This weekend in the Premier League: Arsenal take on Aston Villa, Man City welcome Ipswich & more
The 2024/25 Premier League campaign kicked off with a bang, and match week two is expected to continue in the same terrain with several exciting matchups lined up.
Title contenders Manchester City and Arsenal kicked off the 2024/25 season as they mean to go on, securing 2-0 victories apiece against Chelsea and Wolverhampton Wanderers, respectively.
The Cityzens weren’t at their sparkling best against a transitional Chelsea side, but they’ll be looking to build on the big win when they host Premier League newcomers Ipswich Town at the Etihad Stadium.
Meanwhile, Arsenal’s daunting run of fixtures begins with a trip to Villa Park to face last season’s surprise package, Aston Villa, and they will be determined to start the new campaign with back-to-back wins.
Over at Selhurst Park, capital rivals Crystal Palace and West Ham United square off at lunchtime in what promises to be a fiercely contested London derby showdown.
With both teams determined to bounce back from opening-day defeats, Crystal Palace tickets could become hot commodities as fans flock to Seatsnet.com to secure their spot in the stands.
Elsewhere, Manchester United travel to the Amex Stadium for a tricky test against Brighton & Hove Albion, while Tottenham Hotspur host Everton in north London.
Chelsea will travel to the Molineux Stadium to face Wolves, hoping to secure maximum points after a positive performance against the champions last time out, while Liverpool host Brentford at Anfield.
There are several mouth-watering contests to keep an eye on this weekend, but we’ve analysed some of the most eye-catching fixtures from the coming match week.
Aston Villa vs Arsenal
A tantalising clash awaits in the West Midlands on Saturday evening as Arsenal travel to face their former manager, Unai Emery, and his Villa side.
While Arsenal comfortably dispatched Wolves, Villa’s victory over West Ham United was marked by a late flourish from their Colombian striker, Jhon Duran.
Duran was a spectator for over an hour at the London Stadium as a Lucas Paqueta penalty cancelled out Amadou Onana’s debut goal.
Emery’s men were guilty of wastefulness in the final third, but Duran came on to settle the tie 11 minutes from time, helping Villa snap their four-match winless run in the Premier League.
Emery’s side have lost some of their home dominance since their remarkable 15-game winning streak last year, but they remain a formidable force at Villa Park.
Their attacking flair has been on full display, with at least two goals scored in their last eight matches on their own turf.
Arsenal kicked off their 2024/25 Premier League campaign with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Wolves at the Emirates Stadium, extending their unbeaten streak to seven games.
Kai Havertz opened the scoring for the Gunners barely half an hour into the contest, rising highest to home a sublime in-swinger from Bukayo Saka.
Despite Wolves’ valiant efforts to level matters, Arsenal managed to hold on and secure the win with another Havertz-Saka combination in the second half that ended with the latter beating Jose Sa at his near post.
Having dispatched Wolves, the Gunners will be keen to continue their impressive form on the road against Villa.
They have collected 25 points from a possible 27 in away games in the Premier League this year, keeping seven clean sheets and conceding just nine goals in nine matches.
However, Arsenal will face a stern test in their next match against Villa. Emery’s side were the only team to achieve a Premier League double over the Gunners last season.
Manchester City vs Ipswich Town
Man City welcome Premier League newcomers Ipswich to the Etihad Stadium looking to build on their hard-fought 2-0 victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last time out.
Pep Guardiola edged his former protege Enzo Maresca thanks to goals from Erling Braut Haaland and ex-Blues stalwart Mateo Kovacic, whose muted celebrations signalled his respect for his former employers.
Haaland opened the scoring after latching on to an incisive pass from Jeremy Doku before bullying Marc Cucurella and beating Robert Sanchez with a cheeky lob.
The Norwegian goalscoring phenom who ran away with the Premier League golden boot last season is off the mark, and Kovacic ensured victory for the Cityzens with a bullet from yards out.
Guardiola had previously stated that his side lacked the motivation to secure an unprecedented fifth Premier League title in a row, but they’ve started their title defence on the front foot.
They’ll head into this weekend’s showdown as overwhelming favourites against an Ipswich side desperate to secure Premier League survival at the first time of asking.
The Tractor Boys kicked off their 2024/25 campaign with a 2-0 defeat against Liverpool, falling to goals from Diogo Jota and Reds talisman Mohamed Salah.
While they undoubtedly gave a decent account of themselves against the Merseyside juggernauts, they face another uphill task in quick succession as they prepare for a daunting trip to Manchester.
Ipswich have been impressive in the transfer market, building an exciting team, but it’s up to Kieran McKenna to galvanise the squad and get them firing on all cylinders.
After squaring off with the champions, they’ll back themselves to pick up points in the coming fixtures where they face Fulham, Brighton, and fellow promoted side Southampton.
Crystal Palace vs West Ham
Palace and West Ham head into this weekend’s London derby on the back of narrow 2-1 defeats against Brentford and Villa, respectively.
Palace have been picked apart this summer after their exceptional form during last season’s run, in which they embarked on a seven-match unbeaten streak, winning six games and drawing once.
Michael Olise joined Bayern Munich after the Bundesliga champions triggered his release clause, while Joachim Andersen completed a shock return to Fulham.
Centre-back jewel Marc Guehi remains a top target for Newcastle United, while Eberechi Eze could still leave Selhurst Park before the transfer window closes if a top team presents a lucrative offer for the Englishman.
Palace manager Oliver Glasner has been the victim of his own success in South London, but the club will have to back him significantly if they expect him to repeat last season’s exploits.
The defeat against Brentford exposed the cracks in his team, and starting the season with back-to-back defeats wouldn’t be ideal, although West Ham will be eager to avoid a similar fate.
Over in East London, the Hammers have spared no expense in reinforcing Julen Lopetegui’s squad, with seven new recruits joining the squad this summer.
West Ham have assembled an exciting squad, and the expectation is that they’ll challenge for the European places, but they haven’t started the season as they mean to go on.
Lopetegui will need time to galvanise the team and instil his philosophy, but it remains to be seen whether the Hammers faithful will afford the Spaniard enough breathing room to get the job done.
Given the amount of money West Ham has spent this summer, kicking off the season with back-to-back defeats wouldn’t be an ideal way for Lopetegui to introduce himself to the ever-demanding Hammers supporters.
