Is Wissa the Premier League’s best home-ground player this season? Four things you might have missed from today’s 3pm action | OneFootball

Business continued as usual in the Premier League, with four matches taking place at 3 PM this Saturday.

Among the eight teams playing this afternoon, five are struggling near the bottom of the table. Brentford‘s successful hosting of Leicester, which saw them run out 4-1 winners, allowed them to climb to seventh place; meanwhile, Nottingham Forest moved into sixth after narrowly beating relegation-threatened Ipswich.

Wolves, currently sitting outside the relegation places, faced another setback, losing 4-2 to Bournemouth at home. Newcastle, meanwhile, snatched a point from the jaws of victory against Crystal Palace as the points were shared in “the Alan Pardew derby.”

With so much action unfolding, Squawka is here to provide insights into these results.

Wissa’s home comforts

Certain players thrive in the comfort of their home stadium, and a prominent recent example is Brentford’s forward Yoane Wissa. In a match against Leicester City this afternoon, Wissa marked a significant achievement by contributing to ten goals in his last six Premier League home appearances for Brentford, comprising eight goals and two assists. Remarkably, he found the back of the net in these six matches. It is worth noting that aside from one game, all of these performances occurred this season, as he was sidelined due to an ankle injury during the fixtures against West Ham and Wolves on matchdays six and seven.

This impressive run raises an intriguing question: Could Wissa be the most effective home player in the Premier League this season? The statistics certainly support this notion. He has scored seven non-penalty goals, the highest tally in the league. Additionally, only Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka has surpassed Wissa in terms of combined goals and assists at home, with Saka achieving nine compared to Wissa’s eight. This places Wissa in a highly competitive position among his peers, showcasing his ability to impact games significantly.

Another noteworthy aspect of Wissa’s performance is his efficiency; he has accomplished these feats in under 400 minutes of home play. This statistic underscores his effectiveness in front of goal and his capacity to make the most of limited playing time. As the season progresses, Wissa’s contributions could prove vital for Brentford, and his home-ground prowess may well solidify his reputation as one of the standout players in the Premier League this season.

His effort today cancelled out Facundo Buonanotte’s opener; providing the assist was Kevin Schade, who would go on to net a hat-trick (becoming the first German player to score a Premier League treble since André Schürrle for Chelsea in March 2014), meaning the Bees have now scored three or more goals in four successive home games, something they last managed in April/May 1984.

Points shared in heated Selhurst Park duel

As Newcastle approached what could have been consecutive away victories, Daniel Munoz stepped up late to secure a much-needed point for Crystal Palace, and with it timed at 93:28, the Eagles scored their latest result-altering goal in the Premier League since Michael Olise’s equaliser against Manchester City in December 2023 (94:28), and latest at Selhurst Park since Jean-Philippe Mateta’s winner against Leicester City in April 2023 (93:44).

Though it extended their winless streak to four matches, a point is better than none. Newcastle, though, didn’t have a single shot on target in this match, becoming the first team to score despite failing to hit the target in a Premier League match since Watford against Southampton in June 2020.

Marc Guehi’s own goal initially put them in the lead. Guehi later redeemed himself by assisting Munoz’s late equaliser. He is just the second Palace player to both score an own goal and assist/score a goal in a Premier League match after Damien Delaney did so for the Eagles against Liverpool in May 2014.

Two goals contrasted to seven yellow cards issued to both teams, including one given to Crystal Palace head coach Oliver Glasner, illustrating how desperate each side was to grab all three points. Newcastle are seeking to gain momentum up the league standings, while the Eagles find themselves in what could potentially become a fascinating relegation battle.

Wood the conqueror

Chris Wood has emerged as a surprising contender for this season’s Premier League Golden Boot, though it will be challenging.

Currently, only Erling Haaland (12 goals) and Mohamed Salah (10 goals) have scored more than the Kiwi striker, who sits third with nine goals. Wood’s latest achievement was significant; he converted a penalty in the 48th minute, securing all three points for Nottingham Forest against Ipswich Town.

With this goal, he scored 24 times for the club, making him Nottingham Forest’s all-time leading Premier League scorer (alongside Bryan Roy).

In addition to his 49 goals for Burnley, he is also the top scorer for that club. Wood joins Alan Shearer (who achieved this with Blackburn and Newcastle) as one of only two players to be the top or joint-top scorer for two different clubs in Premier League history.

Kluivert makes Premier League history

Goals serve as football’s lifeblood, captivating players and fans who seek thrilling entertainment. Despite the struggles faced by Wolves this season, they continue to deliver excitement on the pitch, even if their loyal supporters have experienced a fair share of disappointment. Under the management of Gary O’Neil, it has become common for their goalkeeper and opposite number to retrieve the ball from the back of the net. This trend persisted during the recent match against Bournemouth at Molineux Stadium.

In this particular encounter, six goals were scored, bringing the total to 53 goals in Wolves’ Premier League matches this season, which is more than any other team. Unfortunately for Wolves, four of those goals came from the visiting side, three scored by Justin Kluivert from 12 yards, and in doing so becomes the first player to score a hat-trick of penalties in an English top-flight match since Ken Barnes did the same for Manchester City in a 6-2 victory over Everton in 1957.

It was also the first time a Dutch footballer netted a Premier League hat-trick since Georginio Wijnaldum for Newcastle in October 2015; consequently, the Netherlands moves into second place outright (19) for the most Premier League hat-tricks by nationality, only behind England (172). His efforts ultimately resulted in Wolves suffering their eighth defeat of the campaign. However, despite this setback, they remain in a precarious position, sitting fourth from the bottom of the table, with their survival largely dependent on goal difference as other teams around them falter.

On a more positive note, Wolves have consistently scored, having found the back of the net in their last 12 Premier League matches. This impressive streak is the longest active scoring run in the league, surpassing Fulham and Chelsea, who have each scored in 11 consecutive games. Both play tomorrow and can equal their streak. While they face some defensive challenges, Wolves’ attacking strength offers a glimmer of hope as they work to improve their position in the league.

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