3 Things We Learned in Gameweek 8: Premier League 24/25

In a weekend where we saw a plethora of red cards, late comebacks and shock results, here are 3 things we learned from last weekend's action in the Premier League.

Arsenal Losing Their Cool?

Arsenal suffered their first defeat of the season in an away trip to a perky Bournemouth. William Saliba's 1st half sending off gave The Gunners an uphill battle against a terrier-like Bournemouth side who put in a sensational performance to win 2-0, courtesy of Christie's well-worked corner and Kluivert's penalty.

Bournemouth's exceptional performance cannot be denied, but Arsenal must come into focus due to their woeful discipline so far this season. Saliba's professional foul which prevented a goal scoring opportunity was Arsenal's 3rd red card of the season after Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard. Arteta has touched on The Gunners' need to resolve their disciplinary issue, particularly as they sit 1st for red cards this season in only 8 matches.

After a solid start to the season, Arsenal are beginning to show cracks amongst team composure and a piling injury list. Arsenal could be without Saka, Ødegaard, Timber, Tomiyasu and Calafiori for their huge tie with Liverpool. Add Saliba's absence in the backline and Arteta has a headache for who he will play to fill in should his other defenders be injured. Kiwior vs Salah at LB? Díaz vs a covering Partey at RB? Liverpool may be feasting this weekend, especially after Arsenal's less than convincing 1-0 win midweek against Shakhtar Donetsk.

Composure needs to be regained after a minor blip. If Arteta decides to put 11 men behind the ball against Liverpool at home, fans may turn on the team. Liverpool will see this as an opportunity to extend their gap at the top of the table to 7 points over Arsenal.

Will the Real Raúl Jiménez Please Stand Up?

After suffering a horrific head injury in November 2020, many thought that now Fulham forward Raúl Jiménez would not play football ever again. Forward nearly 4 years, and the Mexican is in the form of his life, notching another goal on the weekend in Fulham's 1-3 defeat to a potent Aston Villa.

The former Wolves man is on a sensational scoring run, registering 4 goals and 1 assist since he snatched the starting striker position away from the wasteful Rodrigo Muniz in Gameweek 4.

It's a joy to see someone come back from a career threatening injury to be performing at the very best again. Many remember his first 2 seasons in the Premier League with Wolves where he notched 30 goals across the 2 campaigns. Now finding his groove again, I wish Jiménez the best for the rest of the season and to continue his goal-scoring run!

Haaland's Premier League Drought Continues...

After scoring 10 goals in his first 5 games, averaging 2 goals a game, Erling Haaland has now gone 3 games in the Premier League without a goal. Despite scoring once against Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League and twice against Slovenia in the Nations League with Norway, Haaland is struggling to find the back of the net in the Premier League.

Last weekend's match against Wolves saw the Norwegian a spectator as he only managed 1 shot throughout the whole 90 minutes, amassing an xG of 0.00, unheard of the two time Golden Boot winner.

Arguments can be made for Haaland's mini goal drought. The obvious one being the absence of Rodri, whose season ended against Arsenal in Gameweek 5. Yet, Rodri didn't start the first 3 games of the season, in which the Norwegian scored 7 goals, 2 being hattricks!

Alternatively, Foden's recall to the starting XI has seen more chances falling his way. However, the Englishman has only started one Premier League game this season against Fulham, so it seems unlikely that he is stealing chances away from Haaland.

I believe Pep Guardiola's system is having some issues. His side have often been found susceptible to counterattacks, only keeping 1 clean sheet so far this season. This, mixed with City's apparent block of creativity could be part of the reason why Haaland's output has dropped off. If his side cannot maintain solidity and deliver consistent, strong attacks without being turned over, Haaland would find it harder to score goals.

Pep will certainly be reviewing his tactics to ensure that his side begin to perform better, aiming to supply Haaland. Having to rely on individual moments to score goals from outside of the box or in the dying moments such as John Stones' winner last weekend will infuriate Pep.

Haaland's next match is against strugglers Southampton, who have already conceded 18 goals this season. Surely the Norwegian will get back to scoring ways in this tasty fixture?