Liverpool's £242 million problem, Moises Caicedo's 'best in the world' slogan, and eight Premier League stories after the October international break.

 Liverpool's £242 million problem, Moises Caicedo's 'best in the world' slogan, and eight Premier League stories after the October international break.

Club football fans, the October international window has come to an end. Get ready for four more weeks of Premier League fun before heading back into the November break. Fortunately, there are plenty of exciting matches to look forward to before then, starting with some thrilling encounters this coming weekend, including Manchester United's visit to Liverpool.

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On the other hand, Chelsea have the chance to put unlucky Nottingham Forest in even more trouble, while Manchester City will welcome a Jack Grealish-less Everton to the Etihad Stadium, and Arsenal will look for a record win when they face Fulham at Craven Cottage for the first time in three seasons. The race for titles, European places, and survival is intensifying even before the clocks turn back.

There are many different storylines to keep your eyes on this weekend, and we at GOAL have selected eight of the most interesting as we welcome the return of Premier League football:

Ange on Forest's watch

Ange Postecoglou, beginning his Premier League career with Tottenham in 2023, won the hearts of English fans by remaining unbeaten in 10 matches. After seven games with Nottingham Forest, he is searching for his first win and is already on the verge of being sacked. How did Postecoglou, who was Forest's highest achiever last season and consistently winning around the world, find himself in this situation? There are many aspects to consider.

If you remove managerial nonsense from the equation, the simple answer is that Forest simply overperformed last season and have now regressed to mediocrity. Their expected goal difference for 2024-25 is -3.4 (according to FBref), ranking them 13th among Premier League teams, six short of their actual seventh-place finish.

However, relying solely on these statistics would be unfair to Forest's achievements under Nuno Espirito Santo. The Reds became one of the Premier League's toughest and most tenacious teams, while the playmaking of ace Morgan Gibbs-White and the top form of veteran striker Chris Wood ensured there was never a shortage of goals. That brilliant finishing period has now faded, and the defense has been further decimated by injuries, but the problems lie deeper.

After a 2-2 draw with Leicester City in their final home match of last season, club owner Evangelos Marinakis confronted Nuno on the field, calling him unnecessary attention to Forest and his operations. Both downplayed the simmering tensions and insisted the Greek player was simply concerned about the well-being of the injured Taiwo Awoniyi, but the scenes were not pleasant at all. Indeed, these assumptions were further strengthened when Nuno admitted in August that his relationship with the owner had deteriorated, while later reports attributed the move to Edu Gaspar's arrival from Arsenal as the club's new global football chief.

Postecoglou's decision to remove the universally popular Nuno was surprising for several reasons. Marinakis claimed a good relationship with the former Celtic boss and even had dinner with him over the summer, so if this plan had been in his mind for some time, waiting until the close of the transfer window to appoint him would have been a no-brainer. Nuno and Postecoglou's philosophies couldn't have been more different, while the Australian's tactics were understood by most Premier League players by the end of his Spurs reign.

Forest no longer has a sense of unity. A united and enthusiastic club has now become a difficult choice. Recent reports suggest that if Postecoglou fails to register his first win this weekend, when Chelsea take on the City Ground in an early kick-off on Saturday, Nottingham native Sean Dyche could replace him in another 180-degree turnaround from the top. Make it worthwhile.

Caicedo's hype peaks

Is Moises Caicedo the Premier League's best midfielder? In a word, no. Sorry, Chelsea fans. However, it's a topic of interesting debate.

After moving from Brighton for £115 million ($153.5 million) in the summer of 2023, the Ecuadorian took some time to establish himself at Stamford Bridge. One reason for this was the weight of expectations on his shoulders, one reason was that the club was haphazardly planning the team that they wanted to fulfill, and the other reason was that he was still a young player with some shortcomings that needed to be addressed.

Two years after that change, you'll be hard-pressed to find a player like Chelsea who wouldn't want to make a similar move again. With the exception of Todd Bohali and Behdad Eghbali, most players would be willing to pay Brighton another £115 million for their troubles. Now, no one even discusses the midfielder's price tag, a sure sign that Caicedo has been a success in west London, having already won two trophies and helped restore Chelsea's Champions League status.

Caicedo's rise this season reached a new peak before the international break when he outplayed Liverpool's own expensive midfielders and broke the deadlock, giving Chelsea a 2-1 win. Only by continuing this path will he be able to cement his place among the world's top players.

The best central midfielders in football at least regularly score goals or assists. These contributions add to the core qualities of top players. Jude Bellingham and Pedri lead the way, but Rodri, Declan Rice, and Vitina are also performing well despite being considered "depth" players. To his credit, Caicedo has scored three goals in seven Premier League matches this season, the highest total of his career in Europe, and there's a clear desire for continued improvement in this area.

Haaland 2.0 Keeps City's Title Hopes Alive

Manchester City are fifth in the table, just three points off the top spot, and the only real reason they're winning this season is the form of Erling Haaland. The striker has scored 21 goals in 12 games for club and country, a remarkable haul even by his own foreign standards.

Another striking feature of Haaland's form this season is that he's managed to add several more layers to his game. He's no longer the perfect poacher, waiting for the ball to come into his vast expanse in the six-yard box. Frankly, City needed him to diversify his style to stay ahead of their rivals.

Haaland has scored 12 of City's 19 goals in all competitions and assisted another. No one else in the team has more goals than Phil Foden, with two, while Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Cherki, Jeremy Doku, Savinho, and Matheus Nunes have each scored one. Omar Marmoush, Bernardo Silva, and Oscar Bobb are among the players who have yet to score. Gone are the days when City had multiple free-scoring threats; now they have several players who can step in when needed, and Haaland is the only consistent player. He is being touted as the Premier League's greatest goalscorer.

If he continues at this pace, Haaland will end this season with 48 Premier League goals. It still seems strange and unimaginable, but it's not beyond possibility. Becoming the first player in the competition's history to reach 40 also seems possible, because we tend to take their potential for granted.

Haaland was released early from Norway duty, so he should be extra-energized for Saturday's match against Everton. It could be a long afternoon for the Toffees.

Black Cats ready to shake off relegation fears

Of the three promoted teams entering the Premier League this season, Sunderland seemed the safest bet. They had made several shrewd signings, including former Arsenal midfielder and Bayer Leverkusen title winner Granit Xhaka, and the club appeared united in everything from the boardroom to the stands.

This is a far cry from the Sunderland of the past decade, even the Sunderland that endured consecutive relegations and reached the third tier of English football for the first time since 1987. The Black Cats have displayed a fresh fearlessness on their return to the Premier League and remain unbeaten at the Stadium of Light, where they face Wolves this weekend.

Despite head coach Vitor Pereira's impressive performance last season, the Wanderers have struggled in the opening seven rounds of the 2025-26 season, losing five and drawing two. Many of their new signings have failed to replace Matheus Cunha's magic or goals, while Jørgen Strand Larsen is feeling the effects of Newcastle's £60 million ($80 million) signing at the end of the summer transfer window and is still awaiting his first league goal.

Alarm bells have already rung among Molineux fans, but not in the boardroom, as Pereira was handed a new three-year contract last month, despite his winning streak still faltering. A defeat on Wearside could spark a rebellion, but Saturday's hosts are ready to celebrate another victory amid their strong start.