Liverpool, Tottenham and Fulham seek their first Premier League wins as Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea headline a packed weekend. Liverpool face Ipswich, Tottenham visit Nottingham Forest, while Fulham host Crystal Palace in crucial fixtures across England’s top-flight football competition.
Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Fulham will be searching for their first Premier League victories of the season as another action-packed weekend gets underway, with several clubs facing crucial early-season tests.
Liverpool open the weekend’s Premier League fixtures on Friday night with an away trip to newly promoted Ipswich Town. The visitors will be looking to build momentum ahead of next week’s Champions League opener at home against Atletico Madrid. However, concerns remain over Liverpool’s defensive performances, with the club expected to face another examination against an Ipswich side eager to make an impression after returning to the top flight.
Liverpool’s latest signing, Bradley Barcola, who arrived from Paris Saint-Germain late in the transfer window, is expected to begin Friday’s match on the bench. The forward could nevertheless make an appearance during the game as Liverpool continue to integrate their new additions into the squad.
Manchester City will also be in action after making significant moves during the transfer window. Midfielder Enzo Fernandez has reunited with Enzo Maresca following his high-profile move from Chelsea and could feature when City host Coventry City. Coventry are still looking for their first points since returning to the Premier League and will aim to produce a strong performance against one of the league’s leading sides.
Tottenham face another important challenge when they travel to Nottingham Forest. Their summer spending has so far failed to eliminate concerns surrounding the team, particularly after last weekend’s 2-0 home defeat against Newcastle United. Tottenham must avoid a third successive league defeat, while Forest will be encouraged by the hard-earned point they secured at Anfield last week.
Newcastle, meanwhile, will host Bournemouth after their impressive victory over Tottenham. The result suggested that the players are adapting well to new coach Matthias Jaissle. Bournemouth have shown signs of improvement under Marco Rose but will need to address their vulnerability to conceding late goals.
Brentford and Sunderland have made solid starts to the campaign. Brentford continue to make progress under Keith Andrews, while Sunderland earned their first points of the season with a 1-0 victory over Fulham last weekend.
Fulham will now host Crystal Palace as new coach Alvaro Arbeloa continues his search for a first point. New striker Gonzalo has impressed since arriving from Real Madrid and will be expected to play an important role. Palace also enter the south London derby after consecutive defeats, leaving new coach Pierre Sage under pressure to get an immediate response from recent arrivals Ben Chilwell and Quinten Timber.
Elsewhere, Leeds United travel to Brighton in a fixture expected to provide plenty of attacking entertainment. Hull City will attempt to maintain their impressive start when they welcome Aston Villa, who have suffered two defeats but showed improvement against Arsenal last week.
Hull made five deadline-day signings, taking their total number of new arrivals during the summer to 18. The club are expected to continue their approach of allowing opponents possession before attempting to exploit space on the counterattack and from set pieces.
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Sunday’s schedule includes two major fixtures. Manchester United make the short trip to Everton, whose supporters remain disappointed with the club’s transfer activity. Arsenal will then host Chelsea in a high-profile clash that will provide another major test for Chelsea’s fragile defence.
With several teams still searching for their first wins or points, the weekend promises important Premier League action and could provide early indications of which clubs are ready to challenge and which still have significant problems to solve.
