Liverpool stay perfect, Chelsea show weakness and Manchester United pay for poor attitude - five things we learned from the Premier League this weekend

Jurgen Klopp's men brushed aside Southampton at Anfield to go clear at the top of the table

Liverpool surged clear at the top of the Premier League table after a convincing 3-0 home win over Southampton maintained their perfect start to the season, while a disappointing away draw against West Ham saw previous leaders Chelsea drop their first points of the new campaign.

Defending champions Manchester City delivered another ominous show of strength in a 5-0 away demolition of struggling Cardiff City but there were more problems for Jose Mourinho and Manchester United, who were held 1-1 by Wolves at Old Trafford to fall eight points off the pace.

It was a better weekend for Mauricio Pochettino, however, as Tottenham Hotspur ended a run of three straight defeats in all competitions with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Brighton.

At the other end of the table Newcastle United, Huddersfield Town and Cardiff all remain winless after their first six matches of the season.

Here are five things we learned from another action-packed Premier League weekend:

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Liverpool on-song but tougher tests await

After dramatically edging out Paris Saint-Germain in a heavyweight Champions League encounter in midweek, Liverpool could have been forgiven if they were not firing on all cylinders when Southampton came to Anfield. Southampton were looking to capitalise on a European hangover; instead they were thoroughly outclassed as the Reds ran out 3-0 winners, the game over as a contest before half-time.

The definitive test of their title aspirations is approaching, though, with a trip to Chelsea next week followed by champions Manchester City travelling to Merseyside. In between is a visit to Napoli in the Champions League. It’s certainly a tricky run but if that does not derail them, what will stop the Liverpool juggernaut?

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Chelsea fail to fire

The Blues have been going about their business in a rather understated way under new head coach Maurizio Sarri, but were matching Liverpool blow for blow until this weekend. West Ham took four points off the Blues last season and frustrated them again in a goalless draw on Sunday.

Indeed, only the poor finishing of Michail Antonio and Andriy Yarmolenko spared Chelsea from another demoralising defeat at the London Stadium. It is their first setback under Sarri but, with a resurgent Liverpool arriving at Stamford Bridge next week, they have no time to dwell on a bad day at the office. How they respond could define their season.

Jose Mourinho was disappointed by with the attitude of his players (Getty)

United have an attitude problem

Manchester United looked to have turned a corner after bouncing back from their humbling against Tottenham with wins at Burnley and Watford.

But they delivered another disjointed display against Wolves and only some vital interventions from the formidable David De Gea spared them a second home defeat in succession as they settled for a 1-1 draw on Sir Alex Ferguson's emotional return to Old Trafford.

Jose Mourinho, not for the first time this season, lamented his side's desire and believes they can learn a thing or two from Wolves' wholehearted approach, saying: "[Wolves] play like I like to play which is like the World Cup final. That's the attitude I like my teams to have every match. We didn't have that, they did."

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Burnley are up and running

Sean Dyche admitted there was a "nervousness" at Burnley after four straight defeats and only one point from their opening five games – their worst start to a top-flight campaign for nearly a century.

However, they ended their barren run in some style, cruising to a 4-0 victory over a Bournemouth side that sat in the top-five before this weekend's fixtures. It was a timely confidence boost as lowly Cardiff City and Huddersfield Town are their next two opponents.

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Cardiff badly need a win

Neil Warnock took a pragmatic view in light of Cardiff succumbing to their third successive defeat. The veteran manager was correct in his assessment that Saturday’s 5-0 setback against Manchester City will not decide their top-flight fate.

But they have failed to advance their cause this month - albeit following an undesirable run of fixtures against Arsenal, Chelsea and City - and next week's clash against Burnley is already looking like a hugely important fixture in the developing Premier League relegation battle.