The Premier League weekend delivered a string of landmarks that stretched from the touchline to the penalty area, as Unai Emery reached a century of league wins, Enzo Maresca set a new benchmark for a manager’s opening run, Erling Haaland rewrote the scoring charts, Brighton extended a scoring streak that few clubs have matched, and Chelsea finally ended a clean-sheet drought that had lingered since January.
Emery reaches 100 wins
Aston Villa beat Newcastle United 1-0 on 17 October 2026, and the result handed Unai Emery his 100th Premier League victory, a milestone that began on 25 August 2018, when his Arsenal side beat West Ham United 3-1 for his first win in the competition. Emery has collected those wins across two clubs and more than eight years, and he marked the century by grinding out a narrow away victory that showed the same discipline his teams have displayed since his first success.
Maresca makes history at Manchester City
Enzo Maresca has now led Manchester City to seven straight Premier League wins, the best start any manager has produced in the competition’s history. The run shows how quickly his players have absorbed his ideas, and it gives City an early cushion that their rivals will struggle to erase.
Haaland reaches 100 non-penalty goals
Erling Haaland also entered the record books by becoming the fastest player in competition history to reach 100 non-penalty goals, a total he reached in only 139 appearances. The mark highlights his consistency in open play, because penalties contributed nothing to the count.
Brighton keep scoring
Brighton have won six matches in a row and scored 22 goals along the way, a return that shows how freely their attackers have played throughout the sequence. The run has turned a promising campaign into a serious push up the table, and it hands every upcoming opponent a difficult problem to solve.
Neto double ends Chelsea’s long wait
The most dramatic record of the weekend arrived at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, where Pedro Neto scored twice as Chelsea beat Everton 2-0 and ended a 23-game wait for a Premier League clean sheet, their first in the league since January. The result also ended Everton’s unbeaten run and lifted Chelsea into fourth place, while the home side lost in front of a crowd of 52,271.
The first half brought plenty of effort but little reward for either team, as Jordan Pickford saved Cole Palmer’s early shot, Emiliano Martinez tipped Jack Grealish’s volley over the bar, and Everton blocked or smothered nearly every Chelsea attack. Chelsea came closest just before the break, when Moises Caicedo volleyed Jordan Henderson’s corner against the crossbar and Harrison Armstrong cleared Maxence Lacroix’s header off the line.
Neto broke the deadlock only 43 seconds after the restart, when Morgan Rogers backheeled a pass to Jorrel Hato, who beat Ainsley Maitland-Niles and crossed for the unmarked winger to sweep a finish past Pickford.
That early goal also set a club mark, because Chelsea have now scored three goals in the opening minute of a half this season, which equals their best single-season tally from 2011-12.
Chelsea pushed for a second and created several chances, though Rogers shot into a block and Palmer chipped over the bar. The match then changed course when Martinez collided with Jarrad Branthwaite and Thierno Barry while clearing a free-kick, and after ten minutes of treatment Mike Penders replaced him and made his Premier League debut.
Penders punched a dangerous cross clear, and Chelsea’s defenders held firm as Palmer found Joao Pedro on the break and Pickford saved.
Neto sealed the win just before full-time, when he waited for space after Henderson’s free-kick hit the wall and rolled the loose ball into the corner. Chelsea then survived 11 added minutes to protect the shutout, with Lacroix and Levi Colwill leading a defensive effort that finally ended a year of struggles at the back.
The victory also gave Chelsea their first win over Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium and rewarded Xabi Alonso for asking his players to match Everton’s intensity. Alonso made only one change from the side that beat Bournemouth, bringing in Hato at left-back for the injured Pep Chavarria, and Hato earned praise for a display that included the assist for the opening goal.
Chelsea now host Tottenham at Stamford Bridge next Saturday, 24 October, at 5:30pm, where they will try to carry their new defensive form into another big test.
