Tottenham v Liverpool, Wolves v Burnley, Everton v West Ham and Southampton v Brighton all live on Sky Sports this weekend
Saturday 15 September 2018 08:20, UK
What questions could be answered by the time the final whistles go in the latest round of Premier League matches?
The action gets underway on Saturday lunchtime as Liverpool travel to Tottenham, live on Sky Sports, before a Renault Super Sunday double-header sees Wolves take on Burnley and West Ham go to Goodison Park to face Everton.
Also, Southampton host Brighton on Monday Night Football.
Here are the big questions ahead of all 10 matches...
Sky Sports pundits Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher and Jamie Redknapp all agreed that Harry Kane has not looked himself recently despite his World Cup goalscoring achievements and breaking his August duck for Tottenham. According to our research, his shot numbers have dropped and he might be adapting into a deeper role for Tottenham, especially with Lucas Moura happy to play on the last man.
Liverpool are well aware of Kane's goal threat. He has has been directly involved in seven goals in seven Premier League appearances against Liverpool (five goals, two assists), including four in the last two.
Sean Dyche will not admit it publicly but he must be worried about Burnley's start to the season. The Clarets have lost five of their last six Premier League matches, including each of the last three. They have not lost four consecutively in league competition since May 2015, when they were relegated from the Premier League. Relegation is not a word that is heard when discussing Wolves, despite their newly promoted tag. The home fans will be expecting three points.
It may sound daft to even suggest new West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini is under significant pressure but such is the results-based industry we live in. The Hammers sit bottom of the pile and Pellegrini is the first West Ham manager to lose his first four Premier League games in charge since Avram Grant. No West Ham manager has ever lost his first five at the helm in the Premier League.
Southampton striker Charlie Austin has scored more goals in all competitions versus Brighton than he has against any other side (seven). That's including the winning goal between the teams in the Carabao Cup meeting last month. Can Mark Hughes leave the striker on the bench considering his record? Shane Long has yet to score for the Saints this season, therefore it could time for Austin and Danny Ings to be partnered up top.
Jamie Vardy, who returns from suspension for this match, has scored nine of Leicester's last 17 away Premier League goals, including eight of 16 in 2018, although Leicester did not really miss him for their recent 2-1 away victory at Southampton. Vardy has enjoyed a prolonged break due to his suspension and international retirement, which should suit a player whose game is based around high energy.
Neil Warnock is without a win in 10 Premier League games (W0 D5 L5) - he has never gone 11 consecutive Premier League matches without victory. It's heavily odds-on Warnock will be sitting at home Saturday evening with that tag around his neck after meeting high-flying Chelsea. Warnock has admitted to "not having a fair crack of the whip" at the top table after relegation with Sheffield United and underwhelming campaigns with QPR and Crystal Palace. Hopefully for his sake, his bosses have more patience than at his previous clubs.
Huddersfield have failed to win any of their last eight Premier League matches (D4 L4) and they have never gone nine games without winning in the competition. Much of their survival last season was due to their gutsy form at home, where they tended to grind out plenty of results against teams around them in the table although they did suffer a 2-0 home defeat in this fixture last season. Added to that, Palace have Wilfried Zaha back in their squad.
The Premier League champions are famed for their entertaining style at the Etihad Stadium while newly promoted Fulham certainly have been fun to watch so far this season. There have been 16 goals scored in the four Premier League matches involving the Londoners this season (seven scored, nine conceded) - the joint-highest total in the division alongside Arsenal. One man that will fancy his chances is Sergio Aguero, who has scored 27 goals in 34 Premier League appearances against newly promoted teams. Goals galore, surely.
Arsenal looked to be clicking as an attacking unit in their 3-2 victory over Cardiff where Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette started for the first time in the Premier League under Unai Emery. Aubameyang scored his 150th goal in the big five European leagues following his strike against Cardiff while Lacazette has been directly involved in seven goals in his last five Premier League starts. The pair will be full of confidence heading up north.
This is the first time that Watford have started a top-flight campaign with four wins from their opening four games - it's got their fans dreaming about where this season could take them. They will also be thinking this is probably the perfect time to be playing Manchester United after their wobbly start to the campaign. However, Jose Mourinho has won five of his six Premier League encounters with Watford (L1), including each of the last three.
