Preview of the Weekend: Arsenal looking for first win; Real, Barca face minnows

Welcome to All Football's Preview of the Weekend. As Europe's top leagues enter their pivotal stages, you should miss not even one game! Below are the best matches the world of football would bring to you.

Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Manchester City

Kick off: 13:30 (CET)

Date:Sat, 25-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Wolves have made a disappointing start to life back in the Premier League, only managing one point from their opening two matches.

Manchester City are high on confidence after thrashing Huddersfield 6-1 last weekend. They have made a perfect start to the defence of their Premier League title.

Pep Guardiola's side failed to score in 120 minutes against Wolves in the League Cup last season, requiring penalties against the then-Championship side.

Wolves can take confidence from that performance but they aren't expected to have the same joy here. City already look irresistible and look set for another three points.

Prediction

Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-3 Manchester City

Arsenal vs West Ham

Kick off:  16:00 (CET)

Date:Sat, 25-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Arsenal have lost their first two league matches but Unai Emery was handed a difficult start, with matches against the last two Premier League champions Manchester City and Chelsea. The Gunners will be desperate to get off the mark in this London derby.

West Ham have also lost their first two matches, following up a 4-0 loss to Liverpool with a 2-1 defeat at home to Bournemouth last weekend. The latter would have been particularly disappointing for the Hammers as they took the lead in that match.

West Ham have only scored two goals in their last five matches against Arsenal and were beaten 4-1 on their last visit to the Emirates. Their difficult start to the season looks set to continue here.

Prediction

Arsenal 3-1 West Ham

Newcastle United vs Chelsea

Kick off: 17:00 (CET)

Date:Sun, 26-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Newcastle have started the season with two straight defeats. Their performances have been good in patches but Rafa Benitez will be desperate to get some points on the board as quickly as possible.

Maurizio Sarri has won his first two Premier League games as Chelsea manager, defeating Huddersfield and Arsenal. Now he faces off against the man he replaced at Napoli in 2015, Rafa Benitez. Sarri is unbeaten in two previous meetings with Benitez, downing Napoli 4-2 with minnows Empoli in one of the matches.

Chelsea are winless in their last five matches away to Newcastle, so can expect a tough afternoon on Sunday. They have lost four of those but are in a much better place compared to their opponents heading into the weekend and will hope to change that record here.

Prediction

Newcastle United 1-2 Chelsea

Liverpool vs Brighton

Kick off:  18:30  (CET)

Date:Sat, 25-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Liverpool have started the season with two Premier League wins for just the fifth time this century. They are the only team yet to concede in the division and have already shown their ability to blow a side away (vs West Ham) and grind out three points (vs Crystal Palace).

Brighton will be high on confidence after beating Manchester United 3-2 last time out but a trip to Anfield will represent a completely different test for Chris Hughton's side. The Seagulls will do very well to get anything from Saturday's match.

Liverpool average five goals per game in their last three meetings with Brighton and it wouldn't be a surprise if they racked up a similarly high-scoring victory this weekend.

Prediction

Liverpool 4-0 Brighton

Manchester United vs Tottenham

Kick off:  21:00  (CET)

Date:Mon, 27-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Manchester United are in disarray after two matches and there are already questions being asked of Jose Mourinho's position at the club.

The Red Devils lost 3-2 to Brighton last weekend and the result flattered Mourinho's side. Now they have the tough task of facing Tottenham.

Spurs haven't hit their stride yet but have a 100 per cent record after two matches.

Mauricio Pochettino's side beat Newcastle and Fulham but conceded in both games and need to improve at both ends of the pitch.

They have lost on their last five visits to Old Trafford and have only scored in one of those games, but this is a great chance to end that run.

United need drastic improvements if they are to bounce back from last weekend's crushing defeat.

This is not an ideal match for Mourinho and a a defeat would ramp up the pressure another notch.

Prediction

Manchester United 0-1 Tottenham

Real Valladolid vs Barcelona

Kick off:  22:15 (CET)

Date:Sat, 25-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Real Valladolid returned to La Liga with a goalless draw against Girona, where the newly promoted side sat deep and defended well. Against Barcelona, more of the same will be needed.

The hosts only lost five games at home last campaign in Segunda, with their form at Estadio Municipal Jose Zorrilla set to be vital if they are to escape from the drop.

Lionel Messi stepped up to score twice against Deportivo Alaves last time out, with Ernesto Valverde's side eventually breaking down a resilient visiting defence.

Prediction

Real Valladolid 0-2 Barcelona

Girona vs Real Madrid

Kick off:  22:15 (CET)

Date:Sun, 26-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Girona were unable to find the back of the net against Real Valladolid last Friday, but the likes of Portu, Borja Garcia and Patrick Roberts looked dangerous on the attack for the Catalan side.

Last time these two met in league action at Montilivi, the hosts were able to earn a surprise victory against Zinedine Zidane's group. Plenty has changed since then, with Julen Lopetegui not wanting to make similar mistakes.

Real Madrid opened up their La Liga campaign with a comfortable victory against Getafe, with Los Blancos dominating possession and limiting their opposition to rare chances of their own.

Prediction

Girona 1-2 Real Madrid

Juventus vs Lazio

Kick off:  18:00 (CET)

Date:Sat, 25-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Juventus struggled more than expected against Chievo last weekend, coming from 2-1 down to win 3-2 with a late winner.

Lazio took the lead against Napoli last weekend but ended up losing 2-1. Their difficult start to the season continues here with a trip to Turin.

Lazio are better than Chievo and Juventus will have to improve if they are to come away with three points on this occasion.

Prediction

Juventus 1-1 Lazio

Napoli vs AC Milan

Kick off:  20:30 (CET)

Date:Sat, 25-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Napoli showed great strength to come from 1-0 down away to Lazio to win 2-1 in Carlo Ancelotti's first game.

This is AC Milan's first match of the season after last weekend's match against Genoa was postponed.

Napoli should take advantage of the fact Milan still haven't played a competitive match this season and make it two wins from two.

Prediction

Napoli 2-0 AC Milan

Inter vs Torino

Kick off:  20:30 (CET)

Date:Sun, 26-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Inter were served with a dose of reality after losing their opening game 1-0 to Sassuolo. They enjoyed a fantastic summer in the transfer market but still have a lot of work to do on the pitch to be title contenders.

Torino were impressive against Roma only to be beaten by a wondergoal from Edin Dzeko late on. It doesn't get much easier for them as they face another Serie A giant in GW2.

Luciano Spalletti will have analysed what went wrong last weekend and seek solutions here. Anything less than three points would heap more pressure on his shoulders.

Prediction

Inter 2-1 Torino

Paris Saint Germain vs Angers

Kick off:  17:00 (CET)

Date:Sat, 25-Aug-18

Probable Lineups

FOCUS

Angers have looked out of sorts at the start of the season, losing both of their matches in disappointing fashion. A trip to Paris is unlikely to be a tonic in that regard; look for for the visitors to play as defensive as possible.

Paris Saint-Germain should cruise here, buoyed by the full debut of Kylian Mbappé and the return to fitness of Edison Cavani; the teenager's introduction at the interval against Guingamp turned that match on his head.

Prediction

Paris Saint Germain 3-0 Angers