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As the Premier League returns, let’s look at some real moments of fury on the pitch. You don’t want to see that? Of course we do…

Hugo Lloris v Heung-min Son

In 2020, the goalie runs up to his Spurs teammate as they walk off the pitch and he remonstrates with him angrily. Lloris looks furious and to be fair, Son looks terrified of the keeper. Other players keep them apart but they’re back at it in the dressing room, with Son more aggressive now. No punches are thrown, of course, even though both players look like they’d like to beat each other to a pulp.

Bruce Grobbelaar v Steve McManaman

No-one likes conceding goals, especially in the Merseyside derby. But after Everton score with a 25-yard piledriver, Bruce is furious with floppy-haired Stevie Mac in 1993 and gesticulates wildly, punching the air and shoving his teammate in the face, who does likewise and is having none of it. Rightly so as he couldn’t have done much about it. But the keeper marches after him regardless. The balding Grobbelaar, complete with silly little ponytail, looks beyond angry and barks like a guard dog at him. Maybe he’d had a bet on that he wouldn’t let in a goal.

Lee Bowyer v Kieron Dyer

One of the classic contretemps between teammates. For a few seconds they’re properly going at it and Bowyer has the collar of his shirt torn. As their teammates pull him off and lead him away, Bowyer is literally snarling, baring his teeth like one of those junkyard dogs. Red card for you, son. He’s the manager of Montserrat now. I bet you didn’t know that. Lovely. In contrast Dyer is first-team coach at Chesterfield and has had a liver transplant. The fight was 19 years ago now, back when you had more hair and your knees didn’t hurt. Proper Barclaysmen stuff.

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Lewis Dunk v Antony

The Manchester man repeatedly hacks at Dunk above the ankle, something he’s prone to do in lieu of playing actual football. It’s a proper kick as well. Dunk, being about 20 feet taller, pushes him away like an annoying wasp. Antony is naturally cross about this – even though it was his hacking that caused the whole thing – sticking his jaw out, petulantly and generally being up for a fight the way kids were at school, even though no-one is in the slightest bit intimidated by his stroppiness, part of which involves his face looking like a bee sting. Rarely has anyone’s face said ‘slap me’ so loudly.

Mason Holgate v Roberto Firmino

In the 2017/18 FA Cup the Everton man is trying to get the ball by the touchline and decides the way to do this is to push the Liverpool forward into the crowd. That’s not allowed, Mason. Naughty. Firmino naturally objects to this, is pushed out of the crowd and runs towards the player in that typical footballer way which says I’m going to punch your lights out, mister. But of course he doesn’t. All wind and pish. The referee intervenes. Holgate took his pushing technique to Sheffield United, Southampton and West Brom.

Tyrone Mings v Anwar El Ghazi

In 2019 against West Ham, Mings is cross with his teammate for letting an opposition player get past him and cross the ball for Mings to kick it out for a goal kick. An impartial observer might comment that it’s Mings’ job to defend crosses and he shouldn’t moan. Mings looks very annoyed indeed that he’s had to do what he’s paid to do. But his stern look is somewhat undermined by his haircut which looks like it’s a daft bet. Mings peers out from under a cock-a-poo barnet. El Ghazi is at Cardiff having been at Everton, PSV and Mainz since leaving Villa.

Ben Brereton Diaz v Fabian Schar

The striker has only the Newcastle man between him and the goal and Schar is dawdling with the ball, so obviously Diaz just outright pushes him over with both hands. The defender naturally objects to this, gets up and pushes him back, at which point Diaz clutches his face and collapses like he’s been tasered. What’s more, he refuses all attempts to be picked up and, like a six-year-old, goes all floppy and pretends he’s badly hurt. Every fan hates this sort of play acting and would gladly hurt him properly if it would help.

Juliano Belletti v Cristiano Ronaldo

CR7 is doing his thing on the wing for Manchester United, slips past the Chelsea man who doesn’t accept he’s been beaten and takes the traditional way out by scything Ronaldo down with a sweep of the leg. Ronaldo takes this as well as you’d expect and clearly believes the tackle was a human rights crime, arches his back and swan dives. His reaction is of shock that anyone would commit this sort of crime against his wonderfulness and is quick to check on the monitor to make sure he still looks gorgeous.

