The Premier League is back after the last international break of 2024 (rejoice!), and the standout result of Week 12 came from the north-west.

Reigning league champions Manchester City succumbed to a 4-0 thrashing from Tottenham Hotspur, marking their third consecutive defeat and putting the Citizens eight points off league leaders Liverpool.

For the first time in years, Pep Guardiola's side can be described as "beatable." But what word best describes the other 19 teams in England's top flight? You'll have to read on to find out.

Do you have a better word to describe your favorite team's form? Drop your suggestion in the comments section.

Arsenal: Regressing

Things haven't quite gone to plan for Arsenal in the 2024-25 season. After running Manchester City to the final matchday in the hunt for the 2023-24 Premier League title, eventually finishing as runners-up, the Gunners have taken a step back.

After drawing only five games during the previous campaign, the north Londoners have already recorded four stalemates, and not even a third of their matches have been played.

Injuries, poor discipline, and a possible hangover from last season's efforts could all be reasons for the team's relative lack of success this term. With the team already trailing the league leaders by nine points, a title challenge is already out of the question.

Mikel Arteta will be hoping to steady the ship to make sure the season doesn't end with a whimper.

Aston Villa: Resilient

Aston Villa keep digging themselves holes, proving themselves to be accomplished escapologists.

The 11 points the Villans have earned from a losing position is the second-best total in the league behind only Manchester City (13). With the West Midlands side only picking up 19 points this season so far, their resilience has been vital.

It was always going to be tricky for Villa to match their form from last season with European games expanding the schedule and putting extra strain on the squad. Sitting in eighth might seem like a step back from last season's four-place finish, but when you notice that only four points separate them from Manchester City in second, things don't seem so bad.

The fans might appreciate a little less anxiety every weekend, though.

Bournemouth: Steady

Bournemouth has one of the smallest budgets of all Premier League clubs, but the club is punching above its weight.

The Cherries sit comfortably in mid-table with four wins from 12, and they have impressive victories against Arsenal and Manchester City. They just can't seem to match those performance levels against clubs on a similar level to them.

Andoni Iraola continues to do a lot with a little on the South Coast, and it's difficult to argue with what he's been able to coax from the team in big moments. But it's those points against mid-table sides that will make the difference between a serene end to the season and the choppy waters of a relegation fight.

Brentford: Homebodies

Things weren't looking great for Brentford heading into this season. They were in a relegation battle for much of the previous campaign, and their best player, Ivan Toney, made himself unavailable to the squad until he sealed a move to the Saudi Pro League.

Of course, the Bees had to deal without Toney for much of the season as he served an eight-month ban for breaking the Football Association's rules relating to gambling, and he wasn't much help when he did return to the field, but it was a notable blow for the club after a difficult year.

But Brentford have surprised many this season and sit in 11th place thanks to five victories (the same number as Aston Villa and one short of Arsenal, Spurs and Chelsea), with Bryan Mbeumo stepping up to fill the Toney-shaped void.

Those wins have all come at home, though, with the Bees losing all but one of their six games on the road—they earned a 0-0 draw against Everton in Week 12.

The Gtech Community Stadium is providing plenty of home comforts, but Brentford will need to remedy their travel sickness if they want to push for the top 10.

Brighton & Hove Albion: Likeable

Is there a more likable team in the Premier League than Brighton & Hove Albion?

The Seagulls have steadily improved season after season despite significant turnover in the playing department and the dugout. The board's smart decision-making certainly deserves a lot of credit.

Sitting in fifth, level on points with Arsenal and Chelsea, the south-coast side is once again reveling in proving doubters wrong with a squad that has plenty of players who could be sold for a significant profit in the years to come.

A return to European football looks extremely likely for the soaring Seagulls next season.

Chelsea: Stable

Chelsea has been a laughing stock for much of the last few seasons, but some astute ringmastering from Enzo Maresca has steadied things at Stamford Bridge, and—whisper it quietly—it all might finally be starting to work out.

The Blues sit in third after 12 games, losing just twice—to Manchester City and Liverpool—in league play so far. Draws against Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace might be disappointing, but by the same stage last year, they were in 10th after four wins, four draws and four losses.

Some surprising stability has at least quietened the laughter, but there's a long way to go to ensure the circus has left town.

Crystal Palace: Infuriating

Crystal Palace's scintillating form from the end of last season now looks like a long, long time ago.

The Eagles simply haven't maintained that momentum going into 2024-25 and their inability to hold on to a lead is so frustrating.

Only bottom-of-the-table Southampton (four) have picked up fewer points from winning positions than Crystal Palace (five) this term, and one win from 12 is a seriously poor record.

