Category: English Premier League

Police are on alert for Sunday’s Premier League match after Nottingham Forest had a hand in the Eagles’ demotion

Crystal Palace against Nottingham Forest isn’t usually a Premier League fixture that would have the Metropolitan police on red alert. But after a summer spent at each other’s throats at the court of arbitration for sport as well as on social media over Uefa’s decision to demote Palace from the Europa League to the Conference League, to Forest’s advantage, supporters of both clubs are preparing to come face-to-face on Sunday afternoon.

“Forest aren’t our rivals – they’re nothing to us,” says the Palace fan Chris Waters. “But all of a sudden this game has a bitter edge to it.” Sanad Attia, AKA Wolfie, who presents the Forest Fan TV YouTube channel, says: “We’ve never really had any kind of issue with Palace – I was quite happy for them winning the FA Cup. But they have been wanting to blame everyone but themselves. And in particular, Forest and Evangelos Maranakis.”

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Battle between real and fake is an active front in sport and the Newcastle striker transfer saga is vast but strangely hollow

Depraved. Sickening. Toxic. Foul, but also pestilent. The end of days? That last thing wasn’t the end of days. This right here is the end of days.

But is it though? Is it really? Going on a summer holiday is always a bit strange when your life involves staring at sport. Taking a break just as football is preparing to enter its own sweaty, steamy eight-month meat pocket is extra tough. Re-engagement can be difficult. Oh look. There’s football hiding behind a bush in the car park again, frazzled and wired from staying up drinking crystal meth negronis and writing a presentation about merging marketing and sales, all the while gripped with a gathering sense of horror that it’s just not possible.

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Chelsea thrashed the Hammers to pile the pressure on Graham Potter

A big blow for Chelsea / boost for West Ham before kick-off. Cole Palmer has tweaked something in the warm-up, and is out. Estêvão, Chelsea’s new 18-year-old wing sensation, takes his creative brief.

Chelsea will sport their new third kit this evening. Take a quick glance, and you could be forgiven for thinking they’re cosplaying as Scotland. Closer inspection of the commemorative golden disc will however reveal two words that categorically clear up that particular confusion in double-quick time. Chelsea also become the latest club to go retro with their crest, reviving the mid-80s lion sprawled across the letters CFC, as though elegantly wasted on a chaise longue.

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Manchester City host Tottenham on Saturday while Liverpool visit St James’ Park to face Newcastle on Monday

Saturday 12.30pm TNT Sports 1 Venue Etihad Stadium

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Spurs must forget Eze humiliation, Isak will be all the talk on Tyneside and Everton begin a new era at Hill Dickinson

Enzo Maresca’s request for Chelsea to replace the injured Levi Colwill with a new centre-back remains unanswered. The club’s position is straightforward: there are no suitable defenders on the market and, in any case, it is up to Maresca to find internal solutions. The Italian can call upon Josh Acheampong, who performed well against Crystal Palace on the opening weekend. The 19-year-old started with Colwill’s long-term absence complicated by Tosin Adarabioyo’s minor injury. Adarabioyo may return for Friday night at West Ham but there is a case to give Acheampong another chance next to Trevoh Chalobah. Acheampong, who counts Manchester City as one of his many suitors, stood up to Jean-Phillipe Mateta in the goalless draw with Palace. It is worth having another look at whether he can cope as the central centre-back when Chelsea morph into a back three in possession. Replacing Colwill’s line-breaking passes will not be easy but Maresca has options. Jacob Steinberg

West Ham v Chelsea, Friday 8pm (all times BST)

Manchester City v Tottenham, Saturday 12.30pm

Brentford v Aston Villa, Saturday 3pm

Burnley v Sunderland, Saturday 3pm

Bournemouth v Wolves, Saturday 3pm

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Lukas Nmecha came off the bench to score from the spot after James Tarkowski was adjudged to have committed a handball

“Greetings from California,” says Mary Waltz. “This Everton fan is so hyped about the new stadium. stadiums don’t put goals in the net. But it will give them the economic heft to keep talent and attract talent as well. Watching Richarlison score on that amazing bicycle kick was so bittersweet because he used to be ours, not Spurs. COYB.”

“Evening, Will,” writes Ian Copestake. “Glad to see Leeds investing in physical players.rather than AI-generated ones.”

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Winning at Old Trafford may not prove to be as common as last season, making Arsenal’s result stand out among the title hopefuls

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There was a thought at times in the second part of last season, when the set-piece goals dried up, that Arsenal had become over-reliant on them. And perhaps that was true, but they’re a useful weapon to have. Some games are won by overwhelming opponents through superior technical ability and some games are won by organization and hard work, by finding a way to score and a way to keep their opponent out. Arsenal’s 1-0 win at Old Trafford on Sunday was definitely one of the latter.

Manchester United do not defend inswinging corners well. Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka both excel at taking inswinging corners. In that sense, the fact that the game was decided by United goalkeeper Altay Bayindir’s flap at a Rice inswinger was entirely to be expected. What was less predictable was the nature of the game that followed as United hit the post and David Raya was called into seven saves. Mikel Arteta, quite reasonably, praised his side’s “character and spirit” while acknowledging they had made “mistakes that are very far from the standards that we normally have.”