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Rafael v David Luiz

The full-back is hacking at the Chelsea player, trying to get the ball, finally crunching him to the ground with a wild kick. Luiz doesn’t leap up and act petulantly. No, he’s not hurt at all and is lying on the floor laughing as the Manchester United player gets sent off.

Ange Postecoglou understands the significance of Sunday’s visit of Arsenal, but would be disappointed if his Tottenham players wanted to win this match more than next week’s trip to Coventry.

Spurs have failed to taste success in any of the last four north London derby fixtures, with Mikel Arteta able to turn the Gunners into Premier League title contenders in recent years.

Postecoglou largely enjoyed a positive debut campaign in England but found himself at odds with sections of the Spurs fanbase in May when Manchester City visited N17.

City made the trip to Tottenham on May 14 with home supporters conflicted, given a positive result for Spurs would have put Arsenal in the driving seat to win the title, but the visitors ran out narrow 2-0 winners.

Nevertheless, Postecoglou wants his squad to go into every match with the same desire.

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“I don’t feel any more pressure because there was pressure in that (Man City) game. I want to win every game,” Postecoglou said.

“I don’t care who we are playing. Let’s go out and play each other. I would want to beat you!

“I really would hate to think there are players in the dressing room who want to win this game more than any others.

“Or prepare differently or try harder in this game than any other, because that’s not the way forward. We understand the significance of it because if we do win, our supporters will be over the moon.

“I understand that if we don’t win, they are going to be devastated, but if we prepare this game differently than any other, then I’m disappointed because I want to win every time. That’s the only way you can be successful.

“I make no apologies for that. I’m not going to prepare any different for this game than I did against Newcastle or I will against Coventry.

“I want to win all the time and I want our club to win all the time. And if you do that then, yeah, if you beat your rivals in a big derby game then everyone gets excited and everyone feels great, but I want more than that.”

The Australian coach masterminded statement triumphs over Manchester United and Liverpool during the first two months of last season.

Spurs were also able to win comprehensively at Aston Villa in March, but during the final month of the campaign suffered losses at Liverpool and Chelsea alongside the 2-0 home reverse to champions City.

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Asked if Tottenham needed a big win to restore faith in his methods, Postecoglou provided a defence of his progress, only 15 months into his reign.

Postecoglou questioned: “What do you mean by faith? If people have lost faith in what we’re doing, I cannot let that be my guide to what we’re doing.

“My guide is what I see on a daily basis, the way we play our football, the way the team is growing and I’m as optimistic and as bullish as I’ve ever been.

“Is it important to win big games? Absolutely yes, I want to win big games, but we won big games early last season.

“It doesn’t mean it’s going to get you to where you want to get to. There’s got to be a consistency in approach. There’s nothing I’ve seen to make me waver in my belief about what we’re doing.”

Tottenham Hotspur reportedly ‘fear’ they have been ‘hijacked’ by Arsenal in the race to sign England international Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace.

Eze was superb for Crystal Palace in the Premier League last season as he grabbed 11 goals and four assists in his 27 appearances.

The 26-year-old was expected to leave Palace during the summer transfer window, but Oliver Glasner’s side managed to keep him.

The talented attacking midfielder – who has a £68m release clause in his contract – was linked with several Big Six clubs in the summer and could secure a move elsewhere in January or next summer.

A new report from Football Transfers claims Tottenham have been pushing to sign Eze, but they face competition from arch-rivals Arsenal.

The Gunners invested heavily in the summer as they signed David Raya, Riccardo Calafiori, Mikel Merino, Neto and Raheem Sterling.

Sterling joined Arsenal on loan from Chelsea, but the report claims they are ‘keeping their options open’ as this deal does not include an obligation to buy next year.

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It is also claimed that Tottenham ‘fears’ they have been ‘hijacked’ by Arsenal for Eze. The report says.

‘Tottenham’s pursuit of Crystal Palace star Eze seems to have hit a roadblock, with sources indicating to Football Transfers that the player’s head has been turned by a top-four Premier League club, believed to be Arsenal or Manchester City.

‘Spurs have been chasing the attacking midfielder for over a year and even had a gentleman’s agreement with Eze, based on meeting Crystal Palace’s £68 million valuation.

