Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola could win his 200th Premier League game against Sheffield United on Sunday and become the fastest manager in English top-flight history to 200 victories (269 games).
A win for City will give Guardiola his 200th English top-flight win in just his 269th game, breaking JoseMourinho’s current record of 326 games, which he set in July 2020 when he was Tottenham manager.
Only including Premier League games, Guardiola will also become the fastest manager to win 200 games in the competition, with Alex Ferguson reaching the milestone in the fewest games currently (322).
Since the 2016-17 campaign when Guardiola became Man City manager, they have more Premier League points (631), wins (199) and goals scored (663) than any other side, with a positive goal difference of 448.
Chelsea v Luton Town
Chelsea have won their last three meetings with Luton in all competitions, with all of these games coming in the FA Cup between 1994 and 2022.
This is the first league meeting between Chelsea and Luton since December 1991, and a 2-0 win for the Hatters at Kenilworth Road in the top-flight.
Chelsea have won just one of their last 14 Premier League games (D5 L8) and are winless in their last eight at home (D5 L3), drawing each of the last three. They last went longer without a league victory at Stamford Bridge between November 1994 – April 1995 (a run of 12), while they last drew four consecutive leaguegames on home soil in February 2016 under Guus Hiddink.
Luton are set to become just the second side to see each of their first two Premier League games comeaway from home, after Blackpool in August 2010.
Following their draw with Liverpool on MD1 (1-1) and defeat at West Ham on MD2 (3-1), Chelsea couldbegin a Premier League campaign without winning any of their first three games for the first time since 1998-99 (D2 L1).
Luton are winless in their last 27 top-flight away matches (D6 L21) since beating Aston Villa 2-1 back in March 1991 courtesy of a Derek Mountfield own goal and a Mark Pembridge strike.
Chelsea have fallen 1-0 behind in six consecutive Premier League games, never conceding the openinggoal in seven successive matches in the competition.
Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino has won 85 per cent of his Premier League games in charge against promoted sides (W34 D4 L2), the joint-best win rate of any manager with 10+ such games. Both of his defeats have come in home games, however (1-3 v Wolves in December 2018, 0-1 v Cardiff in April 2014).
Following his penalty against Brighton on MD1, Carlton Morris could become the first player to score in a team’s first two ever Premier League games since Ricardo Fuller for Stoke in 2008-09.
Since the start of the 2020-21 season, Raheem Sterling has been involved in 15 goals in 15 Premier League appearances against newly promoted sides (11 goals, 4 assists), including five goal involvements in five games against such opposition for Chelsea last term (3 goals, 2 assists).
Bournemouth – Tottenham Hotspur
Bournemouth won 3-2 away from home the last time they faced Tottenham in April last season, but the Cherries have never won consecutive league meetings with Spurs before.
Tottenham have lost just one of their six Premier League away games against Bournemouth (W3 D2), coming from 2-0 down to win this exact fixture 3-2 last season.
Three of the last five Premier League meetings between Bournemouth and Tottenham have been won thanks to a goal scored in the 90th minute (2 for Bournemouth, 1 for Spurs), including both games last season.
Following their draw with West Ham on MD1 (1-1) and defeat at Liverpool on MD2 (3-1), Bournemouth could begin a Premier League campaign without a win from their first three games for a third time, doing so in 2016-17 (D1 L2) and 2017-18 (L3). However, they did go on to finish ninth and 12th in those respective seasons.
Tottenham have won just one of their last nine Premier League away games (D3 L5), conceding in all nine matches since a 1-0 win at Fulham in January. They are, however, unbeaten in their last five trips to the south coast (W3 D2) since a 1-0 defeat at Brighton in January 2021.
Bournemouth have lost three of their four Premier League games against Tottenham in which they’ve opened the scoring (W1). Indeed, since the start of last season, the Cherries have won just 50 per cent of their league matches when scoring first (P14 W7 D4 L3), losing 3-1 against Liverpool last time out despite going 1-0 up in the third minute.
