It required a stoppage-time penalty, but Liverpool’s perfect record remained intact at Burnley to make it four wins from four for the Premier League champions.
Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and AFC Bournemouth are their closest challengers after victories for all three, with a much-changed Chelsea having to settle for a draw at Brentford.
An Erling Haaland-inspired Manchester City swept aside struggling Manchester United, Nick Woltemade began his Newcastle United career with a winning goal against bottom club Wolverhampton Wanderers, while Aston Villa simply cannot score.
Here is everything you need to know from Matchweek 4.
Considering they came closest to taking the Premier League title from Liverpool last season, it was a remarkably changed Arsenal line-up that took the pitch on Saturday.
In Noni Madueke, Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze, the hosts fielded an entirely new front three, while Martin Zubemendi was used in central midfield behind them, with Declan Rice rested. Ninety minutes later was further proof that the new boys have started their Arsenal careers pretty well.
Zubimendi scored the first double of his career, Gyokeres became only the third Arsenal player to score in both of his first two Premier League home games, and Eze – who provided the Swede with his goal – is now Arsenal’s only Englishman to score or assist on his first Premier League start. Then there was Madueke, who was arguably the star of the show.
Mikel Arteta is battling a fairly hefty injury list that was added to when Martin Odegaard departed early with a shoulder issue, but Arsenal’s strength in depth should serve as a warning to their rivals.
The win means new Nottingham Forest head coach Ange Postecoglou is yet to beat Arsenal in five Premier League encounters.
He promised he will not take long to make his mark, saying: “It won’t be months, it won’t be weeks – it will be Wednesday [in the EFL Cup]. I cannot afford to waste time.”
Much of the chatter emerging from AFC Bournemouth over the summer concerned a number of high-profile departures. It almost went unnoticed just how important Antoine Semenyo signing a contract extension was.
A goal and an assist against Brighton & Hove Albion means the Ghana international has now been involved in five of Bournemouth’s six goals so far this season.
His wonderful form has helped the club to their best start to a top-flight campaign, with nine points from their opening four games to put them in an early top-four spot.
It was not a vintage performance from the hosts, who saw Alex Scott’s opener cancelled out by Kaoru Mitoma before Semenyo scored from the penalty spot. But it did not need to be, as they recorded their third win on the bounce.
“It was pretty ugly,” said Semenyo. “The manager said it might go this way – it did and we found a way to win. It’s a really good side to show to our game.”
It said a lot, in what was ultimately a mildly frustrating draw for Crystal Palace, that Sunderland goalkeeper Robin Roefs was perhaps the game’s most important figure.
The Dutchman, who joined the club in the summer, played a crucial role in keeping the hosts at bay, with Palace hitting the target from six of their 14 shots – their most without scoring in a Premier League home match since April 2022.
“I think we need players at that level in the Premier League otherwise we won’t exist,” said Sunderland head coach Regis Le Bris of Roefs. “I’m really happy with his performance.”
While the goalless draw boosted hopes that Sunderland have sufficient resilience to avoid relegation, it also extended Palace’s unbeaten run to 10 Premier League games – the longest run of any current top-flight side.
Oliver Glasner is having to make do without Eze, sold to Arsenal, and the injured Ismaila Sarr. But new signing Yeremy Pino slotted in a No 10 role and caught the eye on a number of occasions.
“I was very pleased with Pino’s performance but the cherry on top would have been a goal,” said the Palace head coach.
There are a host of worrying statistics that point to just how bleak the start to this campaign has been for Aston Villa, but one overriding figure.
Just one shot on target in this goalless draw ensured they remain the only club in the top six tiers of English football yet to score this season.
But while Unai Emery’s side sit 19th in the table, the Villa boss insisted he was not disheartened, despite being outplayed by Everton.
“This point, with the difficulties we had, I am accepting it, I am happy,” Emery said. “The commitment the players showed is the first step forward. The performance, the discipline and being organised like we planned was very good.”
The visitors’ best player was Emiliano Martinez, who was back in goal after being heavily linked with a move to Manchester United that failed to materialise.
He kept out a number of efforts, including from Jack Grealish, whose five chances created were the most by an Everton player in a Premier League match since August 2024.
Everton’s Expected Goals (xG) total was 2.12 – their most in a Premier League match without scoring since January 2024.
It was a stroke of misfortune that cost Leeds United a point at Craven Cottage, but the visitors are another side in desperate need of goals.
Daniel Farke had made no attempt to hide his desire for attacking reinforcements that failed to materialise at the end of the summer transfer window.
Defensively, they were largely sound until a bizarre stoppage-time header from Gabriel Gudmundsson that went into his own goal from 12 yards to hand Fulham victory.
The hosts did not muster a single effort until a direct free-kick in the 58th minute. Indeed, their final total of five shots was their fewest on record (since 2003/04) for a Premier League home match they went on to win.
“We have to keep games tight and be rock solid defensively,” said Farke. “I’ve addressed our attack several times, and what we would have needed in the transfer window. I won’t address it any more because we can’t change things now.”
His side have now scored just once in the league this campaign, while their London misery continues. Leeds have lost each of their last nine Premier League away games in the capital city, conceding an average of three goals per match.
