The Premier League is back following the international break.
There are several significant matches in the English Premier League this weekend. When they take on Harry Kane and Spurs in the north London derby on Saturday, Mikel Arteta and his Arsenal team will maintain their position at the top of the standings. On Sunday, the Manchester Derby will be played when Pep Guardiola and the reigning champions from Manchester City visit Manchester United’s home stadium.
The EPL will take a midseason break due to the World Cup in less than two months, thus clubs will be seeking to position themselves well for the winter transfer window.
In this thread, we shall be covering all Matchweek 9 fixtures. Join the discussion and share your views on the various matches.
Things have changed drastically for the Gunners, sitting on top of the Premier League table after seven rounds of fixtures. Arsenal have six wins from those games, losing only to Manchester United at Old Trafford. They did recover from that with a more controlled win over Brentford before the international break.
That win also saw them register a clean sheet for the first time in four games, but Mikel Arteta knows the importance of the North London Derby up next. The Gunners will be targetting a win to stay on top of the table and avenge a defeat in this fixture from the tail end of last season, which saw them miss out on the top four.
Tottenham, meanwhile, have not been at their best this season, yet remain unbeaten in the league alongside Manchester City. Spurs are level on points with Pep Guardiola’s men and sit behind Arsenal in third. Antonio Conte will be eager to break the Gunners’ hearts with good performances to boost their chances of winning the Premier League title.
Crystal Palace did show some upturn in the form after their opening night defeat to Arsenal. They have thus far managed draws against Liverpool, Brentford and Newcastle United, although the defeat to Manchester City will have been hard to take for Vieira.
After six rounds of fixtures, Vieira’s men find themselves in the 16th spot, something the manager would like to address. With only a single victory this season coming against Aston Villa, the Crystal Palace boss will be eager to grab another one when they take on a Chelsea side desperately lacking form.
Chelsea have made an indifferent start to their domestic campaign amidst plenty of drama. While their prolific spending in the window has yielded far fewer results than expected, the Blues will be aiming to see the team bounce back and stabilise their shaky start to the campaign.
2007 - This is the first Premier League #NLD with either side top of the table since December 2007, a 2-1 victory for Arsenal at the Emirates thanks to Nicklas Bendtner’s winner. Lord.
6 - Son Heung-min has been involved in six goals in his last five league games against Arsenal (4 goals, 2 assists), having failed to register a single goal or assist in his first nine against the Gunners. Tide.
Tottenham
Man City
Arsenal
Thomas Partey scores his first goal of the season, with a beauty!
His first goal since March for the Gunners and his third since he joined
All three of those have come at home!