Under Ange Postecoglou, Tottenham are averaging 63 per cent possession, 18 shots, 533 successful passes (174 ending in the final third), 18 sequences of 10+ passes, and 18 pressed sequences per game, all increases on their Premier League game averages under Antonio Conte (51 per cent possession, 14 shots, 425 successful passes – 91 ending in the final third – 12 sequences of 10+ passes, and 12 pressed sequences per game).
Dominic Solanke has been involved in both of Bournemouth’s two Premier League goals so far this term (goal v West Ham & assist v Liverpool). In his last appearance against Tottenham (a 3-2 win), Solanke was involved in all three of the Cherries’ goals, setting up their opener and 95th-minute winner having also scored to put them 2-1 ahead.
Tottenham captain Son Heung-min has been involved in seven goals across his last six Premier League starts against Bournemouth (5 goals, 2 assists), netting a brace at the Vitality Stadium back in March 2018. He created six chances for his teammates in this exact fixture last term, his highest tally in a single Premier League away game (133 away appearances).
All four of Kieffer Moore’s Premier League goals have come at the Vitality Stadium for Bournemouth, netting a brace in this exact fixture last season, giving the Cherries a two-goal lead before losing 2-3. However, Moore has failed to find the net with any of his last 15 attempts in the Premier League, since netting against Everton in November 2022.
Arsenal v Fulham
Arsenal have never lost a home league game against Fulham, winning 24 and drawing six of their 30 such meetings. It's the most one team has faced another at home without ever losing in English league history.
Fulham are winless in their last 10 Premier League games against Arsenal (D2 L8) and have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last 16 against the Gunners.
Arsenal have lost just one of their last 34 Premier League games at the Emirates kicking off at 15:00 on a Saturday (W27 D6), with that defeat coming against Brighton in April 2022 (1-2). Indeed, the Gunners won three of their four such fixtures last term, drawing the other against Brentford (1-1).
Following their 1-0 victory at Everton on MD1, Fulham will be looking to win their opening two away games in a top-flight campaign for the first time ever (this is their 29th top-flight season).
Since the start of last season, there have been 81 Premier League goals scored at the Emirates Stadium (4.05 per game on average), more than at any other venue during this period (55 for Arsenal & 26 against).
Fulham are winless in their last seven Premier League London derbies (D2 L5), including a 0-3 loss to Brentford last time out. On the road, the Cottagers have won just one of their last 19 top-flight matches against clubs also from the capital (D4 L14), a 3-0 win at Crystal Palace on Boxing Day last year.
Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhães has scored in three of his four Premier League appearances against Fulham, netting an 86th-minute winner in this exact fixture last term.
Fulham forward Willian played 25 Premier League games for Arsenal, with his only goal for the club coming in his final appearance against West Brom at the Emirates. The Brazilian is in line for his first appearance against the Gunners since leaving in the summer of 2021, and could become toldest player to score a Premier League goal against Arsenal having previously played for them in the competition (35y & 17d on the day of this game).
Leandro Trossard has more assists than any other player in the Premier League since his Arsenal debut in January 2023 (10), with three of those coming against Fulham in March. He’s averaging an assist every 95 minutes in 2023, the best ratio by a player in a calendar year in Premier League history (min. 500 minutes played).
Takehiro Tomiyasu's red card against Crystal Palace was Arsenal's 14th in the Premier League under Mikel Arteta, the most of any side in that time. They did, however, win the game 1-0, with the Gunners the only side in Premier League to win more games (36) than they've lost (34) when receiving a red card.
Brentford v Crystal Palace
All four Premier League meetings between Brentford and Crystal Palace have been draws – no pair of sides has ever drawn each of their first five meetings in the competition before.
Brentford have lost just one of their last 12 home league games against Crystal Palace (W7 D4), going down 3-0 on Christmas Day in 1957.
Brentford have won six of their last eight Premier League games (D1 L1) and have lost just one of their last 16 at the Brentford Community Stadium (W8 D7), a 1-2 loss against Newcastle in early April.
Following their 1-0 win at Sheffield United on MD1, Crystal Palace will be looking to win their opening two away games in a top-flight campaign for just a third time, previously doing so in 1997-98 and 2015-16.
