Brentford coping well without Toney
A lot of people at the start of the season will have been asking how Brentford will cope without Ivan Toney with the forward missing a huge chunk of the season through suspension. Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo have both stepped up in his absence during the opening two games where they scored in both of them. SO it looks like they're coping pretty well.
They did well when he was unavailable last season as they won all but one of the games he missed. But whether they could cope without him for a long period was yet to be determined. It still is today but Wissa and Mbeumo stepping up in his absence will give Brentford a lot of confidence and belief that they can do well without him for most of the season.
Wissa in particular stepped up in Toney's absence last season as he scored in four of the games that Toney missed. Mbeumo also stepped up in those games as he scored 5 and assisted 2. They've both scored all five of Brentford's goals between them this season which is a sign that there is life without Ivan Toney.
Man United still need a striker
You can argue that United have already signed a striker in Rasmus Hojlund. But he's currently out injured and will need time to settle into the Premier League as he's still very young. Marcus Rashford has lead the line in both of United's games so far this season, but he didn't make much of an impact and is better off on the left hand side. Anthony Martial can play up there, but he doesn't deliver consistently enough. These points show that United still need a striker.
They lacked an out and out no.9 last season and still are at the start of this season. Their defeat to Spurs on Saturday showed that as they missed some decent chances that any top class centre forward might've put away. Their overall performance was lethargic and their lack of a no.9 made it worse.
New signing Hojlund is just 20 years old and is unproven at the top level despite scoring 10 goals in all competitions for Atalanta last season. If United are to challenge City this season, they need to buy someone more proven and experienced at the top level. Hojlund can be that player in the future if he progresses well but on the short term, United need a more proven no.9 to lead their attack.
Should Phil Foden play central for England?
Phil Foden stepped up in Kevin De Bruyne's absence during Man City's win over Newcastle on Saturday by impressing in a more central role. He assisted Julian Alvarez's goal, showed off his range of passing and and occasionally broke into the box. All of these are the attributes any midfield player should have.
Some people say that he should be used more centrally as it's arguably his best position. Especially as he's been nicknamed the Stockport Iniesta and was tipped to be City's new David Silva. After his impressive performance in that central role against Newcastle and with him likely to carry on playing there over the next few months: Should he play in a central role for England?
England have a bundle of options in that central midfield area including the likes of Mason Mount, James Maddison, Foden himself and even Trent Alexander-Arnold who played there in England's last two games. Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham are guaranteed starters in the midfield and with the amount of options England have in that area overall, the final spot is very much up for grabs.
Foden has mainly been used out wide when playing for England depending on what formation they've played. But after his impressive performances in a more central role against Newcastle, Gareth Southgate may be encouraged to use there more for England. He'll get the chance to do that next month when England play Ukraine and Scotland during the first international break of the season. If Foden is given the chance to play centrally in those games and impresses, he could put himself in contention to start there for the Euro's next summer.
Chelsea are still missing a goal scorer
Chelsea had a lot of possession and created a number of chances against West Ham, but lost the game 3-1 and weren't able to take those chances. There were positives for them to take from the game, but the main point they took from the game was that they're still missing a goal scorer.
Whenever they tried to get balls in the box against West Ham, there was no no.9 to put the ball in the net. Nicolas Jackson played well but when they needed someone in the box to put the ball in the back of the net, he wasn't always there. His movement off the ball was good at times, but he didn't appear in the box enough.
Christopher Nkunku was brought in to address their lack of goals from last season. But he's out for four months and will need time to get fit and know who is teammates are. With no out and out goal scorers in their team for the time being, goals could be their Achilles heal again this season.
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