How Does Each Premier League Team’s Fixtures Look Heading Into 2023-24 Season?

As the 2023-24 Premier League season prepares to kick off, here is an analytical look at the fixture schedules for all 20 teams.

Manchester City enter the campaign seeking to claim a fourth consecutive Premier League title but will face tough opposition from Arsenal and Manchester United, whilst Newcastle United and Liverpool look to gatecrash their way into the title race.

Tottenham and Chelsea meanwhile will be looking to rebound after suffering a disastrous 2022-23 season by their standards, albeit under new management as Ange Postecoglou and Mauricio Pochettino take charge respectively.

Brentford, Brighton and Aston Villa will seek to continue their surge and create a tough scrap for European qualificaton against the top-flight giants.

Burnley and Sheffield United enter this season looking to avoid instant relegation back to the Championship, as will newcomers, Luton Town who are playing in the Premier League for the first time in their history – having been relegated the season before the top-flight was rebranded.

This season though will contain various pitfalls for every team, so here is a look at how the start and end of the season is shaping up for every team, plus we pick out some season-defining months which could await various teams.

 

Arsenal

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Nottingham Forest	H	Aston Villa	H
Crystal Palace	A	Wolves	A
Fulham	H	Tottenham	A
Manchester United	H	Bournemouth	H
Everton	A	Manchester United	A
Tottenham	H	Everton	H

Having fell agonisingly short of a shock title last season, Arsenal will be pleased with their start because I do fancy them to win four of their opening five matches, and if they can beat Man Utd and Tottenham then a proper title tilt for a second consecutive season could be on the cards.

Arsenal also have the good fortune of having their meetings against their fellow ‘Big Six’ clubs nicely spread out – even if lucky that their clashes against Man City and Chelsea are split by international breaks in October and March respectively.

Their run-in meanwhile does look strong with only away trips to Spurs and Man Utd looking like potential slip-ups, especially the latter if Utd can create a three-way title fight this season but I do expect Mikel Arteta’s Gunners to be firmly in the top-four again this season.

 

Aston Villa

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Newcastle	A	Arsenal	A
Everton	H	Bournemouth	H
Burnley	A	Chelsea	H
Liverpool	A	Brighton	A
Crystal Palace	H	Liverpool	H
Chelsea	A	Crystal Palace	A

Having enjoyed a strong second-half to last season to record a top-seven finish, Aston Villa now enjoy the tricky test of balancing their domestic commitments with Europa Conference League football which is no easy task.

Two home games in their opening six games therefore is not ideal for Villa if want to build early-season momentum in front of their home fans, but I do expect them to take six points from those two home games against Everton and Palace whilst at least four points on the road in that period will be a solid return.

Villa though will be relieved to have their clashes against ‘Big Six’ clubs spread out across the season, with fixtures surrounding Europa Conference League midweeks also looking favourable which should only encourage positivity but they need to to maximise the start of their season if want to push for a top-half finish.

Their run-in looks solid although the block of Chelsea, Brighton and Liverpool just prior to their final day trip to Palace does look like it could be season-defining, especially if Villa are pushing for European qualification again.

In summary, Villa should be happy with their fixture scheduling but balancing their commitments across the whole campaign will define their season.

 

Bournemouth

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
West Ham	H	Manchester United	H
Liverpool	A	Aston Villa	A
Tottenham	H	Brighton	H
Brentford	A	Arsenal	A
Chelsea	H	Brentford	H
Brighton	A	Chelsea	A

Having made a shock change of manager during the off-season, Bournemouth now face a tough start under Andoni Iraola because I do feel like they must get something at home to West Ham to give themselves some early confidence, otherwise they could be the team sat bottom of the league without a point come matchweek six.

If I am being honest, the maximum that I see Bournemouth getting in the opening six games is four points because they are capable of nicking a result against Tottenham at home, whilst West Ham and Brentford are games where they could nick a point if lucky.

Although the rest of their season looks more solid with no major successive clashes against top teams – due to Third Round of FA Cup falling in-between reverse fixtures against Tottenham and Liverpool, I do feel like Bournemouth need to maximise their results against teams around them like Burnley, Luton and Nottingham Forest.

Do that then I can see them getting safety again otherwise they’re in a relegation scrap and their final four games do look very difficult, which only emphasises the importance of getting results against clubs around them in the table.

