Can Arsenal better Man City? Talking points as the Premier League kicks off

By Sports Desk August 11, 2023

The new Premier League season kicks off this weekend with clubs still finalising their squads for the challenge ahead.

Champions Manchester City and last season’s runners-up Arsenal will resume battle with the Gunners’ having struck an early blow in the Community Shield, while newcomers Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton begin the task of ensuring their stay among the big boys is not fleeting.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at some of the talking points surrounding the opening fixtures.

Auf wiedersehen, Harry?

Harry Kane’s “will he, won’t he?” summer saga finally approached its conclusion on the eve of the new campaign as he headed for Germany with a view to tying up a £95million switch from Tottenham to Bayern Munich. The England skipper’s impending departure is likely to dismay fans of a club which drastically under-achieved in finishing eighth last season. Spurs open their campaign at Brentford on Sunday with the travelling supporters contemplating what life after Harry may represent.

Big six backlash?

If last season’s top three had a familiar look about it with Manchester United following their neighbours and Arsenal across the finishing line, there was a measure of turbulence below them as Newcastle disturbed the established order to push Liverpool out of the top four and Brighton claimed sixth spot with Aston Villa hot on their heels. Despite losing Jordan Henderson and Roberto Firmino to the Saudi Arabian exodus, the Reds have added World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai to their ranks with Moises Caicedo also seemingly on his way to Anfield, while James Maddison is perhaps the most eye-catching of Tottenham’s summer arrivals and Chelsea’s spending spree shows no signs of abating as the wounded prepare to fight back.

Baptism of fire

If Gary O’Neil felt hard done by when he was relieved of his duties at Bournemouth in June having steered the club to Premier League safety, it did not blunt his readiness to take on a challenge. The former Portsmouth and Middlesbrough midfielder was parachuted into the hotseat vacated by dissatisfied Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui after the Spaniard and the club decided to go their separate ways as a result of disagreements over recruitment. O’Neil stepped into the void with just days to prepare for Wolves’ opening fixture – a daunting trip to a rejuvenated Manchester United on Monday evening.

Welcome to the jungle

Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton will set foot in the top flight knowing the first and overwhelming priority is survival. Last season was the first since 2017-18 when the three promoted clubs all stayed up, with at least one having made an immediate return to the top flight at the end of each of the previous four. The Hatters last played in England’s top division in 1992, but having worked their way back from the non-league ranks in the last decade, they know all about fighting tooth and nail.

In it for the long haul

Unpopular as it may be with some, referees’ chief Howard Webb has insisted moves to eradicate time-wasting are here to stay, and that means there could be some lengthy matches this season. Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola and Manchester United defender Raphael Varane are among those to have questioned moves to tackle the game’s “dark arts”, as well as behaviour on and off the pitch, but their concerns have fallen on deaf ears. How will they feel after the weekend?

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  • PSG's latest Ligue 1 title arrives as Monaco lose to Lyon PSG's latest Ligue 1 title arrives as Monaco lose to Lyon

    Paris Saint-Germain have been crowned as Ligue 1 champions after Lyon overcame Monaco 3-2 on Sunday.

    A 4-1 midweek win over Lorient ensured that one more victory would be enough for Luis Enrique's team to get over the line, but PSG failed to get the job done themselves when they faced relegation-threatened Le Havre on Saturday.

    That game was the 700th match of the QSI era at PSG, and the club's 1,900th in France's top flight.

    However, PSG's wait to win their third straight title did not last long, as less than 24 hours later, Lyon – who will face the Parisians in the final of the Coupe de France at the end of May – came out on top in a topsy turvy encounter with second-placed Monaco.

    Substitute Malick Fofana was the matchwinner for Lyon, and ultimately the player who handed the title to PSG.

    Wissam Ben Yedder had put Monaco ahead in the opening minute, but quickfire goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Said Benrahma turned the match on its head before half-time.

    Ben Yedder netted his second to restore parity on the hour mark, and thought he had sealed his hat-trick when he volleyed in from a free-kick, only to have strayed offside.

    With only a win good enough for Monaco to stay in the fight, the visitors were then caught out in the 84th minute, with Fofana racing onto Lacazette's throughball and finishing calmly.

    After a dismal start to the season, relegation looked a real possibility for Lyon, but they are now, with three games remaining, still in with a shout of qualifying for Europe.

    PSG on the other hand now have 12 Ligue 1 titles to their name, with 10 of those coming under QSI's ownership. Aside from the COVID-impacted 2019-20 season, five of their last six league titles have been secured before the start of May.

    It also means Luis Enrique remains in the running for a treble in his first season at the club, with PSG taking on Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League semi-finals next week.

  • Nuno encouraged by Forest's attitude and commitment, despite Man City defeat Nuno encouraged by Forest's attitude and commitment, despite Man City defeat

    Nuno Espirito Santo believes Nottingham Forest will "achieve what we want" by replicating the attitude demonstrated during their defeat by Manchester City.

    Forest went down 2-0 against their title-chasing opponents at the City Ground, and remain just a point clear of the relegation zone with three games remaining.

    Despite the defeat, the hosts produced a spirited performance against Pep Guardiola's side, while registering 14 shots on goal compared to 11 from the Citizens - meaning they had had more shots in both meetings this season.

    Forest face already relegated Sheffield United, Chelsea and fellow strugglers Burnley in their final three games, and Nuno has seen enough to be confident of securing the Reds' Premier League status for another year.

    "We played a good game, were compact, organised and had chances," he told Sky Sports. "We did a good job regarding how hard it is to play against Manchester City, and the players gave it a big go.

    "We are disappointed with the result, but the encouragement comes from the way we work, how committed we are, and what we have ahead of us. This is more important.

    "We stay positive, and we go for the next three games. With this attitude, we will achieve what we want."

    Defender Moussa Niakhate echoes his manager's thoughts, adding: "We had three big chances in the first half, but we didn't score. That was the difference.

    "Everybody is working hard. We can be proud. If we perform like this in the next three games, we'll stay up."

  • Gvardiol: Four more finals for City in title fight Gvardiol: Four more finals for City in title fight

    Josko Gvardiol believes there are "four more finals" for Manchester City between them and the Premier League title.

    City won 2-0 at Nottingham Forest on Sunday thanks to a first-half header from Gvardiol before a 71st-minute Erling Haaland finish wrapped up the points.

    The victory moves City one point behind leaders Arsenal with a game in hand. The Gunners played earlier on Sunday, winning 3-2 at north London rivals Tottenham.

    The destination of the Premier League title remains in City's hands as they bid for a sixth Premier League title in seven seasons, and Gvardiol acknowledged that every game between now and the end of the season is vital.

    "We need to be focused on ourselves," Gvardiol told Sky Sports. "That’s what we are doing.

    "There are four more finals to the end so let's do it."

    Gvardiol's goal set City on course for victory at the City Ground, nodding home from Kevin De Bruyne's inswinging corner.

    It was only Gvardiol's second Premier League goal since arriving at City from RB Leipzig prior to this season.

    Gvardiol was somewhat surprised to get on the scoresheet, saying: "I didn't expect to score, but I found myself in a good position.

    "It was really tough especially as the pitch was really dry. It's a more than important three points."

    Pep Guardiola was delighted to come away with the three points against a Forest side fighting for their lives at the bottom, with the defeat to City leaving Nuno Espirito Santo's men in a perilous position, just a point above the relegation zone with three games to play.

    "It was a difficult game," Guardiola told Sky Sports. "They played with bravery. They have fast players with a lot of quality.

    "It is a great victory as we had a lot of games behind us. These games are so, so tough at this stage in the Premier League. Now we have a long week to recover."

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