Gm football fans. Route One here, the only football newsletter with a 100 per cent conversion from the penalty spot.

Today’s briefing is a ~4 min read:

1. Chelsea produce two all-time classics in one week 🤩

2. Klopp vents about the early-kick off switch… but he has a point 😬

3. The Villa is now a fortress… 🏰

• Manchester City holds the top spot after an eight-goal thriller versus Chelsea. City conceded a late penalty scored by former player Cole Palmer to prevent the champions from getting all three points.

• Liverpool netted three past Brentford. Mo Salah bagged a brace, and Kostas Tsimikas secured two assists.

• Arsenal secured all three points with a comfortable 3-1 win versus Burnley.

• Spurs’ depleted squad showed after dropping all three points in a 2-1 defeat to Wolves.

Morning Brief 🗞️

ALL-TIME CLASSIC… CHELSEA vs MAN CITY 🤩

Chelsea is 10th in the league, but they’re producing banger after banger.

The game ended 4 - 4.

That means Chelsea have been involved in 13 goals in the last two league games.

According to Opta, this was the first top-flight game between the two clubs to see both sides score 3+ goals since November 1960. 

Put simply, it was complete chaos.

Here’s what happened in under 20 seconds:

• 25’… Haaland awarded a penalty after Cucurella bundled him in the box (arguably). H-dog scored.

• 4 mins later Thiago Silva scored a front-post header from a corner.

• 37’… Sterling takes the lead for Chelsea.

• 45+1’… Akanji equalised.

• 47’… Haaland scores his second.

• 67’… Jackson equalised.

• 86’… Rodri scored his customary screamer to win City the game…

• … oh wait… in the 95th (!!) minute Palmer scores a penalty after a Dias mistake.

Phew.

🔑 Key takeaways from the game…

• Gallagher, Sterling and Palmer were immense.

• City must stop chaos from other teams… they play their best football when they control the game. Can Doku’s expressive style fit that mould?

• Chelsea can be exciting… but they must sharpen up tactically. Not every game can be a slog.

EARLY KICK-OFF FOR CITY VS LIVERPOOL 😬

At this point, someone’s just looking for a reaction from Jurgen Klopp.

In case you didn’t know, Liverpool’s visit to Manchester City on Saturday 25th has been switched to a 12:30 pm kick-off after the international break.

And Klopp isn’t happy… and (this time) for good reason.

Between the two clubs, there could be around 30 international players.

So, most players will only get to train together once before the highly anticipated game.

Not to mention the jet lag from travelling from across the world and back.

“Until then it is fight your way through the most difficult league in the world and be ready on Thursday and on Sunday and Thursday,” said Klopp. “And if the Premier League has the opportunity to do it, be ready on Saturday at 12.30pm.”

EXTRA-TIME ⏱️

Kieran Trippier confronts rowdy Newcastle fans after defeat to Bournemouth. He wanted to make sure the fans knew they were suffering from one too many injuries…

The current FPL champion is having a rough season. After finishing number 1 last year, he currently sits at 2,490,148 in the world. Making light of his contrasting performance, he tweets “It’s a good season to have a bad season.”

Four of the best nutmegs you’ll see today. The R1 team will be mimicking these skills at 5-a-side on Tuesday night.

Footballer hair transformations. Hair transplants are a topic of discussion in the R1 office currently. The R1 team reassured one colleague it’s natural to lose hair at a certain age... that got us thinking about footballers who have had makeovers of their own.

Esports rivalries are heating up. Following Lionel Messi becoming a co-owner of Sergio Augueo’s Esports brand, David de Gea and Aymeric Laporte battle to partner with Cristiano Ronaldo. De Gea’s already winning the mind games.

VILLA BECOMES A FORTRESS 🏰

Aston Villa made it 13 consecutive home wins in the Premier League as Unai Emery’s side beat Fulham 3-1.

Villa rises to fifth, within a point of the top four.

Just how well are they doing? Well…

• It’s the first time in 40 years Villa has had 13 consecutive top-flight wins at home.

• Villa have scored the most goal in the league this season.

• Unai Emery’s side are sixth for expected goals conceded so far this season. They sit 11th for actual goals conceded which suggests they are underperforming defensively.

But… Villa’s favourable run of games is coming to an end.

They face Spurs (A), Manchester City (H), and Arsenal (H) in their next four games.

• Manchester City and Arsenal have the best-expected goals conceded away from home in the league.

• City sits first and Arsenal fifth for expected goals scored away from home.

So, will Villa Park remain a fortress or become a welcome resort?

MEME 😆