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Manager insists club ‘belongs in the Premier League’ and has been building a taller, tougher side to keep them there

The trampoline man. It sounds like a promising title for a novel, film or even a song but it is a label Daniel Farke remains desperate to avoid. To the Leeds head coach, the term “trampoline manager” carries no hint of glamour, let alone romance.

Farke knows that, after winning three promotions to the Premier League, the first two with Norwich, and enduring two immediate relegations, he could do without his latest bounce into the big time prefacing a swift tumble back to the Championship. No matter that there are persuasive mitigating factors for those two relegations with Norwich – mainly involving a severe shortage of money. Mud sticks.

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Kyle Walker has World Cup in his sights, Nottingham Forest remain potent in attack and James Trafford delights the Manchester City fans

It has been a constant in the last two seasons: Manchester United are doing OK in a game, resembling something approaching a football team, then out of nowhere all their good work is ruined by goalkeeping incompetence somehow predictable and unpredictable. And that was exactly what happened against Arsenal, United starting fairly well, only to concede a corner and fall behind in inexcusably soft circumstances. Usually, André Onana is the man responsible, but in his absence, Altay Bayindir seized the mantle with alacrity. We can be absolutely certain that Ruben Amorim has already told his bosses he must have a new keeper and, though they have already spent heavily, the position must be addressed as a matter of urgency because if it is not, this will continue happening and they might soon be facing questions about whether a new manager is necessary. It is pointless building a swish new house only for the owners to knowingly leave the back door open, get burgled and sack the builder. Daniel Harris

Match report: Manchester United 0-1 Arsenal

Match report: Nottingham Forest 3-1 Brentford

Match report: Chelsea 0-0 Crystal Palace

Match report: Brighton 1-1 Fulham

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Riccardo Calafiori punished an error from Altay Bayindir to give Arsenal victory against a lively Man Utd

We’re at home and we want to get three points. We know that everything is not going to change in four weeks but we have made steps that are really important for the future.

[On Benjamin Sesko’s role as substitute] We picked the starting XI thinking also about the end of the game, so we need to balance that. Ben had a very good week but it’s just one week. We have to remember that there’s a lot of emotion – changing countries, culture, working with new people. The first impression is really important so let the guy settle down. He’s ready to help us in the game.

I’m very excited about the season. We start with a great opportunity at Old Trafford. I know what this game will demand but I’m very excited about what’s coming. What a place to play the first game; we’re ready for it.

[On Viktor Gyokeres] Goals are his main quality. He brings a fear factor as well – it’s not just his ability to put the ball in the back of the net but the feeling he creates in the opposition.

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Blazing sunshine and a busy new marquee serving craft ale behind the Stretford End: ­Manchester United began in a shiny new world and finished in the gloom of another defeat.

First look at Altay Bayindir’s howler that handed Riccardo ­Calafiori an easy header. But then zoom out and you see this: a ­crisis at No 1 for United that features Ruben Amorim going all summer not ­fancying André Onana and still turning up for the season opener without a high-end replacement. Result: Bayindir’s ricket.

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Eberechi Eze had a goal disallowed in what might be his final game for Palace, who defended superbly and restricted Chelsea to few goalscoring opportunities

So what of Eze? Taking the money out of it for a second, part of me wonders why he’s leaving. If he was going to one of the top clubs to challenge for the big pots, fair enough. But at Spurs, he’ll get one season of Champions League, probably no more, and perhaps a Cup run, whereas if he stays, he could become Palace’s greatest player. If he was three years younger, fair enough, he could go to Tottenham then leave, but at 27, this is it for him, and I’m not sure what he’s getting beats what he’s leaving.

Otherwise, a general rule of thumb is that to win the title, a team needs three or four players who are among the best around, I don’t see that at Chelsea, who have lots of good players but not many – if any – special ones. Of course, they have several who can grow into that, I just can’t see them having more points than everyone else after 38 games, even without the summer workload.

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• Latest news from Premier League opening weekend

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So, what are you doing on this first Super Sunday? Travel plans? Off to the Bridge, to the City Ground, to OT? Riding the road to hell? Watching on an iPad as you cruise down the Limpopo river? Braving Avanti? Do let us know.

The Premier League is back, and pre-season predictions are already out of the window. Liverpool can’t defend, Manchester City are champions, West Ham and Wolves are relegated, Regis Le Bris is the new Bob Stokoe. So why not do it all over again on Super Sunday?

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Tijjani Reijnders announced himself to the Premier League with a goal, an assist, and a glorious dinked pass in the build-up to the opener. Not a bad debut, all told

4 min: City have settled quickly. They’re already dominating possession. Bobb slips Reijnders into space on the right but the £34m signing from Milan runs the ball out for a goal kick.

2 min: Doku scampers down the left and crosses deep. Haaland is lurking, so Moller Wolfe is taking no chances, and heads behind for the first corner of the match. Silva swings it in, but it’s cleared easily enough.

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