Things could change for the south Londoners if they can rediscover that winning mentality, but with every week that passes, they are looking more and more likely to be fighting a relegation battle by season's end.

Everton: Stubborn

In the dictionary, the word "stubborn" is followed by a picture of Sean Dyche.

The 53-year-old has a preferred style of play, and he's sticking to it. For a club that needs to survive before new investors take over, that's perhaps not the worst thing in the world.

However, for one of the most famous clubs in English football—which boasts a loyal and vocal fanbase—that's simply not good enough.

Points deductions don't seem to be on the horizon this term, so the fight against relegation shouldn't be as tough in 2023-24. But with just two wins out of 12 so far, the Toffees need to quickly separate themselves from the bottom-dwellers before anxiety sets in.

Fulham: Surprising

Fulham has been one of the Premier League's surprise packages this season.

The Cottagers have picked up five wins to sit in 10th so far, playing some excellent football along the way.

Some smart transfer additions have helped the west Londoners step up a gear from last season, and the signing of Emile Smith-Rowe is already looking like sensational business.

But, in another surprising twist, they were thrashed by Wolverhampton Wanderers 4-1 at home in Week 12, with the West Midlanders picking up just their second win of the season.

Not all surprises are good, it seems.

Ipswich: Unfortunate

No team in the Premier League has more draws (six) than Ipswich Town this season. For a club tipped to go straight back down to the Championship, the Tractor Boys have been tough to beat.

Picking up a point against Brighton, Aston Villa and Manchester United, respectively, is no doubt impressive, while the 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur was sensational.

But if they could just go that extra mile and turn some of those stalemates into victories, they have every chance of surviving the drop. Even half of those draws becoming wins would have seen them comfortably in mid-table by now.

Leicester City: Messy

Leicester City sacked manager Steve Cooper after Week 12's 2-1 defeat to Chelsea, which seems harsh.

However, the former Nottingham Forest boss never quite earned the love of a team that was once his former club's local rivals, while unrest behind the scenes, reported by the Guardian, hasn't helped matters. Going from the enterprising style of Enzo Maresca to the more pragmatic Cooper was tough to adjust to.

The club sit 16th in the Premier League with just two wins from 12. The Foxes have conceded the third most goals in the league (23), and despite finding the net in every game but one, they have also squandered a lot of excellent chances.

An early managerial change gives the club plenty of time to turn things around. However, it's a big gamble, and Cooper did have experience of keeping a club in the top flight.

Liverpool: Controlled

After the "heavy-metal football" years of Jürgen Klopp, it seems like Arne Slot has replaced the guitars for violins at Liverpool as he conducts a well-tuned orchestra—although Week 12's 3-2 victory against Southampton was a little more like jazz.

Admittedly, the Reds aren't nearly as fun to watch as they were under the German's tutelage, but you simply can't argue with results. They are top of the league—and top of the Champions League—and eight points clear of their nearest domestic rivals.

The Merseysiders are the only team to have conceded in the single digits (8), and they've won 10 of their 12 contests.

Defensive solidity, maintaining possession and effective game management are the pillars on which Liverpool's success has been built, but Mohamed Salah has also looked rejuvenated.

The Egyptian scored 18 in Klopp's final year, the fewest he's scored in a Premier League campaign for Liverpool, at a rate of one goal every 2.1 games. This season, he's bagged 10 in 12 games at a rate of one goal every 1.2 games. If he keeps this up the whole season, he'll finish on 31.

Things look pretty rosy for the Reds at present, and after a slight wobble against Saints, that control must return if they are to hold off the likely charges from Manchester City and Arsenal.

Manchester City: Beatable

For the first time in years, Manchester City look genuinely beatable—and that was exemplified by Week 12's 4-0 thrashing at home to Tottenham Hotspur.

The loss of Rodri for the season because of an ACL injury has started to show, with the Citizens on a run of five straight defeats in all competitions, including their last three Premier League games.

In the six games before then, they earned one-goal victories over Brentford, Fulham, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Southampton (conceding four in the process) and could only draw with Arsenal and Newcastle United.

City are conceding at a higher rate than they did last season (one goal every 1.1 games in 2023-24 compared to one goal every 0.7 games in 2024-25) and aren't scoring as many (one goal every 0.4 games in 2023-24 compared to one goal every 0.5 games in 2024-25).

But it's that fragility in midfield and the lack of an alternative to the (albeit prolific) Erling Haaland that is really scuppering City as they seek their fifth consecutive league title. The last team to win it, Liverpool, look like the most likely team to steal the crown this season.