‘In fact, Eze’s family was invited by Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy to attend the last North London Derby at the end of last season, a match Spurs lost 3-2. However, the deal took a sudden twist when Eze’s representatives informed Ange Postecoglou’s side that their rivals had made contact with the England international, urging him to put the move on hold and reassess his options before making a final decision.

‘Following this development, a conversation between Postecoglou and sporting director Johan Lange led Spurs to shift focus. The funds earmarked for Eze were redirected to secure Bournemouth striker Dominic Solanke in a £65 million deal, with £55m paid upfront and £10m in add-ons.’

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Former Premier League manager Harry Redknapp has made his prediction for this weekend’s North London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal.

“I can’t wait for this one, year on year, this game delivers some classics,” Redknapp told BetVictor.

“I had some memorable games against Arsenal in my time as Tottenham boss, I loved this derby. Spurs need a lift, a big result to kickstart the season and get the fans going. It’s been an okay start to the season but probably not what they would have wanted.

“For Arsenal, how will they cope without Martin Odegaard? Mikel Arteta was probably watching the international break from behind the sofa, and it looks like he’s gone and lost his captain for a while.

“Obviously, there’s no Declan Rice in this as well, this becomes a real test for his side.

“I can see goals and a lot of drama. If Odegaard is out, which it looks like he will be, it’s hard for me to predict an Arsenal win. 2-2.”

Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Petit thinks Mikel Arteta will turn to both Jorginho and Thomas Partey in the North London Derby against Tottenham.

The Gunners will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing 1-1 draw against Brighton before the international break with Arteta aware that every dropped point could hand an opportunity to their title rivals.

It’s an extra important match on Sunday with Arsenal travelling to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to take on arch-rivals Spurs, who have won one, drawn one and last one of their first three Premier League matches this season.

Arsenal will have to do without Martin Odegaard through injury after the midfielder joined the already-suspended Declan Rice on the sidelines for their clash against Tottenham when he picked up an ankle injury on international duty for Norway.

And former Arsenal midfielder Petit reckons Arteta will opt to play Jorginho and Partey from the start against Tottenham to solidify their midfield against Ange Postecoglou’s side.

“Of course, Arsenal are going to miss him against Spurs,” Petit told topoffshoresportsbooks.com.

“Declan Rice is a Londoner. He was playing for West Ham, so he knows how important the derbies are in London.

“It’s a massive game. He will be gutted that he can’t be involved. Last season, when Arsenal won at Spurs, he was magnificent on the pitch.

“There will be midfield changes given Rice and Odegaard’s absences, and Merino’s unavailability. I think Arteta will put Jorginho in as the holding midfielder, possibly with Partey in there alongside him.

“One of those two will definitely play, it depends how he wants to approach the game.

“Havertz can drop into the midfield if he plays one of the holders, and then that could open up a place for Trossard up front. With Merino, Odegaard and Jesus injured, his options are a bit limited.”

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On Rice, Petit added: “Arsenal have got so many important players, so it’s hard to pick one, but if I had to, then I would say that it is Declan Rice. I saw Rice’s game against Ireland, he was amazing. He played with full energy and normally always shows the right temperament on the pitch in a hot atmosphere.

“He’s a leader and the way that he plays the game improves everyone around him. He doesn’t miss many games – he’s so reliable – which is why I was so surprised to see him get sent off against Brighton for kicking the ball away.

“I think that was easily the worst game he has had for Arsenal. He looked tired; his legs were heavy. He was unrecognisable. The only good thing about that red card is that he gets a week off. It’s a shame that it’s for the North London derby though.”

On the North London Derby, Petit continued: “Yes, it’s definitely a must-win game for Arsenal. They can’t afford to lose this game because the gap to Manchester City will start to grow. City have got Brentford at home, and then the two sides meet. Arsenal won’t want to go into that game against City 4 or 5 points behind them.

“The pressure on that game would be absolutely huge. It’s a massive game for Arsenal. Playing Tottenham is always a very important game. It’s a derby against one of your main competitors at the top of the Premier League table, but given who Arsenal are playing next, and the fact they dropped points at home to Brighton, it’s a must-win game.”

Tottenham Hotspur are keeping tabs on AC Milan forward Noah Okafor after being alerted that he may be available for transfer in January.

