10 big questions from this weekend's Premier League action

theScore examines the most important Premier League developments by answering 10 key questions that arose from this weekend's slate of action.

Tottenham's most pressing need?

All of the focus on Tottenham's transfer window so far this January has centered on their need for a striker in the wake of Harry Kane's latest injury. While it's nice to call upon a bonafide No. 9, Spurs may be better served by addressing other areas of the squad first.

Jose Mourinho has glaring holes at both left-back and defensive midfield. Japhet Tanganga, a center-back by trade, was pushed out to the left side for Saturday's goalless draw with Watford, and while he appears to have a very bright future, he was an obvious target for the Hornets to attack.

Though Tottenham now boast an exciting young crop of central midfielders in Giovani Lo Celso, Tanguy Ndombele, and recent arrival Gedson Fernandes, none of them are defensive-minded players. Each of them is better served with the freedom to get forward and create, either through their ball-carrying or passing abilities.

Fixing all three areas of concern in one window seems unlikely, and given the choice, another striker is maybe not the best use of the club's funds this month. Heung-Min Son has picked an inopportune time to go into a scoring slump, but if he gets hot again, he can easily fill the scoring void left by Kane.

Position change for Steve Cook?

Judging by Steve Cook's spectacular one-handed save in Saturday's loss to Norwich City, perhaps Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe should consider throwing the defender between the sticks on a permanent basis. Hell, it's not like anything else has worked at the Vitality Stadium this season.

As hilarious as the incident was, it was a terrible decision by Cook to thrust his arm out and redirect a goal-bound effort in the 31st minute, thereby earning himself an obvious red card. Bournemouth would surely have been better off conceding the goal and having a full complement of players available for a comeback bid.

Luis Suarez saving Uruguay, this was not.

Arsenal jobbed by VAR?

Another weekend, another set of supporters incensed by VAR.

It was Arsenal's turn, not for the first time this season, to cry foul over the lack of intervention from the video assistant referee. The Gunners appeared to be robbed of a clear penalty for an apparent foul on Nicolas Pepe in the second half of their 1-1 draw with Sheffield United.

Divisive referee Mike Dean waved the Ivorian's appeals away and VAR, as is often the case, confirmed the original decision on the field.

Leading 1-0 at the time, Arsenal were eventually pegged back by a late tally from John Fleck, settling for a single point at the Emirates. To add insult to injury, the goal came via a deflection, the fifth such tally Arsenal have conceded in the Premier League this season. No other team has more.

"I'm very disappointed today," Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said after the match. "I think the performance deserved three points and I think we lost two points."

As for the penalty?

"I think it's very clear," Arteta noted.

Alternative approach from Manchester City?

Pep Guardiola must be sick of playing against Crystal Palace.

A helter-skelter contest at the Etihad saw Manchester City suffer the latest setback in their bemusing campaign, going from despair to jubilation and then, finally, to frustration in Saturday's seesaw stalemate with the Eagles. Sergio Aguero appeared to rescue all three points with a pair of late goals after Cenk Tosun's opener, but an unfortunate 90th-minute own goal from Fernandinho rendered the Argentine's heroics moot.

City created more than enough to take all three points - they had 26 shots - but it was unusual to see Guardiola's side relying so heavily on crosses into the area to generate offense - they had 58 in total. Both goals came from left-side crosses, in fairness, with Benjamin Mendy's pinpoint ball onto Aguero's head being particularly sweet.

Nevertheless, it was odd to see a team so heralded for its quick, incisive passing adopt such a drastically different approach. Whether this becomes a more common occurrence against teams that defend deep and centrally inside the penalty area likely won't have any impact on the current Premier League season - Liverpool are no longer within touching distance - but it'll be interesting to see if it becomes prevalent for City.

Should Bournemouth fire Howe?

Sadly, yes.

We're going to keep banging this drum until the Cherries pull the trigger on the move, which feels well overdue. Bournemouth, now 19th in the table, are floundering, and there's been nothing this season to suggest that the beloved manager is the right man to turn things around.

