Five things to look out for on the Premier League opening weekend

The Premier League makes its long-awaited comeback this weekend when Burnley welcome champions Manchester Metropolis to Turf Moor on Friday evening at 8pm.

That kicks off 4 days of motion from the English top-flight as probably the most adored sport within the nation returns to our screens. Right here’s 5 issues to look out for throughout the opening weekend.

New Signings

A plethora of gamers shall be making their aggressive debuts for his or her retrospective golf equipment this weekend, with the Premier League persevering with to dwarf the opposite leagues round Europe when it comes to spending on signings.

Arsenal’s televised fixture with Nottingham Forest will draw numerous consideration as followers tune in to see how record-signing Declan Rice fares in his first league recreation for the membership, while there may even be intrigue about Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber’s aggressive debuts.

Chelsea’s Christopher Nkunku was cruelly dominated out for quite a few months simply days earlier than his aspect’s opening recreation in opposition to Liverpool on Sunday, so all eyes shall be on striker Nicolas Jackson, who made a superb impression all through the Blues’ pre-season video games. In the meantime for Liverpool, new midfielders Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister are likewise anticipated to function.

Monday evening sees Wolves journey to Previous Trafford to tackle a Manchester United aspect who shall be lining up with a distinct first alternative goalkeeper for the primary time in 12 years, with Andre Onana set to make his debut for the Pink Devils. Erik ten Hag can also hand a primary look to Mason Mount, who joined the membership after a bitter ending to his time at boyhood membership Chelsea in the summertime.

New Managers

There may even be quite a few managerial debuts within the Premier League this season, though some faces will undoubtedly be extra acquainted than others.

The primary new boss to take to the dugout shall be Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola when the Cherries sq. off in opposition to West Ham on Saturday, with the Spaniard changing Gary O’Neil over the summer season after a three-year stint with Rayo Vallecano.

One other new face is Tottenham’s Ange Postecoglou, who turned the primary Australian to handle within the Premier League when he joined the north London aspect from Celtic over the summer season. His aspect have a difficult first fixture away at Brentford on Sunday afternoon – the Bees took 4 factors off them final season.

Mauricio Pochettino just isn’t precisely a brand new addition to the Premier League – taking cost of Southampton between 2013 and 2014 then notably Spurs between 2014 and 2019 – however all eyes shall be on Stamford Bridge on Sunday when he makes his Chelsea debut in opposition to Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool.

Longer Matches

For many who tuned into the World Cup final winter, you should have observed huge will increase of extra-time on the finish of each halves, with officers eager to make sure that taking part in time is maximised for every fixture.

Adore it or hate it, that process has been launched into English soccer this season, as evidenced by Sunday’s Group Defend between Manchester Metropolis and Arsenal – the Gunners netting within the one hundred and first minute after eight minutes have been added on on the finish of the sport.

It actually makes for extra intriguing climaxes to Premier League matches, with groups given far more time to attain within the dying embers of fixtures, so count on loads of motion as gamers take their time to adapt to a rise in recreation minutes.

Yellow Playing cards

One other notable change in officiating from Sunday’s Group Defend was the frequency with which referees brandished playing cards, with Thomas Partey and Julian Alvarez receiving cautions for seemingly innocuous offences after poking the ball away.

It represents a clampdown from the refereeing governing physique to stamp out dissent and unsportsmanlike conduct, as additional evidenced by Mikel Arteta’s first-half yellow card for his behaviour in direction of referee Stuart Atwell.

Count on a rise in cautions within the preliminary days of the Premier League season, as gamers (and doubtless followers) get used to the brand new guidelines and laws.

Luton City

We’d be mendacity if we mentioned there wasn’t a fascination with how newcomers Luton City will fare within the upcoming Premier League marketing campaign. The Hatters have been within the Nationwide League as just lately as eight seasons in the past and their rise to the English top-flight has been nothing in need of spectacular.

Many jokes have been made concerning the situation of their residence floor Kenilworth Street, which homes simply 10,300 followers and features a notably doubtful entrance to the away finish, however with the Premier League imposing they improve their stadium earlier than the season begins this weekend, there stays a lot for the membership to do earlier than they’ll play league matches at residence.

Many followers have tipped the Hatters to interrupt Derby County’s report low of 11 factors within the 2007/08 season, while others have boldly mentioned that their small stadium will make life robust for visiting Premier League groups used to acting on pristine surfaces.

Solely time will inform, however you may wager there shall be numerous protection about Luton City’s participation this season.­­­ They kick off their marketing campaign this Saturday in opposition to Brighton on the Amex Stadium at 15:00.

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