Milan Live write that Okafor looks set to lose his place to former Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham, who made the move to San Siro on loan from Roma on transfer deadline day.

That could make Okafor surplus to requirements with immediate effect, and it’s claimed that Spurs are eyeing the forward with a view to a January transfer.

Tottenham are said to be willing to put forward a deal worth €20m (£16.9m) plus add-ons for the Swiss international – and Milan are said to be likely to accept such a bid.

Okafor joined Milan from Red Bull Salzburg last summer and alternated between playing on the wings and at centre-forward, but was not able to establish himself as a regular in either position in an injury-hit campaign.

The 24 year old found himself unable to nail down a first-team place even before he was ruled out with a hamstring issue in November, with the bulk of Okafor’s appearances coming from the bench.

Okafor made a goalscoring return to action the week before Christmas, playing 13 minutes as a substitute against Monza, but was then sidelined again for another four weeks.

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Although his six goals in 28 appearances doesn’t look overly impressive on its face, those goals came in just 871 minutes of Serie A action – representing a goal every 146 minutes.

That’s better than anyone in the Spurs squad managed last season bar Richarlison (11 in 1,493 minutes, or one every 136 minutes) and the little-seen Alejo Veliz (a statistically insignificant one in 45 minutes, for a strike rate of, erm, one every 45 minutes).

Okafor was included in Switzerland’s squad for Euro 2024, where they reached the quarter-finals before losing on penalties to England – but played no part in the tournament having been an unused substitute throughout.

Tottenham have made the most mixed possible start to the new Premier League season with one win, one draw and one defeat from their three games to date.

Ange Postecoglou’s side will host North London rivals Arsenal on Sunday afternoon.

These eight left the Premier League in the summer transfer window and are already thriving at their new club. Three ex-Tottenham players feature.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – Tottenham to Marseille

Hojbjerg didn’t have the best of times at Tottenham but is now thriving under Roberto De Zerbi at Marseille, starting three out of three in Ligue 1 this term.

The Danish defensive midfielder has only misplaced 14 of his 331 attempted passes in three French league fixtures, completing an astounding 136 of 138 on his competitive debut. While a lot of those passes were short distance and not in the final third, it illustrates the trust De Zerbi holds in Hojbjerg and his ability to dictate games.

It’s a far cry from the Spurs version of Hojbjerg known for doing the dirty work out of possession (sometimes a little too dirty). In three Ligue 1 appearances, Hojbjerg has made eight tackles, blocked six passes, made three clearances, and seven interceptions. Being where you are appreciated can work wonders.

Pascal Gross – Brighton to Borussia Dortmund

A player who was absolutely appreciated at his former club is Pascal Gross, who was allowed to return to Germany despite his importance for Brighton. We all know Gross is a fantastic player but moving to the Champions League finalists from Brighton and walking straight into their starting XI really does emphasise it.

The Germany midfielder already has three assists for his new team and has misplaced just 18 of his 214 passes in the Bundesliga which – looking at Hojbjerg’s statistics – feels rather pathetic.

To transition into the Dortmund set-up so seamlessly is a credit to Gross and his incredible development over the last five years. He really is aging like a fine wine.

Tanguy Ndombele – Tottenham to Nice

Now then, what do we have here? We have always known about Ndombele’s talent; it was always the work ethic in massive question. It absolutely did not work out at Spurs, having joined as their record signing, which was only recently broken by Dominic Solanke’s £55million move from Bournemouth.

Nice have won, drawn and lost in their opening three Ligue 1 fixtures and Ndombele has started in every match, playing 251 of a possible 270 minutes for his new club. He has started very well, assisting on his debut but surprisingly contributing with 11 tackles, two interceptions, and three successful take-ons.

This renaissance is welcome because Ndombele is a bit of a baller, and when ballers play well, everybody wins.

Michael Olise – Crystal Palace to Bayern Munich

Leaving Crystal Palace for Bayern Munich was always going to open all kinds of doors for Olise and since making the move, he has shone at the Olympics under Thierry Henry, made his full France debut, and assisted a goal for one of the biggest clubs in world football, which came during a 14-minute cameo off the bench on his debut.

Olise deserves to be where he is after an excellent time at Selhurst Park and has started both of Bayern’s opening Bundesliga fixtures, which they have won. No goal yet for Olise this season but he is loving life in Munich and should be a regular in the France squad moving forward.

