Ten KEY questions for Matchweek 4's fixtures

Football writer Alex Keble analyses where the Matchweek 4 fixtures could be won and lost, including:

- Will the Manchester derby be season-defining for Carrick and Maresca?

- Is Everton at home a must-win match for Spurs and De Zerbi?

- Can Hull produce another shock or will Chelsea get back on track?

- Will Arbeloa's Anfield return extend Fulham's difficult start?

- Will Sunderland give Arsenal's rivals something to cheer about?

- Do Villa really have a Palace hoodoo - or was it really all about Glasner?

- Can Marco Rose get his first Premier League win before a tough run?

- Are Leeds and Newcastle ready to challenge for Europe?

- Can Coventry get off the mark and reset their campaign?

- Can Sage restore Palace's home record?

Will the Manchester derby be season-defining for Carrick and Maresca?

The Manchester derby always seems to arrive at a crucial moment in the season, always with something dramatic on the line for at least one of these two great rivals. Despite it being only the fourth matchweek of the season, this one is no different.

Manchester United’s wobbly start could look a lot worse if they were to lose this game, especially given that form at Old Trafford has been the foundation of Michael Carrick’s project so far: Man Utd have won nine of his 10 Premier League home games, including a 2-0 victory against Manchester City in his first game after returning to the club, then as interim head coach, in January.

Man City, who are top of the league thanks to a 100-per-cent start, will know that claiming the points at Old Trafford would truly announce the beginning of the Enzo Maresca era. It is the first real test for the new manager, the first chance to prove that he can step up to the challenge of replacing Pep Guardiola.

Watch the best Manchester derby goals in Premier League history

A win for Man Utd would be just as consequential for both clubs, simultaneously sweeping away any doubts about the hosts, asking questions of the Man City rebuild, and boosting Arsenal’s chances of lifting the title again this season.

Is Everton at home a must-win match for Spurs and De Zerbi?

It’s a little early for a ‘‘must-win’’, perhaps, but Tottenham Hotspur’s winless start to the Premier League season is especially alarming for Spurs supporters because of the club’s successive 17th-place finishes.

Roberto De Zerbi will have hoped to hit the ground running after a significant outlay on new players this summer, and indeed would not have expected the club to be goalless since they beat this weekend’s opponents Everton 1-0 on the final day of last season to secure their Premier League safety.

A win is essential not because of how the table looks right now but because of how it could look. After Everton, Spurs host Aston Villa and then, after the three-week international break, travel to Old Trafford to face Man Utd.

That means it’s conceivable Spurs could still be without a victory by mid-October.

Not that Spurs need to think that far ahead. With James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski soon to be back from injury, the international break could be an important time for De Zerbi on the training pitch, especially with new signings – made late in the window – needing to bed in.

Defeating Everton on Saturday would ensure Spurs are in a decent position when that break begins.

Can Hull produce another shock or will Chelsea get back on track?

When the fixture list was released, Chelsea supporters must have looked upon this game as a home banker and an easy chance to consolidate under Xabi Alonso. But it doesn’t look quite so inviting anymore.

Hull City have collected seven points from their first three Premier League matches and have kept a clean sheet in each of them, a start that suggests they will prove challenging to break down at Stamford Bridge.

Pertinently, Chelsea have failed to win any of their last four home league games against promoted sides (D3 L1), so when you add in their 2-1 defeat at Arsenal last weekend – a good performance, but a first defeat for Alonso nevertheless – this match is by no means a foregone conclusion.

More optimistic Chelsea fans will point, however, to Hull’s most significant victory coming at the MKM Stadium, whereas their away form so far has only been tested by fellow promoted side Coventry City.

That ensures Chelsea are big favourites to get the win and get back on track. But Hull, defensive and resolute, scrappy and fearless, should not be underestimated.

Will Arbeloa's Anfield return extend Fulham's difficult start?

Alvaro Arbeloa played 66 games for Liverpool, most notably as a starting full-back throughout the 2008/09 season in which Rafael Benitez’s side finished runners-up in the Premier League.

This is only the second time Arbeloa has returned to Anfield and the first time as a manager. He might have hoped the circumstances were a little more favourable.

Fulham have lost all three of their Premier League matches so far and have conceded seven goals, posting the second-highest Expected Goals Conceded (xGC) figure in the competition, with 6.24.

Liverpool, meanwhile, have scored twice in all of their matches under Andoni Iraola – including a 2-1 victory over Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, a first home win for the new head coach.

Momentum from the midweek victory is only part of the reason why Arbeloa needs to overcome the odds to get a positive result at Anfield. History is not on his side. Former Liverpool players turned managers have lost all five of their games at Anfield: Paul Ince with Blackburn Rovers, Mauricio Pellegrino with Southampton (twice), and Steven Gerrard with Aston Villa (twice).

Arbeloa may feel it is imperative he breaks that sequence. Only twice in Fulham’s history have they lost their first four matches in a season. Both years – 1951/52 and 2020/21 – ended in relegation.

Will Sunderland give Arsenal's rivals something to cheer about?

For many pundits, Arsenal’s 2-1 victory against Chelsea last Sunday was a huge moment for the Gunners, proving beyond doubt they are in a strong position to retain the Premier League crown for the very first time. Not even the great Arsene Wenger did what is now in reach for Mikel Arteta.

