In the opening match of the 2024/25 Premier League, Manchester United faced Fulham at home. The Red Devils have an overwhelming advantage in the historical record of the two teams, but they lost 1-2 to their opponents at home last season, ending their 18-game unbeaten streak against the Farmers.

After the Ineos Group officially took over Manchester United, the Red Devils made a series of targeted reinforcements for the weak links in the lineup, which can be said to have greatly increased their strength. However, their performance during the pre-season warm-up matches was not ideal, with only 2 wins and 3 losses, including all losses against Premier League opponents Arsenal and Liverpool, and a penalty shootout loss in the Community Shield final against Manchester City. What's worse, as many as 4 Manchester United players are confirmed to miss this game, Malacia, Luke Shaw, Hoylund and new defensive aid Yoro will all be absent due to injuries.

Fulham brought in Arsenal attacker Smith Rowe in the summer window and achieved a record of 2 wins and 1 loss in 3 pre-season warm-up matches. Compared with the Red Devils, such a pre-season preparation period is slightly short, and the physical reserve of the farm players needs to be questioned.

Ipswich vs Liverpool August 17 (Saturday) 19:30

Liverpool, the Red Army, which ushered in a new era this summer, will face the newly promoted Ipswich away in the first game of the new season. This game is also the first time the two teams have met again after 22 years.

Under the leadership of new coach Slot, the Red Army has achieved an unbeaten record of 4 wins and 1 draw in the pre-season, including victories against Premier League opponents Arsenal and Manchester United. Although the signings have not yet been completed, the Dutch coach's highly offensive tactics still show the endless potential of the team. The Red Army is expected to set off a "red storm" again in the new season.

Led by Northern Irish coach McKenna, Ipswich won 3 games and lost 1 in the pre-season, and even defeated Nice, which ranked fifth in Ligue 1 last season. The 38-year-old young coach is indeed a capable person, as he was once on the list of new coaches for giants such as Manchester United and Chelsea. His wisdom may add a bit of suspense to this matchup with a huge disparity in strength.

Arsenal vs. Wolves August 17 (Saturday) 22:00

Gunners Arsenal are about to embark on the road to the championship again, and their first opponent will be Wolves. If they can win this match, the Gunners will achieve a seven-game winning streak against Wolves in the Premier League.

After finishing second for two consecutive years, Arsenal made a small adjustment to the lineup this summer. They officially bought out the main goalkeeper Raya and introduced the new generation of Italian central defender Calafiori. After preparing for battle, the Gunners achieved a record of 3 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss in the pre-season, which can be said to be in a hot state. Apart from Takehiro Tomiyasu, Timber and Tierney, the Gunners had no other injured players, so Arteta was able to send out all the main players to make a good start.

In contrast, the situation of Wolves is much bleak. This summer, they lost Neto, the explosive point on the wing, and Kilman, the center back. Cunha, the striker, was also injured. The main right back Semedo will also be on the sidelines in this game because he was sent off in the final game of last season. Gary O'Neill's team may find it difficult to stop the Arsenal from taking all three points at home.

Chelsea vs Manchester City, August 18 (Sunday) 23:30

The first strong dialogue of the new Premier League season, the Blues Chelsea will face the Blue Moon Manchester City at home, and the 55th "Double Blue Battle" in the history of the Premier League is about to start!

Last season, the two teams contributed a wonderful 4-4 goal battle for us. Chelsea stubbornly tied the Blue Moon Battleship in the rainy night at the Blue Bridge, which is still fresh in our memory. However, the match between the two teams in the pre-season was completely one-sided. Haaland scored two goals in the first five minutes of the game. In the second half, the Blue Moon took advantage of the victory and scored two more goals to kill the suspense of the game early. Sterling and Madueike scored after the opponent called off the game, saving a little face for the Blues.

Chelsea's pre-season preparation period can be described as "spending the most money and getting the most poisonous blow": the uniform team recruited troops in the transfer window, and there was a redundancy in the midfield and backcourt, but the most important striker was late; the first team was defeated in the pre-season, and the players seemed to be still not used to the ball control system required by the new coach Maresca, and frequently made low-level mistakes in the game. To make matters worse, the team captain Reece James suffered a hamstring injury again, adding a hint of uncertainty to the already confusing prospects of the new season.

The Blues are in turmoil, and the defending champion Manchester City has also encountered some twists and turns in the pre-season preparation stage: the main goalkeeper Ederson is deeply involved in transfer rumors, many main players are on vacation, and Guardiola's team lost all the first three pre-season games. It happened that in the game against Chelsea, Manchester City successfully "turned the luck" and won a hearty victory 4-2. After that, they defeated Manchester United and won the Community Shield. Although it is unknown how much impact Alvarez's transfer will have on the team, all signs show that the defending champions who are determined to achieve a five-time championship will still be unstoppable in the new season.

Leicester City vs Tottenham Hotspur August 20 (Tuesday) 03:00

In the last match of this round of the Premier League, last season's Championship champion Leicester City will play against Tottenham Hotspur at home. This will be the 35th match between the two teams in the Premier League. In the previous 34 games, Tottenham Hotspur achieved a record of 16 wins, 5 draws and 13 losses, which can only be said to be slightly superior. Facing the opponent who has just been promoted to the Premier League, can they win three points as they wish?

Tottenham, who played offensive football last season, was refreshing. This summer, they finally found a successor for Kane who left the team - local striker Solanke. In addition, they also signed the 18-year-old Leeds United star Gray. Tottenham, who further strengthened the offensive line, is expected to show a more terrifying offensive in the new season. Coincidentally, their first "trial" object is the newly promoted Leicester City.

After the successful promotion, Chelsea poached the head coach Maresca, and the team chairman Ayawat chose former Nottingham Forest head coach Steve Cooper to replace the Italian. However, after Cooper took over, the competitive state of the Foxes was not ideal, with 2 wins and 3 losses in the pre-season, and the most recent game was a 0-3 defeat to Lens. Cooper has faced Tottenham a total of 4 times in his coaching career, with only 1 win and 3 losses. After changing the club, can he reverse such a bleak record in this game? Let's wait and see.