Bryan Gil – Tottenham to Girona

Another player who failed to shine at Tottenham is doing well elsewhere. It really does make you think.

Gil has earned a move to a Champions League outfit – much to our surprise – in Girona and has started all four La Liga games for them. He has one goal to show for his stellar performances but he has been heavily involved following the exit of Artem Dovbyk. He is also willing to contribute defensively, completing an impressive 12 tackles.

Thiago Silva – Chelsea to Fluminense

Age is just a number for Thiago Silva, who is running the show at Fluminense after leaving the Chelsea circus as a free agent.

Back in Brazil, Silva helped himself to four clean sheets in his first four matches and is again on a solid defensive run, with two more clean sheets coming in his side’s last two fixtures. It has been light work for Silva at Fluminense, proving that he is still a world-class defender.

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Sergio Gomez – Manchester City to Real Sociedad

The Olympics was Gomez’s top priority after securing a transfer to Real Sociedad and his start to life in La Liga has not been too bad after winning gold in Paris.

He didn’t start on matchday one but got 23 minutes on the right wing and has started every match since, being used on the right and left flanks as his new manager, Imanol Alguacil, looks to deploy him as a more attacking threat than Pep Guardiola ever did.

Gomez has one assist to his name this term but has been a real asset going forward and looks to be enjoying playing some football for a change.

Mika Biereth – Arsenal to Sturm Graz

Biereth proved himself to be a great goalscorer during loan spells at Motherwell (aye, she’s fine thanks) and Sturm Graz. He helped the latter become Austrian champions and was signed permanently due to a blocked pathway into the Arsenal starting XI.

His fine form last term has carried into 2024/25, helping himself to three goals and an assist in five Austrian Bundesliga matches.

Biereth will get a taste of the Champions League with Sturm Graz, who were given a bloody delightful draw, by the way. They will play Brest, Club Brugge, Sporting, Borussia Dortmund, Girona, Lille, Atalanta and RB Leipzig. It doesn’t get much easier than that. Not that it will be easy, mind.

Arsenal are gearing up for a huge fixture with rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday and Paul Merson believes the Gunners have the deciding player.

Despite dropping points against Brighton in their last fixture, the Gunners have had a good start to the season with Mikel Arteta’s men sat on seven points and fourth in the table.

Tottenham only have four points from a possible nine this season, despite them showing dominance in their matches.

Arsenal have a number of key players out through injury, like Martin Odegaard and Riccardo Calafiori – but Merson believes the Gunners have the trump card in Raheem Sterling.

The England international signed for Arsenal in an extraordinary deadline day move on loan from Chelsea.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Merson said this on penetrating Tottenham’s high line: “In my opinion, Mikel Arteta has now got to drop Kai Havertz back into the midfield but then there’s no Gabriel Jesus to play as the striker.

“They will probably end up playing with a false nine – that should be Leandro Trossard with Raheem Sterling on the wing.

“Against this Tottenham team, you have to have players who are prepared to run without the ball to get in behind a high line and Sterling does that.”

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Sterling is one of the most decorated players in recent English history from his time under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City and will be eager to win Arteta his first Premier League trophy.

This is what Sterling had to say on his late move to the Emirates stadium: “I’m buzzing. It’s one where we left it late but it’s one I was hoping for. Looking at everything, I’m just like: ‘this is a perfect fit for me’, and I’m super happy that we got it over the line.

“It’s a perfect fit for myself to be at a football club like this, where you can see that hunger, that desire, year on year, they are pushing and pushing and pushing. That’s exactly how I am as a person.

“Each year you want to get better and do better than the previous year. Hopefully I can gel really well with the boys and get going.

“It’s time now to meet the boys, get settled in and hopefully now see some game time and make my mark.”

There is no better way for Sterling to win over Arsenal fans than with a stellar performance against their biggest rivals.

No prizes for guessing the game of the weekend, but there’s also the prospect of a Manchester United debutant beginning the trivial task of simply fixing all of their problems. It is, in short, a Big Weekend.

Game to watch: Tottenham v Arsenal

Routinely two of the best games of every Premier League season, the North London Derby almost never lets you down. We can’t decide if it’s ironic or simply very apt that two teams who so often set the benchmark for letting you down in the end almost never, ever do when they come into direct contact with each other.

