Ralf Rangnick won his first match as Manchester United interim manager this past weekend after the top three in the Premier League swapped positions, with Manchester City now in the driving seat.
Newcastle at last tasted victory to give new manager Eddie Howe hope they can escape relegation while Steven Gerrard won his third match in four since taking over at Aston Villa.
We have picked out three talking points from the action in the English top flight.
Rangnick’s room for improvement
Ralf Rangnick was given an early sight of the job that lies ahead of him to ensure the Red Devils do not miss out on the top four.
The high-energy style the 63-year-old has built his reputation on in German football was on show early on at Old Trafford, just days after his arrival to replace the sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
But United struggled to maintain that intensity or break Palace down until Fred’s fine strike from outside the box 13 minutes from time.
A first home clean sheet of the season gives Rangnick a platform on which to build, but that was more due to the visitors’ caution and a glaring miss from Jordan Ayew than great defending.
United are now sixth on the table after a second straight win, just three points behind fourth-placed West Ham.
However, Rangnick has an enticing run of fixtures coming up, with Norwich, Brentford, Brighton, Newcastle and Burnley to come before the end of the year.
Origi: Liverpool’s super sub
Divock Origi marked his 100th substitute appearance for Liverpool on Saturday with the latest in his collection of crucial late goals.
Jurgen Klopp’s men had dominated Wolves at Molineux but could not find a way through until the Belgium forward struck in the 94th minute, sparking scenes of delirium from the Liverpool bench.
Other memorable moments for Origi have included an 87th-minute strike in the 2019 Champions League final win over Tottenham and a last-gasp winner in a 2018 derby against Everton.
“He is a top striker, a top boy,” said Klopp, who described the 26-year-old as a “legend”.
“He is already here at Liverpool for a long time – he came here very young and has scored some of the most important goals in the history of this club.”
Chelsea’s stumble
It is too soon to talk of serious problems at Chelsea after they suffered just their second Premier League defeat of the season by high-flying West Ham.
But they have now dropped points in three of their past five league games at a time when Manchester City and Liverpool have hit the accelerator.
The Stamford Bridge side are built of tough stuff under Thomas Tuchel and the game at the London Stadium was just the third time in 53 matches under the German that they had conceded more than once.
Tuchel acknowledged West Ham’s winner from Arthur Masuaku was a freak goal but bemoaned earlier mistakes.
He will be concerned at the lack of goals from his main forwards, particularly the out-of-sorts Romelu Lukaku, who was used as a substitute at the London Stadium.
Defender Reece James and attacking midfielder Mason Mount are the club’s top-scorers this season, with five goals each in all competitions.
Big summer signing Lukaku has struggled with form and fitness this season and has not scored since mid-September after a bright start at Stamford Bridge.
