Premier League: 10 things to look out for this weekend

1) Chelsea favourites for latest Leicester meeting

This will be the fourth meeting between Leicester and Chelsea this calendar year, clubs of differing resources whose fortunes nonetheless seem tangled together. Leicester went top after beating Chelsea 2-0 at home in January, James Maddison scoring the second goal before cheerfully claiming: “We knew they switched off at set pieces,” an observation that felt terminal to Frank Lampard’s employment. Having played some part in Thomas Tuchel’s arrival, Leicester won the FA Cup final against him in May, before league defeat at Stamford Bridge three days later helped to ensure the Foxes would narrowly miss out on the Champions League yet again. Chelsea are now European champions and Premier League leaders, but did not look at full power before the international break. Tuchel will demand a statement performance after the 1-1 draw against Burnley. Leicester are a long way off the title race now and while Brendan Rodgers would dearly love to upset Chelsea again, the absence of the injured midfielder Youri Tielemans means the odds are against them.

2) A tricky opener for Gerrard at Villa

Steven Gerrard is back in the Premier League! It is going to be fascinating to see what he can achieve besides giving Aston Villa a touch more glamour on the sideline. For his first match – against Brighton on Saturday – his presence alone may be enough to stoke players who have seemed curiously short of confidence.The new manager will also have to devise a clear plan as the club continue to adapt to life after Jack Grealish. How will Gerrard use summer signings such as Emi Buendía and Leon Bailey, both of whom need to show more quality than they have so far? How can he make Villa stronger in central midfield? Should he play with a back three or four? Will Villa press aggressively or stand off? Will other players who have underperformed this season – Matt Targett, Emi Martínez, John McGinn, Tyrone Mings – regain their form? Brighton are a team who know what they are doing, so Villa will need to be all on song. 

3) Solskjær must take chance to be positive

After being shellacked by Liverpool and Manchester City in their recent outings at Old Trafford, United have a new proposition of playing an opponent who should allow them to dominate the ball. Ole Gunnar Solskjær has earned a reputation for negativity at Manchester United, regularly utilising two holding midfielders regardless of the quality of the opposition. The Norwegian needs to find some points pretty quickly to lift the pressure off his shoulders, and a liberating display against a porous Watford defence could help turn the tide. The Hornets have conceded 19 goals in 11 matches, swapping managers, defensive partnerships, formations and goalkeepers in the process. They are not a settled side and United should have far too much for them going forward, if the likes of Mason Greenwood and Jadon Sancho are given some freedom to drive at the defence.

4) Arsenal head to Anfield with confidence

If titles were won on attacking flair alone then Liverpool would be favourites: their front three of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané continue to wreak the usual havoc among opposition defences. Combinations in defence and midfield have proved more problematic for Jürgen Klopp, though, and as a result Arsenal will approach this match with quiet confidence. Emile Smith Rowe’s ascent to the England squad has lifted the player and the collective group, with Bukayo Saka, Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang combining to great effect in recent wins against Watford, Leicester and Aston Villa. Solidity at the back has also been a big reason for the Gunners’ uptick in form, with the central defensive partnership of Ben White and Gabriel quickly growing in stature. Liverpool have conceded 10 goals in six Premier League matches and Arsenal will seek to test Alisson, who produced a couple of costly errors in the defeat by West Ham. 

5) De Bruyne needs rest to peak at right time

There is no doubting the outstanding array of talent at Pep Guardiola’s disposal but there is still one man who stands above the rest: Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian has, by his own extremely high standards, had a poor start to the season. De Bruyne has struggled to find his passing range and can boast of only two league goals, something he will be desperate to improve. Being forced off with an injury in the Champions League final and then recovering in time for the Euros will have taken a lot out of him, while the failure to land a trophy either in Porto or with Belgium will have affected a man looking to win the prizes not currently on his mantelpiece. Guardiola needs to coax the best back out of De Bruyne, which might mean allowing him to rest at this stage of the season. Even for a player of his quality, playing his way back into form might not be a possibility – instead, he should be carefully managed to ensure he peaks when it matters. 

6) Howe looks a good fit for Newcastle

However things eventually pan out for Eddie Howe at Newcastle, he appears to be a better fit for the job than Unai Emery would have been. Howe may appear to be a less glamorous option than the Spaniard but his Premier League credentials are well established and at 43, the former Bournemouth manager has the hunger and ambition to oversee what promises to be an exciting era for the club. Word from the training ground is that the intensity and enjoyment have significantly increased since Howe began work. That bodes well for the visit of injury-depleted Brentford, who have lost four league games in a row and handed Burnley and Norwich their first wins of the season. The “new manager bounce” combined with a raucous home crowd and a group of extra-motivated players should mean Newcastle finally get a league victory on the board. 

7) New start for Kane after England exploits

Harry Kane returns to Spurs after scoring seven goals in 108 minutes for England, six more than he has netted in the Premier League all season. Admittedly, thrashing Albania and San Marino might not equate to being back in form, as it is the equivalent of your friend who once played three games for Rochdale turning up for five-a-side to show he’s still got it. Still, it should provide a necessary boost to a player obviously lacking form and confidence. It comes at the right time, too, just two games into Antonio Conte’s reign, adding to the feeling that it is a new start for a striker who had a tough summer trying to leave Spurs after Euros heartbreak. Conte will be keen to move Kane further up the pitch, something that predecessor Nuno Espírito Santo failed to do as Spurs struggled to play anything close to progressive football. 

8) West Ham look equipped to fight on all fronts

Will the wheels finally come off the David Moyes roadshow at Wolves? It looks highly unlikely, even if West Ham had plenty of players busy during the international break. The increasingly accomplished Hammers are now unbeaten in 11 matches on the road in all competitions, a run that stretches back to 17 April. The rousing 3-2 home win against Liverpool, a fourth league victory in a row, also remains fresh in the mind while Michail Antonio continued his scoring exploits for Jamaica in recent days, and in spectacular fashion, too. West Ham’s hard running, disciplined defending and danger from dead balls – they have scored 32 set-piece goals since Moyes returned in 2019 – should present plenty of problems for Bruno Lage’s side. West Ham’s Europa League campaign means this is a busier than average season, but they appear to have the tools to keep fighting and winning on several fronts.

9) Smith begins uphill task at Carrow Road

Dean Smith has often said the thing that motivates him most is the determination to prove people wrong. Saving Norwich this season would be a heck of an in-your-face feat. Firstly, to the people who said joining Norwich was a rash move, a decision made on the rebound while still sore at being jilted by Aston Villa. Secondly, to the people who say Norwich are beyond help, that no manager could keep this team afloat. And thirdly to the people at Villa Park who decided he would have been unable to achieve the more simple task of turning Villa around if given more time. If Smith is to succeed, he probably needs Norwich to win at least a third of their remaining matches, starting with Southampton at home this Saturday. Looking for three teams who could possibly be overtaken by Norwich, one has to conclude that the side most likely to be pulled down is another of Smith’s old clubs, Brentford.

10) Clarets can’t lose momentum at crucial time

Burnley’s season in effect started when they beat Brentford, securing their first league win 10 games into the season. They followed it up with a draw at Chelsea and now they have the chance to build on that against another London club. Crystal Palace arguably pose a similar attacking threat as Brentford and, considering the limited number of international call-ups in the Clarets squad, they will have been well drilled over the last two weeks. It was against Palace that Burnley won their first game last season, at the eighth time of asking. They went on to pick up 11 points from six games to begin their move up the table and this run could provide the same comfort blanket for a team who often start slowly. When a team has such a simple style as Burnley operate with, momentum and morale are key.