One game overshadows all the others this weekend when Liverpool goes to the Emirates on Sunday to take on a suddenly vulnerable Arsenal. Injuries took a toll in last week’s loss as the sidelining of Bukayo Saka further slowed an Arsenal attack which was already without Martin Odegaard. Saka’s availability for the clash with Liverpool remains a question after Saka sat out a second consecutive match with his hamstring problem when the Gunners downed Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League on Tuesday. Manager Mikel Arteta has, perhaps intentionally, been giving conflicting signals regarding Saka's fitness for the weekend. If Saka misses again, Arsenal could depend even further on the remarkable home form of Kai Havertz who will try to match the legendary Thierry Henry by scoring in a sixth consecutive Premier League home match for the Gunners. A loss at the Emirates will be worrying as Arsenal are already four points behind Liverpool entering this match. Though it remains early days, recent seasons have proved there is little room for dropped points at the top of the Premier League table. Sunday’s match also poses an important test for Liverpool. The club has won seven of its eight Premier League matches but last Sunday’s narrow win over Chelsea was the first time Liverpool had faced one of the current top seven clubs in the table. Liverpool’s only loss was to eighth Place Nottingham Forest. Even a depleted Arsenal will represent a step up in competition versus the majority of clubs which have fallen to the Reds so far. Forwards together ✊
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Manchester City will be watching Sunday’s match with interest after presumably strolling past Southampton Saturday at the Etihad. The Citizens remain the only undefeated Premier League club, and the Saints are one of four winless sides, having lost seven of their eight matches to date. A collapse last week versus fellow newly promoted side Leicester, in which the Saints squandered a two-goal lead, had to be deflating for a squad which was already floundering. Southampton has conceded more goals this season than any side but for bottom of the table Wolverhampton. On Saturday they will face the league’s highest scoring team and defending champion. The Saints are thus unlikely to have a prayer. Then again, that is the stuff that upsets are made of.
Just a week after its surprising upset of Arsenal, Bournemouth faces another stern test at Aston Villa. Aside from the signature win over the Gunners, the Cherries have been competitive in most every match this season. Before the Arsenal win, all of Bournemouth’s contests had been decided by no more than a goal but for an absorbed pasting by league leader Liverpool and a two-goal margin in a Cherries victory over relegation bound Southampton. Aston Villa, meanwhile, has lost only to Arsenal but some worries were surfacing after back-to-back draws with Ipswich Town and Manchester United. A throttling of Fulham last week will have provided a confidence boost. The victory put the Villans in sole possession of fourth place and cemented their best start to a Premier League season in more than a quarter century.
Brighton lurks just two points behind Aston Villa and the Seagulls are flying after back-to-back victories over Spurs and Newcastle. Wolverhampton visits Brighton this weekend. Cellar dwelling Wolves put on an uncharacteristically strong performance against Manchester City last week before ultimately conceding in the fifth minute of stoppage time for their seventh loss of the season. Saturday’s match at Brighton will show whether last week’s competitiveness was an anomaly or whether there is hope for the league’s current cellar dweller.
Newcastle is reeling after a home loss to Brighton extended the Magpies’ winless run to four matches. Manager Eddie Howe’s side has scored just two goals in its last four league outings and has been whitewashed in its last two times out. Newcastle visits Stamford Bridge on Sunday to face a Chelsea side anxious to get back on track after falling out of the top four with its loss to top of the table Liverpool last week. The Blues have found the net with regularity at Stamford Bridge, scoring 17 goals in the last six matches at the London venue. Chelsea star Cole Palmer has been particularly brilliant at home, averaging a goal or assist every 63 minutes at Stamford Bridge in Premier League play. Trying to put the brakes on Chelsea’s attack will be two former Blues in Magpie fullbacks Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento who, in an odd scheduling twist, will get a second chance on Wednesday when the two clubs meet again in an EFL Cup match at St. James’s Park.
Former Brighton and Chelsea manager Graham Potter was rumored this week as a potential replacement for Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner, whose fall from grace is remarkable. The Eagles showed so much promise at the end of last season but have failed miserably out of the gate this season. Crystal Palace is without a win and sitting among the three clubs in the relegation zone. Even the losses of Michael Olise and Joachim Andersen are not sufficient to explain the awkward landing of the Eagles in the drop zone. The club will attempt to get off the schneid at home this weekend in a London derby versus Tottenham Hotspur. Spurs star Son Heung-min is a huge doubt for the match with a hamstring but even that absence should not stop Spurs from defeating Palace for a sixth consecutive time. Tottenham Hotspur is seventh in the table after winning another London derby versus West Ham last week.
The Hammers are home this weekend to Manchester United for a contest of embattled managers. New West Ham Manager Julen Lopetegui is off to a horrendous start in east London which includes a record three consecutive losses at London Stadium to start the season and a humiliating 4-1 loss at London rival Tottenham Hotspur last week. Both Lopetegui and technical director Tim Steidten are catching strays from fans for poor play but also a poorly constructed team. Steidten purportedly won a power struggle with former manager David Moyes, making him even more the focus of blame for the travails of the current manager and players. Manchester United Manager Eric ten Hag, meanwhile, remains a target for supporters but somehow seems to retain the commitment of management if only because the club has failed to find a suitable replacement to take over the Red Devils who currently sit 12th in the Premier League table after a worst ever finish last season. There has been a bit of an upturn, however, with a comeback win versus Brentford at Old Trafford last weekend and a Europe League draw with former manager Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce during the week.
Brentford returns home this weekend where the Bees have won three of their four home matches to date. Their opponent is an Ipswich Town side still seeking a first win as the Tractor Boys are perilously just a point above the relegation line.
Everton is five points clear of the drop after posting two wins and two draws in their past four matches. The Toffees host Fulham at Goodison Park on Saturday. The Cottagers have dropped two straight contests, albeit to top four sides Manchester City and Aston Villa. Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite should be back in the squad after recovering from a thigh injury. Leicester has improved its chances of survival with back-to-back victories as the Foxes take the pitch versus Nottingham Forest on Friday. The Tricky Trees are eighth in the table under Manager Nuno Espirito Santo, having lost just once this season. Striker Chris Wood has scored three goals in his last four league appearances. Leicester Manager Steve Cooper faces the club which sacked him last year, adding more spice to an East Midlands derby.
