Guardiola to embarrass Maresca in Chelsea v City as Slot makes Liverpool bow

How will Enzo Maresca get on against his former club? Will West Ham fans’ pre-season excitement all be for nothing? We have a Big Weekend ahead of us, folks…

 

Game to watch – Chelsea v Manchester City
Last season we were given Chelsea v Liverpool on matchday one and the Blues have been given another tasty fixture to get us all back into the swing of things, hosting champions Manchester City on Sunday.

There is plenty to go at here. This match finished 4-4 in 2023/24. Enzo Maresca is managing his first top-flight fixture. Against his former boss Pep Guardiola, who will patronisingly say ‘he is so good, guys’ after a convincing 4-1 win, and we will be here for it.

Another eight-goal classic would be perfect but this is a different Chelsea team, one working under a sixth manager in the Clearlake era which started in the summer of 2022. It has been an era filled with mistakes, unnecessary signings, and fans falling out of love with the game. Pre-season was far from productive for Maresca and a combination of results – which are pretty insignificant in the grand scheme of things – and noise off the pitch makes for plenty of scepticism heading into the season.

Playing the best team in the country on matchday one will go one way or the other. Either fans will leave Stamford Bridge feeling doomed, or that there is actually hope with Maresca at the helm. There will be no in-between, whatever that is.

Man City should give up enough chances to their hosts and Chelsea will need Cole Palmer and Christopher Nkunku – whose first season did not do him justice as a player – to capitalise. Guardiola’s side don’t necessarily start seasons slowly but they hit their pomp come March, which can give the Blues some hope that this will not be a massacre.

But if Chelsea have a bad day – which is very possible – and Man City have a good one – also very possible – it will be just that, just as it was in the United States earlier this month. Either way, colour us excited!

 

Team to watch – West Ham
West Ham have made a lot of changes this summer, and like Chelsea, have a tough task this weekend, facing Champions League outfit Aston Villa.

There is a new head coach at the London Stadium in Julen Lopetegui, who has brought in his former Wolves captain Max Kilman, Championship player of the year Crysencio Summerville, Germany striker Niclas Fullkrug, and another five players, spending a cool £120million in the process. Expectations are high and rightly so, that is a lot of money and a lot of new faces.

The thing with West Ham is that optimism very often turns into pessimism rather swiftly. New strikers also tend to be a bit rubbish, and a lot of them have been target men like Fullkrug. Gianluca Scamacca lasted a year in England, and the only successful one in the last eight years was signed as a right-back. They are just a bit of a weird club.

While optimism frequently comes in vain for the Hammers, that is not to say high hopes should result in pessimism. They have a Europa League-winning manager who has dipped his toes in the Premier League water, and a team capable of breaking into the traditional top six, just as Aston Villa did last season.

Their fans will be hoping for a similar season with their own Spaniard in the dugout and we are not here to burst their bubble. Saturday will be a great indication of the credentials of both teams but Villa have already upset the apple cart. Many think it’s West Ham’s turn and it will be interesting to see how they line up, how they gel, and if they can get a statement victory.

 

Manager to watch – Arne Slot
Truth be told, every new manager in the Premier League is one to watch, but only one of them has replaced Jurgen Klopp. Fabian Hurzeler is one we are very interested to see, taking Brighton to face Sean Dyche’s Everton at Goodison Park. It is genuinely poetic. It will be one of a rude awakening or absolute woke nonsense.

Klopp is a tough act to follow, both on and off the pitch; we all know that already. Klopp’s team centred around energy and winning, which Slot certainly brings to Anfield having claimed two major honours at Feyenoord.

Taking charge of his first Premier League match away to Ipswich Town is tricky. Bit of a no-win situation. It is similar to the new manager bounce when playing a newly promoted team, with everyone in a boisterous mood, and it is up to Slot’s men to manage the occasion and get out of Portman Road with all three points.

Getting the best out of Klopp’s greatest players – like Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk – should be simple, but it is if he can get a tune out of Dominik Szoboszlai, Curtis Jones and Cody Gakpo, among others, that will pique our interest. All three are brilliant footballers but have not shown enough consistency in the Premier League. If any of those guys catch fire against Kieran McKenna’s side, many doubts will be alleviated.

Will Slot be more Frank de Boer or more…erm…Guus Hiddink? There have not been a great deal of successful Dutchmen manage in the Premier League.

 

Player to watch – Casemiro
At the start of last season, Casemiro returned having enjoyed his summer a little too much. He looked, shall we say, a bit beefy, and it showed on the pitch, albeit not helped by Erik ten Hag’s tactics, a word we use reluctantly.

This year, he has returned having shed a few pounds. The Real Madrid great obviously took a number things personally: criticism of his performances in both centre-back and defensive-midfield, not being included in Brazil’s Copa America squad, being linked with a move to Saudi Arabia, Jamie Carragher saying he should move there or to MLS, and Man Utd desperately trying to sign a player in his position.

If Casemiro wants to become a crucial player for Man Utd again, just as he was in his debut season, he will need to start the season strongly. Let’s face it, Manuel Ugarte is going to join. And if he isn’t, someone else will.

It is time to prove his worth in the Red Devils midfield and if he can hold down his role on the pitch as he used to, it will help bring the best out of those in front of him. He is not the only player with a point to prove with Mason Mount hoping for an injury-free campaign, and kicking things off against Fulham is a good opportunity to do so, especially with no Joao Palhinha rampaging around the middle of the pitch.

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EFL game to watch – West Brom v Leeds
Oh to be a Leeds United fan right now. Dumped out of the Carabao Cup courtesy of a 3-0 home defeat to Middlesbrough. Selling your best player, your best youngster, and potentially your best remaining attacking option. You have every right to be miserable, my friend. And rival fans have every right to chuckle at your expense.

A trip to the Hawthorns on Saturday follows as the Yorkshire club look to bounce back. Likely to be without Brighton-bound Georginio Rutter, the only hope left in this team is Willy Gnonto, who relentlessly pushed to leave last summer and could do the same when his friend leaves.

Fans are in meltdown mode with Leeds in complete and utter disarray. Incoming signings are needed before the summer window closes but West Brom away takes priority as pressure on Daniel Farke rises a week into the 2024/25 campaign.

The Baggies are managed by former Leeds assistant Carlos Corberan, which juices things up even more. It’s hard to look beyond a home victory and more Leeds tears.

👉 READ MORE: Rooney sack, Leeds United heartache among eight Championship opening weekend kneejerk reactions

 

European game to watch – Juventus v Como
Como’s transfer policy this summer has been simple and textbook Football Manager, clearly searching for free agents and sorting the results by world reputation. We know your game.

Cesc Fabregas’ side finished second in Serie B to earn promotion last term and have signed the following players: Pepe Reina (yep, not retired yet), Alberto Moreno, Andrea Belotti, and most impressively four-time Champions League winner Raphael Varane.

Whether or not they get smashed in an extremely difficult opening Serie A fixture is up for debate, and they take on a Juventus team smack bang in the middle of an overhaul.

Thiago Motta got Bologna into the Champions League for the first time and dipped for the bigger club, leaving the Rossoblu as potential Champions League whipping boys. Khephren Thuram and Douglas Luiz have come in to shake things up in the middle of the park and there will be expectations for Juventus to win the league, as there is every single season.

In a weekend full of newly promoted teams and big-money signings across Europe, we reckon this Italian clash is the one to watch if you fancy expanding your football palette.