Pre-season notebook: Premier League talking points from games so far
I have no issue in admitting that I've probably watched too much pre-season football.
The "let's switch off and refocus" period of 'recovery' lasted all of around four weeks, with my attention quite quickly turning towards the new season.
Results *cliche klaxon* DON'T MATTER at this stage of the year, but the performances sort of...do as we look at how teams are adjusting to potential new ways of playing.
Whether that be a change of system or a fresh role for a player, pre-season encounters give us some great insight into what we can expect for the upcoming season.
A note that this was originally published shortly after the Premier League's Summer Series was completed and any further updates are clearly outlined with the new date at the beginning.
Here are a few things that have caught the eye in pre-season.
No distractions for Kane
Monday August 7: The transfer talk has been dominated by Harry Kane's potential move to Bayern Munich in recent weeks.
Will he? Won't he? It's the saga that's been far from thrilling considering that we're talking about fee of around £100million. Tottenham's well-known tough negotiating tactics make it difficult to sign anyone, let alone their record scorer.
That talk has clearly had no impact on his performances on the pitch. He netted four in a 5-1 hammering of Shakhtar in north London on Sunday.
He clapped and waved to the crowd at the end though! That move to Bayern MUST BE HAPPENING! Ignore the fact I'm fairly sure he does that quite often at the end of games.
I've backed him to be the Premier League's top goalscorer and remain optimistic that he'll stay at the club. Kane has a superb ability to completely blank out the background noise.
Jackson impressive for Chelsea
A lot of the focus this season will be on Chelsea bouncing back to challenge in the top four. In the long-term, the aim will, of course, be the title, but for now they need to concentrate on returning to the Champions League.
A number of players have departed Stamford Bridge, and the incomings have been far slower than what we saw following Todd Boehly's takeover last season. They have bolstered their front line though.
One of those names is Nicolas Jackson from Villarreal. The very early stages look promising based on performances in the semi-competitive Premier League Summer Series - a tournament which Chelsea won.
It looks as if he'll be the club's starting striker, with Christopher Nkunku's flexibility across the forward positions allowing him to play elsewhere. We'd expect to see the latter operating slightly behind Jackson.
Jackson finished the series with two goals and two assists despite coming on in the 63rd minute against Brighton and only playing a half in each of the games against Fulham and Newcastle.
The Senegal striker looks a nice fit for this Chelsea side under Mauricio Pochettino, with his ability to run with the ball sitting well alongside the direct goal involvement.
A word on Nkunku, too, who managed to find the net in wins over Brighton and Chelsea.
Maatsen in as a winger?
Staying with Chelsea, briefly, and a word on Ian Maatsen who enjoyed a very successful loan spell at Burnley last season.
He scored four goals and assisted a further six while featuring at left-back for the Clarets. Yet despite naturally being a defender, he has been playing in an attacking role during Chelsea's games so far.
Maatsen netted two against Wrexham and followed that up by assisting Jackson's goal against Newcastle. Given the club's hefty number of left-backs on the books, he may continue featuring as a winger or as a potential no.10.
The attacking wide positions are one slight area of concern for Chelsea, and Maatsen's potential to play there in the Premier League is backed up by his new boss' post-match comments.
"I am so happy with him," Pochettino said recently. "He is a player that can play in different positions. He has quality, he understands the game, and he is such a clever player.
"So far, he is in my plan, yes."
Bournemouth adjusting to the new system
A team I'm willing to gamble on this season is Bournemouth, with the appointment of Andoni Iraola a particularly impressive one when we consider his achievements at Rayo Vallecano.
Look, they are third-favourites for relegation and that's one of three reasons why you can't tweet me at the end of the season if my bold prediction backfires. The other two being it's not called tweeting anymore and who knows what social media will actually be like in May.
The Cherries have the potential to steer well clear of relegation trouble, and the early signs in pre-season - particularly when out of possession - are encouraging.
