After a three-week FIFA international break, the Premier League roars back to life with a packed slate, headlined by champions Arsenal looking to heal recent wounds, Chelsea targeting consistency, and a massive Old Trafford showdown between Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspurs.
Gunners out to erase Brighton sting
Champions Arsenal open the day hosting Leeds at the Emirates Stadium, with the Gunners eager to banish the memory of their first defeat of the season against Brighton before the break.
Mikel Arteta, who signed a new deal at the club, will be eager to bounce back and addressed the emotional scar left by that setback.
“The pain is still there in the tummy, we certainly have to play with that,” Arteta said.
They host a Leeds side who are undefeated and sit fifth on the log.
When asked if he was surprised by Leeds’ impressive start to the season, Arteta insisted he takes nothing for granted.
“When I watch their games, no. I think they fully deserve where they are because they’ve earned it, and they are there because I think they merit with a lot of great things that they’ve done throughout matches to be better than the opponent. We know their qualities, we talked to [the players] in the last two days, and we are fully ready for it.”
Elsewhere, Chelsea are in action against Bournemouth, hoping to pick up momentum following the international window.
The Blue have showed encouraging signs under Xabi Alonso but have just not been consistent enough, picking up just seven points from five games.
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Pressure cooks at Old Trafford as Carrick meets De Zerbi
The fixture headlines the day as Manchester United host Tottenham Hotspur in a clash defined by mounting anxiety on both touchlines.
United manager Michael Carrick finds himself under huge pressure and is just not picking up winning momentum.
Spurs, meanwhile, have not won a game all season under Roberto De Zerbi.
Assessing Spurs and whether he is surprised by their slow start, Carrick offered his assessment:
“Yeah, points-wise, I think they’ve played a lot better than that, at times. When you look at the games, they’re a very good team with some very good players, obviously. Assembled a squad this summer that’s a little bit different to maybe what they’ve had,” he said.
“But they’re a good team just because of the points. I understand the question, but we’re not going into it expecting anything less than their best version of what we know what they’re capable of, and actually they have shown for a large part, but probably haven’t had the results that maybe the performances deserve.”
Team news and selection boosts
Spurs received a double defensive lift ahead of the journey. De Zerbi spoke to the media on Friday lunchtime and confirmed that Dutch centre-backs Micky van de Ven and Jan Paul van Hecke are both available for the game after respective concerns during the international window.
Pedro Porro is sidelined but will travel to Old Trafford with the group along with Dejan Kulusevski, who continues to work his way back to fitness after a long-term lay-off. Mykhailo Mudryk, Wilson Odobert and Xavi Simons remain out.
For the hosts, Carlos Baleba could be in line for his United debut while the hosts will assess Noussair Mazraoui and Amad Diallo ahead of the game. Patrick Dorgu, Benjamin Šeško and Manuel Ugarte are out.