Manchester United: Toothless

After just two minutes of Ruben Amorim's Old Trafford reign, Marcus Rashford put Manchester United 1-0 up against Ipswich Town—marking just his second goal of the season.

It looked like things were immediately set to get better after the dreariness of Erik ten Hag's tenure. But that's about as good as things got.

United ended up drawing 1-1 to the league's 18th-placed team, and it continued a woeful scoring record for the Red Devils this season.

Only three teams have scored fewer goals than United's 13, (Everton 10, Crystal Palace 10, Southampton nine), and no player has scored more for the club in league play than Alejandro Garnacho's three.

Amorim has a lot of work to do, but if the form he prized from Viktor Gyökeres at Sporting CP is any indication, he might just be the man to deliver.

Newcastle: Uninspiring

Newcastle United are doing fine. Just fine. While that's nice after a decade that has brought more woe than wonder, it's still disappointing for a club that looked to be on a rocket ship back to the big time after the club's 2021 takeover.

The Magpies are still in the hunt for European football next season, which would be welcome after all overseas flights were grounded this term, but there's a lingering feeling that they should be a little further along in their project than they are.

That might be down to spending limits, with the club desperately trying to remain within the Premier League's financial rules after dicing with danger ahead of this season.

But Alexander Isak's stuttering start to the campaign hasn't helped, and Anthony Gordon isn't providing as much as the club would have hoped for in terms of goal contributions after his big-money signing in January 2023.

The fans might start to get a little impatient if "fine" remains the default setting, though.

Nottingham Forest: Resurgent

Relative newcomers to the delights of English football might not know that Nottingham Forest were once one of the finest teams in Europe.

In the late 1970s, the Tricky Trees scooped up back-to-back European Cup titles, and they were champions of England in 1977-78.

But around the dawn of the 21st century, the club's fortunes took a severe tumble, even dropping down to the third tier of the English league pyramid.

While Forest aren't quite hitting those previous lofty heights at the moment, their form this season is making fans dream of Europe once again. And that counts for a lot.

They sit in seventh, which is a far cry from last season's relegation battle, and have the joint-fourth-best defensive record in the Premier League (13 conceded).

It's been a resurgent year for the East Midlands side, and manager Nuno Espírito Santo deserves a lot of credit.

Southampton: Doomed

Rooted to the bottom of the Premier League with 10 defeats out of 12, this could be a long old season for Southampton.

To be fair, Saints haven't been as dreadful as their raw numbers would suggest—with their performance against Liverpool demonstrating as much—but whatever way you slice it, a return to the Championship beckons.

A lack of goals highlights the club's woes, with just nine netted this season so far—the worst mark in the top flight. But they've also lost five games by a one-goal margin, suggesting just a tiny sliver of hope.

They'll need to turn things around and fast.

Tottenham Hotspur: Confusing

Has anyone figured out Tottenham Hotspur this season? They lost to Ipswich Town and Crystal Palace and drew with Leicester, but they crushed Manchester United (away), Aston Villa and Manchester City (away).

Their 27 goals scored is the most in the top flight this season, and they've conceded the third-fewest.

However, they have just six wins from 12 and sit in sixth place. What on Earth is going on?

At least they've brought the entertainment factor back after grinding to a halt at the end of last season, but it's kind of baffling that they are where they are despite the numbers suggesting they should be pushing for a title challenge.

West Ham United: Underwhelming

Things aren't disastrous for West Ham United, but they aren't looking good, either.

Every year the Hammers look a couple of players away from taking a big step up, but then either the status quo remains or they take a tumble backwards.

It's looking more like the latter than the former this term, which must be incredibly frustrating after some smart additions were brought in to supplement the quality in place from last season.

Three wins, 12 points and a 14th-place position heading into their late Week 12 game against Newcastle United is just so disappointing, and it's difficult to point to any improvements being made under Julen Lopetegui's tutelage.

This might be yet another case of the Hammers struggling to find a manager to drive them to sustained success.

Wolverhampton Wanderers: Porous

In 12 Premier League games this season, Wolverhampton Wanderers have let in 28 goals—the most in the entire top flight. That works out at around 2.3 goals conceded per outing.

The loss of Max Kilman to West Ham looks increasingly damaging, although the 27-year-old has done little to shore up the Hammers' back line, either.

Week 12's 4-1 away thrashing of Fulham showed bright signs at both ends of the pitch, though, and perhaps Wolves are adjusting after the loss of the Englishman. They also kept their first clean sheet of the season in the last game before the November international break.

Wolves might finally be plugging those gaps, and a kind run of upcoming fixtures might help to balance out those damning statistics.