 

Brentford

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Tottenham	H	Sheffield United	H
Fulham	A	Luton	A
Crystal Palace	H	Everton	A
Bournemouth	H	Fulham	H
Newcastle	A	Bournemouth	A
Everton	H	Newcastle	H

After enjoying an impressive second season in the top-flight despite falling two points short of European qualification, Brentford now have the chance to kick on even without Ivan Toney who is currently suspended until mid-January.

Thomas Frank’s Bees will therefore enjoy their start with three London derbies from which a minimum of four points should be possible, whilst home clashes against Bournemouth and Everton should be winnable but their trip to Newcastle does feel like it could be a competitive contest that goes either way.

Looking at Brentford’s season as a whole, they should have a good shot at another top-ten finish but runs of Tottenham (away) then Man City (home) in late January – early February, plus Chelsea (home) and Arsenal (away) in early March could prove season-defining in terms of Brentford’s push for European qualification.

Brentford’s issue last season though was that they drew too many games against teams like Crystal Palace or suffered unexpected defeats at teams like Wolves and Everton, otherwise they would of qualified for Europe so the priority has to be continuing to pick up points but reduce the number of draws and silly losses.

 

Brighton

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Luton	H	Burnley	A
Wolves	A	Chelsea	H
West Ham	H	Bournemouth	A
Newcastle	H	Aston Villa	H
Manchester United	A	Newcastle	A
Bournemouth	H	Manchester United	H

With the tricky prospect of balancing domestic and European football for the very first time in their history, Brighton are in for an eye-opener of a season to the challenges of punching above their weight across multiple competitions.

Roberto De Zerbi’s Seagulls therefore will be glad with a relatively easy opening run because Luton, Bournemouth and West Ham are all winnable like with an away trip to Wolves, whilst their clashes against Newcastle and Man Utd can easily go either way which should be quite fun to watch.

Brighton’s run-in meanwhile is slightly tricky because they should beat Burnley and Bournemouth away but Chelsea, Villa, Newcastle and Man Utd meanwhile are all difficult opposition, especially if Brighton need victories to try and snatch European qualification via the league again.

Now looking at the season overall, I do feel like learning to manage the Thursday-Sunday schedule will be season-defining for Brighton, although they should be safe no matter what come end of season even despite having a mixed selection of fixtures immediately following each Europe League matchweek.

 

Burnley

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Manchester City	H	Brighton	H
Aston Villa	H	Sheffield United	A
Tottenham	H	Manchester United	A
Nottingham Forest	A	Newcastle	H
Manchester United	H	Tottenham	A
Newcastle	A	Nottingham Forest	H

*Burnley’s away trip to Luton in matchweek two has been postponed.

Although they have spent just one season out of the top-flight, Burnley are certainly in for a tough return with four tricky opposition at home where they will be lucky to get at least one point, such is the quality of Man City, Villa, Tottenham and Man Utd.

The main positive about having Man City at home first though is that it will provide former City legend and now Burnley manager, Vincent Kompany with a solid understanding of his squad’s current quality, having retained several players who featured in their brutal Quarter-Final exit at Man City in last season’s FA Cup.

Away trips to Forest and Newcastle though do feel like must-wins if Kompany’s Clarets are to enjoy a solid return to the Premier League, because safety has to be their priority this season but their final four games will be tough with only Forest at home looking winnable.

Looking at their season as a whole, Burnley shouldn’t have too much to worry about as long as they can pick up crucial points against teams expected to be around them in the table, meaning that games against the likes of Luton, Sheffield Utd and Everton could be vital to their survival dreams.

 

Chelsea

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Liverpool	H	Everton	H
West Ham	A	Brighton	A
Luton	H	Aston Villa	A
Nottingham Forest	H	West Ham	H
Bournemouth	A	Nottingham Forest	A
Aston Villa	H	Bournemouth	H

Having appointed Mauricio Pochettino as their new manager after finishing as the second-worst London club in the Premier League last season, Chelsea simply can’t perform any worse than they did for much of last season.

Their opening two games however do look difficult because Liverpool have brought in fresh midfield reinforcement, whilst their trip to West Ham pits the two worst London teams of last season against each other in what could be a tough match if the Hammers can recruit well to replace Rice and boost their midfield quality.

