Liverpool: fitting Isak and Ekitike without breaking the rest-defence
Liverpool’s attacking jigsaw is an enticing problem. The video argues that Alexander Isak (the record buy) and Hugo Ekitike can both start, but the moment you lean towards a 4-2-4 or twin-nine look, you create knock-on effects everywhere else: Mohamed Salah’s starting position narrows, the left-sider (e.g. a Florian Wirtz-type profile) wants to drift infield, and full-backs must be timed precisely to provide width without exposing transition lanes.
The sensible solution presented is pragmatic rotation: Ekitike for transition games (runs in behind), Isak for low blocks (finishes from minimal service). Either way, Arne Slot’s “only one full-back up at once” principle becomes non-negotiable. If Liverpool get the rest-defence right, they can enjoy the luxury of two very different forwards without conceding the middle of the pitch.
Spurs: Xavi Simons as the ‘connector’ Thomas Frank needs
Against aggressive, man-to-man presses (Bournemouth were the example), Spurs were funnelled to the left and forced into risky passes. The fix proposed: a forward who reliably drops into the first build-up line to create a free man, receive between the lines, turn, and carry. That is Xavi Simons’ game.
The tape study shows him doing precisely this against elite pressure: dropping off markers, receiving on the half-turn and threading vertical passes. Two caveats surfaced: occasional heavy touches under extreme heat and the question of longer-distance separation when carrying. But as a ‘connector’ 10 in Frank’s system—knitting build-up to the front line—Simons profiles as exactly the trait Spurs lacked.
Arsenal: Eberechi Eze unlocks the left (and the title races these games are decided in)
Correction noted: it’s Eberechi Eze—and the case is compelling. Where Gabriel Martinelli often holds width, gains territory and recycles, Eze brings disguise, two-footed take-ons and final-third detail. He can beat the first defender either way, combine off Martin Ødegaard’s wall-passes and, crucially, slip killer balls inside the full-back rather than being shepherded wide.
That unpredictability matters most when Arsenal are camped around a deep block. With Bukayo Saka already providing right-side threat, Eze gives Mikel Arteta a left-side “problem-solver” who turns sterile control into shots. He also softens the debate at No 9: if chance creation spikes from the left, the striker’s profile becomes less binary.
Newcastle United: life after Isak and the little-and-large reboot
The segment posits Yoane Wissa plus a tall, second-striker profile (“Voltoard”) replacing Alexander Isak. The tactical nudge is away from a lone complete forward towards a pair: one stretches, one links. Eddie Howe would then likely sacrifice a midfielder, lean on a Bruno Guimarães–Sandro Tonali double pivot, and let the ‘10/second striker’ float between the lines. It’s a different route to chance creation—less about varied Isak movements, more about consistent depth via Wissa and link play underneath.
Manchester City: Donnarumma and the evolving goalkeeper meta
Why move from Ederson to Gianluigi Donnarumma? The argument isn’t that build-up doesn’t matter any more—it does, especially to create the conditions to go long. But as opponents press player-for-player from goal kicks, the temptation (and value) of direct restarts grows. City have increasingly taken touches in the first and final thirds; that points to more varied routes up the pitch and, with a slightly more open structure in transition, a premium on elite shot-stopping.
In short: tactical diversity plus marginal defensive gains. If Donnarumma adds saves without meaningfully hurting distribution patterns City can still stage when needed, the trade-off makes sense.
Everton: Jack Grealish’s freedom, fouls and set-piece tailwind
Freed from the tempo control he often played under at Manchester City, Jack Grealish is used here as a creative roamer: combine, bounce, then burst. The key is proximity football—Grealish, Iliman Ndiaye and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall tight together to create quick angles. Grealish also remains an elite foul-winner, and that links to a long-standing Everton edge: set-pieces. With Jordan Pickford happy to hit early diagonals into a cluster of targets, Grealish’s ball-carrying and craft generate territory and dead-ball volume.
Chelsea: João Pedro’s quiet revolution at set-pieces
The tape focuses less on open play and more on the details of corners. Two repeatable mechanisms stood out:
Near-post flick threat: Marc Cucurella starts short to drag a marker, then darts to the six-yard line as a designated flick-on option.
João Pedro’s goalkeeper ‘push-off’: he drifts between zonal markers, bumps the keeper, then drops back into the seam they vacate. It’s awkward to track and keeps producing first-contact headers.
The upshot: scouting reports now have to honour both the near-post run and Pedro’s ghosting, which frees team-mates elsewhere. For a young side that sometimes stalls against compact blocks, more set-piece xG is a valuable new lever.
Verdict: the transfer most likely to move the needle
On pure ceiling-raising, Eberechi Eze to Arsenal feels the most defining: he turns sterile dominance into chaos and goals on the left, exactly where opponents previously channelled Arsenal. The Everton case for Jack Grealish is strong in a different way—one player lifting an attack five or so places by adding control, fouls and final-third craft. And do not sleep on João Pedro at Chelsea: if a title race goes to fine margins, set-pieces often provide them.
Most likely to define the season: Eze, with Grealish as the sleeper, and João Pedro as the marginal-gains pick.