But that analysis is premature, because Arsenal are arguably yet to face a significant challenge this season. Chelsea were still in transition under Alonso and have conceded seven goals in three Premier League games. Aston Villa were likewise in the middle of a major overhaul and have only won a solitary point, while Coventry were always likely to struggle in their first top-flight game in 25 years.

Arsenal, of course, can only beat what’s in front of them and have played superbly in all three matches. But those caveats tell us that a trip to the Stadium of Light this weekend is Arsenal’s first major test.

Sunderland have faced fewer shots on target, with five, than any other side in the Premier League, while this exact fixture last season ended 2-2 courtesy of a stoppage-time goal from Brian Brobbey.

A similar outcome would dampen the hyperbole from some pundits – and give hope to those clubs aiming to challenge Arsenal for the title.

Do Villa really have a Palace hoodoo - or was it really all about Glasner?

Finally, Unai Emery’s side have won a match. The 3-2 victory at Club Brugge in the Champions League could be season-making for Villa, who must now look to carry momentum from that game into Saturday’s Premier League fixture.

The problem isn’t so much the visiting team but the man in the opposition dugout.

Emery has never beaten Oliver Glasner in seven attempts (drawing twice and losing five), all of them in Villa v Crystal Palace matches. In almost every single meeting between the two – including this exact fixture last season and the FA Cup semi-final the season before, both ending 3-0 to Palace – Glasner’s tactics have badly exposed Villa.

Glasner’s Palace refused to be baited into pressing, as Emery would like, leading to long standstills when Villa had the ball. Sitting deep and surrounding the Villa midfielders, Palace would wait for the ball to go into the middle and then snap into action, winning possession before countering behind their opponents' high line.

Can Nottingham Forest follow suit? In theory, they will use exactly the same methods that made Palace a bogey team for Villa. That would mean another Premier League game without a win for Villa, but with Glasner still new at Forest, it is possible his tactical ideas won’t yet be in place to once again get the better of Emery.

Can Marco Rose get his first Premier League win before a tough run?

There is nothing disastrous about the start Marco Rose has made at AFC Bournemouth. They led Man City 1-0 until the 84th minute of their opener at the Etihad Stadium, falling to a narrow 2-1 defeat, and have since drawn against Everton and Newcastle United.

It is arguably par for the course, yet Bournemouth are winless in the Premier League and if that sequence goes on for much longer it could start to be a problem.

Rose’s side face Liverpool at home the following weekend and then, after the three-week international break, they travel to Chelsea. That heaps pressure onto Saturday’s home meeting with Brentford, because if Bournemouth fail to win, they could easily (and without even playing badly) remain winless all the way through to mid-October.

Brentford are unbeaten in 11 league meetings with Bournemouth (winning eight and drawing three) since a 1-0 Championship defeat in August 2014 and have made an unbeaten start to the 2026/27 season.

This is a difficult fixture for Bournemouth. But it might just be a must-win.

Are Leeds and Newcastle ready to challenge for Europe?

The last time Leeds United went unbeaten in their opening four matches of a Premier League season, a feat they could achieve on Monday night, was in 2001/02. That was a golden time for both Leeds and Newcastle who, under David O’Leary and Sir Bobby Robson respectively, regularly competed for Champions League spots.

It’s been 24 years since Leeds and Newcastle were in Europe at the same time and both finished in the bottom half of the Premier League table in 2025/26. However, based on their performances over the first three matchweeks, they could both return to Europe next season.

Leeds had an efficient summer transfer window that appears to have built upon a solid foundation, leaving Daniel Farke’s side as one of the few teams who are settled in their patterns. That should give them a chance of making up the six-point gap to eighth from 2025/26.

Newcastle have made a hugely encouraging start under new head coach Matthias Jaissle and will anticipate using those midweeks free of European football this season to gain an advantage on their rivals in the Premier League.

But is there room for both clubs in the top eight? Unlikely. Monday night’s head-to-head should prove instructive.

Can Coventry get off the mark and reset their campaign?

Of the three defeats suffered by Frank Lampard’s side so far this season, it is the loss at home to Hull that will have hurt the most.

Losing away at Arsenal and Man City was always likely, the fixture list having been a little unkind to Coventry, but against a fellow promoted side they would have hoped for more.

It’s vital they get a first home win before a pattern forms, and yet Brighton & Hove Albion are a serious threat, creating more big chances (15) and a higher Expected Goals (xG) of 7.37 than any other side in the Premier League this season.

Coventry face an uphill battle after their losing start. But a win against Brighton would completely reset their season.

Can Sage restore Palace's home record?

The 3-2 win at Fulham last weekend was a huge moment for Pierre Sage, kick-starting the new era just in time for a home match against promoted Ipswich Town. Consecutive Premier League wins would really get Palace’s season up and running.

Just as significant would be a first win for Sage at Selhurst Park, where Palace have struggled for a while now.

Among ever-present Premier League sides in 2026, only Spurs (7) have won fewer home points than Palace (11), winning just two of their 11 matches.

Ipswich is, in theory, one of Palace’s most winnable games at home, although Gary O’Neil’s side are an unknown quantity right now. They beat Sunderland in their only other game against a club outside the traditional 'Big Six' this season. We will learn a lot about both teams on Saturday.