Ten key questions for the OPENING weekend of the season

Will Arsenal lay down a title marker or could Coventry cause an upset?

Friday’s Premier League curtain-raiser promises to be an electric occasion at Emirates Stadium.

Coventry City’s first appearance in the competition in a quarter of a century is a moment to savour for fans who have seen it all since the club's relegation from the Premier League back in 2001.

The club dropped down to League Two, lost their home ground, the Ricoh Arena - which they have since returned to and is now named the Coventry Building Society Arena - and went into administration before rising back up under Mark Robins and then Frank Lampard.

Coventry’s return is monumental, yet it could be overshadowed if Arsenal are as impressive as they were in the FA Community Shield last weekend.

Mikel Arteta is now the longest-serving manager in the Premier League and the only one of the current 20 bosses who has won the title. Arsenal, now experienced winners and with the monkey off their back, might flex their muscles on Friday and show the rest of the division they mean business.

For five years Arsenal built steadily under Arteta, finally lifting the Premier League title back in May, completing a long and wearying mission that prompted an outpouring of elation as well as relief, from players and fans alike.

Coventry fans can relate to those feelings. Lampard’s side now want to prove they belong. Arteta’s team want to prove they can take the place of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City – and dominate the division.

Will Maresca enjoy a winning start with Man City against Bournemouth?

Moving on from manager Guardiola, who left in the summer after a decade of unprecedented success in Manchester, was always going to be a huge challenge for his successor, but the task has been made even more difficult following the departures of three club legends, John Stones, Bernardo Silva and Rodri.

It goes without saying Enzo Maresca is hoping for a smooth, drama-free transition into the new era, and the best way to start on that journey would be continuing a couple of patterns on Saturday. Man City have won all nine of their Premier League home matches against AFC Bournemouth (by an aggregate score of 34-6) and 14 of their last 15 opening matches.

In other words, Man City fans expect their team to win on the first weekend and are very used to seeing Bournemouth swept aside. That’s good news for Maresca, although arguably it also raises the pressure a little, especially following a difficult 3-0 defeat to Arsenal in the Community Shield.

Anything less than three points for Man City will create an easy point of comparison: a break from statistical tradition that is likely to make headlines.

Can new-look Villa get off to a flier against Brighton?

A summer of change at Aston Villa might have left some supporters worrying the club was reaching the end of an era, especially after last May’s UEFA Europa League triumph could, in theory, be seen as the completion of Unai Emery’s mission.

But that conclusion looks misplaced after Villa’s bold and encouraging performance in a 2-1 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup last Wednesday.

Strong performances from 19-year-old George Hemmings and 17-year-old Brian Madjo stood out in particular, reflecting the strength in depth at Villa despite the summer departures of Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans and Lucas Digne.

In fact, Villa’s sharpness in Leipzig suggested they may hold a significant advantage over their rivals following a summer of managerial changes. The vast majority of clubs hoping to qualify for the UEFA Champions League are in transition, whereas Villa are still in their groove under Emery.

It could translate to a winning start on Sunday for Villa, who haven’t lost any of their four Premier League matches against Fabian Hurzeler’s Brighton & Hove Albion - winning three and drawing the other.

Will Newcastle and Liverpool produce another thrilling classic?

On Matchweek 2 of last season, 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha scored a 100th-minute winner to seal a 3-2 win for Liverpool against Newcastle United at St James Park.

Some slightly erratic action, with attacking verve and defensive frailties, feels particularly likely given that both clubs have a new manager who favours front-foot football.

Matthias Jaissle arrives from Saudi side Al-Ahli after winning successive Asian Champions League titles but he has never managed in one of Europe’s "Big 5" leagues before. His high-pressing, attack-minded football might take some adapting to, or might need to be tempered for the Premier League.

Similarly, Andoni Iraola might need time for things to settle at Liverpool. His furiously energetic brand of football was slow to catch on at Bournemouth, who didn’t win any of their first nine league matches under Iraola.

Two managers facing big steps up in their career, and two teams adapting to ultra-proactive football, may well produce a frenetic contest to match last year’s drama.

How will De Zerbi's revamped Spurs fare against Brentford?

The brief when Roberto De Zerbi arrived in March last season was to secure survival by any means necessary, which is why his success – 11 points from seven matches – didn’t quite have the look and feel of De Zerbi football.

That will change this season after a summer spent implementing his philosophy in full. Possession domination, constant pressing, and urgent forward-thinking football is the new direction for Tottenham Hotspur, hence the capture of Sandro Tonali, a snarling midfield presence to lead the charge.