This one feels like it’s beautifully set up, too. Arsenal’s injury crisis is being overplayed, of course, but is still significant. As their most vocally online fans cry about cancelling the season because Martin Odegaard might be out for a fortnight, the more thoughtful might ponder just how far they’ve come in such a short space of time that having to rely on a midfield containing three vastly experienced senior internationals in Jorginho, Thomas Partey and Kai Havertz is what now constitutes a crisis.

But it does make this all look a little bit more old Arsenal. You know, like three-years-ago Arsenal. A potentially vulnerable Arsenal, and at a time when that is least welcome, with Spurs and City away either side of the first Champions League game of the season.

Decent case to be made that if you asked Arsenal to pick any two Premier League games in which they would most fear being depleted, it would be these two. City because they are City, and Spurs because they are Spurs.

The focus has, inevitably, fallen largely on the visitors here given the assorted setbacks across the international break but really it’s Spurs who have the most questions to answer. They’ve had a very silly start to the season, largely controlling games at Leicester and Newcastle yet carelessly emerging with only a point to show from them.

This game is unlikely to look much like those, and even less like the routine 4-0 thrashing of poor old Everton, but Spurs really could do with providing some evidence that the Postecoglou Project remains on track. They’ve been really quite poor for a really quite long time now, failing to beat anyone of note since a wild 4-0 win at Aston Villa back in March. They’ve been handed an unexpectedly feasible chance of putting that right.

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Team to watch: Everton

They head into the weekend as one of only two pointless teams left in the competition, and, with Southampton in Saturday lunchtime action against Man United, Everton might even be out on their own by the time they play Aston Villa.

They’ve had two weeks to stew on that truly absurd defeat to Bournemouth before the international break, and in classic Everton style the break has been spent in a swirl of unhelpful uncertainty over further takeover talk.

They take on a Villa side who have beaten West Ham and Leicester while losing to Arsenal, and the bad news for Toffees fans is that it’s quite obvious which category of club they are currently closer to.

A 4-0 defeat at Villa was one of three straight Premier League losses Everton suffered at the start of last season, but despite the assorted bleaknesses they’ve suffered over the years they have never started a Premier League season with four defeats in a row. Yet.

Player to watch: Manuel Ugarte

Hard to think of another summer signing of whom more is expected and indeed demanded than Ugarte. The timing of his move, arriving just before the latest Casemiro Blunder Hour against Liverpool but being unable to do anything about it having not been registered in time to feature is clearly no fault of the Uruguayan but has ramped up the already massive pressure on his shoulders.

His task is a deceptively simple one. Just come in and fix – or at the very least convincingly mask – all the problems currently afflicting Manchester United. Come on, mate, crack on.

There’s no doubt Ugarte possesses the qualities and talent that United’s midfield has lacked since Casemiro fell off so badly, and it’s worth remembering just how different a side Erik ten Hag’s United were in that first season when their midfield existed.

Everything being asked of Ugarte is clearly unreasonable, but he does at least have the advantage of a relatively straightforward opening task. What looked like a catastrophic misjudgement in not having Ugarte available against Liverpool might prove an accidental masterstroke; he now gets an easier start in every way. The opposition is easier, but so too is the task of being obviously better than what was there before.

Manager to watch: Eddie Howe

All feels a touch febrile at Newcastle. They’ve made a decent enough start to the season, but there’s a fragility to it. They made hard work of beating Southampton at home, were fortunate to escape Bournemouth with a point and the performance that sneaked them past Spurs would not have beaten a less generous team.

But more than that there remains what feels like an uneasy truce between manager and boardroom after what was by any reasonable measure a messy, botched summer for a club with Newcastle’s ambition.

Key gaps in the squad have been left unfilled and Howe is entitled to feel this isn’t quite what he signed up for, even if he remains reluctant to admit out loud precisely what it is he signed up for.

And yet, here they are with seven points from nine ahead of a trip to a Wolves side smashed to bits by Chelsea – Chelsea! – in their previous home game and with Fulham to come after that.

Newcastle could quite feasibly become the first crisis club in history to have 13 points from their first five games.

