Manchester City moved within six points of Arsenal after a 3-1 victory over Bournemouth in the penultimate Premier League match of the week. Erling Haaland scored twice in the first half, both goals set up by Rayan Cherki, and Nico O’Reilly extended the lead after the interval.

Haaland opened the scoring in the 17th minute after Cherki released him from inside his own half. Bournemouth responded from a corner when Tyler Adams converted a loose ball following a failed Donnarumma clearance. City players protested to referee Anthony Taylor but VAR checked and allowed the goal; it was Adams’ first Premier League goal. Haaland restored the lead before half-time with a composed finish after another incisive pass from Cherki. O’Reilly’s strike in the 60th minute sealed the result. Haaland was withdrawn in the 82nd minute for Omar Marmoush; it was the 15th time he was taken off after scoring a brace and marked his fourth straight home match with two goals. Rodri returned as a stoppage-time substitute, his first appearance since the injury suffered against Brentford earlier in the season; he is the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner.

Player ratings (out of 10)
GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma — 6.7: Should have done better on the corner for Bournemouth’s only goal of the evening.
RB: Matheus Nunes — 7.7: Performed well and dealt with Semenyo and Adrien Truffert for most of the night.
CB: Rúben Dias — 6.9: The Portuguese was solid at the back and looks to be building some consistent form.
CB: Joško Gvardiol — 6.9: Put in some big tackles and won four of his six duels.
LB: Nico O’Reilly — 8.3: Probably should’ve had two goals on the night, but will be happy to secure his first goal of the season.
DM: Nico González — 7.7: The Spaniard had another strong showing knowing competition for places will increase given the return of Rodri.
DM: Bernardo Silva — 6.8: A more quiet night for the Portuguese. In and out of the game at times.
RW: Rayan Cherki — 8.6: The creative spark that set Haaland free for both of his first half goals.
AM: Phil Foden — 8.0: Active and accurate in a central creative role on his 200th league appearance for the Cityzens.
LW: Jérémy Doku — 7.4: Completed the most dribbles (5) and created the most chances (4).
ST: Erling Haaland — 9.1: Scored two clinical goals after blanking last time out in the Premier League.

Subs used: Tijjani Reijnders 6.1, Savinho 6.5, Omar Marmoush N/A, Rodri N/A, Rayan Aït-Nouri N/A. Unused: James Trafford, John Stones, Nathan Aké, Rico Lewis.

Bournemouth started in a 4-2-3-1. Match stats showed City with 53% possession, xG 1.76 to Bournemouth 0.37, nine shots to two and six corners to one.

Egypt’s plans to take Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush into camp ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations are creating a scheduling headache for Liverpool and Manchester City.

Reports say Egypt would like to fly Salah and Marmoush to Cairo for a friendly against Nigeria on Dec. 14. That date sits uncomfortably with Premier League commitments. City are understood to be keen on keeping Marmoush for the Crystal Palace match scheduled the same day. Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah would face an even tighter turnaround. The Reds play Brighton & Hove Albion 24 hours earlier and Salah would not have enough time to play, travel and then recover to feature for Egypt.

Liverpool will also be conscious of form. The Reds have lost six of their last seven games in all competitions and need their best players to turn things around. For City, the club must balance selections while also preparing for the absence of Rayan Aït-Nouri, who will join Algeria for international duty.

Pep Guardiola addressed the potential clash in his news conference. He said, “Always I try to solve the problem when the problem is in front of me. Right now I don’t think [about it],” and added, “I have to use them for Sunday and next Wednesday and next Sunday before the international break. When it is going to happen they cannot be here and we will see the situation and take the decisions.”

If Marmoush departs after City’s game with Palace as the club hope, the 26-year-old could miss up to eight games if Egypt reach the final. Liverpool would lose Salah for a similar period but one game fewer because they were eliminated in the Carabao Cup fourth round by Palace.

Upcoming fixtures referenced in the discussion include Tottenham (A), Brentford (H) in the Carabao Cup, Wolves (H), West Ham (H), Leeds (H), Nottingham Forest (A), Fulham (A), Sunderland (A), Arsenal (A), Chelsea (H), Burnley (H), Brighton (H), Marseille (A), Man Utd (A), and Bodø/Glimt (A).

The shortlists for the Premier League Player and Manager of the Month awards for October have been published.

Matty Cash’s individual form was central to Aston Villa’s resurgence in October. The Villans went three for three, with Cash making a huge impact at both ends of the field. His second goal of the campaign downed Manchester City last time out, after a glorious pass the week prior had put Tottenham Hotspur to the sword.

Bruno Guimarães dominated Newcastle United’s highlight packages this month. A delicious strike from range stole the show in victory over Nottingham Forest, and he saved the best for last with a 90th-minute winner against Fulham to keep the Magpies climbing the table.

Erling Haaland, September’s Player of the Month, remains among the favourites. Three goals in three games saw Haaland reach 11 for the campaign—nobody else in the squad has more than one to their name.

October was a breakout month for Bournemouth summer signing Junior Kroupi. He marked his first Premier League start with two goals against Crystal Palace and followed that with another strike against Nottingham Forest to lift the Cherries into second in the standings.

Bryan Mbeumo forced his way into the race with a dazzling October. Nobody in the league managed more than his four goal involvements—three goals, one assist—as United roared to a three-game winning streak.

Sunderland’s understated summer signing Nordi Mukiele has proven to be a masterstroke. His goal against Wolverhampton Wanderers helps his case, and he was a defensive force across October while adding menace with long throws.

Igor Thiago moved into second in the Golden Boot race with two goals for Brentford this month, scoring against West Ham United and converting a penalty to see off Liverpool. Arsenal defender Jurriën Timber emerged as one of the most in-form right backs and helped the Gunners build a record-breaking defence which did not concede a single goal this month.

On the managerial front, Ruben Amorim enjoys his first nomination as Man Utd manager after a dream October that delivered back-to-back Premier League victories and three consecutive wins over Sunderland, Liverpool and Brighton & Hove Albion. Mikel Arteta, Unai Emery and Andoni Iraola also feature among the nominees.

Previous winners listed include Jack Grealish (Everton, August) and Erling Haaland (Man City, September).