Crystal Palace have won four of their last 31 Premier League London derby matches (D11 L16), losing 1-0 to Arsenal last time out. Only one of those wins has come away from home, beating West Ham in November 2022.
Brentford have lost just five of their 23 Premier League matches in 2023 (W11 D7), with Manchester City the only ever-present team to lose fewer this year so far (3).
Crystal Palace have won three of their six away Premier League matches since Roy Hodgson’s return to the club (D1 L2). From the first of those away games – a 5-1 win at Leeds in April – until present, only Liverpool (11) have more away Premier League points than Palace (10).
Excluding own goals, when Ivan Toney hasn’t played, 14 of Brentford’s last 15 goals in the Premier League have been scored by Bryan Mbeumo (8) or Yoane Wissa (6), with the other goal being scored by Ethan Pinnock against Manchester City in May. Mbeumo (3) and Wissa (2) have scored each of Brentford’s fivegoals this season.
Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze has had the most shots and chances created combined in the Premier League this season (20), having the most shots (12), and creating eight chances, with only two players creating more. Despite this, he is yet to score or assist a goal in the Premier League so far.
Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo has scored in each of his last five Premier League London derbies, netting seven goals in those matches; only one player has ever scored in six consecutive London derby matches in the competition – Thierry Henry between December 1999 and September 2000.
Everton v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Everton are winless in their last four Premier League games against Wolves (D1 L3) since a 1-0 home win in May 2021.
Wolves have won their last two away league games against Everton, as many as they had in their previous 16 such visits to Goodison Park (D5 L9). They've never won three in a row away to the Toffees before.
Everton have lost both of their Premier League games so far this season without scoring a single goal. TheToffees last lost their opening three games to a league campaign in 1990-91, never doing so without scoring.
Following defeats against Man Utd and Brighton, Wolves could lose their opening three games in a Premier League season for a second time in the last three campaigns (also in 2021-22).
Everton have won just one of their last 25 Premier League games when they’ve conceded at least one goal (D6 L18), a 5-1 win at Brighton in May, while the Toffees are winless in 13 such matches at Goodison Park (D2 L11).
Wolves are winless in their last nine Premier League away games (D2 L7), losing each of the last five while failing to score in the last four. They last lost six on the bounce on the road in December 2011, while they last failed to score in five consecutive top-flight away matches back in October 1981.
No team has conceded more goals in the Premier League this season than Everton (5), despite the Toffees facing just 22 shots, with only three teams facing fewer so far. Those 22 shots, however, have had an xG of 4.5, the second-most of any team (Fulham, 6.7), with the shots having an average xG value of 0.20, the highest in the division.
Despite losing their opening two games, only Brighton (43) have attempted more shots across the opening two Premier League matchdays than Wolves (39), netting just a single goal from an xG of 4.48 (-3.48, the biggest negative differential in the division so far).
Everton midfielder Alex Iwobi has appeared in 52 consecutive Premier League games for Everton since being an unused sub in a 1-0 defeat to Wolves at Goodison Park in March 2022 – however, he was forced off through injury last time out against Aston Villa. Since making his debut for the club, he’s been involved in 17 Premier League goals (6 goals, 11 assists), with only two current Everton players registering more goal involvements than him during this period; Dominic Calvert Lewin (40) and Abdoulaye Doucouré (18).
Hwang Hee-chan has scored each of Wolves’ last two Premier League goals (against Everton on MD37 last season & v Brighton on MD2 this season). The last player to score three successive goals for Wolves in the competition was Raúl Jiménez in January 2020.
Manchester United v Nottingham Forest
Manchester United have won their last 10 meetings with Nottingham Forest in all competitions by an aggregate score of 36-3. They won all four meetings last season without conceding a single goal.
Nottingham Forest have won just one of their 12 Premier League games against Man Utd (D2 L9), though that victory did come at Old Trafford (2-1 in December 1994).
Manchester United have won their last seven home Premier League matches, last enjoying a longer winning run at Old Trafford between May and November 2017 (8 in a row).
