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Premier League grades: Alan McInally gives his verdict

Kevin De Bruyne celebrates with Nolito after scoring Manchester City's first goal
Image: Kevin De Bruyne celebrates with Nolito after scoring City's first goal in their 2-1 victory over United in the Manchester derby

Find out which teams impressed in week four of the Premier League, which saw City edge United in the Manchester derby and Tottenham put four past Stoke.

The time has come to see whether your club impressed, as domestic action returned after the international break.

We've asked Sky Sports pundit Alan McInally to give each side a grade, based purely on their performance at the weekend.

So, how did your side fare? Do they get a stunning A+, a woeful F, or something in between? Read on to find out...

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Manchester City - A

They are naturally one of the top teams in the country. They have a bank balance to die for and are shopping at the top of the market so you would expect them to be very good and, with their huge rivals across the city, it's just a plus for them that they have managed to win the game.

The power within the city is just swaying towards Manchester City at the moment so it's certainly a grade A, that's for sure, and I certainly think their fans would have been rather jubilant with getting one over their counterparts in United.

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Kevin De Bruyne celebrates with Nolito after scoring Manchester City's first goal
Image: Kevin De Bruyne celebrates with Nolito after scoring City's first goal in their 2-1 victory over United in the Manchester derby

Manchester United - C

I think by Jose Mourinho's own admission he probably thinks he got the starting line-up wrong and I think he came out and said after 20 minutes that he knew it wasn't working. He made changes to the team and they were a little better in the second half but they were a little off the pace and I think the manager knows they are still light in midfield.

I think United are pretty good, but defensively I don't think that Daley Blind is a centre-half; I think he's more of a midfield player. Certainly Eric Bailly looks very good. The goalkeeper is excellent but midfield is a problem for Mourinho and I think in January he will probably bring in another midfield player.

Obviously they spent around £90m on Paul Pogba but not even he can do it on his own and they'll be thinking they need to be much better in midfield. So, I would say it's only a C for Manchester United as they weren't really at it - something that is obviously exaggerated because the defeat was to their great rivals.

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Bournemouth - B

I think they were fantastic, I really do. It was a huge, huge win. There is no question that they have to win their games at home and they have, albeit by only one goal. It was lovely to see Callum Wilson getting a goal because he was out for such a huge part of last year.

Bournemouth have been more prominent in the news than ever, helped by Jack Wilshere's addition to the team. It's an added bonus for them and they have got to win the majority of their home games to stay in the league. I'll give them a B as I think Eddie Howe will be happy with the way things went.

West Brom - D

They are struggling badly and were certainly below average. There is a huge power struggle with the manager, who may not be particularly happy with the investment from the football club. It was a very poor result, not managing to score against Bournemouth.

I know they kept Saido Berahino and he started at the weekend but the team were way below average of how you need to be in the Premier League, unfortunately. They were not even average and they need to be better or they will be in this position at the end of the year which is going to be a real battle.

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Middlesbrough - C

I am delighted to see that they are back in the Premier League and they have done okay. Manager Aitor Karanka has been good so far but I'm only going to grade them a C as Crystal Palace, having struggled to score goals, scored two at the Riverside against them so it wasn't a particularly good performance by Middlesbrough.

I've got a soft spot for them and, I have no idea why, but I want them to do well but that was a bad result for them at the weekend. I really adore Steve Gibson for all of the reasons that you would expect. The multi-millionaire buys his team and backs his club and his manager constantly, almost blindly.

Crystal Palace - B

Alan Pardew was under huge pressure - as were the football club and players alike - but their performance was much better and I would grade them a B. They are getting their act together and I expect more for Palace with the likes of Yohan Cabaye, Jason Puncheon and Wilfried Zaha. I'd give them a B because there is certainly room for improvement and I expect more from Palace because I think Pardew is a good manager. 

I love the manager - he's a bit marmite but I really like him. His owner has backed him with the signing of Christian Benteke. He popped up with a goal for them and he's going to be so important if they are to stay in the league. Palace are one of the teams I like to watch, as they are quite entertaining.

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Stoke City - E 

I wouldn't want to give anyone a below-average rating but it's a grade E from me. As the game went on, Mark Hughes was hugely disappointed with a couple of decisions given on the pitch against them and I think the whole thing spiralled into chaos and calamity for Stoke. I didn't see them as a team that would ever concede four goals - I always thought that they were rock-solid defensively but that's not been the case this year and that's a big problem. They have players that are certainly good enough at the other end, but they are not scoring. Their start to the season has been disastrous and I think their next two games are very important. Points are needed - 100 per cent points are needed.

Tottenham - A

I was pleased to see Harry Kane get a goal. Whenever you go to anywhere like Stoke City you expect it will be difficult to score and they managed to get four goals which makes it a great performance. I think they will have the tools this year and the good manager to finish in the top four and if they don't, then I think it's going to disappoint the season. 