Luton, Forest and Bournemouth do all look winnable, whilst their home clash against Villa might also be another solid win if can take advantage of Unai Emery’s Villains starting to adjust to Thursday-Sunday schedule at that stage of the season.

Quite frankly it is difficult to predict what to expect with Chelsea this season because they surely can’t sink any lower and a top-seven push has to be the aim, with mid February – mid March looking season defining as they face; Man City (away), Tottenham (home), Brentford (away), Newcastle (home) and Arsenal (away).

That run won’t be easy given that Man City, Newcastle and Arsenal are expected to push for the top-four again, whilst Tottenham and Brentford will also be eying up European qualification meaning that results in that period could prove decisive come end of season.

Chelsea’s run-in however does look favourable with only away trips to Brighton and Forest looking like banana skins based upon last season, so the odds have to be on an improved campaign but European qualification could boil down to how they perform in the big games and especially against Brentford.

 

Crystal Palace

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Sheffield United	A	Liverpool	A
Arsenal	H	West Ham	H
Brentford	A	Fulham	A
Wolves	H	Manchester United	H
Aston Villa	A	Wolves	A
Fulham	H	Aston Villa	H

With Roy Hodgson bringing stability back to the dugout, Palace should be well-placed to push for a more solid midfield finish without fears of a relegation scrap if they can build upon their positive finish to last season.

An away opener at Sheffield United is therefore a solid start because I do feel like that game is winnable as are home clashes against Wolves and Fulham, whilst Arsenal and Brentford are games where they could scrape a draw if play well but it is hard to see them getting anything at Villa given their away form at Villa Park.

December though does seem to be Palace’s hardest month on paper because only their home clash against Bournemouth and away trip to West Ham looks winnable, but they could snatch draws at home to Liverpool, Brighton and Brentford if lucky as I can’t see them winning at Man City or Chelsea barring a strong quality performance.

Either way, I don’t expect Palace to be flirting with relegation except possibly in the New Year depending upon how December unfolds, yet they should have enough quality to pull clear and enjoy a relaxing run-in with only Liverpool away looking like their biggest worry at that stage of the season currently.

 

Everton

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Fulham	H	Chelsea	A
Aston Villa	A	Nottingham Forest	H
Wolves	H	Brentford	H
Sheffield United	A	Luton	A
Arsenal	H	Sheffield United	H
Brentford	A	Arsenal	A

After scraping survival on the final day last season, Everton should be relatively pleased with their fixtures as they look to avoid a third consecutive season fighting the drop.

Looking at their opening three home games, Everton have a good chance of getting at least three points on the board against Fulham and Wolves, whilst they will need their recent home luck against Arsenal to continue if are to potentially consolidate a strong start to the season.

Everton though do have two fairly tricky away trips to Villa and Brentford with poor records, so I do expect them to try and target a win at Sheffield Utd in their opening three away games, although the Villa game feels Deja vu after having met in the second matchweek last season which Villa won 2-1 on that occasion.

December meanwhile does feel like it could be a season-defining month for Everton because they have Newcastle, Chelsea (both home), Burnley, Tottenham (both away) and Man City (home) in the space of three weeks, with only the Burnley match looking winnable.

Everton though can’t be any worse than last season because in their run-in, I feel like they will have to maximise their results at home to Forest, Brentford and Sheffield Utd plus away at Luton – as can’t see them getting anything at Chelsea whilst they can’t afford to go to Arsenal on the final day needing a result for survival.

If that is the case then they better have their fate in their own hands like last season and hope that other teams slip up because I can’t see them winning at Arsenal, and if they go there sat in the relegation zone then only a miracle would keep them up.

 

Fulham

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Everton	A	West Ham	A
Brentford	H	Liverpool	H
Arsenal	A	Crystal Palace	H
Manchester City	A	Brentford	A
Luton	H	Manchester City	H
Crystal Palace	A	Luton	A

Entering this season off the back of a solid campaign, Fulham will be eager to build upon the positives of last season and they will certainly enjoy their start because Everton and Brentford plus Luton and Palace are winnable pairs of games either side of tricky trips to Arsenal then Man City.

In fact once Marco Silva’s Cottagers clear those trips to Arsenal and Man City, their season looks much stronger with not much in the way of tricky fixtures against top teams so another mid-table finish looks a strong prospect although their trip to Brentford in Matchweek 36 could be key if both are scrapping for European qualification at that point.

