Gm football fans. Route One here, we’re the coffee of football newsletters - essential for every morning.

Today’s briefing is a ~3 min read:

1. 4 big trends in the Premier League right now 📊

2. Extra Time: Ramsdale should’ve kept this one to himself 😬

3. Revealed… R1’s gameweek 12 green arrow ⬆️

Morning Brief 🗞️

4 BIG TRENDS IN THE PREMIER LEAGUE RIGHT NOW 📊

The R1 office had a big decision to make this weekend:

a) Go on a 2-day bender after a long week’s work, or…

b) Scroll through all the boring football articles so you don’t have to.

Then, we remembered our Routers.

So we went with the obvious choice: B.

Here are the 4 most interesting things from the Premier League right now:

1/ The first multi-team title fight since 2008

According to The Telegraph, only three times previously in the Premier League has the top flight been this close after 12 games.

It’s happened before in 2001-02, 2007-08 and 2020-21.

And it looks like this season might be even tighter.

Not convinced? Well, this season the top five so far have amassed more points than in any of those previous campaigns: 133.

It’s also not because the top five are getting better. It’s probably because the promoted teams are even weaker… with the bottom three collecting just 15 points between them.

An exciting season ahead of us…

2/ Less route one more tippy tappy

Here at R1, we don’t like the fancy stuff. We like to get straight to the point.

But it looks like Premier League teams are going the opposite way. Here’s what Sky Sports found:

• In 2009-10, more than 17% of passes were played ‘long’. Last season, that ratio dropped to just 11.4% - the lowest on record.

• The top teams almost exclusively record the lowest rates for playing long balls.

• Top teams only use long passes for variety and with players that can frequently spray the ball… Alisson, Arnold and van Dijk come to mind.

So… RIP the long ball.

3/ 4-2-3-1 is the new 4-4-2

This season marks a record-low for 4-4-2 since records began.

The king has been slane… and two princes (4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3) are fighting for the top spot.

4-2-3-1 was used 196 times in the last campaign. And 4-3-3 followed closely behind with 170.

The next closest formation is 3-4-2-1 which was only used 49 times.

That said… the emphasis on positional fluidity in today’s game means that managers are getting creative.

It’s likely we’ll see a variety of formations used by the end of the season.

4/ Squad depth is more important than you think

Newcastle and Spurs are a case in point…

Newcastle were beaten 2-0 in the Champions League by Borussia Dortmund, leaving their qualification chances diminished.

Then, a shock loss to Bournemouth meant The Magpies racked up their fourth defeat this campaign.

And Spurs’ rapid decline from unbeaten to back-to-back defeats… well that says it all.

Squad depth is an increasing concern for managers. Recently, Mikel Arteta suggested the Premier League should consider expanding their 25-man squads or allowing the use of 10 substitutes.

R1’s take: Gone are the days of Leicester’s unchanging XI in their title-winning season…

EXTRA-TIME ⏱️

Joe Cole is TNT Sports' resident polyglot. Move aside Thierry Henry, the French Del Boy can say 'two’ in French. Or can he?

Some things are best left unsaid. And when Ramsdale admitted he couldn’t concentrate for 90 minutes, he didn’t help his case for the number one spot at Arsenal.

You’ve seen R9’s step-overs and Maradona’s roulette. But nothing compares to Frank Kessie’s new handball skill… almost impossible to stop.

There’s nothing better than watching old clips before a big 5aside fixture. And who remembers this classic from Johan Elmander? Perhaps the most underrated goal in Premier League history.

We’ve booked tickets to Bolton’s next home game. Why? Because their pre-match entertainment is the best we’ve ever seen.

R1 FPL: A BIG GREEN ARROW 🎯

In case you were wondering, we secured a major green arrow.

98 points is our most this campaign.

And now we’re in the top 400k in the world.

It’s too early to make decisions but let us know if you have any FPL dilemmas… we’re here to help. 😁

MEME 😆