The Premier League shortlists for November have been published, highlighting individual runs that shaped the month.

Newcastle United winger Harvey Barnes closed November with three goals, two of which arrived in the win over Manchester City. Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall delivered a memorable strike against Manchester United, also scoring against Newcastle and providing an assist against Fulham. Manchester City winger Jérémy Doku produced one of the season’s most eye-catching individual displays as he demolished Liverpool and helped Pep Guardiola’s side remain competitive in the title race.

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes finished November with four assists, creating goals against Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace. Morgan Gibbs-White enjoyed a three-game scoring streak for Nottingham Forest, firing home against Man Utd, Leeds United and in the away victory at Liverpool.

Chelsea defender Reece James featured in all four of the Blues’ Premier League matches in November. His assist in the 1–1 draw with Arsenal capped off a truly stunning individual showing in a month which yielded a total of three clean sheets. Arsenal’s Declan Rice added attacking impetus with a goal against Burnley and an assist in the north London derby win over Tottenham Hotspur.

Brentford striker Igor Thiago continued his hot form, adding five goals across November with strikes against Newcastle, Brighton & Hove Albion and Burnley among them.

Managers with strong cases included Mikel Arteta after Arsenal’s unbeaten month, which produced wins over Burnley and Tottenham as well as draws with Sunderland and Chelsea. Unai Emery’s Aston Villa won three of four and emerged as outside contenders in the title race. Pep Guardiola’s Man City scored a league-high 10 goals in November, including the victory over Liverpool. Fabian Hürzeler’s Brighton & Hove Albion conceded once in four games, producing wins over Leeds, Brentford and Nottingham Forest. Chelsea went unbeaten under Enzo Maresca with three wins and a draw. Marco Silva’s Fulham recorded three wins over Wolves, Sunderland and Tottenham.

Recent monthly winners: Jack Grealish (Everton, August), Erling Haaland (Man City, September), Bryan Mbeumo (Man Utd, October). Recent manager winners: Arne Slot (Liverpool, August), Oliver Glasner (Crystal Palace, September), Ruben Amorim (Man Utd, October).

Erling Haaland made clear that Manchester City must look inward after a chaotic midweek victory that reduced the gap to Arsenal to two points. The forward, who described his own performance as “not good enough,” was unimpressed by a finish made nervy when Samu Chukwueze’s second running volley in the space of four minutes made it 5–4 with a quarter of an hour remaining.

The result took City to within two points of Arsenal at the Premier League summit before the leaders host Brentford on Wednesday. Upon receiving the Player of the Match award, Haaland was asked about the wider significance for the title race. “Of course, it’s important,” he told Sky Sports . “Arsenal came here and they won as well. So, we know how difficult it is to come here and Fulham is a great team.

“But again, we shouldn’t think too much about Arsenal,” Haaland warned. “We should focus on ourselves, try to improve and avoid things like this happen today, because it’s not good enough and we all know this and we need to improve as a team. That’s what our focus should be.”

Pep Guardiola struck a more upbeat tone after the near collapse. “It only happens in this league,” he giddily told Match of the Day. “We played a fantastic game… Listen, there was some really positive things in what we have done. To come here, to score five goals, and the way we played in that first half.

“In the end it was a question of character, resilience and defence. They did what they had to do.”

The match also provided another milestone for Haaland. After shattering Alan Shearer’s record in the race to a century, it was put to Haaland whether he could eventually surpass the former England captain’s all-time ranking of 260 Premier League goals. “I know about it,” the 25-year-old shrugged, “but I don’t think too much about it.”

If his scoring run continues at close to a goal per game, it would take a little more than four further seasons to reach that mark. City have tied him to a contract that doesn’t expire until 2034. For now, the former Borussia Dortmund frontman was chiefly concerned with the chances he missed against Fulham and with the collective improvements his manager and team demand.

Bukayo Saka finished Saturday wearing Arsenal’s captain armband as his side moved three points clear at the top of the Premier League, yet he admitted he was not satisfied with his own performance.

Arsenal were again ponderous in open play, with Saka repeatedly trying to free himself from Ryan Sessesgnon. The match’s decisive moment arrived on the cusp of the hour mark when Leandro Trossard kneed a scrappy opener over the line from a corner delivered by the club’s vice-captain.

After the game Saka was blunt about his contribution from set pieces. “We have some big guys in the box. At the start of the game, I took some rubbish corners,” Saka told Sky Sports postmatch. “I was quite disappointed. I kept going, and I think this [the one that Trossard scored] is the fourth one. I put it in, and it was a nice delivery. Gabriel got the touch, and Leo got the goal, so I’m very happy with that.”

Fulham’s manager Marco was especially unhappy with the manner of the goal, arguing his side had largely controlled the inside channels. “We wanted to block that strong run and power run from Gabriel most of the time. I really believe that path can’t be open,” the Portuguese boss moaned. “Most of the game we did control well the inside path for him to run in the direction of the goal.

“That moment Sessegnon opened out a bit more, he went in the way and you see how high that he [Gabriel] can jump. In that moment, the flick at the front post killed us a little bit on the far post with the touch from Trossard.”

The goal added to an ongoing trend: more than 60% of the Gunners’ goals this season have come from dead-ball scenarios, a proportion unmatched by any other Premier League team. Manager Mikel Arteta played down any suggestion of dependence and connected the numbers to Arsenal’s overall control. “We generate so many we have to understand [how to exploit them],” Arteta explained.

Victory extended Arsenal’s advantage at the summit, but Saka’s reaction underlined that personal standards remained high despite the result.