 

Liverpool

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Chelsea	A	Crystal Palace	H
Bournemouth	H	Fulham	A
Newcastle	A	West Ham	A
Aston Villa	H	Tottenham	H
Wolves	A	Aston Villa	A
West Ham	H	Wolves	H

With a reset underway following a difficult season, Liverpool certainly would of wanted a better start but an away trip to Chelsea might not be the worst opening fixture, given that the Blues are also undergoing a revamp following their own disastrous campaign.

Jurgen Klopp’s Reds also probably would of rather not had a trip to Newcastle and home clash against Villa in their opening four games, but at least a home match against Bournemouth in Matchweek Two should ensure one win in that particular run to avert a disastrous start akin to 2012-13 season when took only two points in their first five games.

Once Liverpool have cleared those four opening games, Wolves and West Ham should both look winnable but there are scattered selections of tricky ‘Big Six’ clashes in consecutive weeks which could be key to Liverpool’s season, with home games against Man Utd and Arsenal in December particularly looking key going into festive period.

Liverpool’s run-in though does look much better with only a home clash against Tottenham looking like a tough season-defining fixture in Matchweek 36, although trips to Fulham, West Ham and Villa either side of that home game also could look tricky if the Reds underperform like last season.

European qualification though has to be the minimal aim this season for Liverpool and I do see them achieving that, although managing Thursday – Sunday routine is going to be pretty key from which the long-term members from Klopp’s early days at Anfield will know well.

 

Luton Town

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Brighton	A	Manchester City	A
Chelsea	A	Brentford	H
West Ham	H	Wolves	A
Fulham	A	Everton	H
Wolves	H	West Ham	A
Everton	A	Fulham	H

*Luton’s opening home game against Burnley in matchweek 2 has been postponed

As newly-promoted underdogs, all bets are off as to what Luton can achieve this season but I do feel like they’re going to have to replicate Forest of last season, and make home advantage count when playing at home if they’re to stay up because Kenilworth Road is so old-fashioned that teams will fear their trip there.

Rob Edward’s Hatters however do have a difficult start due to their home clash against Burnley in matchweek two being postponed, meaning that opening away trips to Brighton and Chelsea aren’t ideal and will put more pressure on them to win at home against West Ham.

Away trips to Fulham and Everton could be tricky but not impossible if get tactics right and gain some early-season momentum, whilst beating Wolves at home should be winnable given the Old Gold’s lack of investment this summer and loss of Ruben Neves.

December however does look season defining for Luton with fixtures against Brentford, Arsenal, Man City, Bournemouth, Newcastle, Sheffield United and Chelsea, during which I feel like they must target points against Brentford, Bournemouth and Sheffield Utd because the other quartet do look like a big ask at present.

In terms of the run-in, I do feel like Luton could be in a relegation scrap but they should stand a solid chance in their final four games if can show fighting spirit once they clear Man City and Brentford fixtures, but much of their fate does look like it could depend upon their results in December.

 

Manchester City

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Burnley	A	Luton	H
Newcastle	H	Tottenham	A
Sheffield United	A	Nottingham Forest	A
Fulham	H	Wolves	H
West Ham	A	Fulham	A
Nottingham Forest	H	West Ham	H

Looking to defend their title for a fourth consecutive season, Man City should be happy with their start because their opening six games are all winnable, so it would be a shock if they’re not at least top three by late September unless they slip up at Newcastle despite having a strong home record over the Magpies.

In fact, Man City do seem to have a fairly solid schedule across the season because their run-in also looks fairly easy despite their hoodoo away at Tottenham, meaning that something drastic would have to go wrong if City are to not fight for title if not win it.

March however does seem like the likely month where they could blow any title ambitions if there are no postponements, with away trips to Liverpool and Brighton sandwiched in-between home clashes against Man Utd and Arsenal, of which all four opponents will likely be pushing for European qualification at minimum.

Either way, there is no doubt that Man City should be in the title race right through this season given their solid schedule.

 

Manchester United

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Wolves	H	Bournemouth	A
Tottenham	A	Newcastle	H
Nottingham Forest	H	Burnley	H
Arsenal	A	Crystal Palace	A
Brighton	H	Arsenal	H
Burnley	A	Brighton	A

Having recovered to finish third and enjoy memorable cup runs following their disastrous start to last season, Man Utd certainly will come into this campaign with more belief under Erik ten Hag than at this time last year.

