Premier League: 10 talking points ahead of the weekend as Jose Mourinho starts life as new Tottenham manager

He has only been back for three days, and yet this season already feels as though it has been utterly dominated by José Mourinho. The new Tottenham Hotspur manager replaced Mauricio Pochettino on Wednesday and already had the north London press corps eating out of his hand on Thursday – and yet, incredibly, The Pyjama-Wearing One could find himself overstaged on Saturday evening. Mourinho’s first match as Tottenham boss does not disguise that West Ham are a team experiencing a similar crisis, with defeat likely to cost Manuel Pellegrini his job. That arch-enemy Mourinho (who once taunted Pellegrini for taking a job at unfashionable Málaga) could be the man ultimately responsible for his demise only adds to the drama. LB

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An innocuous remark from a pundit just days ago, now Jose Mourinho’s belief that he is “still worried” about Chelsea holds greater weight after taking over at bitter rivals Spurs, fuelling the Blues ahead of their pivotal trip to the Etihad. Mourinho, with some justification, challenged Frank Lampard to show how far his exciting young side have come by standing up against one of the best in the league – and it does not come much tougher than Manchester City away. A tremendous performance in the Uefa Super Cup against Liverpool aside, the Blues are striving for what Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh has coined ”statements”. A newly formed side like Chelsea must convince the sceptics and Bernardo Silva’s suspension most certainly helps. At the Etihad, rather than fear, as was displayed by Maurizio Sarri, Lampard can seize runaway momentum to fill this group with the belief that this exhilarating transition season might yield a premature title challenge. JR

Liverpool’s march towards what they hope is a first league crown in 30 years takes them to the scene of one of their most infamous failures. Fortunately Selhurst Park doesn’t present to be as formidable a destination as it was on that fateful day back in 2014 with much changed in the five years since. This Jurgen Klopp juggernaut doesn’t feel like one primed for a fall so soon after the imposing win over Manchester City last time out with that elusive title moving ever closer by the week. Maybe there’s a side out there who can beat them, but there isn’t a great deal of evidence to suggest it’ll be Crystal Palace. BB

The spectre of Mauricio Pochettino will now lurk over Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, just as Jose Mourinho seemed to cast a shadow over the latter part of Louis van Gaal’s tenure at Old Trafford. The best way for Solskjaer to silence the rumours of Pochettino heading north is to win matches, but that will be no easy task on Sunday afternoon at Brammall Lane where Sheffield United are the ones playing more like a big-six team. Solskjaer must harness the improved form of Marcus Rashford, the return of Anthony Martial and the emergence of Dan James if he is to avoid a defeat that would only fuel talk that his time in charge is nearing a premature end. LO

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It’s a slapstick between two clubs caught in a permanent state of confusion. Arsenal haven’t won any of their last five matches. Southampton have lost seven of their last 10, including the 9-0 defeat to Leicester which still hangs over Ralph Hasenhuttl’s squad like a scarlet letter. Equally, they are two sides whose players are failing to live up to their manager’s ideals. The Saints high-octane press has lost its coherency and led to them conceding more goals than any other Premier League side this season. Meanwhile, Arsenal have reached an unhinged divorce with Unai Emery’s tactics as illusory as ever and the squad in mutiny, liking posts calling for his dismissal. Perhaps, this is the perfect time for one of the two teams to arrest their slide. Yet, somehow, you wouldn’t feel comfortable betting on either. TK

If anything, Graham Potter and Dan Ashworth are coming up against the very vision of what they’re trying to create in Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester. The Seagulls duo have already installed a sleeker brand of football and recruited well over the summer, with Neal Maupay, Adam Webster and Leandro Trossard already bringing noticeable improvements. Yet the gap between the illusion and reality still feels insurmountable when coming up against a Leicester side in such impressive form. Five wins in their last six league games has left Rodgers’ side in second place and, even if the international break has somewhat stolen the momentum of their 2-0 win over Arsenal, there can be very few doubts that the club’s current crest of form will hit a roadblock this weekend. TK

Finally, Wolves shook the Europa League burden. With one eye adultering on a continental campaign, the club’s form took an unexpected nosedive at the start of the season. First August was dire. Then September came just as grim. In fact, it was only in their seventh league game that Nuno Espirito Santo’s side secured their first win. Thankfully, for them, those shackles have now been broken and cast firmly aside. They’ve upset Manchester City, held Arsenal, went into the international break celebrating victory over Aston Villa and virtually sealed their spot in the knockout stages. Even if up against Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth, with the turbulence finally cleared, Wolves should be ready to plough on. TK

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Everton forward Richarlison speaks very little English – on Twitter this week he curtailed a brief question and answer session by telling fans “I go play video game now” – but one of his replies was unexpectedly illuminating. “I need to score,” he said about this weekend’s match against Norwich. His form has floundered a little this season but he looked back to his old self in a 2-1 win over Southampton just before the international break, scoring the decisive goal with a powerful first-half header. If Everton are to arrest their worrying early season slump, it’s imperative their best player begins hitting the back of the net more frequently. LB

Watford finally notched one in the win column last time out, Friday night victors over Norwich before the international break. They host Burnley this weekend in another winnable game, and there is a sense that, perhaps, things aren’t quite as bad as they seem under Quique Sanchez Flores. Watford have played some nice football in the last month and a half and have found a degree of defensive solidity after early season woes. It would not truly be a surprise to see them claim a second successive victory on Saturday afternoon. HLC

Aston Villa are something of an enigma, clearly a side with the potential to be good but not quite the sum of their parts at the moment. They are in the middle of a particularly tough run, but three successive league defeats means they are sliding down the table, and with Manchester United, Chelsea and Leicester a devilish slate of fixtures to follow this game against Newcastle, a win is vital at Villa Park on Monday night. Lose and Dean Smith’s side could really be dragged into the relegation battle mire. HLC