Harry Kane slots the ball past Shay Given to make it 4-0 to Tottenham
Image: Harry Kane slots the ball past Shay Given to make it 4-0 to Tottenham

Burnley - B

They were rubbish in the first half. The front two, Sam Vokes and Andre Gray, didn't quite get going but the second half was completely different. They were lucky, maybe, that Hull didn't take their chances - in the second half they looked as though they were going to sneak it and then obviously conceded late on. I think Sean Dyche has done an absolutely remarkable job. He's shopping in a market where he has to be careful with the money he has to spend. 

Can he bring in better quality than he already has? Their performance at the weekend was a B as I think Dyche will be disappointed with just a point, as he would have expected to win that game.

Hull City - B

They will be very happy. Mike will be smarting on the bus home that they didn't score three goals. But then again, a point away from home in the Premier League against Burnley who have, with the greatest respect, already beaten Liverpool at home, is good. The fact that Robert Snodgrass scored an equaliser in the 95th minute makes it a good performance and I thought they were very good. I thought Tom Huddlestone and Jake Livermore at the back were excellent.

I think his front players gave them as much as they could give in terms of going forward and they probably really should have sneaked the game. I will grade them a B because it is a point away from home. They were under a lot of pressure in the second half but just managed to hang on.

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West Ham - C

Terrible. To go 2-0 up against Watford, with Dimitri Payet and Manuel Lanzini back in the team, you should really win the game and close it out. Defensive mistakes cost them dearly and if they continue to do that, the new stadium will not be a happy place at all. They have got to do better. If they don't, there will be big problems at West Ham this year.

Watford - A*

Brilliant. Odion Ighalo and Troy Deeney are key. I know defensively they are going to have to be brilliant, but if those two are scoring goals then Watford will be safe. It was a wonderful performance. It shows a lot about their character to score four goals after being 2-0 down.

Jose Holebas of Watford celebrates scoring his sides fourth goal with his team-mates
Image: Watford's Jose Holebas netted his side's fourth goal as they beat West Ham 4-2

I think this was an A* performance because, to be staring defeat in the face and everyone expecting you to get beaten, the character of the team shows you what Watford are all about this year. Of all the games at the weekend, having been two goals down, this was the brilliant performance. 

Arsenal - C

Not good enough. I know it was a win but it wasn't good enough because we expect so much from Arsenal with the quality of the players they have got, yet it was  a controversial penalty that won them the game against Southampton. They should be having grade A or B performances every week. I know you're not always going to be able to play brilliantly but Arsenal, at home, should be dominating the game and they fell over the line. They were not particularly impressive at all.

Southampton - B

They will be gutted with the penalty decision. It looked as though it was going to be a wonderful away win by Southampton. They've got some really good players and it looked like they were at least going to get something. I thought they were better than they had been over the past couple of weeks. They will be fine, but they will be gutted that they didn't get something out of the game on Saturday 

Liverpool - A*

Jurgen Klopp is getting the best out of the team and they've got pace going forward. Roberto Firmino bagged a couple of goals and Adam Lallana scored. They were playing against the champions and simply wiped them off the pitch. There was a time that Leicester posed a little more in the way of problems for Liverpool than they had previously, but it never materialised into anything and Liverpool won the game quite easily. It was an A* performance for me - really, really good.

Liverpool's Adam Lallana (2ndR) scores his side's third goal of the game
Image: Adam Lallana scored Liverpool's third goal in their 4-1 win over Leicester City

Leicester City - C

They conceded four goals and it's a reminder that the Premier League is killing at times but they have got to be better and they really under performed. At the end of the day, they set the standards that they should play to and they didn't do that.

They are struggling to carry the champions tag. I don't think Claudio Ranieri's tactics have changed an awful lot - he's brought in some new players but N'Golo Kante is obviously going to be a massive miss which they are just going to have to deal with. The new players will have to try and hit the ground running. From all of a sudden being the underdogs, they are now going into games with much higher expectation and will be disappointed that they got battered. 

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Swansea City - A

This was a wonderful point for Swansea. At home against Chelsea it was a really good performance for them. You could say one of the goals was lucky but then again you take your luck. I think it's going to be a tough season for Swansea but if they can play with that kind of level of intensity against some of the big teams to pick up points, then they won't get pushed over easily.

Chelsea - B

Diego Costa got a couple of goals, excellent stuff. I would imagine Antonio Conte would be very disappointed they conceded two goals, but it's still a grade B performance and the only reason it wouldn't be an A is because they didn't manage to win the game. When you score two goals away from home you would expect to win and that wasn't the case for them.

I think they will challenge United and City more than people think, though, and they will be there or thereabouts by the end of the season. I think the manager is Class A and it's just one of those away results you have to suck in and dust yourself down from. 

SWANSEA, WALES - SEPTEMBER 11:  Chelsea forward Diego Costa (c) ncelebrates his second goal during the Premier League match between Swansea City and Chelse
Image: Diego Costa celebrates scoring his second goal, to rescue a point for Chelsea in their 2-2 draw with Swansea City

Do you agree with Alan McInally's grades? If you are reading on online let us know what you think, by leaving a comment below or tweeting us @SkyFootball.

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