Premier League: 10 talking points from this weekend’s action - two

6) Why did McClaren’s transfer binge bypass the defence?

Even if an individual error led to Chelsea’s second goal, it was hard not to have a bit of sympathy for Rolando Aarons, Newcastle’s 20-year-old winger asked to fill in at left-back and mark Willian at Stamford Bridge. Steve McClaren certainly felt bad for Aarons – “he is only a young lad and needs more experience” – but the manager must accept the blame for putting the player there in the first place. He spent £30m on upgrading his squad last month, passing the £80m mark when you include last summer’s window, but neglected to strengthen defensively. The two teams either side of them in the table, Norwich and Sunderland, brought in defenders last month. They are also the only two sides to concede more than Newcastle but have at least sought to remedy a glaring problem. Instead McClaren signed attacking midfielders and failed to attract a striker. “Coming to Chelsea it was not the ideal back four you would need in terms of stability,” McClaren said, having also given Steven Taylor his second appearance in seven months. Newcastle’s fortnight off will allow plenty of time for reflection. At the end of the season he might be looking back and thinking his failure to tighten the defence led to relegation. 

7) Martínez needs to change his mind over misunderstood Mirallas

There are times when Roberto Martínez seems to have too many options. A goal down, chasing the game and with no injuries to alter his planning, the Spaniard still did not introduce the underused Kevin Mirallas. If bringing on the catalytic Gerard Deulofeu made sense and plumping for the clever Leon Osman represented a worthwhile gamble, the decision to use the sadly hapless Arouna Koné instead of Mirallas backfired. The Belgian has not had enough game time this season; Steven Naismith, scorer of September’s hat-trick against Chelsea, could have made the same complaint before he decamped to Norwich. Mirallas has started only four league games this season, even though the left-wing spot has been shared between Koné and Tom Cleverley, who would both rather operate elsewhere. The Englishman had been in fine form of late and his selection against Albion was understandable, but it is worth remembering how potent Mirallas proved in his first two seasons at Goodison, when he scored 14 goals in 51 league starts and had a habit of excelling against elite opponents. If he continues to be marginalised, the probability is that a real talent will look for a summer move.

8) Bolasie is showing his worth to Palace, from the sidelines

Midfielder

Yannick Bolasie

Appearances

16

Goals

4

Shots

39

Shots on target

44%

Offsides

12

Has a player’s value ever increased without him playing as much as Yannick Bolasie’s in the last eight weeks? The DR Congo forward has been sidelined with a back injury since Crystal Palace won at Stoke on 19 December to move up to 29 points in the Premier League – level with Manchester United and Tottenham. Nine games on and Alan Pardew’s side have picked up only three draws and now look a shadow of the side who looked capable of mounting a challenge for the upper echelons of the table. No wonder the manager was eager to report that Bolasie is close to returning after Saturday’s disappointing home defeat to Watford. Having valued him at a barely credible £40m last year, Pardew was unwilling to speculate how much it would take to lure the mercurial winger away from Selhurst Park these days. The loss of midfielder James McArthur until the end of the season has also removed a key component of the team’s spine and the club captain, Mile Jedinak, has so far struggled to fill the void. The central defender Damien Delaney has also showed signs that the years are finally catching up with him. Even with Bolasie back in contention to face Tottenham on Sunday in the FA Cup, Pardew must find a way to turn things around quickly or he could risk being dragged into a relegation dogfight.

9) Bournemouth need new ideas and Murray might be a good one

Bournemouth looked short of ideas at times against a Stoke team overflowing with creativity. The Bournemouth striker Benik Afobe was painfully isolated and, despite investment last summer and in January, Eddie Howe’s side lacked a meaningful Plan B. While Joshua King and Matt Ritchie were dangerous off the bench, Bournemouth were limited to few clear-cut chances. Glenn Murray may have been a useful alternative but the former Crystal Palace striker is out of favour at Dean Court and was left out of the matchday squad altogether. Juan Iturbe has scored consecutive hat-tricks for the development squad but still appears extremely raw. Bournemouth’s task was, though, made slightly easier once the Stoke defender Marc Muniesa left Philipp Wollscheid’s side through injury at the interval. Nothing should be taken away from Stoke, though, who hunted in packs and left Bournemouth rather flummoxed.

10) Saints show the joys of meanness

Southampton fans may have wondered what 2016 had in store after January began with an early FA Cup exit and a 1-0 defeat at Norwich that left the Saints looking over their shoulders, just a point above their conquerors at Carrow Road. Six weeks on and the picture looks infinitely brighter; they’ve won five and drawn one in the league, with Alex Tettey’s winner for Norwich the last league goal they conceded. With Fraser Forster imperious on his return from injury and a settled defence in front of him, Ronald Koeman even felt confident enough to change things against Swansea by switching to a back three that allowed greater width and foiled Swansea’s plan to dominate possession in midfield. José Fonte was immaculate as a defensive pivot, finding a team-mate with every forward pass, while a foray upfield from Cédric Soares, deployed as a right wing-back, set up Shane Long’s winning goal. The multiple benefits of a sturdy defence in this helter-skelter league are reflected in the league table as Southampton now find themselves in the top six, and climbing.