“It made a difference,” Postecoglou said. “I thought we needed some energy and legs in the midfield for the second half because I could see Forest were working really hard to maintain their grip on the game.

“I thought Pierre and ‘Roddy’ were outstanding in the energy they brought and the quality they brought in the second half.”

The two substitutes held possession better and screened well against the counter-attacks, giving Spurs the measured controlled they had lacked.

Luton’s comeback could spark home push
Ten matches without a win drains self-confidence. At 1-0 down with 70 minutes on the clock on Saturday, Luton Town supporters could be forgiven for wondering if their chances of safety were disappearing.

But Luton will not lie down. They have now earned eight points – 32 per cent of their total – in the final 10 minutes of fixtures this season after two late goals at Kenilworth Road gave Rob Edwards’ side their first win from behind this season.

It’s a tall order, but after Carlton Morris’ late goal sent supporters into delirium, suddenly it feels possible again.

Chelsea’s defensive record a concern
Throughout the season all the talk has been of Chelsea’s inability to convert chances, but defensive injuries and a growing sense of exhaustion has seen an even bigger problem develop at the other end.

Chelsea have conceded at least two goals in each of their last seven contests in all competitions (15 in total). They have also let in 27 away goals in the Premier League this season, their most after 15 away matches since 1990/91.

Nor was it a particularly good performance from the match-winner Dominic Calvert Lewin, who had 29 touches and completed just four of his 11 attempted passes (36.4 per cent).

When James Ward-Prowse signed for West Ham United in the summer it looked a perfect fit: David Moyes’ teams are superb at set-pieces and Ward-Prowse is arguably the best in the business.

But after some early success, it hasn’t quite worked out that way. Before Saturday’s match Ward-Prowse had contributed just two goals or assists from set-pieces (excluding penalties) in his last 17 matches in all competitions.

In fairness to the midfielder, this might have more to do with his team-mates finishing than his deliveries. West Ham are third in the Premier League for set-piece xG, with 11.78, but are all the way down in 12th for goals, with nine.

If you want a job done properly, do it yourself.

Ward-Prowse, left frustrated by his team-mates’ inability to convert his centres, cut out the middle man on Saturday, scoring the winner direct from a corner.

Clearly, he enjoyed the extra space in front of him. Newcastle held just 33.4 per cent possession, their second-lowest of the season after 27.4 per cent against Man City.

It allowed them to play a more transition-based contest, explaining why Guimaraes was able to thread so many vertical passes through the lines.

Postecoglou’s changes control Forest counters
From an attacking perspective, Tottenham Hotspur got it right from the outset.

Nottingham Forest were predictably ultra-narrow in their low block, which is why Spurs consistently hit the wings.

But throughout the first 45 minutes Forest were far too dangerous on the break, and if not for a terrible miss by Chris Wood the visitors would have been 2-1 up at the interval.

Ange Postecoglou deserves credit for boldly making a double substitution at half-time, replacing Yves Bissouma and Pape Sarr with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Rodrigo Bentancur.

To illustrate just how unusual it was for Arsenal, compare the Gunners’ average positions against Luton Town in their previous fixture (image one) with their average positions at Brighton (image two).

Being so important to the counter-attacks, Jordan Ayew and Eberechi Eze were often a little bit higher and wider than Crystal Palace’s two central midfielders, opening a pocket of room that Guardiola targeted.

De Bruyne, working with Jack Grealish, caused a problem in this gap between Ayew and Adam Wharton.

For the first City goal Grealish draws players away to give De Bruyne the space, a common feature.

On Saturday, the issue was tactical as much as it was psychological.

“It was my mistake, I have to correct it,” Unai Emery said after the match. “Because [Sergio] Reguilon crossed three times for three goals. I have to correct it.”

All three were sloppy goals to concede. For the first, Villa failed to reorganise quickly enough after clearing a corner, meaning their back four were all mixed up and Lucas Digne, now at right-back, couldn’t handle Reguilon.

The second and the third goals were quick thinking and direct balls into Reguilon, whose aggressive attacking play took advantage of Leon Bailey failing to track back.

As Watkins said, Villa need to learn how to shut the game down – which starts with wide players like Bailey working hard to get back and help.

“It has allowed me to overcome many challenges, as I never thought that I would have the opportunity to become a football coach, especially due to my ethnicity. I want to gain all my coaching badges and make my way into elite football and become a coach at a big football club.”

Akram’s story was captured as part of a Premier League Charitable Fund and Goal Click collaboration to showcase the impact of the Premier League and Professional Footballers’ Association Community Fund.

Since beating Aston Villa 3-0 in September, Liverpool have failed to win a single one of their seven matches against the current top six, drawing five and losing two.

In the process, they scored just seven goals from an Expected Goals (xG) of 11.9 and 124 shots, meaning in those matches Liverpool scored once from every 17.7 shots, more than double their Premier League season average of every 8.7 shots.

When the curtain comes down in May, it might be the difference between a fairytale ending for Klopp and another near miss.

Liverpool’s results v top six since October

Arteta uses width to work round Brighton defence
Arsenal’s defensive solidity continues to be the bedrock of everything Mikel Arteta does, and the clean sheet at Brighton & Hove Albion was one of their best displays so far.

The Gunners have now kept five consecutive clean sheets on the road for the first time since April 1997 and only in one match in 2024 have they accumulated an Expected Goals Against (xGA) of greater than one.

For the second goal, built down the other wing, Jorginho was unusually aggressive in attacking the right-hand space that Saka – on the floor following a heavy challenge – is supposed to fill, suggesting this was a deliberate ploy from Arteta.