Matchday 2 Preview

Welcome to the first preview of An American in the EPL. Lots of questions to be asked and answered this weekend.

I’m going to go through each game and give some quick thoughts, a reason to watch, and a score prediction. This is an interesting weekend as we see if teams can carry that opening weekend momentum or if some of the more surprising results, looking at you Spurs, can carry into games against sides that will be more defensive minded.

With that in mind lets quickly run down the games this weekend.

Liverpool vs Burnley: Liverpool is playing at home in front of 65,000 people against a Burnley side that folded against Brighton. I really don’t fancy Burnley getting anything from this game as Anfield will be bumping. I know Burnely ended Liverpools winning streak at Anfield last season, but that was in an empty stadium. Liverpool can struggle to break down teams that sit back and defend but it also plays into their press. Expect Naby Keita to start again in midfield with Fabinho (who is just better than Milner in that spot) and either Curtis Jones if he’s back from concussion or Oxlaide Chamberlain in that midfield three. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see the same front three that started the last game in Jota, Mane and Salah. I do think Jota is better in a wing spot and Firmino better in the false 9 or pivot striker role. I would start Firmino and sub him for Jota around 60 since he is coming back from the Copa tournament with Brazil. I hope this is a 3-0 or better result for Liverpool, but my confidence in this team after last year is just making me mentally prepare for a draw. Expect the best, prepare for the worst.

Reason to watch: the 65,000 fans at Anfield for the first time since Covid hit. If you can watch a little before the game to hear them singing You’ll Never Walk Alone. There will be tears from more than me at that.

Not all of these will be that long. I just have a lot of thoughts about Liverpool.

Aston Villa vs Newcastle:

Could be a sneaky fun game to watch. I expect this to be like last weekend's Newcastle vs West Ham game. End to end back and forth game. This is one where both teams should feel that they can get all three points off the other. I think this ends 2-2 and the reason to watch is Allan St. Maximin, he is an electric player who sprints for days and is the main creator for Newcastle.

Crystal Palace vs Brentford:

As I mentioned in the opening, can Brentford keep the momentum going as Palace look to rebound against the newly promoted side. Reason to watch: Brentford's attack, with Sergi Canos and Ivan Toney, expect Toney to have a little more freedom in this game. 1-1

Leeds vs. Everton:

Leeds looks to bounce back after falling very flat against Manchester United last week. Everton won 3-1 after going down 1-0 to Southampton. The Everton defense will be tested as Leeds is a more attack minded side than Southampton. Reason to watch: Kalvin Phillips should make his season debut for Leeds after a very good showing at the Euros for England. He should be able to break up Everton’s attack and watch for his passing range to really spark Leeds counter attack. Make this one 2-1 to Leeds

Man City vs. Norwich:

Man City should run over Norwich like they aren’t even there. I see this one 3-0 if not more to Man City. Just too much talent for Norwich to contend with. Rough start to the season for Norwich as they open their season against Liverpool (loss), Man City, and Leicester all most likely top 5 teams this season. Reason to watch: The Man City goal fest that should happen.

Brighton vs. Watford:

Watford scored three against what was a decent Aston Villa team last year. A big three points for Brighton against Burnley last week means this is a matchup of unbeatens even if it’s just the second game of the year. I think Aston Villa is better than Burnley so by the transitive property Watford should win this one. Brighton just struggles to score goals and Watford is still somewhat of an unknown. Reason to watch: Emmanuel Dennis and Ismaila Sarr for Watford were dynamic against Aston Villa. Can they continue to show their attacking prowess against a defense first Brighton? 2-1 Watford

Southampton vs. Man United:

Another game of how many will they score? After putting 5 by a decent Leeds team Southampton should be no problem for Man United. I expect this one to get out of hand quickly. 4-0 to Man U. Reason to watch: Pogba was world class against Leeds. Can he continue that form against a lesser team on the road? He sometimes disappears in these kinds of games.

Wolves vs. Tottenham:

Spurs head to Wolves in a return for Spurs Manager Nuno Espirito Santo. It should be a warm welcome as he did well with Wolves. Until August 31st the story for every Spurs game will be if Harry Kane plays. Until he either moves to Man City or the transfer deadline passes that is the reason to watch. 2-0 to Spurs

Arsenal vs. Chelsea:

Once thought of as the game of the weekend, this matchup is a little less intriguing with Arsenal's performance against Brentford. They’ll have to show some grit against a good Chelsea side that will probably feature Lukaku coming off the bench or starting to make that attack even more dangerous than it was against Crystal Palace. I just don’t see Arsenal scoring unless Aubameyang plays and takes some pressure off of Pepe and Saka if he starts as well. Make this one 3-1 the Chelsea as Arsenal score the first, but can’t weather the storm and the pressure starts to build on Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta.

Leicester vs. West Ham:

My game of the weekend and it should be a fun one. Leicester is the favorite in this one but only just as West Ham turned on the scoring tap in the second half against Newcastle and won 4-2. Will the West Ham defense be able to handle Jaime Vardy, James Madison, and Harvey Barnes and can Leicester shut down Michael Antonio and Said Benhrama. I think this ends in a 2-2 draw.

That wraps up the preview show. Thanks for reading and you can follow the show now on Instagram at anamericanintheepl or email the show at anamericanintheepl@gmail.com. I’m working on a website where I’ll post my show notes.