Nottingham Forest have won four of their last eight Premier League games (D2 L2), one more than they managed in their previous 17 in the competition (W3 D5 L9). Forest are looking for consecutive league wins for the first time since January, when they beat Southampton and Leicester.
After losing two of their first four home games under Erik ten Hag in all competitions (W2), Manchester United are unbeaten in their last 30 games at Old Trafford (W26 D4). It is their longest home unbeaten run since a 40-game stretch between September 2016 and December 2017, while ten Hag has never had a longer run in his managerial career (also 30 between Oct 2017 – Feb 2019 with Utrecht and Ajax).
Since the start of last season, Nottingham Forest have won just one of 20 away Premier League games (D5 L14), with their 14 away defeats the most of any current top-flight side in that time. The only managers with fewer wins than Steve Cooper’s one win in their first 20 away Premier League games are Howard Wilkinson in 1992-93 and John Gorman in 1993-94 (0).
For a second consecutive season, Manchester United have scored just one goal after two Premier League matches, having 22 shots without scoring in their 2-0 defeat to Spurs. They had scored at least twice in their opening two games of the season in each of their previous 12 seasons before this run.
Half of Manchester United’s 22 shots in their 2-0 defeat to Spurs came via Bruno Fernandes (6) and Casemiro (5). Of the 17 players to have had five or more shots without scoring in the Premier League this season, five are from the Red Devils: Fernandes (7), Marcus Rashford (7), Alejandro Garnacho (7), Antony (6) and Casemiro (5).
Taiwo Awoniyi has scored in his last six Premier League appearances for Nottingham Forest, scoring eight times, equalling Stan Collymore’s record in March and April 1995. Only two African players have ever scored in seven Premier League games in a row – Emmanuel Adebayor (Dec 2007 – Feb 2008, Arsenal) and Mohamed Salah (Aug – Oct 2021, Liverpool).
Having scored in Nottingham Forest’s first two Premier League matches this season, Taiwo Awoniyi is looking to become the first Forest player to score in their first three top-flight matches in a season since Peter Davenport in 1984-85.
Brighton and Hove Albion v West Ham United
Brighton have lost none of their 12 Premier League meetings with West Ham (W6 D6) – it's both the most they've faced a side without ever losing and the most the Hammers have faced a side without ever winning in the competition.
West Ham's last league win against Brighton was a 6-0 home victory in April 2012 in the Championship, while their last away league win against them was in October of the same season (1-0).
Brighton have won their opening two Premier League matches this season, scoring four goals in each win (4-1 v Luton, 4-1 v Wolves). They haven’t won their opening three league games in a season since 2011- 12 in the Championship, while the Seagulls haven’t won three league games in a row since October 2018, with this their 15th run of two wins in a row since that three-game streak.
West Ham United won 3-1 against Chelsea last time out and are looking to win consecutive Premier League games for the first time since October, when they beat Wolves and Fulham.
Having netted four goals in each of their first two Premier League games this season, Brighton are looking to become only the fourth side in English top-flight history to score 4+ goals in their first three games of a season, after Everton in 1890-91, Sheffield Wednesday in 1931-32 and Blackburn in 1958-59.
Teenage players have either scored or assisted 30 goals in the Premier League in 2023, with 18 of those coming via Brighton players (11 goals, 7 assists). The last team to have more goal involvements from teenagers in a single year was Manchester United in 2005 (15 goals, 5 assists).
West Ham manager David Moyes is still looking for his first Premier League win over Brighton, failing ineight attempts so far (D4 L4), with the Seagulls one of two teams he’s faced without defeating, along withBrentford (P4 L4). Moyes has beaten 40 different opponents, with only Arsène Wenger (46), Alex Ferguson(44) and Harry Redknapp (41) beating more different teams.
James Ward-Prowse assisted two goals on his Premier League debut for West Ham against Chelsea, the first ever player to get two assists on his Hammers debut in the competition. The only player to assist in his first two appearances for West Ham is Thomas Hitzlsperger in 2011.
Brighton’s Solly March has been involved in 15 goals in his last 19 Premier League starts (10 goals, 5 assists) and is looking to score in three consecutive top-flight appearances for the first time. He could also become the first Seagulls player to score in their first three matches in a top-flight season.
