Arsenal and Manchester City have made perfect starts to the Premier League season, each winning their opening three matches. Both sides sit level at the top of the table after Mikel Arteta's team secured a 2-1 victory over Chelsea, with goals from Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard. City had earlier beaten Coventry City.
Arteta and Maresca on the title race
Arteta has been asked about the likelihood of Arsenal and City again occupying the top two positions. "It will be super hard and the margins as well," he said. "We went to Villa Park and it was a really tough one. We go to Sunderland and it will again be so tough again."
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca acknowledged Arsenal's quality and highlighted the importance of squad depth. "In the end, if you want to be there you need options. Arsenal have options. We have options. More teams have options but it's not just us. I'm very happy with the options we have, that is something important for us if you want to compete."
Arsenal's next five Premier League fixtures
- Sunderland (a) - September 12
- Brighton (a) - September 19
- Leeds (h) - October 10
- Nottingham Forest (a) - October 18
- Everton (h) - October 24
Arsenal face Napoli before travelling to Sunderland, with a Carabao Cup third-round tie against Ipswich to follow. A Champions League home match with Lille precedes the Nottingham Forest game, and a trip to Bayern Munich comes after.
Manchester City's next five Premier League fixtures
- Manchester United (a) - September 13
- Sunderland (h) - September 20
- Liverpool (a) - October 11
- Ipswich Town (h) - October 17
- Aston Villa (a) - October 24
City travel to Porto before the Manchester derby, with a Carabao Cup encounter against Norwich following. Paris Saint-Germain arrive after the Liverpool meeting, and AEK are also welcomed before the end of October.
Fixtures for Chelsea, Liverpool and Man United
Chelsea play Hull City (h) on September 12, Brentford (a) on September 18, Bournemouth (h) on October 10, Everton (a) on October 17 and Tottenham (h) on October 24.
Liverpool face Fulham (h) on September 12, Bournemouth (a) on September 20, Manchester City (h) on October 11, Brentford (a) on October 17 and Brighton (h) on October 25. They take on Atletico Madrid before their next league outing, with a Carabao Cup tie against Spurs to follow. Champions League matches against LASK and Villarreal bookend the Brentford fixture.
Manchester United host Manchester City on September 13, then travel to Fulham on September 20. They host Tottenham on October 10, visit Leeds on October 18 and welcome Bournemouth on October 25. United must first navigate Champions League opponents Sabah before the derby, with a Carabao Cup tie against Brighton scheduled shortly after. Atletico Madrid await following the Spurs match, and a visit to Como precedes the Bournemouth game.
