It’s time the EPL lived up to the hype.
The fixture computer is doing its best, but early season blockbusters are just not materialising.
For the third round in a row, there’s a mouthwatering clash on the calendar, but the two we’ve seen so far have been damp squibs.
Liverpool outclassed Manchester United and an injury-hit Arsenal did a job on Spurs.
Neither game caught fire so what are the chances of Manchester City and Arsenal serving up a match worthy of the two front runners?
As with all these occasions, it may need an early goal.
The balance has probably swung slightly in Arsenal’s favour with Declan Rice returning and Kevin de Bruyne likely to be missing.
There are just two points between them which is all there was at the end of last season.
And with Liverpool slipping up last weekend, some critics were already calling this season a two-horse race.
But Liverpool’s impressive recovery to brush aside AC Milan in the San Siro suggested the loss to Nottingham Forest was a mere blip.
Arne Slot’s men host Bournemouth so should be able to close the gap on the loser.
With confidence restored from their Champions League victory, you can’t see them looking another gift horse in the mouth.
Writing before Arsenal’s match away to Atalanta, it’s difficult to predict how the Gunners will shape up, but these days they do have depth.
It’s another master vs apprentice clash where Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta know each other too well.
As with two cagey chess maestros, the danger of a stalemate is always there.
But even without Martin Odegaard, Arsenal should not go to the Etihad with an inferiority complex.
De Bruyne’s likely absence could cancel that out although in Ilkay Gundogan, City have the more experienced replacement.
Under Arteta, Arsenal are growing and learning fast.
In three years, they’ve gone from blowing up while chasing a top four place to securing one at their leisure; and then going toe-to-toe for the title.
A natural progression could see them nick it this season.
And with the hearing of City’s 115 charges finally under way, they want to be in position to make the most of any City points deduction.
In Europe, they’ve gone from the Europa to bowing out to Bayern Munich in the last eight of the Big Boy’s League.
You can be sure they’ll be better prepared this time around.
They process everything – ‘process’ is a favourite word of Arteta’s – and while ecstatic at plucking three points from Tottenham, they know they’ll have to up their game at City.
This, they see, as part one of the heavyweight duel with the champions.
A draw would do but they know they are capable of more. And there are those two points to make up.
At Spurs, they showed they were better at the details than Tottenham, but this is an area where no one surpasses Pep’s teams.
They would have watched how Inter Milan were able to stifle City in the Champions League and still create chances of their own.
Indeed, had Inter taken any, the build-up to Sunday’s game would be quite different.
As it is, Erling Haaland was reduced to 16 touches – a number Jeremy Doku surpassed in 10 minutes at the end.
The Norwegian had started the season like a train with nine goals in four games, but hit the buffers in midweek.
Further fuel for those who think he’s a ‘flat-track bully’ – which translates to not delivering in the big games.
Another blank on Sunday and the theory just might gather credence.
Arteta will tell his side that if they want to be champions, they have to win games like this.
Pep, meanwhile, seemingly a bit deflated after the Inter game, will demand a response.
A statement win would be handy at a club where some fans are concerned about what could happen with the charges.
Putting their biggest rivals in their place on the field would be the best way to boost morale.
Footballers who became immortal
Not forgotten among the recent spate of footballers’ deaths is that today is the 20th anniversary of the passing of one of the greatest managers of all time.
Brian Clough, the legendary boss who took Nottingham Forest from nowhere to immortality, and also won the league with Derby County, is often called ‘the best manager England never had’.
A measure of his impact is that he has statues in three different cities.
It was at Forest where he won back-to-back European Cups before he succumbed to the only opponent he couldn’t beat – alcohol.
Forest have not been the same since but he would be pleased to see them again riding high in the Premier League.
And last weekend they achieved something that was beyond even his great sides – victory at Anfield.
This weekend they go to Brighton, another club he managed – albeit with far less success – who are also doing well.
A big fan of the underdog, he’d be heartened that well-run sides can still mix it with the big boys.
Recruitment is the key: Brighton buy low and sell high (Exhibit A – Moises Caicedo, bought for £4m, sold for £115m).
Four stars of Forest’s win over Liverpool cost just £18m between them – Callum Hudson-Odoi (£3m), Anthony Elanga £15m, Ola Aina (free), Alex Moreno (free loan).
Clough was 69 when he passed while Liverpool legend Ron Yeats, who died a week ago, was 86.
This week Gary Shaw (63) of Aston Villa and Toto Schillaci (59), Italy’s World Cup hero of 1990, went far too soon.
Schillaci was Clough’s type of player – born in poverty, seized his chance when it came, but his career seemed to last just those four weeks.
Like Clough, whose career was cut short by injury at 29 with just two caps, Schillaci never again reached the heights of Italia 90.
But he was an Italian hero as eternal as the city in which he made his name.
For his part, Clough has statues in three different cities.
Isn’t it time there was one for Mokhtar Dahari?
The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.