Five things we learned from the Premier League weekend

1. Tottenham show their spirit in Anfield fightback

In a confusing, controversial ending, saying Tottenham earned a point at Anfield is debateable in one respect. Erik Lamela certainly took the opportunity to go to ground when Virgil Van Dijk challenged. It perhaps should not have been a penalty, though Harry Kane converted it well to record his 100th Premier League goal and to keep Spurs within two points of Liverpool.

AS IT HAPPENED: Liverpool v Tottenham

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Yet Tottenham did merit a reward for their comeback at Anfield. They trailed twice. They rallied in the game’s final quarter. Mauricio Pochettino made influential substitutions, sending on Victor Wanyama to score a superlative leveller and Lamela to procure that dubious penalty.

Kane showed the mental strength to score from 12 yards after being denied by Loris Karius minutes earlier. Their full-backs emerged as attacking forces after the break and, after eviscerating Manchester United on Wednesday, Spurs showed other qualities to ensure they secured a four-point haul from two tough games.

2. Karius just about justifies Klopp’s faith

The goalkeeping debate at Anfield will not go away. Had their 2-2 draw with Tottenham been halted at various points, different conclusions could have been drawn. In the end, Loris Karius had a mixed afternoon but probably did enough to suggest Jurgen Klopp is correct to think he is a superior option to Simon Mignolet at the moment. On the plus side, there was a fine stop from Heung-Min Son when the South Korean was through on goal. There was an excellent penalty save when Kane tried to chip him from 12 yards.

On the negative, the German had conceded that penalty himself. He could be blamed for Wanyama’s goal, punching Christian Eriksen’s cross towards the Kenyan, though Emre Can still missed a chance to clear and the resulting shot was unstoppable. The irony was that Karius had barely saved anything in victories over Arsenal and Manchester City. He was busier and better, though certainly not flawless, against Tottenham and Liverpool still only drew.

3. Pogba joins the list of stars Mourinho has dropped.

Jose Mourinho claimed his decision to drop Paul Pogba against Huddersfield was not a punishment. Perhaps he meant it, too. There is a case for arguing that the Manchester United manager overplayed his record last season. It should also be the sort of game, at home to an out-of-form relegation-threatened team, when United ought to be able to win without him and, as it happened, they prevailed 2-0 with Pogba limited to a cameo.

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Equally, it was significant that Mourinho, who hardly ever substitutes Pogba, removed him with half an hour remaining after a performance of tactical indiscipline to allow Tottenham to run the midfield at Wembley on Wednesday. As players as different as Bastian Schweinsteiger, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Luke Shaw and Anthony Martial can testify, Mourinho is no stranger to delivering a message in pointed fashion on the teamsheet. Unlike some of theirs, Pogba’s exile will probably be a temporary affair but others can warn of the consequences if Mourinho feels lessons are not learned and instructions are not ordered.

4. Ramsey and Mkhitaryan combine superbly.

Perhaps the most significant part of Arsenal’s 5-1 rout of Everton was Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s first goal for his new club, despite the reality it should have been disallowed for offside. Perhaps the most impressive was Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s trio of assists on his full debut, the first time an Arsenal player had fashioned three goals in a league game for almost five years. The Armenian had not made a top-flight goal for Manchester United since August. In 90 minutes, Arsene Wenger got more from Mkhitaryan than Jose Mourinho had in months.

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And yet, amid the focus on the new signings, it was notable that Aaron Ramsey scored the first hat-trick of his career. If Mkhitaryan is unlikely to be as prolific as the departed Alexis Sanchez, the Welshman could help compensate. Ramsey’s most prolific season came in 2013-14, when he scored 16 goals in a side that featured twin creators, in Santi Cazorla and Mesut Ozil. Injury problems, whether his or the Spaniard’s, have meant he has rarely been a regular in central midfield and in a side with such selfless players since. A supply line of Ozil and Mkhitaryan has the potential to be perfect for Ramsey.

5. Mangala endures a dreadful debut for Everton.

The bare facts are that Manchester City only conceded two goals in 483 minutes of Premier League football that Eliaquim Mangala played this season. “Defensively, he is a top, top, top player,” said Pep Guardiola on Tuesday. The Frenchman did not look it on his Everton debut: his side were breached four times in 37 minutes and five in all.

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Mangala tried to clear with the wrong foot when Ramsey scored the opener. He lost Laurent Koscielny when his compatriot scored the second. He got the deflection that took Ramsey’s shot in for Arsenal’s third goal. Mangala was far from the only culprit – Sam Allardyce seemed to deem Michael Keane, who he substituted at half-time, still worse, while the manager was at fault for playing a back five – but it ranked as a disastrous debut. Mangala had done well for City in a bit-part role, albeit surrounded by better players in a more confident side, but this was a reminder that when he is bad, he is genuinely awful.