Remember that famous scene in “The Shining” when Jack Nicholson’s Jack Torrance breaks through the bathroom door with an axe and yells “Heeeeere’s Johnny!” whilst Shelley Duvall’s Wendy screams in horror? I feel that’s a strong metaphor for what’s currently happening with Manchester City where in this scenario, the other teams in the league are playing the role of Wendy, Manchester City is the axe and Erling Haaland is Jack.
After a poor campaign in 2024-25, where Pep Guardiola’s side struggled and eventually fought extremely hard to earn a Champions League spot but not without losing their title to Liverpool, City pressed the reset button and did a full makeover of their squad.
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Fast forward to the present and the Citizens are rediscovering their identity once again. After a slow start to the season, mainly due to fatigue after the Club World Cup, City is now finding momentum. The two straight losses against Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton and Hove Albion back in August were the last times City suffered defeat in all competitions. Since then, it has won every game aside from two (Arsenal and Monaco) and that was mainly due to self-inflicting wounds. In the Premier League, thanks to Sunday’s hard-fought victory against Brentford City, it’s now moved to fifth, only three points behind table leader Arsenal.
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Overall, there are many good performances, from Jeremy Doku to Phil Foden, as well as new signings such as Italian stopper Gianluigui Donnarumma to midfield maestro Tijjani Reijnders, the team is fluid, pressing at will and scoring goals. In fact, City are the top scorers of the league and yes, it’s mainly down to one man: Erling Haaland. The Norwegian striker now has nine league goals and that was achieved after scoring a brace in the Champions League on Wednesday, making his overall tally in the competition to 52 goals in 50 appearances. There’s no other way to say it really, he is playing to superhuman levels.
Now, things are not perfect for City as those aforementioned draws against Arsenal and Monaco have shown that they have a current issue of conceding late goals so that’s something Guardiola needs to assess during the international break. At least against Brentford, it held on and earned the three points. Rodri was also forced to come off against Brentford and sadly, the rehabilitation process after surgery due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, which also affected the meniscus, has not been straightforward.
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But unlike last season, Man City now has a plan that goes beyond the reliance on the Spanish Ballon d’Or winner. Now, it’s only October and there is plenty of football to be played but every other club needs to pay attention because Manchester City is getting its mojo back. It’s not there yet, but undoubtedly getting closer. It is slowly walking up the stairs, getting closer and closer to the bathroom door, ready to yell “Heeeeere’s Johnny!”
The very, very special Estêvão
Enzo Maresca ran 50 yards just so he could celebrate with his players. He was sent off as a result, but it was totally worth it. Stamford Bridge erupted. São Paolo too, probably. Chelsea was in ecstatic delirium and it was all because 18-year-old Estêvão Willian, who was signed as a teenager from Palmeiras, officially introduced himself to the Premier League on Saturday with a 95th minute winner that sealed a 2-1 victory over Liverpool.
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The goal was obviously the exclamation point but even before that, the Brazilian nicknamed Messinho was causing havoc with his dribbling and creativity from the 75th minute when he came on the pitch. Here was Liverpool, the league defending champion, and Estêvão was playing as if he were on the playground and Arne Slot’s side was just a group of young kids. It’s what makes him so special and Saturday’s euphoric goal was exactly why Chelsea wanted him in the first place. It’s why they had been aggressively tracking his journey since he was 15.
For Palmeiras, he left with 27 goals and 15 assists. In a season, he earned 20 goal contributions in Brazil’s Serie A, becoming the first under-18 player to do it, beating Neymar’s previous record. At the Club World Cup, playing against Chelsea in his final game for the Brazilians, he scored a fantastic goal and continued to deliver jaw-dropping highlights. Almost every major club wanted him but he chose Chelsea. Even though there is a plan to make sure he is not rushed, the rewards are paying off at a faster rate due to Cole Palmer’s absence due to injury.
There’s no denying it. Estêvão is a special talent and this weekend was just another example why the Premier League is lucky to have him. Inside the youngest team of the Premier League, the ceiling for this 18-year-old is extremely high.
Semenyo, Bournemouth’s fantastic trajectory
Since the arrival of Andoni Iroala in 2023, Bournemouth’s path has been very impressive.
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Last season, the Cherries ended ninth in the table, earning a club record-breaking 56 points equaling their best ever placement in the league. Back in the summer, however, fans were nervous as there were a lot of player departures and turnaround. Some major names left the club including Dean Huijsen (Real Madrid) and Milos Kerkez (Liverpool). All in all, it was more than £200 million of outgoings and just less than half the 2024-25 starting XI left the club.
But Bournemouth knew exactly what it was doing for a few reasons. First, the recruitment department, led by president of football operations Tiago Pinto knew that success is based on players that fit the culture of the club and Iraola’s high-octane system so as long as that strategy sticks, the team would be fine. Second, and most importantly, they held on to their most important asset: 25-year-old Antonie Semenyo. The Ghana international was attracting a lot of attention but signed a new deal in July because he felt he was at a club that valued him and could help him grow. How right he was.
On Friday, Semenyo earned a brace and an assist, helping his team come back from behind to beat Fulham 3-1 and ended the weekend in fifth place with 14 points, only two behind the table leader Arsenal. Semenyo now also has six goals this season as well as three assists, making him the goal contributions leader in the league. But he is not just about numbers because almost every time he picks up the ball, it feels like something incredible is about to happen, which was the case on Friday as his first goal was a piece of individual brilliance.
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But again, Semenyo’s form — and Bournemouth’s wonderful start to the season — is a testament to Iroala, who has built a spine-chilling team of hungry, dedicated go-getters. No other team in the league wins the ball more than Bournemouth. No other team sprints more either. Every single segment of play is a statement of intent as they overwhelm the opponent until the last minute. The biggest question mark, as always, will be if Iraola’s system can maintain itself in a marathon-esque season. But that’s for later to decipher because for now, all I want to do is enjoy Bournemouth and Semenyo’s fantastic run.
