goal threat, they are so well-drilled and aggressive with the pressure they apply. Tottenham didn’t even have a shot in the first half of the game, they couldn’t get out.

The 19 shots that the Cherries had showed that they are persisting with their approach from last season which is to win the ball high and then get shots away as quickly as possible. This approach is intense and perfectly suited to the pace of the Premier League; Bournemouth can even implement it on the road against a side like Spurs who had just won 2-0 against Manchester City last week.

I’d already backed Bournemouth for a top-half finish before the season started, and I’m even more confident in that assumption now that I've watched them across the opening three weeks of the season. Their biggest challenge now will be keeping hold of Andoni Iraola. I expect some of the managers at top clubs to topple throughout the season, which could leave a vacancy for Iraola, who has proved that he has the tactical nous for this level.

⚡ Dewsbury Hall Stars 

Jack Grealish once again stole all the headlines following Everton’s 3-2 win over Wolves as the 29-year-old registered two assists for the second game running in an Everton shirt, but my eye was more drawn to the performance of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.

Dewsbury-Hall was at Chelsea last year so I got to watch him regularly. He was never an integral member of the side but played his part well - often without complaint or any real strop, which we see so regularly now with players during the transfer window (those statements on Instagram stories really are something).

He came out after the game and said that he would have only left Chelsea if the offer was something that really excited him, and he looks to be a perfect fit for this new look Everton side:

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall v Wolves

• 1 goal

• 1 assist

• 3 chances created (most)

• 2 fouls won

• 3 fouls committed

• 6 passes into the final third

These are the metrics of a player who was all action in the game against Wolves and allowed Everton to control the game in more dangerous areas of the pitch. The Toffees have so many threats now in the final third, which is a completely different story to last season when they really struggled for goals and creativity.

Dewsbury-Hall is certainly a player to keep an eye on for Everton this season. He was at the heart of every positive attacking move for the Toffees and the fans have already taken to him for the quality and manner of his performances. Whilst the spotlight stays on Jack Grealish for now, Dewsbury-Hall is a player worth keeping an eye on for anything Everton-related when they return from the international break.

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