The first major London derby of the Premier League season will headline this weekend’s action as defending champions Arsenal face Chelsea on Sunday, with both clubs seeking to preserve their perfect starts.
The clash is the standout fixture of the third weekend and offers an early test of the two sides’ ambitions at the top end of the table.
Arsenal opened their campaign with successive victories, edging Aston Villa 1-0 on Monday, while Chelsea survived a seven-goal thriller against Brighton, winning 4-3 to make it two wins from two.
With both teams yet to drop a point, Sunday’s encounter could give one of the London rivals an early advantage in the race for the title and provide a first indication of how they compare against high-level opposition.
The derby will be broadcast live, alongside all other Premier League fixtures, on SS Premier League on DStv Channel 203 and GOtv Channel 65.
Liverpool will begin the weekend’s action on Friday when they travel to Ipswich for an 8:00pm kick-off, seeking their first victory of the campaign after consecutive 2-2 draws.
Ipswich will be looking to recover from their heavy 5-2 defeat to Manchester United, leaving them with plenty to prove against Liverpool.
Saturday’s fixtures begin at 12:30pm with Newcastle United hosting Bournemouth. Newcastle go into the encounter with confidence after their 2-0 victory over Tottenham, while Bournemouth are still searching for their first win after a 1-1 draw with Everton.
Manchester City will host Coventry at 3:00pm, with the champions coming off a convincing 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace. Coventry, meanwhile, will be seeking a response after their 1-0 defeat to Hull City.
At the same time, Nottingham Forest welcome Tottenham, with Forest entering the match after a 2-2 draw with Liverpool. Tottenham will be determined to bounce back from their loss to Newcastle and avoid an early setback to their campaign.
Hull City host Aston Villa at 5:30pm in another intriguing encounter. Hull have made a perfect start with two victories and will attempt to maintain their winning run, while Villa are still searching for their first points of the season.
Sunday’s programme begins with Everton hosting Manchester United at 2:00pm.
Everton drew 1-1 with Bournemouth in their previous outing, while United responded emphatically to their opening-day defeat to Hull City by thrashing Ipswich 5-2.
The weekend will therefore offer several early tests for the league’s leading sides, but attention will be firmly fixed on London, where Arsenal and Chelsea meet with unbeaten records and an opportunity to make an early statement in the title race.
