1. Are Liverpool or Tottenham ‘the new Tottenham’?
AP / Press Association Images
AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images
(Tottenham have started off the season in fine form)
PRIOR TO THE start of the Premier League, during pre-season, the ‘new Tottenham’ became a by-word for imminent failure.
The phrase emanates from Spurs’ performance last season. Despite spending exorbitantly on several new players following Gareth Bale’s departure, they still had — by most accounts — a disappointing season.
Liverpool have invariably been accused of being ‘the new Tottenham’ this year. Like Spurs last year, they have sold their best player (Luis Suarez) while bringing in several new and largely expensive players, with many critics expecting them to fail to emulate the last campaign’s achievements this year despite these additions to their squad.
Of course, Spurs were only three points worse off last year without Bale, so the degree of their decline may have been a little exaggerated, nonetheless Liverpool will be hoping to push on from last year rather than regressing.
This weekend, the two sides meet in the Sunday 1.30pm kick-off in what is a key game for both. A loss for Liverpool would exacerbate their disappointing defeat at Manchester City, while Tottenham have started the season superbly, but have flattered to deceive in the past and have yet to meet the kind of top quality side against whom they so often stumbled last season. Hence, the new Tottenham could in fact be similar to the old Tottenham, or ‘the new Tottenham’ if you prefer.
2. All eyes on Di Maria
PA Wire / Press Association Images
PA Wire / Press Association Images / Press Association Images
(Manchester United’s new signing Angel di Maria during a photo call at Old Trafford)
You would expect Manchester United to beat Burnley this weekend, but then the same could be said of their recent fixtures with Swansea, Sunderland and MK Dons — matches that all turned out to be struggles for the Red Devils.
Much of the focus will be on new £59.7million signing Angel Di Maria. The Argentina international is undoubtedly an outstanding talent, having been a regular in the side for the past four seasons, culminating in the Champions League triumph over Atletico Madrid in which he was arguably Carlo Ancelotti’s side’s best player.
The 26-year-old may well start at Turf Moor and is expected to add some much-needed pace, dynamism and creativity to Manchester United’s midfield — the former Benfica star had more assists than anyone else in Europe’s top five leagues last year (17).
However, whether he is talented enough to rejuvenate Manchester United remains to be seen — there is considerable pressure on Di Maria owing to the size of his price tag while he will inevitably take time to adjust to the notoriously frenetic pace of the Premier League.
Yet in spite of all those factors, United really should be beating a Burnley side that has failed to pick up a point in their two Premier League games thus far this season.
3. Can Everton take that next step?
Everton FC / Press Association Images
Everton FC / Press Association Images / Press Association Images
(James McCarthy is expected to start for Everton this weekend)
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Everton came agonisingly close to earning a top-four spot last season, yet there has been a tendency for commentators to speak dismissively about the Toffees going one step further and achieving the feat come the end of this season.
For all the progress they have made since Roberto Martinez took over, they still fail to command the level of respect reserved for the very top sides.
And part of the reason for their ultimate failure last season was their dismal record when playing the best sides — in six matches against last season’s top three, they lost four and won just once.
Incidentally, the one fixture they did win against the top three was a 1-0 victory in their second game of the season against Chelsea at Goodison Park.
Repeating the feat this time around is likely to be even more arduous, however, as they face a significantly improved Chelsea outfit — albeit one that may be without star striker Diego Costa, who is currently suffering from a hamstring injury.
Either way, they will need to display more ruthlessness than they showed against Arsenal last week, when they let a 2-0 lead slip in the dying minutes.
4. Will anyone stop Man City at home?
AP / Press Association Images
AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images
(Sergio Aguero was on target for Man City during the week)
Against Liverpool last Monday, Manchester City looked in imperious form.
The depth of their squad was highlighted by one instant in particular, when Sergio Aguero scored with literally his first touches, after coming on as a substitute, having been set up by a sublime through ball from fellow sub Jesus Navas.
Last season, they dropped points just twice all season at home — against Sunderland and Chelsea — and their performance at the Etihad during the week suggests they are set to carry on in a similarly unstoppable vein this season.
Nevertheless, while Stoke haven’t had the best of starts to the campaign, they did cause City numerous problems on both occasions last year — Mark Hughes’ side claimed a 0-0 draw at home against the eventual champions, while they were beaten by just a single goal in Manchester.