19-year-old Julio Enciso has been directly involved in eight goals in his last 14 Premier League appearances (4 goals, 4 assists). As well as registering two assists, he completed six dribbles in the 4-1 win over Wolves, the youngest non-Englishman to do so in a Premier League game since Adnan Januzaj in May 2014 for Man Utd against Hull (7).
Burnley v Aston Villa
There has been at least one draw between Burnley and Aston Villa in each of the last six league campaigns in which they've met, with seven of the 12 games in that time ending level (2 Burnley wins, 3 for Aston Villa).
Aston Villa have won two of their last three away league games against Burnley (L1), as many victories asthey'd picked up in their previous 29 visits to Turf Moor combined (D6 L21).
Having lost 3-0 to Manchester City on the opening day this season, Burnley are looking to avoid losing their opening two Premier League games for a third consecutive season, also doing so in 2020-21 and 2021-22. Only two teams have done so in three consecutive top-flight seasons – QPR (1976-77, 1977-78 & 1978-79) and Bournemouth (2015-16, 2016-17 & 2017-18).
After losing 5-1 to Newcastle in their first Premier League game this season, Aston Villa won 4-0 against Everton on MD2. They are only the second team in top-flight history to lose their opening game by 4+ goals then win their second game by 4+ goals, after Burnley in 1925-26 (lost 10-0 v Aston Villa then won 4-0 v Leicester).
Burnley have lost two of their last three home league games (W1), after a 21-match unbeaten run at Turf Moor (W15 D6). The Clarets last suffered consecutive home league defeats in May 2022, with one coming against Aston Villa. As a player, manager Vincent Kompany ended on the losing side in consecutive home Premier League appearances just once, in November and December 2008 for Man City.
The two longest total match times in the Premier League this season have both involved Aston Villa (108:03 v Everton on MD2 & 107:39 v Newcastle on MD1). Indeed, their average game length of 107:51 is 3 minutes & 26 seconds longer than any other side (Chelsea, 104:25).
Burnley’s starting XI against Man City had an average age of just 23 years and 206 days, the youngest any team has named in the division this season. None of the 16 players who appeared for the Clarets in the game were aged 30+, the first time Burnley hadn’t used a player over the age of 30 in a Premier League game.
New Burnley signing Wilson Odobert became Troyes’ second-youngest Ligue 1 scorer ever last season when he netted aged 17 years and 273 days against Angers. In Ligue 1 last season, the only teenager to make more appearances than Odobert (32) was Rayan Cherki (34), while only Elye Wahi (7) scored more goals as a teenager than Odobert (4).
19-year-old Jhon Durán scored just 50 seconds after coming on for Aston Villa against Everton last Sunday, their quickest Premier League goal by a substitute since October 2009 (John Carew v Everton, 46 seconds). Durán is looking to become the first teenager to score in consecutive top-flight appearances for Villa since Gabriel Agbonlahor in September 2006.
Aston Villa central defender Pau Torres has progressed the ball upfield a distance of 399 metres with ball carries in the Premier League, the second-most of any player behind Crystal Palace’s Joachim Andersen(437m). His 40 progressive carries are also more than any other player has managed.
Sheffield United v Manchester City
Sheffield United are winless in their last eight league games against Manchester City (D2 L6) since a 1-0 home win in January 2000 while in the second tier.
Man City have never lost a Premier League game against Sheffield United (W7 D3), with their last top-flight defeat against them coming in February 1992 (2-4 at Bramall Lane).
Manchester City have conceded just one goal in their 10 Premier League games against Sheffield United. Their clean sheet ratio of 90 per cent against the Blades is the highest one team has against another in the competition (min. five meetings).
Sheffield United have lost their opening two league games this season, only starting a season with three league defeats on three previous occasions – 1966-67 (top-flight), 1995-96 (second tier) and 2020-21 (Premier League).
