Premier League: 10 things to watch out for this weekend | Football

1) Klopps’ lack of signings could pay off for Liverpool

The price of success is the fear of continuing failure and a section of Liverpool fans is nervous about the lack of new staff. Kostas Tsimikas is the only senior summer arrival and endorsement of Andy Robertson. There’s also January’s signature Takumi Minamino, who will be asked to build cameos during last season’s filming. The fact that Rhian Brewster and Harry Wilson are being hyped for sales also suggests that Jürgen Klopp is looking at young people who he thinks can increase his team. Tsimikas and Minamino cost £ 21 million between them and football finance guru Swiss Ramble has suggested Liverpool parsimony is due to increased costs. Fans are longing for Thiago Alcântara to refresh midfield, but that deal is by no means guaranteed. Does that point to a weakened Liverpool? Not necessarily because Klopp’s team had an easier project restart schedule than their peers, having exited the Champions League in March and had almost won the league at the time of the restart. Liverpool’s problem early in the season may be rust, but despite a lack of soft drinks and Chelsea’s generous spending, Manchester City alone is likely to keep 19 league titles from turning into 20. JB

2) Leeds faces an early acid test, but can wait to test new assets

Fresh after winning the championship, Norwich visited Anfield on the first day of last season. They scared Jürgen Klopp’s team with a skillful and dynamic attack, won some fans and took an absolute beating. At the end of the season they were a moldy slap on the Premier League pitch. So there is a caveat for Leeds. How will Marcelo Bielsa adapt his approach to the highest level? It doesn’t seem like much the most likely answer, except on one critical point, the one that Norwich failed to apply: Leeds have improved in some key positions. Mind you, Bielsa tends not to throw players straight into action if he has had little time to work with them, so Spanish striker Rodrigo and German defender Robin Koch can start on the bench against Liverpool, who have the potential to go crazy against Leeds. ‘defense but, in the same way, they might be surprised if they don’t match the energy and sharpness of the visitors. P.S.

3) Saliba’s debut brings hope for a new defensive dawn at Arsenal

It has been almost 15 months since Arsenal signed William Saliba for £ 27m, delighting his fans by fending off Tottenham’s advances through the center. He spent last season on loan with his old club, Saint-Étienne, although an injury halted his momentum. Now it is likely to start in Fulham on Saturday, and for most viewers it will be a first chance to see why the 19-year-old is considered one of the most exciting defenders in the world. Saliba may find himself holding it all together: for a club overloaded with center-backs, Arsenal have very few available, with an injury to David Luiz being the latest headache for Mikel Arteta, so Saliba could start in a defense with Kieran Tierney and the defender. -in favor of Rob Holding. The game at Craven Cottage is likely to come too early for another expensive newcomer, Gabriel Magalhães, but a solid start for Saliba would inspire confidence that Arsenal’s regenerated bottom line could banish ghosts of multi-year incompetence. N / A

4) Pressure on Lampard to tune in to new toys in Brighton

Graham Potter did a better job at Brighton last season than Frank Lampard at Chelsea, but both are under pressure to achieve even more this season, especially Lampard, who has had nearly £ 200 million in new players lavished on him over the summer. Brighton got a sneak peek of Chelsea’s offensive talent when Hakim Ziyech started a play that led to Timo Werner scoring with his first touch for the club in a preseason friendly at Amex and Chelsea have since signed Kai Havertz as well. How Lampard uses the abundance of talent will be just as interesting as how Brighton’s defense handles them, which could include Ben White and Tariq Lamptey, who made quite an impression after arriving from Chelsea in January. P.S.

5) Mourinho starts the season to shake off the label of has been

In July, Tottenham and Everton played one of the saddest matches, amid some competition, of the post-closing calendar without fans. So it doesn’t exactly lift your heart to see them face off again so soon, but there should at least be some accent on more entertainment. Both parts must be much better than last season: more creative, more dynamic, much more fluid. Everton have taken concrete steps to remedy those failures: Abdoulaye Doucouré and Allan should certainly address the lack of energy in midfield, while James Rodriguez could still be revitalized with the guiding hand of Carlo Ancelotti. Pierre-Emile Højbjerg and Matt Doherty don’t match that signing on glamor, but they should give Spurs the stability to help others prosper. Ancelotti and José Mourinho both need a positive season to avoid accusations of being yesterday’s men. Don’t expect a back-and-forth thriller, but anticipate a bit more bite than these two provided last time. N / A

