Magical Things which occurred in this week’s Premier League

Liverpool Defeated by Physical Watford.

It was Troy Deeney’s post-match quotes following Watford’s 3-0 victory over Liverpool that were the most eye-catching following the end of the Reds’ unbeaten run.

The Hornets captain revealed he targeted center-back Dejan Lovren, believing he could use his physicality to greater effect against the Croatian than the more imposing Virgil Van Dijk.

Troy Deeney and Abdoulaye Doucoure were key physical presences in Watford’s victory (Photo Cred: DailyMailUK)

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De Gea shows Spain has a serious keeper problem

Kepa Arrizabalaga’s high-profile mistakes have seen Frank Lampard drop the Spaniard in favour of 38-year-old Willy Caballero in recent weeks.

But it seems unlikely that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will hand out a similar punishment to Kepa’s compatriot David de Gea after his latest howler that gifted Everton the lead on Sunday.

David de Gea has days to forget as Everton and Man United drew

Ben Foster suffered a similarly embarrassing moment when Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s quick feet and thinking saw him close down his clearance for a winning goal last season.

But there was no lethargy from Foster in comparison to De Gea, who invited pressure from Dominic-Calvert Lewin, the beneficiary of the United goalkeeper’s sluggishness on the ball.

No goalkeeper has made more errors directly leading to Premier League goals than de Gea’s seven since the start of last season, with three blunders coming in this campaign.

He was soon joined on seven by Jordan Pickford after his role in Bruno Fernandes’ equaliser, while De Gea did manage to redeem himself slightly with a fine save from Calvert-Lewin a few minutes later.

But his latest error has left Spain, and England with Pickford, with issues in goal ahead of the Euros this summer.

Marcos Alonso is standing up in Chelsea’s time of need

Marcos Alonso has scored more Premier League goals than any defender since August 2016

If Kepa requires an example of how to reclaim his place in Chelsea’s side, he need look no further than fellow Spaniard Marcos Alonso.

The Chelsea left back appeared destined for the exit door at Stamford Bridge, with talk of a move to Atletico Madrid appearing in the summer and then re-surfacing in the January transfer window.

But injuries to initial first-choice Emerson Palmieri and a switch to a 3-4-3 formation have seen Alonso handed a second chance, and in Chelsea’s desperate time of need, it is he who has come up with the goods in recent matches.

Brighton and Potter are 2020’s biggest losers

Brighton remain the biggest losers in the Premier League in 2020, and those with critical eyes will become further skeptical of the six-year contract handed to Graham Potter in November.

Graham Potter is right to be optimistic but Brighton must match his positivity with results

Despite their 23 shots in the M23 rivalry with Crystal Palace, the Seagulls remain the only side in England’s top four divisions not to have won this calendar year.

The defeat came thanks to Jordan Ayew’s seventh goal of the season and consequently saw the hosts suffer a first home defeat in the top flight at the hands of their bitter rivals.

Jota can drag Wolves into European contention – and they must avoid United’s interest

If Wolves had even thought about entertaining any offers from Manchester United for Diogo Jota this summer, their 3-2 victory at Tottenham should have seen that consideration well and truly discarded.

The Portuguese’s equaliser against Jose Mourinho’s men was his sixth goal in eleven days, following his Europa League hat-trick against Espanyol and a double against Norwich last weekend.

Diogo Jota netted his sixth goal in 11 days with an equaliser for Wolves against Tottenham

He then went on a scintillating run before setting up Raul Jimenez for the winner, and if that wasn’t enough it also meant that Wolves have won nine of their last 11 Premier League games in which Jota has found the net.

Jota and Jimenez are Wolves’ dynamic attacking metronome, and the sky could well be the limit if Nuno Espirito Santo can retain their services. A top-four finish may even be in sight this season.

West Ham have shown more strings to their Bow

‘He showed exactly what he showed in training, that he can score, but we can’t bring him here and act like he’s the saviour of West Ham.’

This statement from David Moyes about Jarrod Bowen put what was only West Ham’s second win under the returning Scotsman in perspective.

Jarrod Bowen scored his first West Ham goal since signing from Hull City in January | Premier League

Bowen scored his first goal since signing for £18million from Hull City on deadline day in January, and he offered the Hammers a glimpse of his talent in their 3-1 victory over Southampton.

And despite only having 34 per cent possession at home, they created more chances than the visitors and should have had a greater margin of victory.

Leicester are at risk of dropping out of the top four

Leicester will only have themselves to blame if they surrender their Champions League spot.

No doubt Brendan Rodgers’ men have faced a series of challenging tests in the last couple of months, including two matches against Manchester City, the visits of Liverpool and Chelsea and a trip to Wolves.

Leicester City have taken just 12 points from their last 11 league games after losing at Norwich | Premier League

But Friday night ought to have put them back on track after taking just 12 points from their previous 11 games.

Leicester were facing bottom club Norwich, but instead of reinforcing their Champions League ambitions, the Foxes allowed the Canaries to believe that an escape from the drop is possible after Jamal Lewis’ superb winner.

Bruce’s calls for ‘change’ aren’t working

Steve Bruce said that it was ‘time for a change’ following their 1-0 defeat against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

To some Newcastle fans’ dismay, he did not mean that he would be relinquishing his duties with the club still possible relegation candidates, but was instead referring to a change in tactics.

Dwight Gayle started up front in a fresh Newcastle system but failed to find the net | Premier League

But if expectations were that a switch to a flat back four against Burnley would see them replicate results that saw them climb into the top half of the table in December after changing from a 3-5-2 to the 3-4-2-1 system, then supporters would have been greatly disappointed with another 0-0 draw.