Key events
Today in the Premier League
While other opinions are available, if totally invalid, the pick of today’s top flight games for me as a Sunderland fan, is taking place at the City Ground. The white-hot favourites of many people to go straight back down as soon as they won the Championship play-off, Sunderland spent the summer doing what looks to have been some extremely diligent and tenacious work in the transfer market and have got their season off to a great start, taking eight points from their first five games.
Of course it’s still early doors for Regis Le Bris’s side but the early portents look promising. They travel to Nottingham Forest for today’s 5.30pm (BST) kick-off, where Ange Postecoglou will be hoping to get his first win in five games as Forest head coach on the board, in his first home game. While Forest have yet to notch upo a victory under the Australian, they looked pretty impressive (going forward at least) in drawing with Real Betis in Seville on Wednesday.
I will also be doing the Guardian minute-by-minute report of the lunchtime kick-off between Brentford and Manchester United. The fixture marks Bryan Mbeumo’s return to the Gtech Stadium following his summer move to Manchester United and also provides Ruben Amorim with his latest opportunity to string back-to-back league wins together for the first time since taking over at Old Trafford. It’s another game I’m very much looking forward to, particularly if it’s anything like the corresponding white-knuckle ride last year.
Elsewhere, Leeds host Bournemouth, while quite a few shrewdies think Crystal Palace might be the team good enough to finally exploit those Liverpool vulnerabilities. No end of Brighton players will get to audition for their summer moves to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, while Manchester City will be expected to see off Burnley but may not have it all their own way. Later tonight, a Wolves side that has lost all five of its opening Premier League games has a long overdue appointment in the surgery of everyone’s favourite physician, Doctor Tottenham. No prizes for guessing what’s going to happen at White Hart Lane, eh?
Today’s headlines
Harry Kane has become the fastest player this century to reach 100 goals for a club playing in one of Europe’s top five leagues after scoring twice in Bayern Munich’s 4-0 win over Werder Bremen last night. Kane reached his century in 104 games, beating the joint record held by Cristiano Ronaldo and Erling Haaland by one match.
Arne Slot has confirmed in an interview with TNT Sports’ Ally McCoist that Liverpool’s owner, Fenway Sports Group, is to pay the final two years of Diogo Jota’s contract to the late striker’s family.
Enzo Marseca has confirmed that Cole Palmer will miss Chelsea’s next three matches in a bid to recover from a troublesome ongoing groin issue. The midfielder will miss his side’s Premier League games against Brighton and Liverpool, either side of a Champions League match against Benfica.
Leicester City secured a last-gasp draw with West Bromwich Albion courtesy of a Nat Phillips own-goal deep in added time at the Hawthorns, where the two Championship sides drew one goal apiece.
The Football Association says it will carry out an immediate safety review of perimeter walls at football grounds in the National League system after the tragic death of former Arsenal youth player Billy Vigar from a “significant brain injury” he suffered while playing for Chichester City at Wingate and Finchley FC last Saturday.
This weekend’s Premier League fixtures
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Brentford v Manchester United (12.30pm BST)
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Leeds United v Bournemouth (3pm)
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Chelsea v Brighton
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Manchester City v Bournemouth
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Crystal Palace v Liverpool
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Nottingham Forest v Sunderland (5.30pm)
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Tottenham Hotspur v Wolves (8pm)
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Aston Villa v Fulham (Sunday 2pm)
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Newcastle United v Arsenal (4.30pm)
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Everton v West Ham (Monday 8pm)
Saturday matchday live
Good day to you wherever you are in the world, on another busy day of football action around the UK and Europe. There are seven Premier League matches scheduled for today, the first of them between Brentford and Manchester United as Bryan Mbeumo returns to the Gtech Stadium for the first time. Brentford head coach Keith Andrews says he expects home fans to give the Frenchman a wamr welcome but hopes his players will give him an afternoon to forget.
The comments section below is open so feel free to get in touch to let us your plans for the footballing day that’s in it, who you’ll be supporting and how you think they might fare. It should go without saying that the more pessimistic you are, the more pleased we’ll be to hear from you.
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