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Premier League grades: Liverpool and Man City keep up form, Cardiff impress at last

Premier League clubs rated after busy weekend in the top flight

 during the Premier League match between Cardiff City and Fulham FC at Cardiff City Stadium on October 20, 2018 in Cardiff, United Kingdom.
Image: Cardiff celebrate their important win over Fulham

Who was top of the class at the weekend in the Premier League, and who needs to do their homework?

There was a huge first win for Cardiff in the Premier League on Saturday, but worrying signs for Fulham again in the battle between the two promoted sides. Elsewhere, wins for Liverpool and Man City gave them daylight ahead of Chelsea, who snatched a 2-2 draw with Manchester United.

Here's how we graded each side this weekend...

Cardiff: A+

It can only be an A+ for Neil Warnock's side after they recorded their first Premier League win of the season with an impressive display against Fulham on Saturday.

The home team scored four goals in a top-flight game for the first time since September 1961 and as a result, they moved off the foot of the Premier League.

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Cardiff 4-2 Fulham

Could we be looking back at this victory as being the turning point in the Bluebirds' campaign come the end of the season? (Richard Morgan)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Neil Etheridge (39 points)

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Watford: A

Watford looked back to their early-season selves after going four Premier League games without a win. Their two goals in 58 seconds in the 2-0 win over Wolves provided some brilliant finishing and gave them the confidence to go on and see the game out without much to really trouble them in defence. Even with an improved Wolves in the second half, they managed to restrict their talent.

It was the perfect response to losing 4-0 to Bournemouth before the international break and it was a performance Javi Gracia was very pleased with - as you would expect.

Even without regulars Troy Deeney, Christian Kabasele and Jose Holebas, Watford looked like a team to be reckoned with and the trio could face a fight to regain their places upon their return. (Charlotte Marsh)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Roberto Pereyra (51 points)

Man City: A

This was vintage 3pm Saturday Manchester City. The Premier League champions now hold the record for the longest unbeaten run of Premier League games on Saturdays at 3pm, taking their tally to 35 in a row. They swatted aside Burnley with minimal fuss, albeit they needed some help from the officials, who missed potentially two red cards and allowed City's second goal, scored by Bernardo Silva, to stand despite the ball looking out of play. Once that goal went in, City were at their free-flowing best with Kevin De Bruyne's return in midfield also a welcome boost. (Lewis Jones)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Aymeric Laporte (76 points)

Liverpool: B

Jurgen Klopp's side looked laboured upon their return from the international break, but just about got over the line at Huddersfield thanks to their only shot on target, from Mohamed Salah in the 24th minute.

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Huddersfield 0-1 Liverpool

With Sadio Mane out and Roberto Firmino starting on the bench, Liverpool lacked their natural attacking instincts, but a sixth clean sheet in nine Premier League games once more outlined that their defensive issues have all-but been eradicated.

It was far from a vintage performance, and not one which will feature long on the end-of-season DVD, but they got the job done to keep pace with Manchester City. (Michael Hincks)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Alisson (65 points)

Brighton: B

A first away league win in almost a year would normally warrant a better grade, but Brighton will rarely have easier afternoons away from the Amex than they encountered on Saturday in Newcastle.

Defensively, Brighton were excellent, with Lewis Dunk and Shane Duffy throwing themselves at everything but, in truth, they should have made the win more comfortable with the chances they had. Two consecutive wins in the Premier League is nothing to be sniffed at regardless. (Pete Hall)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Shane Duffy (45 points)

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Highlights from Brighton's 1-0 win at Newcastle in the Premier League.

Tottenham Hotspur: B-

It has been a strange start to the season for Tottenham. With seven wins from nine games, this is their best start to a Premier League campaign, while they have won their last four and haven't conceded in their last three.

Yet you still get the sense that Spurs are yet to click into gear. While grinding out victories is a positive sign, Mauricio Pochettino will be aware that on another afternoon, Spurs could have easily drawn or even lost this game.

Were it not for Hugo Lloris' heroics in goal, Spurs' winning run could have come to an end. As it was, they ended the day back in the top four. (Oliver Young-Myles)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Kieran Trippier (58 points)

Southampton: B-

Southampton stopped the rot to ease the pressure on Mark Hughes in a performance that showed he hasn't lost the dressing room, taking a point at in-form Bournemouth.

Saints have now gone four games without a Premier League goal, and it was their inability to convert chances into goals which reared its head once more.

Hughes was understandably pleased with how his side limited Bournemouth to so few chances of their own, and his game plan of turning this into a midfield battle was executed to the letter. Now he just needs to find someone who can score. (Benjamin Grounds)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (52 points)

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Bournemouth 0-0 Southampton

Man Utd: B-

For 55 minutes this was a relatively solid United, bar a defensive lapse by Paul Pogba to allow for Antonio Rudiger's opener.

They minimised the threat of Eden Hazard, despite his marker Ashley Young getting an early booking, and few could say they didn't deserve the 2-1 lead going into the final seconds.

Just how that last-gasp equaliser impacts them mentally will surely be evident over the next five games against Juventus, Everton, Bournemouth, Juventus again and Man City.

