Another international break is almost upon us. Before that, though, there’s one more round of Premier League fixtures.
By Sam McGuire
There’s a lot at stake too. One of five teams could finish the weekend in top spot while five clubs are looking to bring their winless streaks to an end. Here are some things to look out for across matchday seven in the English top flight.
The Premier League leaders have an advantage
Liverpool head into the weekend as the Premier League leaders having taken 15 points from a possible 18. The Reds travel to Crystal Palace for the early kick-off on Saturday afternoon. A win guarantees them top spot and a draw could see them displaced at the summit.
On Wednesday, Arne Slot became the first Liverpool manager to win eight of his opening nine matches. The Merseyside club have a good record against the Eagles. They have lost just one of their previous 15 matches against this weekend’s opposition. That defeat just so happens to be the last time the two teams faced off at Anfield in April. However, Liverpool’s last defeat at Selhurst Park arrived in November 2014.
Oliver Glasner will want his side to bring that streak to an end on Saturday. He’ll also want his team to pick up their first win of the season. Currently, they are one of five teams without a victory in the Premier League this term. They lost to Everton last time out despite taking the lead at Goodison Park. The Eagles are finding goals hard to come by, having scored just five goals in their six outings, and they’ve registered just one clean sheet. We’re yet to see the superteam that ended the 2023/24 season. But there’s enough talent in the squad to cause an upset, especially when you consider the Reds have looked a little unconvincing in their last two victories.
The Bukayo Saka show
Arsenal host joint-bottom of the table Southampton this weekend with an opportunity claim top spot if results go their way. The Gunners are unbeaten across all competitions this season and claimed a 2-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League last time out.
The star of the show for Mikel Arteta’s side in the English top-flight this term is Saka. The England international leads the way for assists in the Premier League with five. The Arsenal No. 7 heads into this game having scored against the Ligue 1 champions in mid-week.
Saka has created the most big chances (nine) in the Premier League. He’s joint-second for chances created (20) and ranks third for Expected Assists (2.2). If the struggling Saints are going to get anything from this game, they’re going to have to stop Saka. it is easier said than done.
Russell Martin’s side have performed well at times but results have so far eluded the team. They’ve picked up just a single point, and they’ve scored just three goals while they’ve conceded 12. It doesn’t make for good reading and if Arsenal find their groove, it could become a lot worse on Saturday.
Unai Emery’s key player
Aston Villa picked up a famous 1-0 win over Bayern Munich in the Champions League this week. This result arrived just days after the Villans could only muster a draw against Ipswich Town in the Premier League. They missed the chance to move to level on points with Liverpool at the top of the table with that point at Portman Road.
However, they bounced back with the win over the German giants. They’ll head into the game against Manchester United this weekend full of confidence.
Villa are already six points ahead of United. They have four wins and a draw from their opening six matches, scoring 12 goals in the process. By comparison, the Red Devils have just two wins and have managed to find the back of the net on just five occasions.
Their attack is faltering. Aston Villa’s forward line is thriving, with both Ollie Watkins and Jhón Duran on four goals for the season already in the Premier League.
Morgan Rogers has also impressed for Emery this term but the surprise package has been Youri Tielemans.
The Belgian maestro has carved out 12 chances this term. He’s the only Villa player into double figures for this metric this season. He’s been responsible for five big chances and he’s joint-top for assists within Aston Villa squad. His FotMob rating of 7.68 is the highest in the squad.
If United can’t stop him pulling the strings at Villa Park on Sunday, they could be in trouble.
Maresca has Chelsea firing
Previous managers have struggled to turn this Chelsea group into a team. Maresca doesn’t appear to be having such a problem. The Blues are in fourth place in the Premier League and could end the weekend in top spot depending on how other results go.
The underlying numbers back up their performances. Maresca’s side are third in the Expected Points table. They have won three on the bounce in the Premier League, scoring eight goals and conceding just twice. Chelsea are the highest scorers in the English top-flight with 15 and they have the third highest xG total with 12.2 behind Liverpool (12.6) and Manchester City (12.4).
They really have found their groove. Nicolas Jackson is firing, Jadon Sancho looks to be a player reborn following the switch to Stamford Bridge while Cole Palmer continues to do Cole Palmer things. His four-goal showing against Brighton last weekend means he’s now on 10 goal involvements for the campaign.
Nottingham Forest, who suffered their first loss of the season last weekend, will have to be at their resilient best to keep a rampant Chelsea side under control.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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