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Football League game to watch: Leeds v Burnley

A Premier League team from last season travels to one who reckon they should probably be one this season, with both setting about the task of ensuring they get there next season.

Leeds had a tumultuous summer and difficult start but back-to-back wins in Yorkshire derbies have got them back on track while Burnley have gone the other way, starting with a pair of wins before defeat at Sunderland and a draw with local rivals Blackburn.

It all leaves both sides in the top six and a point apart heading into what even at this early stage looks a pretty significant fixture for the Championship promotion picture.

European game to watch: Girona v Barcelona

Barcelona take their flawless La Liga record to Girona for a Catalan derby with plenty on it. Last season’s surprise package, Girona inflicted a pair of memorable 4-2 defeats on Barca and don’t yet appear to be going away quietly like so many surprise packages before them.

After this local derby they face PSG in their Champions League bow and, while this is a very different Barcelona side in lots of ways, the memories of last season and the adventure that awaits means Girona once again present a uniquely vexing threat to their more storied rivals.

Another international break has been navigated and the Premier League returns with some lovely debuts, including one which may make Erik ten Hag look silly.

Eddie Nketiah

Not since the January transfer deadline dashes of Tony Pulis and Sam Allardyce have Crystal Palace supporters had to familiarise themselves with so many new signings all at once.

It could be suggested that the calibre of player has improved and the club is able to peruse a different market as a more established Premier League shopper. Under Pulis in 2014 it was Scott Dann, Wayne Hennessey, Joe Ledley, Jason Puncheon and Tom Ince shuffling through the door. Three years later with the chequebook in Allardyce’s hands the late arrivals were Patrick van Aanholt, Luka Milivojevic and Mamadou Sakho.

Nketiah cost more than all eight players combined. Maxence Lacroix, Trevoh Chalobah and, bless him, Matt Turner represent varying degrees of seemingly excellent business overall but the £30m capture of an Arsenal benchwarmer is most intriguing.

“I’m really excited for my Selhurst debut and hopefully I can make it one to remember,” Nketiah said this week. Jean-Philippe Mateta might have something to say about that but Nketiah did score a hat-trick three Premier League starts ago, which sounds impressive until you realise it was last October.

Federico Chiesa

Another who won’t start, Chiesa will be under no illusions otherwise as Liverpool prepare to host Nottingham Forest. The forward has not featured in any competitive capacity since Italy crashed out of the European Championship, and it seems particularly unlikely that Arne Slot will be longing to disrupt a fully operative attack.

Liverpool thrashed Manchester United before the international break and that wave of momentum will only have been paused rather than halted altogether. Mo Salah (Egypt), Luis Diaz (Colombia) and Cody Gakpo (Netherlands) all scored on duty for their countries, while Diogo Jota fulfilled the role of every Portugal player over the past two decades, that of perennial subservient foil to Cristiano Ronaldo, impeccably.

Darwin Nunez did not feature for Uruguay, but he remains Darwin Nunez at his very core.

Chiesa will thus have to work tirelessly for his opportunities but almost a fortnight of diligent and focused training away from the spotlight should have brought him up to enough speed for a substitute cameo, probably coming on for an annoyed Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Manuel Ugarte

“He didn’t play so far in the season, not one match minute, and so he needs to build his fitness state and then we have to build him in the team. And then I am sure he will contribute to our level and he will be an important player, but that will take a couple of weeks, maybe even months.”

Six days later, Ugarte played 79 minutes of a World Cup qualifier against Paraguay. Four days after that came a trip to Venezuela, in which he played a full hour and a half and picked up the sort of booking to which Manchester United fans should become accustomed.

There is obviously more nuance involved – Ugarte has to be integrated in various different ways by his new club in a manner a 23-cap international does not when it comes to his country – but one of Erik ten Hag’s convenient excuses not to fast-track a necessary revamp of his midfield was removed over the international break.

Ugarte has the “match minutes” and “fitness state” to be thrown straight in. And while he only returned from Uruguay camp on Thursday afternoon and needs time to understand the tactical approach of a team which either specifically bypasses the midfield or places so much undue pressure on it it collapses in on itself, he cannot possibly be a worse option than Casemiro. At this point Davy Klaassen looks like an upgrade.

