Football writer David Coverdale highlights the hot topics and tactical lessons from Sunday.

Man Utd are up for the fight under Carrick

Manchester United showed they are up for the fight under head coach Michael Carrick as they produced a stirring comeback at Old Trafford for the second time in five days.

In the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, Man Utd came from 2-0 down to beat Roma 3-2 thanks to two late goals.

Then in the Premier League on Sunday, the Red Devils twice came from two down against Aston Villa, salvaging a point with two stoppage-time strikes and proving the squad are still playing for Carrick.

However, the Red Devils still go into the international break in the relegation zone in 18th place, their lowest position 10 games into a top-flight season since 1986/87.

They have now gone eight Premier League games without a victory, their joint-worst winless run in the competition, and they have conceded 30 goals in all competitions this season, the joint-most of any side in Europe’s top five leagues.

At the end of Sunday's match, no one seemed sure how to feel. Patrick Dorgu’s equaliser in the sixth minute of stoppage time sparked wild celebrations in the stands, but the mood of the Man Utd players seemed downbeat at full-time, with captain Bruno Fernandes looking like his team had lost.

Goalscorer Dorgu told Sky Sports: “I don’t feel happy, we are in a bad situation. Everyone needs to look at themselves and ask if they are doing enough.”

Matheus Cunha added: "After the other night we talked about how we concede goals and have the mentality to come back in the game. We did it again where we had to play like Manchester United and go forward. We showed courage, but we only do this after we concede goals."

Villa, meanwhile, will rue throwing away three points as they became the first Premier League team since 2023 to fail to win after twice leading by two goals.

Brighton are breaking new ground

Brighton & Hove Albion continue to break new ground in the Premier League as their victory over 10-man Brentford took them above Manchester City and up to second in the table.

It is the first time they have ever been in the Premier League’s top two at the conclusion of a Matchweek outside of August, and their haul of 22 points from 10 matches is the most they have ever registered at this stage of a top-flight campaign in their history.

Brighton are on course to better their best ever Premier League finish of sixth in 2022/23, as they aim to qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time.

In the Seagulls’ previous Premier League home match against Crystal Palace, Diego Gomez scored from near the halfway line, a strike which has been shortlisted for October's Guinness Goal of the Month award.

And the Paraguayan has potentially entered a contender for the November award too after scoring another stunner from outside the box against Brentford.

Pascal Gross then netted Brighton’s second goal with a penalty. With 35 goals and 52 assists in the Premier League, he now has the joint-most goal involvements for any German player in the competition, level with Mesut Ozil.

Meanwhile, Brentford, who had Igor Thiago sent off after just 23 minutes for a straight red card, need to find a cure to their travel sickness. They have now failed to win any of their last 10 Premier League away games, their longest run without a victory on the road in the competition.

Sunderland's home form can keep them up

If Sunderland are to avoid relegation this season, much will depend on their home form.

Last season, the Black Cats made the Stadium of Light a fortress, staying unbeaten there until February. And they enjoyed home comforts again against Chelsea on Sunday as they registered their second Premier League win of the season to climb off the foot of the table.

Regis Le Bris’ side's only other win this campaign also came on Wearside – against Fulham in August – and they have only been beaten there in 2026/27 by the top flight’s top two, Arsenal and Brighton.

Indeed, since the start of last season, only leaders Arsenal have kept more clean sheets in Premier League home games than Sunderland, whose next four league games at the Stadium of Light are against bottom-half teams Tottenham Hotspur, Nottingham Forest, Crystal Palace and Hull City.

On Sunday, Enzo Le Fee’s first-half penalty was the difference as the Black Cats won their third consecutive match against Chelsea.

For the Blues, the absence of injured striker Joao Pedro appears to be hurting them. The Brazilian has missed four Premier League matches this season, including all of the last three, and Chelsea have failed to score in three of those games.

Liverpool have individual quality to win open matches under Iraola

Liverpool moved into the Premier League’s top four with another away win – thanks to the individual brilliance of some of their big stars.

In a wide-open match at Selhurst Park - the type that is common when Andoni Iraola is in one of the dugouts - Crystal Palace actually enjoyed more possession than Liverpool and had 19 shots, just one fewer than the visitors.

But the Reds proved they possess the individual quality at both ends of the pitch to come through such encounters.

Liverpool named their goalkeeper Alisson as their player of the match after he produced six crucial saves and was only denied a clean sheet by a stoppage-time penalty from Eddie Nketiah.

In attack, meanwhile, Bradley Barcola, Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak all showed why Liverpool have invested so heavily in them.

After Alexis Mac Allister headed Liverpool in front from Dominik Szoboszlai’s free-kick, Barcola brilliantly set up Wirtz to double the Reds’ lead, producing his third assist in four league matches.

Wirtz then turned provider for Isak to clinically score his seventh Premier League goal of the season, taking him up to second in the race for the Coca-Cola Golden Boot.

Liverpool are now the only Premier League team unbeaten away from home this season, and they have more points on the road (13) than any other side.

But the problems are piling up for Palace head coach Pierre Sage, with his side bottom of the table. 

Despite a better display and an Expected Goals (xG) tally of 2.38, they failed to take their chances. They have also now conceded 24 goals in 10 Premier League games, their most at this stage of any league campaign since 1980/81.  

Evanilson enjoying club-record run as Bournemouth keep winning

No Premier League striker is in better form right now than Evanilson.

The Brazilian netted in just the fifth minute against Ipswich Town to become the first AFC Bournemouth player ever to score in five consecutive Premier League appearances.

Evanilson’s haul of five goals in five games is only matched by Villa’s Nicolas Jackson, with the Senegalese’s run including one match where he did not score.

And the Cherries forward now has nine goal involvements in the Premier League this season, the joint-most alongside Erling Haaland.

Just like last week against Leeds United, Evanilson capitalised on a goalkeeper trying to play out from the back, as he seized on Ipswich Town’s Christian Walton’s error to open the scoring.

Bournemouth doubled their lead through a Leif Davis own goal, with Jack Clarke’s second-half penalty failing to prevent the Cherries from an eighth straight victory in all competitions – their best winning run since 2013.

Ipswich must find a way to stop leaking goals. They have now failed to keep a clean sheet in each of their last 29 Premier League games, the longest run in the competition since Watford’s sequence of 30 such matches between March 2020 and January 2022.