Take the below goal against Southampton:
Rayo Vallecano's aggressive pressing style is outlined in that statistic mentioned: Bayern Munich (73) were the only side to force more high turnovers that produced a shot than Iraola's Vallecano (68) in Europe's big five leagues last season.
By comparison, Bournemouth last season had 36 shot-ending turnovers, with four of those resulting in goals. Only Nottingham Forest (16.6) and West Ham (16.2) had a higher PPDA (opponent passes per defensive action) figure than the Cherries (15.7).
Vallecano finished the La Liga campaign with 9.5 PPDA, the third-lowest in Spain's top-flight (the lower the figure, the more an intense pressing style, in general).
It basically means we can expect to see a far more aggressive Bournemouth side out of possession and, based on that goal above, the players already understand that.
Forest's issues in front of goal
Monday August 7: As with any pre-season result, you need to exercise some caution when trying to draw conclusions.
One thing that has caught my eye from Nottingham Forest though - Steve Cooper's side have really struggled to score.
They finished their pre-season campaign without hitting the net across any of their final four games. Saturday's trip to the Deutsche Bank Park for their 0-0 draw with Eintracht Frankfurt delivered a single shot on target.
Taiwo Awoniyi's absence will have played a part as he's been missing from the last three, but it's a concerning sign with a trip to Arsenal and more crucially a home contest with Sheffield United to come after.
The Diaby/Watkins pairing
Moussa Diaby is a particularly impressive signing for a strong-looking Aston Villa side, and his performances during the Premier League's Summer Series offer encouragement.
What was eye-catching is how central he was during the 3-3 draw with Brentford - forming a strike partnership with Ollie Watkins rather than the expected 4-3-3 formation.
Pau Torres, Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa created a back-three in possession which allowed Matty Cash to drive forward from right-back. He struck from close range in the first-half.
Diaby scored Villa's second goal to make it consecutive games where he has hit the net. A terrific start to life at the club with a big season expected from Unai Emery's side - they can challenge to be the best of the rest.
The 24-year-old's ability to play in a variety of forward positions is beneficial to a side attacking in a 3-2-5 formation at times. Fluidity is key and a central partnership between the pair looks set to stay.
They should continue doing this throughout the course of the campaign, and Diaby may be a £6.5million midfield value option if you're an avid Fantasy Premier League player.
Of course, what impact this will have on Watkins remains to be seen, but this system in possession should only serve to benefit his chances of scoring goals.
Keep in mind that Alex Moreno's attack-minded approach from left-back may also see the system shuffled the other way when he returns from injury.
Spot kick issues?
Friday August 4: Adding in one here after Villa's comfortable 3-0 win over Lazio on Thursday.
Can you call it a 'trend' if you spot something? I'm not entirely sure, but exercise some caution when it comes to backing the usual penalty takers to score in the early exchanges of the new season.
Watkins failed to convert from the spot in the 14th minute, making him one of a couple of usual takers who haven't scored from this situation this week.
The other was Arsenal's Bukayo Saka, who pulled his low spot kick wide against Barcelona. Whether this forces some managers into a rethink remains to be seen.
Monday August 7: Further update. Saka scored his penalty in the Community Shield shootout win over City, so, what were you worried about?
Stay onside, Yoane!
A point for the stats bettors among you (I am also one).
Yoane Wissa is likely to line up in Ivan Toney's absence for Brentford - the forward featured in all 38 Premier League games last season with 16 of those being starts.
His final three were all as the centre forward and he should continue there, whether part of a front three or in a pairing with Bryan Mbeumo.
One thing stood out to me from that Summer Series - he often drifts into offside positions.
Wissa finished last season with an average of 0.5 offsides per league game, and that figure should only increase given his starts in a central role.
Four of his previous five league outings as a centre forward saw him caught offside at least once, with a huge total of four coming in the home win over Liverpool back in January.
Keep an eye on the lines in this betting market, particularly in the early stages of the new campaign.