MANCHESTER— Liverpool opened up a five-point Premier League lead thanks to Merseyside derby victory over Everton and a 1-1 draw between their title rivals Arsenal and Manchester City.

The defending champions’ firepower papered over the cracks of another unconvincing second-half performance as Hugo Ekitike took his chance to start over British transfer record signing Alexander Isak.

AFP Sport looks at the key talking points from the weekend’s action:

Arsenal still nearly men for now. Gabriel Martinelli’s stunning finish in stoppage-time saved Arsenal from a second defeat in their opening five games, but failing to beat a fatigued City raised further questions about their ability to usurp Liverpool as champions.

After finishing second for the past three seasons, the Gunners splashed out in the transfer market to add greater depth to their squad.

But by stretching their budget across multiple positions, Arsenal were not in the race to rival Liverpool for the signing of Isak.

Erling Haaland showed Arsenal the value of a world-class striker as he stormed through to score his 13th goal of the season in just eight appearances for club and country.

At the other end, Viktor Gyokeres again failed to make his mark on a big game after struggling against Manchester United and Liverpool last month.

Already trailing Liverpool by five points, Mikel Arteta’s men can ill-afford another slip up when they travel to Newcastle, where they lost twice last season, next weekend.