Two of this season's title challengers go head-to-head in this weekend's headline Premier League clash as league leaders Liverpool travel to Arsenal.
The Gunners are looking to put things right after suffering a shock 2-0 defeat to Bournemouth last time out in the competition, putting them on the back foot in the race for top spot already.
And they face a Liverpool side that are flying high under Arne Slot, who passed his first 'real' Premier League test on Merseyside by seeing off high-flying Chelsea last week.
The Dutchman has overseen a seamless transition after taking over from Jurgen Klopp and is the first manager to win as many as 11 of his first 12 games in charge across all competitions in English top-flight history.
They now face off in what both managers will deem a must-win after both posting scrappy 1-0 victories in the Champions League in midweek, over Shakhtar Donetsk and RB Leipzig respectively.
Here, using Opta data, we delve into the key insights ahead of Sunday's clash at the Emirates.
What's expected?
Arsenal have won their last two Premier League home games against Liverpool and are looking to win three on the bounce for the first time since a run of four between 2004 and 2006.
In fact, the Gunners are unbeaten in their last four Premier League games against Liverpool (two wins, two draws), taking more points from those four games (eight) than they had in their previous 14 against the Reds (seven – one win, four draws, nine losses).
Arsenal have also lost just twice in the Premier League in 2024 (21 wins, three draws), though they are hoping to avoid losing back-to-back games in the competition for the first time since December 2023.
Despite their recent result, Arsenal are still tipped as slight favourites in this tie, with the Opta supercomputer giving them a 41.3% chance of victory.
Liverpool, however, come out on top in 32.3% of the simulations, with a draw potentially on the cards at 26.5%.
While the Reds have not beaten Arsenal since March 2022 in the Premier League – a 2-0 victory thanks to goals from Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino – they did win at the Emirates earlier this year by the same scoreline in the FA Cup third round.
And one thing you can almost guarantee for Liverpool in this tie is goals. They have not failed to score in any of their last 17 Premier League meetings with Arsenal since a 0-0 draw back in August 2015.
Arteta struggling for balance
Mikel Arteta will be hoping that Arsenal's defeat to Bournemouth was nothing more than a blip come the end of the season, but there were worrying signs for the Spaniard, especially before one of their biggest games.
The Gunners' downfall on the south coast was of their own making as they were undone by a set-piece before David Raya gave away a penalty that secured their fate, all after another first-half sending-off.
William Saliba was given his marching orders in the 30th minute, Arsenal's third of the Premier League campaign already. Another one against Liverpool would equal an unwanted record for the most dismissals after nine matches of a single season in the competition – done twice by the Reds and once by Leicester City and Sunderland.
Saliba had played every Premier League minute since the start of last season before his red card. Since his debut, Arsenal have a 74% win rate and concede an average of 0.8 goals per game with him in the team, but that drops to 45% and 1.6 conceded per game without him.
And it has given Arteta a dilemma, as he is expected to be light on defenders due to Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber's injuries. They may also be without Bukayo Saka again, but even if the England international does miss out, Arteta has plenty of firepower available.
They have scored 15 goals in the Premier League this season, the same as Sunday's opponents, while only Manchester City, Tottenham and Chelsea have netted more than them.
And Gabriel Martinelli loves playing against Liverpool – he has been involved in more goals against them in all competitions than he has against any other side (seven – five goals, two assists). Four of those five goals have put Arsenal in the lead in the match, including all three such Premier League strikes.
For Arteta, this game will be all about trying to find the right balance, though his main aim will be trying to keep all 11 of his men on the field until the final whistle.
Standing strong at the back
Much has already been made about Slot's start in the Liverpool dugout, but a result against one of last season's top two will still go a long way to silencing the last of his doubters.
The Dutchman's only blot on his record was their 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest at Anfield, but their away record has so far been perfect. They are just the seventh top-flight English side to win each of their opening six away games across all competitions in a season.
In fact, they are the third team to do so in the Premier League era, after Newcastle in 1994-95 and Manchester City in 2017-18.
Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz are sitting towards the top of the goalscoring charts, benefitting from Slot's free-flowing style of play, but it is their defensive stability that has made them tough to beat.