Ten Hag in particular should be pleased with their opening six games because their home games are all winnable with only Brighton looking troublesome, especially compared to their opening two away matches because it will be a tough ask for them to go to Tottenham and Arsenal in their first two away fixtures of the season.

December however does look like Utd’s season-defining month in terms of whether they will genuinely fight for the title, with five of their seven league fixtures that month coming against teams expected to be fighting for European qualification – in a month where Utd will play at least eight games in all competitions.

Either way, Utd certainly should be targeting top four at minimum and looking at their run-in, I do feel like they might need to get it done by matchweek 36 because Arsenal (home) and Brighton (away) are difficult fixtures to finish the season with if need wins in both games to get a top-four finish again.

 

 

Newcastle United

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Aston Villa	H	Tottenham	H
Manchester City	A	Manchester United	A
Liverpool	H	Sheffield United	H
Brighton	A	Burnley	A
Brentford	H	Brighton	H
Sheffield United	A	Brentford	A

Having achieved Champions League qualification for the first time in two decades at end of last season, Newcastle now face a fight to claim another top-four finish because Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham will hopefully be right back in the hunt for Champions League qualification.

Their opening run of fixtures however is pretty brutal with five of last season’s fellow top-nine teams in their opening five games, so it is important that they try and come through this period with at least six points to give themselves a base to build another top-four challenge upon across the season.

Fast-forward to Newcastle’s final six matches and they too are quite as difficult but they should be confident of winning their home games against Tottenham, Sheffield United and Brighton at that point, whilst wins at Burnley and Brentford have to be targetable results.

Their mid-season run of fixtures however do look solid aside from late November – early December with Chelsea, Man Utd (both home), Everton and Tottenham (both away), which could be a potential stumbling block especially if are fighting for a knockout spot in the Champions League during that period.

Either way, Newcastle should be targeting another strong season but a top-four finish might be a tougher ask if other teams can get their act together.

 

Nottingham Forest

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Arsenal	A	Wolves	H
Sheffield United	H	Everton	A
Manchester United	A	Manchester City	H
Chelsea	A	Sheffield United	A
Burnley	H	Chelsea	H
Manchester City	A	Burnley	A

Home form last season proved crucial to Forest’s survival so this start with just two games at home in their opening six matches feels brutally nightmare-ish, because I just don’t see them getting anything away to Arsenal, Man Utd, Chelsea and Man City which means that home wins over Sheffield Utd and Burnley are imperative.

Patience therefore will be a virtue for supporters because Forest have absolutely been hard done by in the scheduling and I do expect them to flirt with the relegation zone early on, but they can hopefully kick on from October onwards with a more favourable run of fixtures but at least they will have most of the big teams out of the way early on.

Now if they indeed can kick on from October and improve their away form which was awful last season, then I do expect them to be fairly safe come the run-in and possibly needing two or three wins to secure survival in their last six games.

Should that be the case then Forest realistically should target Wolves (home), Everton, Sheffield Utd and Burnley (A) as strong points-scoring games, whilst trying to nick something at home against Man City or Chelsea but I do feel that they can have a solid second season if they don’t allow their harsh start to turn into a downward spiral.

 

Sheffield United

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Crystal Palace	H	Brentford	A
Nottingham Forest	A	Burnley	H
Manchester City	H	Newcastle	A
Everton	H	Nottingham Forest	H
Tottenham	A	Everton	A
Newcastle	H	Tottenham	H

Having spent two seasons outside the top-flight, Sheffield Utd will be a bit of an unknown quality after what they did when they first returned to the Premier League in 2019-20 before the pandemic sent them on a downward spiral.

Paul Heckingbottom’s Blades though will be happy with three winnable fixtures in their opening four matches because I can’t see them getting anything against Man City and likewise away to Spurs, whilst I do feel like they can get something at home to Newcastle if they recruit well.

This season though does feel like a case of comfortably mid-table or a relegation scrap for Sheffield United and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the latter for much of the season, unless the players who performed well in the Championship step up a gear alongside those who were part of the Blades’ recent Premier League stint.