But the reset faces a tough start. Brentford – relatively cautious, with a deep defensive line and desire to play on the counter-attack – are exactly the kind of opponent who will make life difficult for Spurs.

It’s hard to press into submission a team who are happy to pump the ball long and it is dangerous to deploy a high line like De Zerbi’s against a team comfortable sitting deep and counter-punching.

Brentford at the Gtech Community stadium will stress test De Zerbi-ball to its limits.

Can Sage life Palace's 'curse' against Everton?

Crystal Palace have failed to beat Everton in any of the last 11 attempts and have won just once in their last 23 in the Premier League. Playing them on the opening weekend might be bad luck for new Palace head coach Pierre Sage. Or it might just be a golden opportunity.

Long winless runs like these, spanning different managers and different eras, are hoodoos that affect superstitious supporters more than they do players, so in reality there isn’t anything for Sage to especially fear.

Instead, he will see an opportunity to break the curse, get off to a winning start, and in the process show the Palace faithful that life after Oliver Glasner – who won three trophies in two-and-a-half years in charge - need not be a step back down.

Sage, after all, is fresh from winning Lens their first-ever French Cup in May, an achievement equivalent to Glasner winning Palace the FA Cup in 2025.

Will Hull continue to defy logic against Man Utd?

There is something about this fixture that stirs thoughts of a fairy-tale; of an opening weekend giant-killing.

Perhaps it’s because there has been so much talk of Hull City’s shortcomings but whatever the reason, a shock feels implausibly on the cards for the team who sneaked up through the play-offs last season despite having the fifth fewest shots (515), third-most shots faced (681), and second-lowest xG difference (-20.6) of all 24 sides in the regular Championship season.

In fact, Opta’s expected points table had Hull all the way down in 23rd out of 24.

In sharp contrast, Manchester United sit top of the Premier League table for points won since Michael Carrick’s appointment (39).

As if that wasn’t enough of a mismatch, Hull are winless in 10 Premier League meetings with Man Utd, albeit the most recent of those being way back in 2017.

The cards are stacked against Hull. But in a bouncing MKM Stadium in the sunshine, who knows what might happen?

Are Ipswich capable of emulating Sunderland’s 25/26 success?

Following two consecutive seasons in which all three promoted clubs went straight back down, including Ipswich in 2024/25, Sunderland’s remarkable seventh-place finish last season makes them the new template for promoted sides to follow.

That template involves spending big on new signings, which is just what Ipswich have done in the hope of faring better this time around. At least nine of their new additions will be hoping to play regular first-team football in 2026/27.

Sunderland beat West Ham United 3-0 on the opening day last season and won 17 points from their first nine matches. The template also involves exploding out of the gates, then.

Ipswich have been handed a relatively kind opening match in which to do just that, against Sunderland, who have had a surprisingly quiet summer.

Can Glasner's Forest enjoy a fast start against Leeds?

Only Liverpool (-24) and Wolves (-22) saw a bigger decrease in their final points total between the last two Premier League seasons than Nottingham Forest (-21), who dropped from 65 points to 44.

Oliver Glasner’s task isn’t just to avoid another relegation battle. It’s to get Forest challenging for Europe.

To do that, he will need a faster start than he managed at Palace, where Glasner won just five points from his first six matches in charge – and then none of his eight at the beginning of his first full season.

Each of the last six permanent Forest managers has lost their first Premier League match in charge, stretching back to Dave Bassett, who led them to a 1-0 win away at Spurs in March 1997.

Will Fulham or Chelsea earn west London bragging rights?

Fulham’s Alvaro Arbeloa and Chelsea’s Xabi Alonso are close friends who played together at Liverpool from 2007 to 2009 and worked in close proximity at Real Madrid, too.

It’s a highly unusual for such good friends to be in opposite dugouts in a Premier League match, and even stranger to be in charge of rival clubs whose home grounds are just three kilometres apart.

Not that their friendship will be front and centre on Monday. The stakes are too high for that.

Chelsea are aiming to recover from a disappointing 2025/26 campaign and have made a series of high-profile new signings to suit Alonso’s football, with the arrival of Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson – the first over-30s signed since BlueCo bought the club – suggesting a change in strategy designed to empower the new manager.

Fulham, on the other hand, only wish to consolidate after losing Marco Silva, who took them to consecutive 11th-place finishes.