Liverpool have conceded fewer goals than any other team in the Premier League this season (three), while they also have the lowest xG against total (6.2).
Their three goals conceded are also their joint-fewest after eight games of a league campaign in club history (also three in 1978-79 and 2018-19).
And while there were some questions about how well Liverpool would cope without Alisson in goal, those issues look to have been eased too. In their Champions League win over Leipzig on Wednesday, Caoimhin Kelleher made six saves.
Indeed, his 16 saves this season have a goals-prevented value of 3.0, just above the Brazilian's 2.6 in 2024-25, so Slot's solid foundation should prove a real test for the Gunners.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Arsenal – Kai Havertz
Kai Havertz has scored in each of his last five Premier League appearances at the Emirates Stadium.
The only Arsenal player to score in more successive home appearances in the competition is Thierry Henry, who has done so twice (six from March to August 2000 and seven from May to October 2004).
Liverpool – Mohamed Salah
Salah has five goals and five assists in the Premier League this season - with just eight games played, this is the earliest into a season a Liverpool player has both scored five or more goals and assisted five or more goals in the competition.
He has also scored and assisted in 34 different matches in the Premier League: the second-most of any player in the competition's history, only behind Wayne Rooney (36).
Faltering in attack, open at the back – Erik ten Hag gets the sack
Sunday's Premier League loss at West Ham proved one defeat too many for embattled Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag, who was sacked on Monday.
The Red Devils are now seeking their sixth permanent boss since Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, with David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ten Hag all failing to return the glory days to Old Trafford.
Ten Hag led United to the EFL Cup in 2023 and the FA Cup earlier this year, making him their second-most successful boss of the post-Ferguson era after Mourinho, who won the Europa League, EFL Cup and Community Shield.
However, a dismal eighth-placed Premier League finish in 2023-24 has been followed by a dreadful start to 2024-25, prompting the INEOS regime to take action.
Here, we delve into the Opta data to pinpoint where it went wrong for Ten Hag at United.
No defence for United rearguard
When Ten Hag arrived at Old Trafford in 2022, having led an exuberant Ajax side to a Champions League semi-final and three Eredivisie crowns, hopes were high that he would bring a modern, possession-based style to a United side characterised by chaos for so long.
However, that dream failed to materialise. Throughout Ten Hag's time in the dugout, United were consistently among the Premier League's worst defensive outfits.
Since his first Premier League match in charge in August 2022, United have registered a total xG against (xGA) figure of 136.
While they only conceded 112 goals under him, their xGA was the fifth-worst of any ever-present Premier League side in that time, better than only Everton, Fulham, West Ham and Wolves.
Meanwhile, United faced 1,253 shots in the Premier League under Ten Hag – only four teams (Brentford, Wolves, Bournemouth and West Ham) have faced more shots in the competition since the start of the 2022-23 campaign.
The £70million arrival of midfield enforcer Casemiro failed to solve United's defensive issues, and a failure to control games was a key theme of Ten Hag's tenure. Only Brighton (17) and Everton (16) conceded more Premier League goals from fast breaks than United (13) during the Dutchman's reign, and only three teams gave up more shots from such scenarios (61).
Attackers go missing
In the early weeks of 2024-25, however, a failure to take their chances at the other end has primarily cost United.
Only Crystal Palace and Southampton (six each) have scored fewer Premier League goals than United (eight) this season. They have the biggest negative differential between expected goals and goals scored in the competition this term (-6.56 – eight goals, 14.56 xG).
They were guilty of spurning several clear-cut chances at the London Stadium last time out, and seven of Ten Hag's 27 Premier League defeats came via a 90th-minute winner, the highest percentage of defeats to last-minute goals of any manager to lose 20 or more games in Premier League history.
With 42 goals, Marcus Rashford was United's leading scorer in all competitions under Ten Hag.
Thirty of his strikes came in Ten Hag's debut campaign, though, and he has only netted once in nine league outings this term.
Bruno Fernandes, who Ten Hag installed as captain, has created the most chances for United since the start of 2022-23 with 364. Christian Eriksen (131), Diogo Dalot (116) and Rashford (115) were the other three players to set up at least 100 chances for team-mates under the former Ajax boss.
