5 Must See Matches From The Early Stages Of The Premier League Season

It's almost here.

All those meaningless pre-season tournaments that absolutely insist on the least enthusiastic trophy presentations known to man, are over. There is real, meaningful, actual football for fans of the Premier League because it's time to raise the curtain the new Premier League season.

There's a cracking offer on at the moment that many people are jumping on which get's you a month of Setanta Sports to kick off the new season for just €1. This would expose you to a number of pretty tasty games right from the off, including Manchester United's clash with Tottenham Hotspur, the very first game of the season which we are seriously excited for, and with good reason.

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We've looked at the schedule, and we've identified five key matches that you are not going to want to miss. Remember the date, get your excuse in order, and make sure you catch these matches if you want to see how the biggest contenders for the league title begin their campaigns.

Newcastle United V Arsenal - Sat, August 29 @ 12:45 - BT Sport 1

These games always turn out to be mental, there's something about St.James Park (or Sports Direct arena or whatever he wants to call it) that makes Arsenal want to attack while completely forgetting about defending. Newcastle are an unknown quantity with a new manager and a few impressive new signings, and Arsenal look like serious title contenders for the first time in a long time, so this one will tell us a lot about how both teams will fare for the rest of the season.

Liverpool V West Ham United - Sat, August 29 @ 15:00 - Setanta Sports 1

Saturday the 29th of August is absolutely not a day you want to be working, or have prior engagements in the afternoon to early evening, so make sure you have that off. The second game of the day is the exact type of game that has caused Liverpool issues in the past, so this will be a real test to see if Brendan Rodgers' men have what it takes to break back into that coveted top 4. West Ham themselves have made some fantastic signings, and while their Europa League campaign was abysmal, it will be interesting to see what Slaven Bilic has his Hammers outfit looking like when these two sides meet.
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Everton V Chelsea - Sat, September 12 @ 12.45 - BT Sport 1

Jose Mourinho's men are once again the favourites for the Premier League crown. Having been by far and away the most consistent side last season, it looks set to be more of the same for the Blues this year, as there have not been too many changes to what looks like their favoured starting eleven. The last time these two met there were nine goals as Chelsea ran out 3-6 winners, we probably should have lead with that, but Roberto Martinez's Everton team will be well up to avenge that defeat so it makes for an unmissable tie.

Chelsea V Arsenal - Sat, September 19 @ 12.45 - BT Sport 1

It's back to back early Saturday morning kick-offs for Chelsea, so take it easy on those Friday nights if you're a blue. A repeat of the Community Shield is in order for mid-September, and while the recent encounter at Wembley was a forgettable 1-0 win for Arsenal, we expect both teams to be in full flight at this stage of the season, and this should be an absolute cracker. A big London derby at Stamford Bridge nice and early, and the winner could get a massive boost in the title race. A game between the two most fancied teams in the league this year, it's a must watch.

Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester City - Sat, September 26 @ 12.45 - BT Sport 1

This match-up always seems to bring goals, and we're expecting a lot from this tie to round off September. Tottenham have had an interesting pre-season with a number of promising performer such as Nacer Chadli, and Dele Alli in particular, but surely all focus will be on the form of Harry Kane going in to this one. If Kane starts well, you'd fancy him to test Joe Hart, and even if he struggles early on he could target this game as a chance to change his fortunes. On the City side, Raheem Sterling will definitely be one to watch, and hopefully the Citizens will have a fit Sergio Aguero ready to fire if they want to push for the title.

We basically could have said that your Saturday's now belong to the Premier League, but with so many exciting games coming up we just wanted to make sure that you don't get stuck on a weekend shift or on a trip to the Zoo while there's some cracking football on.

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