The Premier League fixtures have been announced and fans will already be scouring the list to see when their best games are, when they face rivals and when the trickiest encounters are.
We’ve taken a look through the season and chosen five games which are must-see for reasons across the entire span of league objectives, from title fights to avoiding the drop.
Here are five to watch for throughout the entire campaign which could affect matters top to bottom.
Chelsea vs Liverpool – 13 August
Both looking to return to the top four after dismal 22/23 seasons, Liverpool and Chelsea will have spent the summer rebuilding their squads – or trimming them – and preparing for a much better start than last year.
Mauricio Pochettino couldn’t have been handed a much tougher start and this game takes place on the very first weekend of the season – though, from his perspective, at least it is on home soil.
The Reds requested an away day on the first gameweek to allow more time for stadium work to be done, but probably were not hoping for it to be against a club which has spent the best part of a billion pounds on transfers in the previous 12 months.
Burnley vs Everton – 16 December
Into December and there will be a meeting which could shape up as dictating the battle at the bottom: Championship winners Burnley hosting Everton, who avoided the drop last term on the final day of the season.
The game will also mark a return for Sean Dyche to Turf Moor, where Vincent Kompany is now in charge.
A potential battle at the bottom could ensue – or will we by then see that the Clarets have done enough to survive, or the Toffees having improved from last year to avoid yet another relegation struggle?
Luton vs Newcastle – 23 December
How about this for an early Christmas present: the richest club in the world heading to the smallest club and ground in the Premier League.
Suddenly-mighty Newcastle, who will have just about wrapped up their Champions League group stage at this point, head on 23 December to the 10,356 capacity Kenilworth Road.
That’ll be the smallest in Premier League history if there are no major works done before the campaign gets underway, with tiny Luton proud of their home and ready to welcome the game’s top stars there.
Liverpool vs Man City – 9 March
We’ll be heading towards the home straight at this point and we’ll already know what teams are really aiming for at both ends; presumably at the top, this massive match will give us an idea of what they are actually capable of.
These are the two best teams from the past half a decade, but last year there was a huge gap between them.
Are Liverpool back? Has the squad renewal paid dividends? Are Man City an unstoppable juggernaut heading for a second treble in a row…or even all four trophies perhaps?
The additional wrinkle here is that the game takes place shortly after a potential piece of silverware for either of these clubs, with the League Cup final at Wembley set for 25 February. Will it be a case of a second marker being put down at Anfield, one way or another?
Man United vs Arsenal – 11 May
Finally, this could be a late-season battle for a Champions League spot – or even for the title itself.
The Gunners fell short last term but will hope to be up and around the top spots again this year after a summer of improvement, while Man United – surely with new owners by this point and another year of progress under Erik ten Hag – might be hoping for a title fight of their own.
This fixture takes place on the penultimate weekend of the season and could be the make-or-break game for both clubs, whether they are fighting for the top four or something far more tangible.
