It’s a mouthwatering weekend of action ahead in the Premier League with both the Merseyside and North London derbies to enjoy.
Both games make for a mammoth Sunday of football, but ahead of that there’s plenty to keep fans intrigued on Saturday, with leaders Manchester City and Man United in action, with Chelsea the early kick-off on Sunday ahead of the derby duels.
Here we look ahead to what’s in store for all three teams this weekend.
RED DEVILS CAN’T AFFORD TO SIN
Times are pretty tough at Old Trafford. The football on the field is dross under Jose Mourinho, who is picking fights with anyone and everyone, and across the divide, noisy neighbours Man City are making quite a racket.
When the Red Devils lifted their 20th domestic English top-flight title in 2012/13, City had three. They lead the way this year and if back to back triumphs are secured, they will have doubled their tally to six in the time since United last tasted victory.
Yes, Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure was probably always going to have a detrimental impact on the club, but United are slowly and surely betraying the swashbuckling and entertaining values of attacking football the club is built on.
And while Mourinho has delivered trophies in the form of the League Cup and Europa League, as well as a highest league finish of second since Ferguson stepped down last season, the football has continued to be ponderous and porous.
The international break seemed to offer little respite as Crystal Palace earned a 0-0 draw at Old Trafford last week. United flapped and floundered against the struggling Eagles and drawing a blank this weekend is simply not an option against third-bottom Southampton.
Goals simply must be plundered against hosts who have just one win to their name – the fewest in the league – this season.
United fans have accused Mourinho of plenty of sins against their club this season. Against the Saints, they must find salvation.
TINKERMAN HOPING TO FASHION AN UPSET
Chelsea had been nearly flawless in sauntering to a 12-game unbeaten start to the season. Former banker Maurizio Sarri has certainly enriched the lives of Blues fans after last season’s tame fifth-place finish under Antonio Conte.
It’s all a far cry from being swept aside 2-0 by champions City in the curtain-raising Community Shield encounter during his maiden game in charge.
But while Chelsea and Sarri have earned rave reviews, a first defeat of his reign was duly delivered last week as London rivals Tottenham profited at Wembley from David Luiz’s generous defending, the Portuguese enduring a particularly difficult day as Spurs swept to a comfortable 3-1 win.
A first defeat for the Blues nevertheless saw them slip to fourth, leapfrogged by their victors.
This weekend provides Sarri’s Chelsea with a tantalising test of their title mettle as they welcome a familiar face to Stamford Bridge in Claudio Ranieri.
Fulham, at face value, might not pose much of a threat to the hosts but the man known as the Tinkerman tailored a first win in nearly two months last week and just their second Premier League triumph of the season – their 4-2 win over Burnley had come nearly three months previously.
Having replaced Slavisa Jokanovic, Ranieri immediately stemmed the flow of blood from Fulham’s wounds with the 3-2 victory over fellow strugglers Southampton.
Can the Italian get them further along the road to recovery by stitching up his former club on Saturday?
BLUE MOON COULD BE SKY HIGH
As Chelsea creak, City continue to climb. Their 4-0 hammering of West Ham last week saw them ascend to 40 goals for the season, 12 more than anyone else and scored at a rate of just over three a game.
They face high-flying Bournemouth on Saturday who will head to the Etihad hell-bent on playing the attractive brand of football they are becoming famed for under Eddie Howe.
But with the embarrassing amount of firepower Pep Guardiola has at his disposal, you’d still expect the champions to come out on top in this one, with the added caveat that the teams closest to them face tricky tests.
Both Liverpool and Spurs have derby dates with Everton and Arsenal respectively, so no doubt Guardiola will be looking at securing the victory that could see his rampant side open up the gap between them and the chasing pack.
The Gunners are the joint second highest scorers in the division behind City, on 28 goals, and host Spurs at the Emirates – with Unai Emery really beginning to get to grips with the Premier League. The Spaniard revealed this week that hit British TV show Peaky Blinders is aiding his English, and he will hope his side can close the gap to Tottenham with victory.
Another manager finding his feet at a new club is Marco Silva at Everton. The Toffees have found themselves in a sticky patch in recent years but are currently riding high in sixth under Silva. A 2-1 defeat to Man United is the only blemish on their record in the last two months.