Does anybody want to finish 4th?

Chelsea wasted another opportunity to solidify fourth place in the table Saturday, finding themselves on the wrong end of a smash and grab at St. James' Park. The Blues gobbled up 70% of the possession and conceded just two shots on target against Newcastle, only for Isaac Hayden to head home the winner in the 94th minute with an effort that Kepa Arrizabalaga would probably like another crack at.

Frank Lampard's men have made something of a habit of these results, falling to the likes of Bournemouth and West Ham in similar fashion this season.

Luckily for the Blues, many of the proverbial top-four contenders continue to falter around them. If they're not careful, though, these missed opportunities are going to bite the club in the backside.

Regret for Manchester United?

Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial are thriving, and Mason Greenwood is quickly becoming one of England's most promising young attackers, but Manchester United supporters were understandably vexed seeing teenage phenom Erling Braut Haaland make an immediate impact on his Borussia Dortmund debut.

The rising Norwegian star, 19, scored a 20-minute hat-trick in his first match with the club Saturday, twisting the knife for United supporters who were hopeful of seeing the imposing striker join the Red Devils this month.

United were reportedly the primary challenger to Dortmund in the race for Haaland's coveted signature but were turned off by the demands of various parties in the deal, from super agent Mino Raiola to Haaland's father, Alfie. A combination of massive agent fees and buyout clauses, among other things, are said to have scuppered any potential deal with United.

For a club with cash to burn, it seems absurd that United were unwilling to play ball, especially considering that Haaland's value will only balloon in the coming years.

Reason for Leicester to worry?

Leicester City's performance was far below their usual standard in Sunday's 2-1 loss to Burnley. They were indecisive in the final third and wasteful when they did create chances. Even the interminable Jamie Vardy, who's usually money from the penalty spot, missed from 12 yards.

Without Wilfred Ndidi - who's out until mid-February with a knee injury - Leicester seem to carry less conviction on the pitch. They haven't won a game since he damaged his meniscus in training, drawing Aston Villa in the League Cup and losing to relegation-threatened Southampton three days later. His replacement, the forgotten Nampalys Mendy, doesn't provide enough protection in front of the defense, and the midfield tends to stall without Ndidi's commanding presence.

It's hard to believe Leicester were chasing Liverpool at one point this season. Now they're in third place, with Chelsea right on their coattails and Manchester United within striking distance.

On what planet is that not a foul?

Robert Firmino's curling finish was sublime, and that was perhaps the primary reason why some felt aggrieved by Liverpool's goal being chalked off by VAR on Sunday. Virgil van Dijk's aerial challenge from moments before Firmino's effort was too early, so he missed the leather spheroid entirely while he bumped over Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea. It was correctly declared a foul following a VAR intervention.

The incident is hardly worthy of a debate. The talking point instead lies with the inconsistencies between on-pitch refereeing and VAR use from match to match. As ESPN's Dale Johnson noted on Twitter, Craig Pawson allowed an Everton goal when he was the VAR witnessing Dominic Calvert-Lewin's clash with De Gea in a similar challenge in December; then, Pawson remained consistent when acting as the on-pitch official this weekend until VAR undermined him and prohibited Van Dijk's challenge.

"Refs should be in charge of their own subjectivity," Johnson opined.

Are we witnessing Solskjaer's final days at United?

While they showed some improvements near the end of the game, Manchester United were second-best for the vast majority of their 2-0 loss to the Premier League's runaway leaders. It was, once again, another demoralizing day overseen by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

There are some elements out of Solskjaer's control: His choice of defensive partners for Victor Lindelof were a clearly wounded Harry Maguire, an unfit Eric Bailly, and an error-strewn Phil Jones, and he's inherited a pedestrian midfield. But, overall, there has been a dip in results since Solskjaer succeeded Mourinho, and their only distinct attacking approach is to lump it forward to the fast lads.

Mauricio Pochettino is available. Get moving, United.