Arsenal host Chelsea on Sunday with both sides still unbeaten in the Premier League, while Tottenham Hotspur look to end a miserable start and new Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola seeks a first win.
Defending champions Arsenal and Xabi Alonso’s Chelsea are among four teams to have taken maximum points from their opening two matches, alongside Manchester City and newly promoted Hull City. Arsenal sit level on six points with City at the top of the table after a 3-0 win over Coventry and a 1-0 victory at Aston Villa. Chelsea also have six points following wins over Fulham and Brighton, though they have conceded five goals in those games.
Mikel Arteta’s side have kept six clean sheets in their last seven league matches and have yet to concede in the current campaign. England winger Bukayo Saka has scored twice already after an injury-hit previous season. Chelsea, under new manager Alonso, have looked dangerous going forward. The attacking combination of Joao Pedro, Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers has contributed five of the team’s seven league goals. Alonso will be eager to tighten a defence that has shown vulnerability.
Chelsea arrive at the Emirates without a Premier League win against Arsenal in their last nine meetings.
Tottenham sit bottom of the table with no points after successive defeats, a 3-0 loss to Brentford followed by a 2-0 home reverse against Newcastle. Roberto De Zerbi, who took charge late last season, remains confident the club will avoid another relegation battle despite finishing 17th in each of the previous two campaigns. Spurs spent more than £350 million in the summer window, bringing in players including Sandro Tonali, Mateus Fernandes and Savio, yet early results have given little sign of improvement. They face Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Saturday, a side that beat them twice last season.
De Zerbi said: “After two defeats, maybe somebody can think it’s the same story, the same as the last two seasons. I have no doubt it’s not like this. I think I can’t change my opinion after two defeats. I have a big, big confidence in the qualities of my players.”
At Liverpool, Iraola is still searching for his first victory after draws against Newcastle and Nottingham Forest. France forward Bradley Barcola is expected to make his debut at Ipswich on Friday following his arrival from Paris Saint-Germain in a deal worth up to £124 million. The winger joins an attack that already includes Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, though Hugo Ekitike is currently injured. Four goals conceded in two matches have raised questions about balance in the squad, particularly at full-back and in midfield.
Iraola welcomed the end of the transfer window. “Once the market is closed, we know who we are,” he said. “I think we have a lot of talent in this group of players. Now we have to perform, we have to do our job and we have to start from tomorrow.”
The weekend fixtures begin with Ipswich against Liverpool on Friday evening, followed by a full programme on Saturday that includes Nottingham Forest versus Tottenham. The Arsenal-Chelsea clash is the centrepiece of Sunday’s action.