It was a decidedly mixed international break as far as England were concerned. They recorded a routine 2-0 win over Andorra at home in their first game. But the margin of victory and the performance were insufficient to please the fans. However, in what looked like being their toughest group game, the Three Lions then travelled to Serbia and produced a magnificent performance.
It was the best of Thomas Tuchel’s short reign, and England delivered a 5-0 victory that puts them in a brilliant position in terms of the qualification race. In Group K, England have five wins out of five, have yet to concede a goal, and have a goal difference that is 13 better than Albania, who are in second, seven points back.
Of course, England were always well fancied to top the group, and the real work for Tuchel, Harry Kane and co will start next summer. However, we have a lot more football, both international and domestic, to be played before then. With the latest international break done and dusted, thoughts naturally move to the return of the Premier League.
Matchday 4: Almost a Traditional Weekend of Football
We are just three games into the 2025/26 campaign, and already there is only one team that can boast a 100% record. That is Liverpool, and they will hope to continue that fine start when they make the short trip to Burnley. That game is on Sunday and by modern standards matchday four in the Premier League is surprisingly traditional.
The action is spread over two days, with no matches taking place on Friday or Monday. With so many extra fixtures being broadcast live this term, that is the exception rather than the rule. Perhaps even more surprisingly, we have 10 teams kicking off at 3 pm on Saturday. How will we all cope?
There are eight games taking place on Saturday and just two on Sunday, with the full set of fixtures below:
👋 We’re back this week! pic.twitter.com/WPLsp9vO2G
— Premier League (@premierleague) September 8, 2025
Premier League Fixtures: Matchweek 4 – 13th and 14th of September
Saturday 13th September
So we have eight games to enjoy on Saturday, a rare treat. The early kick-off, plus the two evening games, are available to watch on TV in the UK.
- Arsenal v Nottingham Forest – 12.30
- Bournemouth v Brighton – 15.00
- Crystal Palace v Sunderland – 15.00
- Everton v Aston Villa – 15.00
- Fulham v Leeds – 15.00
- Newcastle v Wolves – 15.00
- West Ham v Tottenham – 17.30
- Brentford v Chelsea – 20.00
Sunday 14th September
That all leaves us with just two fixtures on Sunday, both televised, with the second being the clear pick of the action.
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- Burnley v Liverpool – 14.00
- Man City v Man United – 16.30
Fixture Gods Save Best Till Last with Manchester Derby
Starting at the end, and for most neutrals, the Manchester derby is the most exciting game. Sport is often cyclical, and right now it feels like both Manchester clubs are far from where they want to be in the cycle. Man United dominated the Premier League for so long, but their glory days now feel very much gone.
City fans will hope that their club’s decline is short-term, and it is certainly too early to write them off both in terms of the current season and the next few years. But there are certainly warning signs that Pep Guardiola’s men may struggle to keep pace with the Premier League’s top clubs this term.
Man City are at home and will be fully expecting to win. However, they come into this clash down in 13th place. They have managed just one win from their opening three games. That came first up and alarmingly, since they beat Wolves, so have Everton and Bournemouth. Fans and pundits wondered if City were back after they thumped Wolves 4-0 but results for both clubs since then suggest that is far from the case. Instead, it looks like Pep and co still have a lot of work to do. It also looks like the Black Country club are simply terrible.
City’s subsequent defeats to Spurs and Brighton mean they have three points, which is one fewer than their city rivals. The Red Devils have won one, lost one and drawn one and with four points are up in ninth position in the table. They began with a 1-0 loss at home to Arsenal but played well, while a draw with Fulham followed before a lacklustre 3-2 win over Burnley at Old Trafford.
This is a massive game for both clubs and if City have any real title aspirations they simply have to win. Both clubs did the bulk of their work in the transfer market early in the window but it will be interesting to see if United’s new goalie, Senne Lammens, gets the nod in such a massive clash.
Other Fixtures to Enjoy
These games will be the first since the transfer window closed and so many fans will be hoping they get a chance to see their club’s new stars. Increasingly in modern football, managers tend to ease new signings in, as if the system and tactics they use couldn’t possibly be picked up straight away by an experienced international footballer on £200k per week.
This, and the odd niggle picked up on international duty, plus a lack of full fitness here and there, may well mean that some fans will be disappointed. Obviously, Liverpool fans will be desperate to finally see Alexander Isak in a red shirt but he is likely to be on the bench at best. He was given 18 minutes from the bench for Sweden against Kosovo and his fitness means he may not feature at all.
Arsenal signed plenty of players over the summer and several will feature against Forest, who were also very active. Forest will also have Ange Postecoglou in the dugout for the first time after he replaced Nuno Espirito Santo. Jack Grealish will hope to continue his fine form for Everton against his former club Aston Villa, another interesting subplot.
Later on Saturday, the day’s action finishes with two London derbies. West Ham versus Spurs is always a tasty one with no love lost between the fans. After that, Chelsea travel to Brentford and with some suggesting the Blues could push Liverpool and Arsenal in the title race, that will be an early test for Enzo Maresca’s side. The Premier League is back, and we can’t wait. Luckily, we won’t have to, at least not for long!