Chelsea draw to Liverpool but win Moises Caicedo war, James Maddison shines – Things we learned on Sunday

The mesmerising weekend of Premier League football continued with two more pulsating matches that lived up to their billing.

Tottenham began life without Harry Kane with a testing trip at Brentford but showed they didn’t lose their ability to play despite losing their star man as they played out a 2-2 draw.

It was a first Premier League outing for new manager Ange Postecoglou, who will be impressed by the fighting spirit they showed having bounced back from losing their 1-0 lead to claim a point against a side that claimed the scalps of Manchester City, Liverpool and Manchester United at home last term.

And later in the afternoon saw Chelsea and Liverpool face-off at Stamford Bridge.

Plenty happened on the pitch in the 1-1 draw but the contest was played with an undercurrent of the battle for the signatures of Brighton star Moises Caicedo as well as Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia.

talkSPORT.com takes a look at the six take-aways from Sunday’s Premier League action.

Tottenham’s forward line must improve

It was a frantic clash with Brentford and while they scored twice, they came from Cristian Romero and Emerson Royal.

Up top, Richarlison was full of hustle but unable to get meaningful touches of the ball in dangerous areas, missing his one clear-cut chance, despite growing into the game.

Dejan Kulusevski was bright but lacking a final ball, while Heung-Min Son struggled to get in possession close to goal before being substituted.

The Bees are, of course a tough opponents, but more will be needed from that three in the long run.

Madd about you

A debut as your club’s new £40million star signing is always tough, chuck in the fact you’re the new No.10 replacing their legendary striker, you’re in for a rough ride.

But Maddison came through in excellent fashion, showcasing his creativity in the final third against a Brentford team who barely gave Spurs any room for manoeuvre.

His wicked free-kick delivery found Cristian Romero for Tottenham’s opening goal, while he nudged the ball to Emerson Royal for their second too.

Even a first-half yellow card for dissent couldn’t dissuade him from making a hustling display for 90 minutes.

Oh, and he ended the match as captain after Heung-Min Son’s substitution. Only a win could have made it better.

Bissouma is back

He’s been a Spurs player for over a year but Yves Bissouma had all the energy of a new signing at the Gtech Community Stadium.

Postecoglou’s men dominated possession for large parts of the match and just lacked that cutting edge needed to prise open the stout Brentford defence a third time.

But props should be given to Bissouma, who was constantly recycling the ball and playing some neat passes in the direction of the more creative Maddison.

Bissouma didn’t get going last season, although injury kept him out for a large part of it, but his performance on Sunday afternoon suggests his Spurs career is finally going to be kickstarted.

Enzo the master baker

From one top midfield performance to another; like Bissouma bossing things at Brentford, Fernandez had plenty of joy during Chelsea’s draw against Liverpool.

After a slow start which saw Liverpool take the lead on 18 minutes, Chelsea grew into things, getting their equaliser through debutante Axel Disasi, but Fernandez was at the centre of things.

Fernandez was cooking at Stamford Bridge, earning the player of the match award, impressing former Liverpool star Michael Owen, who said Chelsea will boast the Premier League’s best midfield if they get the Moises Caicedo deal done.

A draw in the battle, but Chelsea win the war

And speak of the devil, the drama at Stamford Bridge showed exactly why Chelsea and Liverpool have been battling for the Brighton star’s signature.

Despite Fernandez’s brilliance and some nice moments by Reds midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, the way both midfields found themselves overrun during the match will remind Mauricio Pochettino and Jurgen Klopp that neither of their squads are complete just yet.

talkSPORT understands that although it was honours even on the pitch, Chelsea have won off it having agreed a deal worth a British record £115million with the Seagulls for Caicedo.

When Studge met Keano

And a little bit away from the actual football, it looks like we have a new bromance among the Sky Sports punditry team.

We’ve fallen in love with the brilliant rapport Roy Keane and Micah Richards have, but it appears a new partnership is blossoming between the Manchester United legend and Daniel Sturridge.

As well as offering some great insight into both of Sunday’s matches, former Chelsea and Liverpool striker Sturridge cracked plenty of jokes to proceedings.

Sturridge mimicking Keane’s Irish tones as well as doing an unexpected rendition Usher’s Nice and Slow for his Sky Sports ‘initiation’ showed there won’t be any shortage of fun when ‘Studge’ is around.

And although his antics drew a signature scowl from Keane, it bore a remarkable resemblance to the looks he gives his mate Richards during his punditry.

Let’s hope three isn’t a crowd in this case.