Five things we learned from the weekend's Premier League & EFL football

1 Blues look top-four certainties

Expectations of Chelsea's first season under Frank Lampard were fairly modest but the Blues have won their last five games and firmly established themselves among the Premier League's top four.

Before a ball was kicked there were concerns as to how Chelsea would react to the departure of Eden Hazard.

The ongoing transfer embargo meant they were unable to buy a replacement but Lampard put his trust in several of the club's younger players and he has been richly rewarded.

Fikayo Tomori, Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham caught the eye again during Chelsea's 2-1 success at Watford on Saturday which was far more comfortable than the scoreline suggests.

But Lampard is also getting a tune out of some of the senior pros – notably midfielders Mateo Kovacic and Jorginho, who passed the Hornets into submission.

Chelsea's success in Hertfordshire opened up a six-point cushion to fifth-placed Arsenal and, given the upward trend in performance, it would be a major surprise if they were not playing Champions League football again next season.

2 United set for winter of discontent

Every Manchester United defeat seems to be accompanied by calls for a change of manager but the 1-0 loss at Bournemouth showed there are much bigger problems to solve than the inadequacies of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The Norwegian was lucky to get the United job given the lack of depth to his management CV but he bears very little responsibility for the sub-standard squad assembled in recent years.

United teams used to strike fear into opponents with their attacking intent and quality but that is no longer the case and it will take a major overhaul to get them challenging again.

Making substantial changes in January is always difficult so United may have to bide their time and wait until next summer to target a more qualified manager and better players.

3 Neil deserves to be hot property

Sky Bet Championship basement boys Stoke are reportedly keen on prising hot managerial property Alex Neil away from second-tier leaders Preston and it is easy to see why.

At the age of 38, Neil is one of the youngest managers in the EFL but he already has a promotion under his belt – steering Norwich to the Premier League in 2015 – and has worked wonders with Preston, who are punching considerably above their weight.

North End climbed to the top of the Championship by winning 1-0 at Charlton on Sunday and they are desperate to keep hold of Neil, who may soon be attracting the interest of Premier League owners.

4 Injuries threaten Oxford progress

Oxford extended their unbeaten run to 12 games after Matty Taylor's injury-time goal rescued a 1-1 draw at Portsmouth on Saturday but their increasing injury list threatens to derail their push for promotion.

Influential midfielder Cameron Brannagan (knee) and regular right-back Chris Cadden (hamstring) were crocked during the recent home win over Rochdale and left-back Josh Ruffels (thigh) was a casualty of the draw against Portsmouth, leaving the fray after 41 minutes.

Longer-term absentees Ben Woodburn (foot) and George Thorne (shoulder) missed out at the weekend and manager Karl Robinson will be keeping his fingers crossed that his walking wounded can recover as quickly as possible.

5 Markets may have misjudged Forest Green

Forest Green climbed to the top of the League Two standings after winning 2-1 at promotion rivals Cheltenham on Saturday yet they are still sixth in the fourth-tier title betting.

There is a long way to go in the season and the top of the table is congested with just six points covering the top ten teams.

However, Rovers have the best defensive record in the division, were worthy winners at Cheltenham, and may deserve a little more respect from the layers.

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