If Yoane Wissa had been fit and available, Nick Woltemade would likely not even have started this first match since moving to Newcastle.
Instead, the club-record signing enjoyed a debut to remember after nodding home the only goal of the game to instantly endear himself to the St James’ Park faithful.
The goal came courtesy of a powerful header from Jacob Murphy’s cross after 29 minutes, while the German also impressed when dropping deep to gain possession and hold up the ball.
It means he is only the third German to score on his Premier League debut after Jurgen Klinsmann and Ilkay Gundogan; esteemed company.
“Nick’s very intelligent, very, very humble and a very good communicator,” said Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe.
“He understood everything we wanted him to do tactically. It was great to see him scoring, he took his goal brilliantly. It was a very strong debut.”
His cross was Murphy’s 12th open-play assist since the start of last season. Only Mohamed Salah, with 19, has more in the Premier League in that period.
Wolves, meanwhile, stay bottom of the table, having begun a campaign with four successive defeats for the first time in their 127th season in English league football.
With a meeting between two vastly contrasting defences, perhaps the scoreline should have come as little surprise.
Another clean sheet – their third in four games – means Spurs have conceded just once in the league so far this campaign, level with Arsenal and Crystal Palace as the most miserly backlines.
It has been an entirely different affair for West Ham United, who have now let in 11 goals – two more than any other side. This defeat was the third time in just four games that they have lost by a 3+ goal margin.
Any respite for Graham Potter from the victory over Nottingham Forest last time out disappeared in a match that saw the hosts second-best throughout.
Potter’s side were already a goal down to Pape Matar Sarr’s opener when Tomas Soucek was shown a red card for a bad tackle early in the second half. The highly impressive Lucas Bergvall then added a second and Micky van de Ven rounded things off to leave West Ham in the relegation zone.
“I understand why people are upset,” said Potter. “We are a new team and we have to stick together and focus on the things we’ve done well and see where we can improve.”
Chelsea did not feature in Europe two seasons ago and they often fielded an entirely second-string side in the UEFA Conference League last campaign.
So, with a testing UEFA Champions League trip to Bayern Munich upcoming on Wednesday and a number of fatigued players after international duty, Enzo Maresca attempted to shuffle his pack for the visit to Brentford. The gamble did not work.
A youthful side – an average age of 24 years and 68 days meant Chelsea’s starting line-up was the second-youngest in the Premier League this season – struggled in a poor first half that saw them fall a goal behind and prompt Maresca to make three half-time substitutions.
Cole Palmer also soon came off the bench to score, while Moises Caicedo looked to have secured victory before Fabio Carvalho’s stoppage-time equaliser grabbed Brentford a point.
Palmer’s return from injury did, at least, provide encouragement. His goal was his first not from the penalty spot in the Premier League since January, while his five shots were more than any other player despite him only coming on in the 56th minute.
Four games and four wins gives Liverpool a perfect record so far this season, but Arne Slot’s side are certainly testing the resilience of their fans.
This triumph, courtesy of Mohamed Salah's penalty in the fifth minute of stoppage time, saw them become the first team ever to win four successive Premier League matches with the decisive goal scored in the last 10 minutes or later. Talk about edge-of-your-seat stuff.
Watch all of Liverpool's late winners
The defending champions were totally dominant against a deep-lying Burney, claiming 81 per cent possession and attempting 27 shots. But it was not until Hannibal Mejbri inexplicably handballed inside the box late on that they found the net.
Things might have been different with British record-signing Alexander Isak on the pitch, but he did not make Liverpool’s squad, with Slot suggesting additional training time is required: “We got him from Newcastle in a state where you could say his pre-season is going to start now.”
The late goal left Burnley – who were reduced to 10 men for the last six minutes when Lesley Ugochukwu received a second yellow card – with a sense of deja vu after suffering the same fate at Man Utd in Matchweek 3.
“It’s really heartbreaking,” said head coach Scott Parker. “Two weeks in a row that it’s in the dying minutes, two penalties that decide the games. And we don’t manage to get the result.”
Five goals at the start of the week; two at the end. Erling Haaland has started the season rather well.
Having struck five past Moldova while on international duty, the Norwegian was only denied a Manchester derby hat-trick by the post as he helped City to their second win of the campaign.
He now has five goals from his opening four Premier League games, but his impression was made at both ends of the pitch, making six defensive clearances for his side. Centre-back Ruben Dias was the only City player to contribute more.
“Erling has been incredible since the start, but this season he is better than ever,” said Pep Guardiola. “I would say better than the treble year [2022/23].”
Watch all of Haaland's goals v Man Utd
Phil Foden also showed a return to form with City’s opening goal, while keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma impressed on debut.
United, who gave striker Benjamin Sesko a first start, have just four points from four games – their worst start to a league season since 1992/93.
No ever-present Premier League team have picked up fewer than Ruben Amorim’s eight wins during his 31-game reign, but the head coach remains defiant, especially about his 3-4-3 formation.
“It is not a record you should have at Manchester United,” he said. “I believe in my way and I am going to play my way until I want to change. I see that we are doing better but the results don’t show that.”