Perhaps Hughes has identified a weakness in City that few others have spotted — should he achieve another positive result this weekend, then this theory will start acquiring considerable credence.
5. How will Arsenal cope without Giroud?
Arsenal have, for years, been regarded as one of the best attacking teams in Europe, however such qualities have hardly been in evidence of late.
The Gunners scored just once over the course of their two Champions League ties against Besiktas and have been similarly uninspired going forward in other games.
They have so far failed to really sparkle with Alexis Sanchez as their primary attacking outlet and it was only after the second-half introduction of Olivier Giroud that they truly began to threaten Everton last week.
Of course, Giroud is now set to face a lengthy spell on the sidelines after picking up a long-term injury, leaving Arsenal conspicuously short up front (both literally and figuratively).
Arsene Wenger’s side generally performed well against the lesser sides last season (in stark contrast with their form against the top teams), but if they fail to score in the opening hour at the King Power Stadium with no mercurial French target man waiting to come off the bench (unless they want to place their faith in the inexperienced Yaya Sanogo), it could be another nerve-racking climax for Gunners fans to endure.
6. Will Jack Grealish start for Villa?
Tony Gutierrez
Tony Gutierrez
Ireland underage star Jack Grealish has already made two Premier League appearances for Villa as a substitute, including one this season on the opening day away to Stoke.
Obviously, it’s early days for Greaslish and he will hardly need a reminder of the long list of ‘next big things’ that have promptly faded into obscurity with the ink from hype-infused headlines barely dry.
Moreover, starting two games in a row is also a big ask for someone who is far from being the finished article physically given his still-tender years.
But that said, Villa were short of inspiration in their dire 0-0 draw against Newcastle last week, and so Grealish could well be the man to add that extra element of unpredictability to their attack against Hull on Sunday.
Predictions (all games kick-off Saturday 3pm unless stated otherwise)
6 talking points ahead of this weekend's Premier League action
1. Are Liverpool or Tottenham ‘the new Tottenham’?
(Tottenham have started off the season in fine form)
PRIOR TO THE start of the Premier League, during pre-season, the ‘new Tottenham’ became a by-word for imminent failure.
The phrase emanates from Spurs’ performance last season. Despite spending exorbitantly on several new players following Gareth Bale’s departure, they still had — by most accounts — a disappointing season.
Liverpool have invariably been accused of being ‘the new Tottenham’ this year. Like Spurs last year, they have sold their best player (Luis Suarez) while bringing in several new and largely expensive players, with many critics expecting them to fail to emulate the last campaign’s achievements this year despite these additions to their squad.
Of course, Spurs were only three points worse off last year without Bale, so the degree of their decline may have been a little exaggerated, nonetheless Liverpool will be hoping to push on from last year rather than regressing.
This weekend, the two sides meet in the Sunday 1.30pm kick-off in what is a key game for both. A loss for Liverpool would exacerbate their disappointing defeat at Manchester City, while Tottenham have started the season superbly, but have flattered to deceive in the past and have yet to meet the kind of top quality side against whom they so often stumbled last season. Hence, the new Tottenham could in fact be similar to the old Tottenham, or ‘the new Tottenham’ if you prefer.
2. All eyes on Di Maria
(Manchester United’s new signing Angel di Maria during a photo call at Old Trafford)
You would expect Manchester United to beat Burnley this weekend, but then the same could be said of their recent fixtures with Swansea, Sunderland and MK Dons — matches that all turned out to be struggles for the Red Devils.
Much of the focus will be on new £59.7million signing Angel Di Maria. The Argentina international is undoubtedly an outstanding talent, having been a regular in the side for the past four seasons, culminating in the Champions League triumph over Atletico Madrid in which he was arguably Carlo Ancelotti’s side’s best player.
The 26-year-old may well start at Turf Moor and is expected to add some much-needed pace, dynamism and creativity to Manchester United’s midfield — the former Benfica star had more assists than anyone else in Europe’s top five leagues last year (17).
However, whether he is talented enough to rejuvenate Manchester United remains to be seen — there is considerable pressure on Di Maria owing to the size of his price tag while he will inevitably take time to adjust to the notoriously frenetic pace of the Premier League.
Yet in spite of all those factors, United really should be beating a Burnley side that has failed to pick up a point in their two Premier League games thus far this season.
