Premier League Preview: Arsenal vs Man Utd plus 5 more BIG matches
Arsenal vs Man Utd is the headline fixture at the end of another exciting round of Premier League action. Here’s a look at 6 of the best games taking place on matchday 4.
Saturday 2nd September
Blades and Toffees fans will nervously await this clash with apprehension. Neither side have collected a single point after 3 games and a failure to claim anything from this lunchtime battle on Saturday would see serious storm clouds start to gather for the losers.
Everton haven’t scored a league goal yet this season and have failed to score in 17 top-flight games since the start of 2022/23. Interestingly, the away team have won each of the last 4 H2Hs between this pair with a clean sheet. It might not be pretty, but it doesn’t need to be.
Clarets boss Vincent Kompany has urged his side to “learn from their mistakes” after conceding 6 times in their first 2 games back in the top flight. South African striker Lyle Foster opened his Premier League account for the Clarets in their defeat to Aston Villa but it was only scant consolation.
Tottenham are flying high under Ange Postecoglou with 7 points from their first 3 league fixtures. They look like a more free-flowing unit and their overall goalscoring record on the road is impressive, only failing to score in 1 of their last 15 EPL clashes away from home. James Maddison got a goal and 2 assists in his first 3 league outings for the Londoners.
These clubs’ last 3 H2Hs have all featured exactly 1 goal.
The champions have played within themselves for large chunks of their matches this season but still got the job done in a clinical fashion. The only side with a 100% record after 3 rounds, City struck late through Rodri, an increasingly clutch player, to break Sheffield United's hearts last weekend.
Phil Foden, introduced as a substitute in the 86th minute, supplied the assist for his Spanish teammate’s 88th-minute winner. That’s Foden’s second assist in a campaign where he will likely be a key player, especially with Kevin De Bruyne out injured for an extended spell.
An area where Pep Guardiola will call for improvement in subsequent outings, however, is from the penalty spot. Under him, Opta note that they’ve missed 18 of their 61 Premier League penalties after Erling Haaland’s spot-kick against the Blades hit the woodwork. The Norwegian atoned though by nodding in a 63rd-minute cross from Jack Grealish at the back post.
All 3 of Brighton’s games this season have produced over 3.5 goals and both they and Newcastle are smarting after defeats in the last round of matches. The Seagulls had roughly 78% possession against West Ham, but the Hammers hit them clinically on the break in a 3-1 away win. That being said, Roberto De Zerbi’s side have hit the back of the net 9 times in 3 games, with 7 different players getting on the scoresheet.
Newcastle, meanwhile, were stunned by a Darwin Núñez-inspired fightback by 10-man Liverpool at St James’ Park and will be determined to bounce back in style. The signs point to this being an entertaining affair.
Sunday 3rd September
Liverpool’s crazy come-from-behind win against the Magpies typified the unpredictability of the Premier League. Now they’re back at Anfield, a fortress by anybody’s standards, although Villa did claim a point in a 1-1 draw in last season’s corresponding fixture as recently as May.
Unai Emery’s visitors have responded well since a 5-1 defeat at Newcastle on the opening weekend, beating Everton 4-0 and Burnley 3-1 away from home. New man Moussa Diaby has 2 goals and an assist already this season, and he’ll look to wreak havoc in wide areas and centrally against a Liverpool side minus the suspended Virgil van Dijk.
Liverpool legend Mo Salah has scored 140 EPL goals in 234 appearances, the most of any active player in the division.
The Gunners had Eddie Nketiah to thank for his last-gasp winner in this fixture last season. Arsenal might turn to the 24-year-old Englishman again here, seeing as though he has scored twice already this campaign and won the penalty that Martin Ødegaard coolly converted at Crystal Palace 2 rounds ago. Leandro Trossard started at Nketiah’s expense against Fulham before being replaced at half time, but the Belgian could lose his place.
Speaking of comebacks, United skipper Bruno Fernandes inspired the Red Devils from 2-0 down to eventually beat Nottingham Forest 3-2 last time out. That was also the score when Arsenal and United met at the Emirates in January this year, albeit in the Londoners’ favour.
This should prove a fitting way to bring the curtain down on another weekend of top-flight English football.
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