Manchester City have won their opening two Premier League games this season but haven’t opened their season with three consecutive wins since their first under Pep Guardiola in 2016-17. Indeed, the reigning champions have only started a Premier League season with three wins once in the previous 11 seasons, Liverpool doing so in 2020-21.
None of Sheffield United’s last 26 Premier League matches have ended as a draw (W7 L19) since a 1-1 draw with Brighton in December 2020. The last team to have a longer run were Arsenal between February and October 2022 (27 games in a row).
Man City manager Pep Guardiola has won 199 of his 268 Premier League games (D34 L35) and could become the sixth manager to win 200 in the competition. Victory would also see him become the fastest manager in English top-flight history to 200 victories, breaking José Mourinho's record (326 games).
Julián Álvarez netted his 10th Premier League goal for Manchester City in their 1-0 win over Newcastle, with his last three goals all being the winning goal in the game. City have won all nine games when Álvarez has scored, with only Chris Smalling scoring in more Premier League games and ending on the winning side each time in Premier League history (11).
Gustavo Hamer scored on his Premier League debut for Sheffield United in their 2-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest. The only player to score in his first two Premier League appearances for the Blades is Brian Deane in their first two games in the competition in August 1992.
Phil Foden created seven chances in open play for Manchester City against Newcastle in their 1-0 win on MD2, the most by a City player in a Premier League game since Kevin De Bruyne v Norwich in July 2020 (also seven). Five of those were created following a ball carry, the most by a player in a game since Nathan Redmond in May 2021 for Southampton v West Ham (7) and most by a Man City player in a game since March 2015 (David Silva v West Brom, 5).
Newcastle United v Liverpool
Newcastle are winless in their last 13 Premier League games against Liverpool (D4 L9) since a 2-0 home win in December 2015.
Liverpool have won four of their last five Premier League away games against Newcastle, including the last two in a row. They've never won three consecutive visits to St James' Park in their league history.
Newcastle lost 1-0 against Manchester City in their last Premier League game – the last two times the Magpies have lost consecutive games have been against Man City and Liverpool, in April/May 2022 and February/March 2023.
Liverpool are on the longest current unbeaten run in the Premier League, a run of 13 matches (W8 D5) since losing 4-1 at Man City in April. They’ve fallen behind in five games in that sequence, gaining nine points from losing positions, more than any other side since the first game of this unbeaten run.
Newcastle United haven’t lost any of their last 22 Premier League games when they’ve taken the lead (W19 D3) since a 2-1 loss at Liverpool last August. At St James’ Park, the Magpies are yet to lose in the league under Eddie Howe after taking the lead (W20 D6), last doing so in Steve Bruce’s last game in charge in October 2021 against Tottenham.
Newcastle have won 20 of their 34 home Premier League matches under Eddie Howe (D10 L4), with only Kevin Keegan winning 20 home top-flight matches in fewer games as Magpies boss (30 games). Prior to Howe’s appointment, their last 20 home wins had come over a period of 62 games.
In his top-flight league managerial career, Liverpool’s Jürgen Klopp has beaten Eddie Howe more times than he has any other manager (11), winning each of his last 10 Premier League games against him. No manager has ever registered 11 consecutive Premier League wins against another, with Klopp’s 10 against Howe the joint-longest, along with Alex Ferguson against Gordon Strachan and Pep Guardiola also against Howe.
Mohamed Salah registered his 200th Premier League goal involvement with his goal against Bournemouth on MD2 (2 goals, 1 assist for Chelsea + 138 goals, 59 assists for Liverpool). He’s only the 12th player to achieve that feat and the first African player to do so.
Callum Wilson has scored six goals in his last seven Premier League appearances at St James’ Park for Newcastle, averaging a goal every 56 minutes across those games, with five of the six goals coming as a substitute. He has more sub goals than any other Premier League player in 2023 (5), with Oumar Niasse (6) and Olivier Giroud (7) the last players to score more in a single year back in 2017.
Luis Díaz has scored in each of Liverpool’s opening two Premier League games this season – the only three players to score in the Reds’ first three Premier League matches of a season are Robbie Fowler in 1994-95, Daniel Sturridge in 2013-14 and Sadio Mané in 2017-18.