3. Can Everton take that next step?
(James McCarthy is expected to start for Everton this weekend)
Everton came agonisingly close to earning a top-four spot last season, yet there has been a tendency for commentators to speak dismissively about the Toffees going one step further and achieving the feat come the end of this season.
For all the progress they have made since Roberto Martinez took over, they still fail to command the level of respect reserved for the very top sides.
And part of the reason for their ultimate failure last season was their dismal record when playing the best sides — in six matches against last season’s top three, they lost four and won just once.
Incidentally, the one fixture they did win against the top three was a 1-0 victory in their second game of the season against Chelsea at Goodison Park.
Repeating the feat this time around is likely to be even more arduous, however, as they face a significantly improved Chelsea outfit — albeit one that may be without star striker Diego Costa, who is currently suffering from a hamstring injury.
Either way, they will need to display more ruthlessness than they showed against Arsenal last week, when they let a 2-0 lead slip in the dying minutes.
4. Will anyone stop Man City at home?
(Sergio Aguero was on target for Man City during the week)
Against Liverpool last Monday, Manchester City looked in imperious form.
The depth of their squad was highlighted by one instant in particular, when Sergio Aguero scored with literally his first touches, after coming on as a substitute, having been set up by a sublime through ball from fellow sub Jesus Navas.
Last season, they dropped points just twice all season at home — against Sunderland and Chelsea — and their performance at the Etihad during the week suggests they are set to carry on in a similarly unstoppable vein this season.
Nevertheless, while Stoke haven’t had the best of starts to the campaign, they did cause City numerous problems on both occasions last year — Mark Hughes’ side claimed a 0-0 draw at home against the eventual champions, while they were beaten by just a single goal in Manchester.
Perhaps Hughes has identified a weakness in City that few others have spotted — should he achieve another positive result this weekend, then this theory will start acquiring considerable credence.
5. How will Arsenal cope without Giroud?
Arsenal have, for years, been regarded as one of the best attacking teams in Europe, however such qualities have hardly been in evidence of late.
The Gunners scored just once over the course of their two Champions League ties against Besiktas and have been similarly uninspired going forward in other games.
They have so far failed to really sparkle with Alexis Sanchez as their primary attacking outlet and it was only after the second-half introduction of Olivier Giroud that they truly began to threaten Everton last week.
Of course, Giroud is now set to face a lengthy spell on the sidelines after picking up a long-term injury, leaving Arsenal conspicuously short up front (both literally and figuratively).
Arsene Wenger’s side generally performed well against the lesser sides last season (in stark contrast with their form against the top teams), but if they fail to score in the opening hour at the King Power Stadium with no mercurial French target man waiting to come off the bench (unless they want to place their faith in the inexperienced Yaya Sanogo), it could be another nerve-racking climax for Gunners fans to endure.
6. Will Jack Grealish start for Villa?
Ireland underage star Jack Grealish has already made two Premier League appearances for Villa as a substitute, including one this season on the opening day away to Stoke.
During the week, he made his first senior start for Villa against Leyton Orient, and despite the Premier League side ultimately somewhat embarrassingly losing 1-0, both Lambert and the Villa fans were full of praise for the youngster after the game.
Obviously, it’s early days for Greaslish and he will hardly need a reminder of the long list of ‘next big things’ that have promptly faded into obscurity with the ink from hype-infused headlines barely dry.
Moreover, starting two games in a row is also a big ask for someone who is far from being the finished article physically given his still-tender years.
But that said, Villa were short of inspiration in their dire 0-0 draw against Newcastle last week, and so Grealish could well be the man to add that extra element of unpredictability to their attack against Hull on Sunday.
Predictions (all games kick-off Saturday 3pm unless stated otherwise)
Burnley 1-2 Man United (Saturday 12.45)
Man City 2-0 Stoke
Newcastle 2-1 Crystal Palace
QPR 1-1 Sunderland
Swansea 2-1 West Brom
West Ham 2-1 Southampton
Everton 1-2 Chelsea (Saturday 17.30)
Aston Villa 2-2 Hull (Sunday 13.30)
Tottenham 1-1 Liverpool (Sunday 13.30)
Leicester 0-2 Arsenal (Sunday 16.00)
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5 Premier League bets to consider this weekend>
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