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3 things we learned in the Premier League this weekend

OLI SCARFF / AFP / Getty

With Manchester United still to host Stoke City on Monday, theScore takes a look back at what happened in the English top flight this weekend.

Arsenal in desperate need of overhaul

Sunday's 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth was further proof of Arsenal's decay under Arsene Wenger.

The Gunners lacked any killer instinct in the final third without the outbound Alexis Sanchez in the lineup. Alexandre Lacazette was forced to drop deep to create chances for himself and his teammates, a task that kept him from firing a single attempt on target and breaking a nine-match goalless streak. Defenders Calum Chambers and Rob Holding once again looked out of their element, and 35-year-old goalkeeper Petr Cech committed another error leading to Jordon Ibe's match-winner.

On the basis of Sunday's performance, Arsenal may need to make as many as five or six signings to return to title contention.

Kane could set Premier League scoring record

With 20 league goals to his name and 15 matches remaining, Tottenham striker Harry Kane has every reason to believe he can break the Premier League's single-season scoring record. Andrew Cole set the benchmark at 34 during the 1993-94 season and Alan Shearer matched it the following year. While the likes of Robin van Persie and Luis Suarez came close to toppling them, no one has looked as destined to make history as Kane.

If he continues scoring at his current rate, he should reap another 14 goals and join Cole and Shearer on 34. But as someone who's often found the net in bunches - Kane has enjoyed eight multi-goal games this season - the English international could actually improve in the second half of the campaign.

He's also become more than just a one-dimensional poacher, adding assists to his portfolio while showing a desire to track back.

"He can do anything because of his mentality and how professional he is," manager Mauricio Pochettino said. "He can achieve all that he wants because of his willingness to work."

Liverpool's relentless pressing undoes City

Pep Guardiola predicted Manchester City would lose eventually.

Surely not like this.

Liverpool made the runaway Premier League leader look uncomfortable throughout Sunday's enthralling contest, earning a spectacular 4-3 win through the application of tireless gegenpressing. Few sides throttled City's dominance with the ball quite like Liverpool, which forced mistakes from the visitor at an alarming rate.

"When we get the press right and we're winning the ball back with the Anfield crowd urging us on, it really gets us going," Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who popped in Liverpool's opener, told the BBC. "It's not the first time we've ran riot for five or 10 minutes, and we've done it again."

Nine second-half minutes indeed decided this encounter. It started with the stirring counter-attack that led to Roberto Firmino's dinked effort. Multiple players ganged up on Kevin de Bruyne to disarm the Belgian and spark Liverpool's attack. The high press then yielded Sadio Mane's thunderbolt, and Ederson's wayward pass to Mohamed Salah gave the Egyptian ammunition for Liverpool's fourth. City ended up losing possession on a whopping 43 occasions.

Liverpool's effort off the ball was tremendous - and it had to be. Andrew Robertson was a workhorse, stifling Raheem Sterling's contributions on the left flank while completing a game-high seven tackles.

So it may be no coincidence that Jurgen Klopp - one of the game's greatest champions of the pressing system - has had more success against Guardiola than any other manager.

Around the grounds

Chelsea 0-0 Leicester City: Antonio Conte's honeymoon phase is over. Not only is his future at Chelsea in doubt, his tactics have also come under scrutiny. The switch to the 3-5-2 has yet to produce consistent results, leaving Conte to blame fatigue for his team's woes. His suggestion that Chelsea has to score more goals from long distance is further proof that he needs his players to produce truly world-class moments to hide the deficiencies of his system. The Blues hadn't succumbed to three consecutive scoreless draws in its history until Saturday.

Watford 2-2 Southampton: Calls for Video Assistant Referees intensified as Abdoulaye Doucoure handled the ball while heading in Watford's late equaliser against Southampton. VAR is being trialled in England's cup competitions, but that won't come as any consolation to embattled Saints boss Mauricio Pellegrino. His team is winless in 10 league matches, just a single point outside of the relegation zone, and without top scorer Charlie Austin until March.

Elsewhere:

  • Crystal Palace 1-0 Burnley
  • Huddersfield 1-4 West Ham
  • Newcastle United 1-1 Swansea City
  • West Brom 2-0 Brighton & Hove Albion

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

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