Bruno Fernandes became the Premier League single-season assist leader when Patrick Dorgu converted from a Fernandes corner during Manchester United’s trip to Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday. The move arrived after 33 minutes, Dorgu heading home to register what proved to be the Portugal midfielder’s 21st assist of the campaign.

The milestone moved Fernandes clear of the previous Premier League benchmark. Thierry Henry’s 2002–03 total of 20 and Kevin De Bruyne’s 2019–20 haul of 20 had stood as the high-water marks until this final-day intervention. The wider list of high single-season assist totals named in this campaign also includes Mesut Özil (2015–16, 19) and multiple seasons with 18 or 17 assists recorded by Cesc Fàbregas, Frank Lampard, Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah.

Fernandes made no secret of how much the target mattered in the run-up to the match. “It’s something that I think about because we are talking about Kevin and Thierry, they were two of the best players that the Premier League has seen in a long, long time,” he told Sky Sports. “Having the chance to be up there with their names—just for this category, let’s not talk about the rest they have done in the Premier League—is very good, and I’m very proud of that.”

The record crowns a season that already yielded major individual honours for Fernandes. He has been crowned the Premier League Player of the Season and the Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year. While 21 assists is enough to set a new mark for the Premier League, it only ties the record from across Europe’s major leagues.

The assist against Brighton & Hove Albion provided a fitting final-day cap to a campaign defined by creative consistency and set-piece precision, and it altered the statistical ledger for single-season playmaking in England’s top flight.

The 2025/26 Premier League season shows how a single distant review can alter outcomes and, cumulatively, the shape of the table. Arsenal have gained five points from VAR interventions and would still lead the division without video review, but by a much narrower margin. With VAR Arsenal sit on 79 points; without it they would have 74.

Manchester City have seen only one fixture materially affected by a VAR overturn. In January they were awarded a first-half penalty which Erling Haaland converted at home to Brighton & Hove Albion. Brighton’s Kaoru Mitoma later scored what would have been a match-winner but the VAR correctly identified a blatant trip from Diego Gómez on Jérémy Doku, turning three points into one for the champions.

Brighton are the side most disadvantaged by VAR this term. They would be seven points better off without it and would sit above Liverpool and Aston Villa in the top four. Opponents have been awarded three penalties on VAR reviews against Brighton, while the Seagulls were denied a spot kick in a goalless draw with Crystal Palace. They have also had two potential equalizers overturned by delayed offside checks.

Bournemouth have also been hindered by video review, provoking repeated objections from Andoni Iraola, who remarked: “We have very short sleeves,” he bizarrely pointed out. The Basque coach has questioned where officials draw the line on handball decisions.

Liverpool and Manchester United would show the same points totals regardless of VAR. For Liverpool, however, perceptions of inconsistency persist. “I don’t think it’s a surprise to anyone this season that if there’s a VAR intervention or if there’s something that could be left or right [50-50] then the decision goes against us,” the Liverpool manager fumed after his side conceded a controversial goal at the hands of United’s Benjamin Šeško . Recent weeks, though, have seen VAR both penalise and aid the Reds with overturned calls and flagged offside goals.

Only Sunderland have benefited more from VAR than Arsenal. Key interventions for the Gunners came across three matches. Some decisions, such as the disallowed Callum Wilson goal for West Ham, are widely accepted as correct; others remain contested, including events in Arsenal’s 1–0 win over Everton where the Key Match Incidents panel found Everton were wrongly denied a penalty.

With the Premier League reaching its final two matchweeks, four clubs remain firmly involved in the fight for Champions League qualification. Liverpool sit fourth on 59 points, Aston Villa are a point behind on 58 with a game in hand, while Bournemouth (55) and Brighton & Hove Albion (53) are not out of the equation and have two games remaining.

Liverpool are in the strongest position. A victory in either of their remaining matches would secure a top-five finish. The Reds must overcome Aston Villa at Villa Park in one of those fixtures and would then close the campaign at home to Brentford if qualification is not sealed in the Midlands. A draw at Villa Park could be sufficient depending on results elsewhere.

Aston Villa remain central to how the race unfolds. Villa travel to Burnley this Sunday and then host Liverpool, before ending their season at Manchester City. Their European destiny could be affected by the Europa League final. “Should Unai Emery’s side win the Europa League final against Freiburg and then finish fifth, it means the team that comes sixth in the Premier League will also qualify for Europe’s premier competition next term.” That scenario would extend qualification to an additional league position.

Bournemouth occupy sixth and have kept their hopes alive after a recent win over Fulham. The Cherries need at least one victory from their final two games to give themselves a realistic chance of moving into the top five; back-to-back wins would greatly improve their prospects. Bournemouth head into a high-profile home game against Manchester City on May 19, followed by a trip to Nottingham Forest on May 24, which will be Andoni Iraola’s final match in charge of Forest.

Brighton remain in contention on 53 points with two matches to play. All four clubs face awkward, high-stakes fixtures and the outcome will depend on form across the remaining dates. The final stretch promises close margins, where a single result will likely decide who progresses to Europe’s elite competition next season.