By Robert Wheeler
- Manchester United face Brentford as Eric ten Hag’s side looks to bounce back from their opening day defeat
- Erling Haaland will be eyeing more goals as Manchester City face Bournemouth
- Chelsea face Tottenham in the London derby
UK – The opening weekend did not disappoint and let’s hope for the same amount of drama in Matchweek 2.
Brentford vs Manchester United, Saturday 13 August, kick-off 17:30
Eric ten Hag‘s first game in charge did not go to plan as Manchester United were defeated 2-1 by Brighton. The match will also see Christian Eriksen return to Brentford after the club’s midfielder spent the second half of last season.
United has many problems with Cristiano Ronaldo still wanting to leave the club. The club have been linked with former West Ham and Stoke City forward Marko Arnautovic which will not fill their fans with optimism.
In their opening game, Brentford drew 2-2 with Leicester City with a late goal from Josh Dasilva rescuing a point for the Bees. Last season saw Manchester United beat Thomas Frank‘s side convincingly with a 3-0 and a 3-1 victory but given how badly the Red Devils played against Brighton it is hard to see Ten Hag’s side making light work of Brentford.
The Bees will also be buoyed by the recent signing of Mikkel Damsgaard who England fans will remember from the Euros last year when he scored an unbelievable free-kick against the Three Lions.
Score prediction: Brentford 1-1 Manchester United
Manchester City vs Bournemouth, Saturday 13 August, kick-off 15:00
Erling Haaland scored twice on his Premier League debut against West Ham at the weekend and will want another brace when playing in front of his home fans for the first time this weekend.
The defending champions will also be pleased that Liverpool has already dropped points in their 2-2 draw with Fulham.
Bournemouth had a good start to the campaign beating Aston Villa 2-0 thanks to Jefferson Lerma‘s and Kieffer Moore‘s goals. Moore like Haaland is their ‘big man up top’ both players are 6 ft 5 in so it will be a battle of the old school centre forwards.
The Cherries have signed Argentine international Marcos Senesi this week who could be the man to stop Haaland but with the Norwegian in form, Bournemouth will be in for a tough game.
Score prediction: Manchester City 3-1 Bournemouth
Chelsea vs Tottenham, Sunday 14 August, kick-off 15:00
Both teams come into this game on the back of opening day victories. Chelsea beat Everton 1-0 while Tottenham Hotspur thumped Southampton 4-1.
We will see Antonio Conte return to Stamford Bridge again. Conte won the Premier League and the FA Cup when he was Chelsea’s manager so knows the place well.
Last season we saw two victories for the Blues as they won 3-0 and 2-0. Both sides have strengthened well, Ivan Perišić and Yves Bissouma made their debuts for Spurs last weekend. As for Thomas Tuchel‘s side, Raheem Sterling, Kalidou Koulibaly and Marc Cucurella also played their first games in the last round of games.
Conor Gallagher who returned to the club following a successful loan at Crystal Palace last season will be like a new signing. However, Tuchel has still not replaced Romelu Lukaku who has returned to Inter Milan. Timo Werner has also gone back to RB Leipzig. They played without an out-and-out forward against Everton although Armando Broja did come on as a sub. It is hard to see who will get Chelsea the 20+ goals they will need this season to compete with Man City and Liverpool at the top of the table.
Score prediction: Chelsea 1-2 Tottenham
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