Raheem Sterling

Nicolas Anelka might contest the point on a technicality but Sterling will soon became the first player to feature for four of the Premier League’s Big Six. In this, the week of #Barclaysmen, it is a remarkable feat.

If it is to be achieved against Spurs then the omens are positive. Sterling has eight goals and five assists in 24 games meetings with them; only against Bournemouth (16) and West Ham (15) has he provided more career goal contributions against a single opponent.

And Arsenal really might need him. Mikel Arteta has options when it comes to replacing Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard but a version of Sterling fit from an intensive pre-season, fresh after sitting out the campaign’s first few weeks and motivated to prove Chelsea wrong would be a powerful weapon to unleash on a vulnerable Spurs side.

Jadon Sancho

The other side of that coin is Sancho, who “has been exactly what I expected” and a player Enzo Maresca is “sure he’s going to help us”.

Chelsea have resisted any reflexive temptation to exile their new signing to the reserves, affording Sancho the opportunity to train with the non-international seniors under a coach who probably doesn’t spend entire training sessions muttering derogatory phrases about him under his breath.

Quite where he or indeed any of those players actually fit into a coherent Chelsea system is something of a mystery but that is for nerds to figure out.

Ange Postecoglou’s honeymoon period as Tottenham manager has come to an end and the pressure may soon be mounting on him to deliver success.

That’s the verdict of former Tottenham and Arsenal winger David Bentley, who admits he fears Spurs could be edged out of the battle to finish in the top four of the Premier League this season.

The bookies have slashed their odds on Postecoglou becoming the first English top flight manager to lose his job this season after Spurs collected just four points from their opening three games.

They missed a host of chances in their opening game of the season at Leicester and dropped two points in a 1-1 draw, with a defeat against Newcastle in the last round of Premier League fixtures dampening pre-season optimism among Spurs fans.

Now Bentley is predicting Spurs boss Postecoglou could start to feel the heat for the first time since his arrival at the club if he loses Sunday’s North London derby against Arsenal.

“You are going to find yourself under pressure at a club like Tottenham if you are losing matches,” Bentley told Football365 with William Hill.

“Ange was welcomed into the football club because what came before him with (Jose) Mourinho and (Antonio) Conte was not what the fans wanted to see.

“There was negativity both with the style of football and also among the fans in general and I think Ange has repaired those two elements.

“After that, it all comes down to results and if they are going against you, the pressure will not be long in coming your way.

“I like Ange and what he has done at the club. He has changed the energy among the fans for the better, but that only goes so far. You need to win matches or the pressure builds. That’s football.

“The honeymoon period of last season is over now so they have to try and get to the next level.

“That means finishing in the top four and trying to win a trophy because as we know, Tottenham haven’t won anything for a long time and their fans are fed up hearing about it.

“You look at Man City, Arsenal and Liverpool and they are really strong. You’d expect them to be in the top four and then you see Spurs fighting it out with Chelsea and Man United.

“Even though they have had their problems, Chelsea and United have a great squad and if they get it right, Spurs might struggle to finish fourth.”

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Bentley, who spent five years at Tottenham after starting his career at Arsenal, believes the 1-1 draw at Leicester on the opening weekend of the season highlighted the flaws in Pochettino’s side.

“I looked at the Leicester game and it was a big worry for me,” stated Bentley. “You can take a lot out of that game and say it summed up Tottenham.

“The first half, they were moving the ball around and they were absolutely battering Leicester, they couldn’t get near them.

“Players were on the ball and expressing themselves, James Maddison bossing it and you would think there is only one winner.

“Then you look at the second half and they could have lost the game. That’s Tottenham. This is the side Ange has to work on.

Arsenal sealed a 3-2 away win against Tottenham last April as they soaked up the pressure and hit their North London rivals with sucker punches.

Now Bentley believes Gunners boss Mikel Arteta may attempt to repeat that approach this weekend as he added: “Tottenham have to go after them and their big players need to have a major influence.

“They also need to get their fans involved and use that home advantage. If they allow Arsenal to dictate the game, Spurs will come out second best.

“That’s what happened in this match last year. Arsenal put pressure on their keeper and everything they tried worked. They absorbed what Tottenham threw at them and hit them hard on the break and were 3-0 up quickly.

“So they need to impose themselves on the game and hopefully run over Arsenal. That’s easier said than done.”