6) The high-flying stalwarts should stabilize the Newcastle ship

There has rarely been a point where one of West Ham and Newcastle does not operate under the crisis club label. The opening day will see the start of both under such a cloud. Yet despite another failed acquisition which means the Toon Army must accept continued ownership of Mike Ashley, even if he’s challenging the Premier League on it, Newcastle actually seems much more determined than West Ham when it comes to matters in field. Callum Wilson is not Kylian Mbappé, Ryan Fraser is not Frenkie de Jong, Jamal Lewis is not Trent Alexander-Arnold and Jeff Hendrick is not Jadon Sancho, as might have been the dream of those Newcastle fans banging cans in anticipation of a Saudi acquisition. . But they are all solid Premier League players who can improve Steve Bruce’s team. West Ham have not exactly signed anyone and the sale of Grady Diangana to West Brom has sparked an uprising among fans, including captain Mark Noble. The club’s owners, Davids Gold and Sullivan, might regret that there are no cash-paying fans at the London stadium, but they can appreciate that they escaped being cornered in the stands on a Saturday night. JB

7) Injuries in danger of hampering Leicester’s rebirth

After practically hobbling to the finish last season, Leicester could use a good start. The problem is that they are still missing key players, especially on defense, where Wilfried Ndidi may have to fall back from midfield to replace Caglar Soyuncu. With Ricardo Pereira still injured, new signing Timothy Castagne is likely to start on the right side of that defense. Later on, Nampalys Mendy will likely be asked to try to do what Ndidi normally does in midfield, while the continued absence of James Maddison increases the creative load on other players, notably Harvey Barnes, who enjoyed an exciting period of loan to the Hawthorns in 2018. It will be crucial for West Brom to submit him if they are to benefit from any flaws in Leicester’s readjusted defense and enjoy a happy return to the top flight. P.S.

8) Batshuayi: the striker that Crystal Palace needs

If anyone needed a reminder of Michy Batshuayi’s capabilities, it came midweek when he scored two goals for Belgium, one of them with a nice heel, against Iceland. He has a phenomenal track record internationally and there is an enduring feeling that more can be brought out of him on the club stage. In 2019 he scored five times in 11 Premier League appearances for Crystal Palace on a mid-season loan from Chelsea and now, having joined for the entirety of 2020-21, he has the opportunity to replicate that form over a longer period in a club. where it clearly felt like home. It may also help that Roy Hodgson intends for the Palace to be a younger and more vibrant team this season. The arrivals of Eberechi Eze and Nathan Ferguson are an exciting step in that direction and they hold a lot of interest in Ipswich midfielder Flynn Downes. Batshuayi is a reliable finisher, even if other areas of his game require work, and he could thrive on the side of the Palace with greater creativity. At 26 he still has time to arrest a stutterer for four years at Stamford Bridge; Southampton, which is ready for better things, will expect it to achieve more of the same. N / A

9) Sheffield United’s new guys take on the weakened Wolves

Chris Wilder says that if Sheffield United brings in another striker by October 5, then they will have had the best transfer window since he led the club. On Monday at least one of his new signings, goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, looks certain to start, any involvement from Oliver Burke will be even more interesting to watch. Scoring more goals is an obvious goal this season and Wilder said he bought Burke from West Brom because United needed more pace and power up front. He also said that Burke, who has generally played as a winger at previous clubs, will be used centrally. Wide areas, however, may be where the Wolves are most vulnerable in the early part of the season, with Jonny’s injury and the sale of Matt Doherty depriving them both of last season’s regular full-backs. On the offensive front, however, the Wolves could debut, probably off the bench, Fábio Silva, the 18-year-old he bought for 35 million pounds. P.S.

10) Fulham keep things simple to forget the relegation nightmare

Fulham’s final stint in the Premier League was nothing short of an embarrassment, a £ 100 million splurge that yielded a 19th-place finish that left them 10 points behind survival. It was all too much, too soon, but under Scott Parker, the third manager to take his bench that year, there is a sense of purpose and the impression that this time they will go about their business with more ease. This preseason has been unremarkable, as Alphonse Areola and Antonee Robinson are smart signings, and the sense of continuity can help them. Two of those costly flops from 2018-19, Jean Michael Seri and Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, have returned from their loans, though there seems little chance they will be given a chance to fix things. A bit of simplicity could go a long way for Parker and with the balance of the Arsenal team still questionable, he has a chance to get Fulham off to a much nicer start on Saturday’s lunchtime start. N / A