Matchweek 2

Enzo Maresca's second Premier League fixture and his first away from the Etihad. Crystal Palace under their setup will be physical, compact, and will look to hit City on the counter. This is exactly the kind of game that Guardiola's City would have won three or four-nil without breaking a sweat. Maresca's City is a different entity.

The questions the Couch has about City right now are manifold: how repeatable is the Cherki magic? Will Haaland with his new look haircut come good? What about their new arrival Bouaddi — will he have an immediate impact? How will they fare against a team that is compact and defends well like Palace does?

These are the questions Matchweek Two should answer. The Couch expects City to have enough quality to win, but this will not be as smooth sailing as they would like it to be. Haaland will break his 1-game goal drought (that qualifies as a goal drought for the Norwegian), Cherki will assist again, and Anderson will also come good. On the other hand, Palace are well-organised, have pace on the break, and Selhurst on a Friday night is a different atmosphere to what it is on a Sunday afternoon. City will sweat a little before they earn it.

The Couch picks Crystal Palace 1–3 Manchester City. City win, but not before Palace make them work for every inch of it.

Andoni Iraola's first home game as Liverpool manager. Anfield. Twelve-thirty on a Saturday. The atmosphere will be extraordinary. Liverpool drew away at St James' Park in the most dramatic circumstances imaginable — a 90th-plus-nine penalty saving a point — and will want to put down a marker at home.

Nottingham Forest lost at home to Leeds in Matchweek One — a result that immediately raised questions about their defensive shape and their vulnerability to direct, organised opponents. Liverpool, with Wirtz and Szoboszlai in the engine room and Isak pressing from the front, represent a different level of threat to what Forest faced from Leeds.

The Wirtz question. The German midfielder was, by the Couch's assessment, "wirtz-less" at St James' — fair, but also the Couch recognises that first games in new systems can be disorienting. Anfield, in front of a home crowd, with more time on the training pitch — this is where Wirtz finds his Premier League feet. The Couch expects a significantly improved performance and Liverpool to be clinical. And it could be even better if Bradley Barcola is able to suit up and join the party.

The Couch picks Liverpool 3–0 Nottingham Forest. First home game, hungry crowd, and a Forest side that is still finding its defensive feet.

This is the most fascinating psychological fixture of Matchweek Two. Tottenham lost three-nil to Brentford at the GTech. Despite their shiny new midfield — Sandro Tonali's debut, De Zerbi's first full season in charge, and the optimism of a summer that felt different — it became, instead, one of the more embarrassing opening-day results in recent Spurs history. In other words, a very Spursy day.

Well, they now also have a shiny new front line to boot with Savio and Omar Marmoush joining from Manchester City. The question is: will that have an instant impact? How do Spurs respond?

The Couch has watched this club for long enough to know that "response" is not always the thing that happens next. Sometimes the response is another poor performance, and the questions deepen, and October arrives before the ship is steadied. This is a real possibility.

Newcastle, meanwhile, are a wounded animal of a different kind. They led twice at St James'. They conceded in the 99th minute. They took one point from a game they probably deserved to win, and the frustration in that dressing room is real. Matthias Jaissle's side will travel to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with energy and with a point to prove, and the Couch believes they have the quality to take all three.

Wissa and Elanga are the players to watch — they can create chaos on the counter and make Spurs pay. The Couch will be watching.

The Couch picks a 2–2 draw at Tottenham, in a see-saw game. Newcastle lead twice but can't hold it — once again. The Couch's sympathy has its limits.

The most tactically interesting match of the weekend. Xabi Alonso brings his Chelsea side — still raw, still finding its shape, still capable of conceding even while dominating — against a Brighton team that, in Matchweek One, looked like the most complete side in the division. The Seagulls dismantled the Villans in impressive fashion.

Brighton's system under their manager presses high, recycles quickly, and punishes teams that lose possession in dangerous areas. And they have done this time and again to Chelsea in the recent past. Chelsea, under Alonso, are trying to play out from the back, create through the midfield, and rely on J(oao) P(almer) Morgan (Rogers) for moments of individual brilliance. The potential for this to produce an extraordinary open game is significant.

The Couch gives Chelsea a narrow advantage here — home ground, Alonso's debut win provides confidence, and Palmer on his day is unplayable. But Brighton are genuinely good, and if Chelsea's defensive structure is as vulnerable as it looked at Craven Cottage, the Seagulls will find the gaps.

Will J P Morgan Chase away the Seagulls, and secure their first home victory? Or will Brighton darken the mood at the Bridge?

The Couch picks Chelsea 2–1 Brighton. Palmer's class edges it. Alonso wins his home debut. But it won't be easy.

The fixture that Michael Carrick needed on his schedule in Matchweek Two. After the catastrophe of Hull — a zero-two loss to a side that, frankly, nobody expected to beat United — Old Trafford needs a response. The crowd will be anxious. The performance has to be better. The result has to be different.

Ipswich Town are newly promoted and beat Sunderland in Matchweek One — a result that showed they can compete, that their organisation is sound, and that they should not be underestimated. The Couch made the error of underestimating Hull. The Couch is not making that error again this week.

But there is a difference. Hull were at home, familiar territory, motivated by their return to the top flight. Ipswich are away at Old Trafford, in front of seventy-three thousand Red Devils who desperately want to see a win. That crowd can lift a United team that needs lifting. The Couch believes United have enough quality to win at home, provided the performance is more organised than what was displayed at the MKM. Perhaps their brand new signing Carlos Baleba helps them take control of the midfield and the game.

After a trip to Hull and back, the key question is whether United can flip the (Ip)switch?

The Couch thinks so, and picks Manchester United 3–0 Ipswich Town. Old Trafford will roar. United get their first win — and then some. Ipswich are overwhelmed.

Bank Holiday Monday. Villa Park. Aston Villa against the Premier League champions. This is Matchweek Two's centrepiece, and the Couch has been looking forward to it since the fixtures came out.

Aston Villa is in flux to start the season. Morgan Rogers. Tielemans. Lucas Digne. Emi Martinez. Ollie Watkins. Ezri Konsa. Their spine — just "Gone-sa". And their season did not start well — humiliated 4-0 at Brighton. Their new signing Joao Gomes was sent off with a red card. So things are looking bleak.

But this is Villa v Arsenal. This is the Unai Emery grudge match against the team that let him go. So you can throw all logic out the window, as anything can happen — remember last year when Buendia won it with the last kick of the game after a melee in the penalty box.

Arsenal come in confident, clinical, organised, looking as sharp as ever. They will travel to Birmingham full of confidence. They should. They performed well in Matchweek One. Tzolis was brilliant. The defence kept a clean sheet. Arteta's team looks like a title-defending side should look in game one — authoritative and hungry. And they have now added their newest recruit, Ezri Konsa, former Villan who will now be VILLAIN #1 in Birmingham.

But this will be a stern test for the Gunners — because it always is. And because Emery will do everything to make it so. Can Villa's attacking quality — and it is there, with players capable of producing moments against anyone — disrupt Arsenal's defensive shape? Can their new signings Nicolas Jackson or Garnacho do just enough to nick a goal or two?

The Couch thinks yes — but just not enough. The Couch picks Aston Villa 1–3 Arsenal. The champions are dominant. Villa get a goal — the quality is there — but Arsenal are a different class entirely. Three points and a statement delivered.