December meanwhile does look like it could be season defining with a run of; Burnley (away), Liverpool, Brentford (both home), Chelsea, Aston Villa (both away), Luton (home) and Man City (away), which is tough with two pivotal clashes against their fellow promoted teams – Burnley and Luton, whilst the rest are tough to get a result in.

Heckingbottom’s Blades if are fighting for survival come end of season are in for a mixed run-in because I can only see them getting something at Everton out of their last three away games, whilst it would be imperative to get wins over Burnley and Forest at home and hope that Tottenham have nothing to play for if survival goes to the final day.

 

Tottenham Hotspur

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Brentford	A	Newcastle	A
Manchester United	H	Manchester City	H
Bournemouth	A	Arsenal	H
Burnley	A	Liverpool	A
Sheffield United	H	Burnley	H
Arsenal	A	Sheffield United	A

With Ange Postecoglou now in charge, Tottenham face a tough start to life under the Greek-born manager because Brentford, Man Utd and Arsenal look set to be incredibly tough opposition in their opening six matches, which means that fans must play their part morale wise especially in Postecoglou’s first home game against Utd.

Looking at those three fixtures in particular, I feel like that they must get at least one win especially against Brentford or Man Utd, otherwise getting at least two wins against Bournemouth, Burnley and Sheffield Utd could be key if they want to put themselves in a strong position to fight for European qualification.

Spurs’ run-in also does look especially difficult because Newcastle, Man City, Arsenal and Liverpool are all expected to fight for a top-four finish, meaning that it is imperative that they get at least try and suffer just one defeat in that run otherwise their trip to Burnley and final-day home clash against Sheffield Utd could be key to their European hopes.

Burnley and Sheffield Utd though could well be fighting for survival come end of the season so those two final games don’t look set to be easy no matter what.

The only saving grace for Tottenham is that they have no European commitments this season so can afford to throw everything at a top-four push, but if Harry Kane leaves but not until late in the summer transfer window with little time for a replacement then Spurs might be in a bit of trouble attack wise.

 

West Ham

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Bournemouth	A	Fulham	H
Chelsea	H	Crystal Palace	A
Brighton	A	Liverpool	H
Luton	A	Chelsea	A
Manchester City	H	Luton	H
Liverpool	A	Manchester City	A

Having enjoyed a sloppy domestic campaign whilst their focus on Europe paid off handsomely, it is interesting to see West Ham approach the new season because I do feel like they must get at least five points from their first four fixtures, as Man City and Liverpool back-to-back in late September will be a huge ask.

Throw in balancing their domestic commitments with Europa League and I do feel like David Moyes’ Hammers are going to have to maximise their early season form, although their league games in-between Europa League midweeks do look favourable throughout the season depending on how far they go in Europe.

Their run-in might look slightly nervous with Liverpool, Chelsea and Man City in their final four games but I do feel that West Ham will be safe, and the bigger picture for Hammers’ fans is that they only have one long-distance trip in their run-in which isn’t too bad unless they need a result at Man City on the final day.

The big question therefore surely has to be whether West Ham put all their eggs into the European basket like last season or whether they target European qualification via the domestic league but aim for a solid if deep run in Europe with slightly more priority on domestic competitions.

 

Wolves

Opening Six Matches		Closing Six Matches
Opposition	Venue	Opposition	Venue
Manchester United	A	Nottingham Forest	A
Brighton	H	Arsenal	H
Everton	A	Luton	H
Crystal Palace	A	Manchester City	A
Liverpool	H	Crystal Palace	H
Luton	A	Liverpool	A

Having endured a difficult campaign last season complete with a painful final-day defeat at Arsenal to boot and undergone a managerial change just days before the new season, Wolves certainly won’t have an easy start with Man Utd away in their opening game which I don’t see them winning.

Brighton and Liverpool at home also do look incredibly difficult on paper so Wolves must target at least four points from their away trips to Everton, Palace and Luton as a building base for the season.

Looking ahead, October and March do look like their best chances to enjoy runs of consistency if can avoid replicating last season’s periods of inconsistency.

As for the run-in, Wolves could well be in a relegation scrap come end of the season, with away visits to Man City and Liverpool amongst their final three games which means that home clash against Palace could become decisive if the Old Gold are indeed in trouble.

Either way, Wolves could well be facing another mid-table campaign at best but the good news is that they only face two members of the ‘Big Six’ in successive matchweeks just once, which should provide hope for a solid season if can avoid a relegation scrap.