However, Fernandes – who scored 29 goals under Ten Hag and laid on 31 assists – has struggled for form this campaign, with his 2.48 xG the highest figure of any player yet to net in the Premier League.
The highs and lows
Ten Hag's tenure brought a few obvious highs, with the 2023 EFL Cup final win over Newcastle United ending a near-six-year trophy drought and May's FA Cup showpiece victory over Manchester City denying United's neighbours a domestic double.
That was one of two victories over City under Ten Hag, though they lost more games to Pep Guardiola's men (four) than any other team during his reign.
Most damagingly, Ten Hag's United were blown away in several big games, shipping 17 goals versus City and 16 against Liverpool. Of course, they were trounced 7-0 by the Reds at Anfield in March 2023 – the joint-heaviest competitive defeat in the Red Devils' history.
Ten Hag's reign ends after 128 games, with his 70 victories giving him the second-best win ratio (54.7%) of any United boss post-Ferguson in all competitions, after Mourinho (58.7%).
His record of 1.72 points per Premier League game, though, only bettered the figures managed by Moyes (1.68) and Ralf Rangnick (1.72) in that span.
Only Rangnick (0), meanwhile, has overseen a worse goal difference in the Premier League than Ten Hag (+11), among United bosses to manage at least five games.
And only Moyes (32.4%, 11/34) lost a higher percentage of his Premier League games as United boss than Ten Hag (31.8%, 27/85).
In the overall Premier League standings since Ten Hag took charge, they sit fifth with 146 points, some 57 adrift of first-placed Man City and also fewer than Arsenal (191), Liverpool (171) and Aston Villa (147).
Manchester United sack struggling Ten Hag
Manchester United have parted company with Erik ten Hag.
United lost 2-1 to West Ham on Sunday, and that defeat at London Stadium has proved the final straw for the club's ownership.
The Dutchman, who was only rewarded with a new contract in the summer following a win over Manchester City in the FA Cup final, had won just one of his last eight matches in charge.
United confirmed in a statement on Monday that Ten Hag, who joined the club from Ajax in 2022, had left his role.
"We are grateful to Erik for everything he has done during his time with us and wish him well for the future," the statement read.
United announced that Ruud van Nistelrooy, who joined Ten Hag's coaching staff this past summer, will take charge as interim head coach during the club's search for a permanent replacement.
The Red Devils sit 14th in the Premier League, having won three and lost four of their opening nine games. They have also drawn all three of their Europa League matches.
Ten Hag can point to his side missing chances this season – in fact, United have the biggest negative differential between expected goals and goals scored in the Premier League this season (eight goals scored from 14.6 xG).
However, defensively they have been poor for large swathes of Ten Hag's tenure. Indeed, since his first Premier League match in charge in August 2022, United have registered an xG against (xGA) of 136.
While they have only conceded 112 goals, their xGA is the fifth-worst of any ever-present Premier League side in that time.
Ten Hag departs having led United to two trophies – the EFL Cup in 2022-23 and last season's FA Cup.
2024 Pocket Rocket Foundation Six-A-Side Football Competition kicks off with community unity and exciting matches
The 2024 Pocket Rocket Foundation Six-A-Side “Peace Through Sports” Football Competition kicked off on Sunday, uniting Waterhouse and neighboring communities at the Red Stripe headquarters on Spanish Town Road. The event aims to foster peace through sport, creating a space for community building and camaraderie.
The opening ceremony featured a vibrant dress parade, with Basement taking the top spot for best-dressed team, followed by Friends For Real in second place and Boom Riddim in third. This year also marked the first time Corporate Jamaica was invited to field teams, highlighting the tournament's growing influence as a platform for positive community engagement.
The day’s matches saw Ball Spot claim a 3-1 victory over Basic, while Legacy edged past Boom Riddim in a tight 3-2 match. The fixture between Fesgas and Youths United ended in a scoreless draw, showcasing strong defense. In another close game, Friends For Real earned a 1-0 win against Basement.
Ashoka delivered an impressive performance, defeating Dream Team 4-1, while Real City closed out the day with a narrow 1-0 victory over tournament hosts Red Stripe.
The competition, part of Fraser-Pryce’s ongoing commitment to community development, reinforces the power of sports as a unifying force and a way to promote peace among communities.
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