The meeting of Chelsea and Manchester United is the pick of this coming weekend’s ninth round of Premier League matches for the 2018/19 season, while Mohamed Salah will look to break his scoring duck for Liverpool when they face strugglers Huddersfield Town.
The round opens at Stamford Bridge with an early kick-off on Saturday, as Chelsea – fresh from a comfortable 3-0 away win over Southampton before the international break – look to go clear at the top of the log with a home clash against Man United.
The Red Devils claimed a dramatic 3-2 win at home to Newcastle United last time out, but the result did little to cover up the team’s inadequacies or relieve much pressure from manager Jose Mourinho. The ‘Special One’ will enjoy a warm welcome in London – as he is still held in affection by Blues fans – but may find his side struggling against Maurizio Sarri’s far more coherent and attacking outfit.
The main story of the weekend from an African perspective will be whether Egyptian superstar Mohamed Salah – who suffered a minor muscle injury on international duty this past weekend – can score his first club goal in almost a month.
Liverpool will be fancied to win at the John Smith’s Stadium against Huddersfield Town in the late game on Saturday, though a run of four games without a victory across all competitions means a return to form for the Pharaohs attacker would be most welcome for manager Jurgen Klopp.
Saturday also sees Algerian Riyad Mahrez looking to atone for his penalty miss in the last round against the Reds when Manchester City play at home to Burnley, Jean Michael Seri’s Fulham will be desperate for a strong showing away to Sol Bamba’s Cardiff City, and the same can be said of Mohamed Diame’s Newcastle United when they host Brighton & Hove Albion.
Arthur Masuaku’s West Ham United face a London derby at home to Serge Aurier’s Tottenham Hotspur, and Issac Success’ Watford will have a tough match at Molineux Stadium against a confident Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Sunday’s only match sees Idrissa Gueye’s Everton looking to condemn Wilfried Zaha’s Crystal Palace to a third straight loss in the Premier League, before the round wraps up on Monday night with Arsenal at home to Leicester City in a potential thriller featuring African stars such as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alex Iwobi, Mohamed Elneny, Kelechi Iheanacho and Wilfred Ndidi.
Key stats
Chelsea v Manchester United – Head-to-Head, all competitions
Matches played 162
Chelsea wins 52
Man United wins 65
Draws 45
Huddersfield Town v Liverpool – Head-to-Head, all competitions
Matches played 59
Huddersfield wins 22
Liverpool wins 24
Draws 13
West Ham United v Tottenham Hotspur – Head-to-Head, all competitions
Matches played 113
West Ham wins 40
Tottenham wins 48
Draws 25
Premier League fixtures, 20-22 October
All times CAT (GMT + 2)
Saturday 20 October
13:30: Chelsea v Manchester United – LIVE on SS3 & Max1
16:00: Bournemouth v Southampton – LIVE on SS5
16:00: Manchester City v Burnley – LIVE on SS3 & Max1
16:00: Newcastle United v Brighton & Hove Albion – LIVE on SS6
16:00: West Ham United v Tottenham Hotspur – LIVE on SS10 & SelGO2
18:30: Huddersfield Town v Liverpool – LIVE on SS3 & Max1
Sunday 21 October
17:00: Everton v Crystal Palace– LIVE on SS3/SS10, Max1 & SelGO2
Monday 22 October
21:00: Arsenal v Leicester City – LIVE on SS3 & Max1
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Source: DStv