With a trio of unfamiliar leaders, what lightheartedly became “Stop The Count” weekend in the Premier League ended with Leicester on top.

Teams and disbelieving fans were riffing off President Donald Trump's post-election demand — starting Friday when Southampton climbed to the summit of English football for the first time in 32 years. The club tweeted “STOP THE COUNT ” above a snapshot of the league table.

Of course, with only eight of 38 games played, the league couldn't stop Friday night, however much the south-coast club joked it wanted it to after beating Newcastle.

By early Sunday afternoon, Tottenham had dislodged Southampton after Harry Kane's late goal clinched a 1-0 win at West Bromwich Albion. But Tottenham rising to top spot for the first time in six years lasted only a couple of hours.

Leicester rose into first place with a 1-0 victory over Wolverhampton secured by Jamie Vardy's penalty.

“It's been an incredible start,” said Brendan Rodgers, whose Leicester side narrowly missed out on a top-four finish last season. “We’ve seen that in this early part of the season, how the players are developing when they’re under pressure. And then obviously today, on the back of all the games we’ve had ... to show that mentality and desire to not concede was so pleasing as a manager.”

The improbable 2016 Premier League title winners retained the lead heading into the two-week international break thanks to champion Liverpool being held 1-1 by Manchester City. Mohamed Salah's 13th-minute penalty for Liverpool was canceled out by Gabriel Jesus before Kevin De Bruyne missed a chance to win it for City from a spotkick.

Leading the standings used to be something Arsenal was accustomed to, but Aston Villa's 3-0 victory meant the 13-time English champions have lost half of their eight games so far. And while Villa is three points behind Leicester, the central England team has a game in hand on all the teams in the top five.

The season, which started a month late due to the pandemic, is throwing up a series of unpredictable results in a congested schedule that is stretching squads.

It left Ole Gunnar Solskjær complaining about why — despite winning — his 14th place-Manchester United side had to play at Everton on Saturday lunchtime after a Champions League game in Turkey on Wednesday night.

Solskjær received backing in his grumbling about the league organizers from his managerial counterparts at Liverpool and City. Both Jürgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola are demanding another vote — by Premier League clubs to allow five substitutions.

“We have to find solutions because it is so tough,” Klopp said.

Two additional changes were permitted after the restart of last season in June following the 100-day coronavirus shutdown but the leading clubs were outvoted in their push to retain the measure.

“It is so demanding for the players,” Guardiola said. “I don’t understand how the Premier League or the people who is in charge decide this kind of things.”

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Kevin De Bruyne is usually so dependable for Manchester City.

The playmaker added to his repertoire of assists by feeding Gabriel Jesus to cancel out a penalty from Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah.

But then, for the first time in four years after five straight converted penalties, De Bruyne missed from the spot.

Drawing 1-1 on Sunday was more damaging for City than the Premier League's third-place defending champions. Dropping points from four of its seven matches has left City already six points adrift of the summit, albeit with a game in hand.

“The result is no good for us, maybe for them," Gabriel Jesus said. "But we have to keep fighting,”

What had been an intense first half saw energy levels sap after the break in this first blockbuster matchup of the season between the most recent champions.

City had to fend off a formidable Liverpool front line. Rather than deliberating over whether to start Diogo Jota or Roberto Firmino, Jurgen Klopp began with both of them, along with Salah and Sadio Mane in an initial 4-2-4 formation.

“Obviously a little surprise for the opponent the different system,” Klopp said. "We won balls, broke through and had counterattacking moments — so many — but we didn’t finish it off.

“That is a little bit of a shame. It was a tough decision to change the system before we play City just because, if we lose, the boys might think it wouldn’t have happened in the other system. But the boys are ready to listen, adapt and perform."

And it was a strong performance to start with, aided by Kyle Walker’s clumsy foul on Mane conceding the penalty converted by Salah in the 13th minute.

But it was Walker who helped to instigate the leveler by passing to De Bruyne, who on the turn released Gabriel Jesus. The Brazil forward then swiveled and flicked the ball past Trent Alexander-Arnold and poked it into the net in the 31st minute.

The latest harsh penalty call for handball gave Liverpool a chance to take the lead when De Bruyne’s cross hit Joe Gomez's arm. But the Belgian became the first player to completely miss the target from a Premier League penalty since 2018 — pre-pandemic times when stadiums were not empty.

The miss didn't dampen Gomez's frustration that the penalty was given.

“I think everyone knows the power De Bruyne can hit the ball with,” Gomez said. “In that moment I am running towards goal, I am not going to put my hand behind my back. I am not going to dispute the ball hitting my hand, but I have not made an attempt to try and handball it."

Both managers were united in their irritation about not being allowed to make more substitutions. Even though neither used all three changes available to them, both clubs want Premier League rivals to approve five being used again — as happened for the restart in June after the pandemic shutdown last season.

“Look, international English player (Trent) Alexander-Arnold is injured," Guardiola said of the Liverpool defender forced off in the second off. "All around the world is five substitutions, but here we believe we are more special people and in this league it is just three, so we don’t protect the players.

“That is why it is a disaster, with this calendar we have come from, especially the year before."