Two points dropped? Probably, but the seven-point gap between the two sides was not glaringly obvious at Stamford Bridge. (Gerard Brand)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Paul Pogba (49 points)

Everton: B-

For 87 minutes Everton looked short of ideas against a well-drilled and aggressive Crystal Palace, who missed a golden opportunity from the penalty spot. Palace's organised performance stifled Everton's attacking foursome of Theo Walcott, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Bernard and Richarlison but the introduction of Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Cenk Tosun and Ademola Lookman turned the game as they all had a part to play in the two late goals that handed Everton the points.

That's three Premier League wins on the spin for the Toffees - a record not to be sniffed at, but they'll need to step up their creativity to be a force under Marco Silva. (Lewis Jones)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Gylfi Sigurdsson (53 points)

Wolves: C

After a dazzling start to the season, Wolves came back down to earth with a big bump as the realities of the Premier League kicked in. After going down to two quick goals, they look devoid of ideas and really needed another body in midfield as Abdoulaye Doucoure and Etienne Capoue marshalled it with an iron fist.

The second half was an improvement, but Wolves' finishing left a lot to be desired and really, they only tested Ben Foster once in 90 minutes with one shot on target for Willy Boly. Despite naming the same XI for the ninth successive game, things did not click this week and there could be some changes this coming weekend. (Charlotte Marsh)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Rui Patricio (59 points)

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Wolves 0-2 Watford

Bournemouth: C

Eddie Howe named an unchanged side following the 4-0 trouncing of Watford, but he admitted before this tepid performance that the international break may have come at a bad time.

And so it proved as Bournemouth struggled to replicate the swash-buckling attacking displays that have been one of the highlights of the opening quarter of this Premier League season.

The Cherries collected a second straight clean sheet, which Howe highlighted as a positive, but that owed a lot to Southampton's poor finishing. (Benjamin Grounds)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Callum Wilson (56 points)

Huddersfield: C

David Wagner found himself cursing the old adage that luck evens itself out over the season. "If it's the case, then we're going to have a lot of luck in the next 29 games," Wagner said after their 1-0 defeat to Liverpool.

Fortune evaded Huddersfield against Liverpool, with Jonathan Hogg hitting the post before a James Milner handball inside the area went unpunished.

Defeat leaves Huddersfield without a win or home goal this season, and while they took Liverpool close, they still look short of inspiration up front. (Michael Hincks)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Philip Billing (35 points)

Crystal Palace: C

Roy Hodgson said he was sick of "being a loser" after watching his team go down for the sixth time in the last eight matches. However, despite his frustration, there were positives to take. Defensively, they were excellent for the majority and looked good value for at least a point with Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Mamadou Sakho especially dominant.

Wilfried Zaha ploughed a lone furrow up top but had little help from his supporting cast. A perfect example being Luka Milivojevic missing from the penalty spot, which was the obvious game-changing moment. (Lewis Jones)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Aaron Wan-Bissaka (49 points)

Chelsea: C-

Maurizio Sarri noted that his side got involved in the physical battle against Manchester United in the second half at Stamford Bridge, and came off second best. He was right.

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Chelsea 2-2 Man Utd

Chelsea allowed United to break all too frequently, after winning the ball high up the pitch, scoring their second by that very tactic.

The late equaliser was huge for morale and momentum, but when Eden Hazard was stopped, so to were the majority of Chelsea's threat. To add, N'Golo Kante's new position, higher up the pitch on the right, still raises question marks. (Gerard Brand)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Eden Hazard (90 points)

West Ham: C-

After making a disastrous start to the season by losing their first four games, West Ham bounced back to win two and draw one of their next three, securing positive results against Chelsea and Manchester United.

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West Ham 0-1 Tottenham

That feel-good factor has now been deflated following back-to-back defeats to Brighton and Spurs, either side of the international break. It wasn't a poor performance from West Ham, indeed they dominated for much of the second half.

Nevertheless, they ended up with nothing and a nasty looking injury to Andriy Yarmolenko capped a disappointing day overall. (Oliver Young-Myles)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Marko Arnautovic (44 points)

Burnley: D

Not many teams could live with Manchester City in this form. However, Sean Dyche's men were a little unfortunate with a couple of refereeing decisions that went against them. At 1-0, they still had a punchers chance on the counter as their defensive organisation was solid.

Yet, City had another gear to go through and tore apart a flagging Clarets in the final 30 minutes. Burnley's mini-revival of three games unbeaten hit the buffers but easier challenges than this lie ahead for Dyche's men. (Lewis Jones)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Joe Hart (44 points)

Newcastle: E

Things cannot get much worse for Rafael Benitez and Newcastle. For the first time, fans are starting to turn on the manager. Newcastle may have had 27 shots, but of those attempts, only a handful really troubled Brighton goalkeeper Mat Ryan.

There was a real lack of imagination in attack, and a fifth home defeat in a row was never really in doubt. January investment is a must, but whether Benitez will get the funds is a different issue. Their worst start to a top-flight season could be about to get a whole lot worse. (Pete Hall)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Martin Dubravka (30 points)

Fulham: F

Some of Fulham's defending in their 4-2 loss against Cardiff at the Cardiff City Stadium on Saturday was lamentable.

After shipping four goals, the west London club have now conceded a league-high 25 times this season, a worrying stat that boss Slavisa Jokanovic needs to address if his team are to avoid the drop.

But will the Serb be given the time though to fix those issues at the back? (Richard Morgan)

Sky Sports Fantasy Football's top points scorer: Alexsandar Mitrovic (56 points)

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