The Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool takes centre stage as Premier League football returns after the international break.
Toffees tackle Reds; Hammers host Blues; City face Spurs
The Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool takes centre stage as Premier League football returns after the international break.
Elsewhere on Saturday, first plays third as Arsenal entertain Southampton, while London pride will be put on the line in front of the
Sky Sports cameras when Chelsea take in a trip across the capital to face West Ham United.
As if that was not enough, a
Super Sunday double-header sees title hopefuls Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur go head-to-head at the Etihad Stadium and Cardiff City welcome reigning champions Manchester United to south Wales.
The weekend action gets underway at Goodison Park, and there promises to be fireworks on Merseyside as
Liverpool make the short journey across Stanley Park to face
Everton - their fiercest foes. Spoils were shared between the pair in the league last season, with a 2-2 draw on the blue half of the divide followed by a goalless stalemate at Anfield. Everton will be hoping to build on those results this term, but will need no reminding that they have taken just four points from the last six derbies in their own backyard. It will also be a case of starting afresh this weekend, with Roberto Martinez set to take in his first tussle with the Reds since taking the Toffees' managerial reins.
Victory for Liverpool in the lunchtime kick-off would take them to the top of the Premier League table and throw down the gauntlet to current leaders
Arsenal. Success for the Gunners in their latest game would guarantee that they cling on to the loftiest of perches, but they may have their work cut out against surprise package
Southampton. The Saints are just three points off the pace at present and are a club very much riding the crest of a wave. The involvement of Adam Lallana, Jay Rodriguez and Rickie Lambert in the latest England squad will have them in buoyant mood, while Mauricio Pochettino's side can take heart from the fact that they have already taken positive results (and four points) away from Anfield and Old Trafford this season.
Occupying a standing just below the Saints at present are
Chelsea, with Jose Mourinho's men continuing to fly just under the radar. They will be delighted about that, with more having being made of the form of the frontrunners and the struggles of those below them. Upton Park has been a happy hunting ground for the Blues in the past, but their last trip from west to east London proved to be a forgettable one.
West Ham United secured a 3-1 victory almost exactly 12 months ago to put an early nail in the coffin of interim Chelsea boss Rafa Benitez. Sam Allardyce could do with more of the same on
Saturday Night Football, with the Hammers without a win in four and only outside of the bottom three by virtue of a superior goal difference.
Two of the four sides currently languishing below West Ham are
Stoke City and
Sunderland, and they will lock horns on Saturday afternoon at the Britannia Stadium. It is still far too early to be billing top-flight fixtures as 'must-win', but Mark Hughes and Gus Poyet will be aware of the need to avoid defeat against a fellow struggler. Sunderland have shown signs of life of late - collecting impressive victories over Newcastle and Manchester City to restore belief within their camp - and they are now just three points
