3 things we learned in the Premier League this weekend

As we wait for Monday's meeting between Middlesbrough and Hull City, we take a look back at what happened elsewhere in the English top flight this weekend.

Chelsea's rampant counter-attack in Manchester

The 3-4-3 shape stayed the same for Antonio Conte's Chelsea on Saturday, but the approach was different.

Anticipating the possession and pressure Manchester City would exert, and then realising the joy Kevin De Bruyne and Jesus Navas were getting down the right, the Italian tactician got the away team to sit back and launch potent counter-attacks heavily featuring the irrepressible Diego Costa.

Related: 3 takeaways from Chelsea's ruthless away win at Manchester City

Chelsea was ruthless in the 3-1 win, but City was again generous with space at the back. Fernandinho and Ilkay Gundogan perhaps joined attacks too much and exposed the back three, but John Stones being bullied by Costa and Nicolas Otamendi's continued insistence in going to ground for tackles is concerning for Pep Guardiola.

Striker Gabriel Jesus' deal will be finalised at the start of January, but expect City to also explore defensive options in the transfer market, too. Southampton's Virgil van Dijk would slot in comfortably.

Spurs sully Swans

Swansea City's swashbuckling 5-4 defeat of Crystal Palace last time out was a distant memory after it sunk to a 5-0 trouncing from Tottenham Hotspur.

Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen, who's becoming a thorn in Swansea's side, both nicked a brace, but Heung-Min Son scored the pick of a bunch with an athletic scissor kick beyond a previously solid Lukasz Fabianski.

"It was an excellent performance," manager Mauricio Pochettino told the club's Twitter. "We needed to recover the winning feeling after (consecutive losses to) Monaco and Chelsea. We're very happy."

Spurs are now seven points short of table-topping Chelsea, and must be tempted to throw Wednesday's Champions League group match against CSKA Moscow. A draw would take Tottenham into the Europa League, significantly increasing its workload from February.

Concern over Liverpool's backline justified

Comfortably leading 3-1 with 14 minutes remaining - and looking set to regain second place in the table - Liverpool crumbled at Dean Court, allowing three goals in the latter stages of the contest to suffer a 4-3 setback against Bournemouth that will sting for quite some time.

Nathan Ake's 93rd-minute winner punctuated the Reds' defensive frailty, which saw a combination of worrying factors come to the fore.

Related - Klopp on Bournemouth shock: 'We gave the game away'

Joel Matip's injury-induced absence forced Lucas Leiva into the starting XI alongside Dejan Lovren, and without the angular Cameroonian, Liverpool looked entirely vulnerable. Loris Karius, meanwhile, still flatters to deceive, with some, incredibly, calling for Simon Mignolet to regain his place between the sticks; Karius' fumbling of a long-range effort allowed Ake to smack home the rebound to complete the stunning result.

Jurgen Klopp's men are a joy to watch going forward, their uber-mobile, shape-shifting attacking unit are able to carve any backline to shreds.

But its Liverpool's own that is cause for concern, and if the Reds can't figure out a way to lock things down consistently, their title chances will go the way of Sunday's 3-1 lead.

Around the grounds

In a match that was dubbed as potentially Alan Pardew's last in charge of Palace, his squad rallied from last weekend's 5-4 loss at Swansea to see off Southampton by a 3-0 scoreline.

Saturday's three points ended a run of six straight defeats for the Eagles, who claimed their first clean sheet of the season with Damien Delaney's uncompromising showing at the back a particular highlight.

Elsewhere, we'd be remiss not to praise a Herculean performance from Alexis Sanchez, who tore West Ham to shreds on Saturday with a 14-minute hat trick, powering Arsenal to a 5-1 obliteration. The electric Chilean looks comfortable as a duck in water leading the attack, and his fantastic treble Saturday saw him move into a tie with Diego Costa for the league-scoring lead, the two men sitting on 11 goals.

Elsewhere:

• Everton 1-1 Manchester United
• Stoke City 2-0 Burnley
• Sunderland 2-1 Leicester City
• West Bromwich Albion 3-1 Watford

Monday: Middlesbrough vs. Hull City

Both of these clubs were promoted from the Championship last term, but only one is playing like a Premier League side. Middlesbrough was unlucky to take just a draw from Leicester City last time out, but against Hull City, many embarking on Riverside will be expecting all three points over Mike Phelan's bewildered defence and misfiring strikeforce.