Chris Sutton and Paul Merson predict Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham clashes as 'must-win' claim made

Another thrilling Premier League weekend lies in wait, and we will be treated to an early title indicator this season with Arsenal taking on Manchester City away from home on Sunday. That clash will not have any real bearing on who comes out on top come May, given how early it is in the campaign, but we will get an early look at which of the two teams look stronger.

Elsewhere, Chelsea are in action against London rivals West Ham at the London Stadium, while we have another all-London clash between Tottenham and Brentford in North London. Ahead of those clashes, we have rounded up the predictions of Chris Sutton on BBC Sport and Paul Merson on SportsKeeda.

West Ham vs Chelsea

Chris Sutton

“West Ham supposedly replaced David Moyes because they wanted to play 'the West Ham way', and the Hammers' technical director Tim Steidten was reportedly flying managers in for talks when Moyes was still in charge. In his wisdom, Steidten decided to go for Julen Lopetegui, a manager with similar traits to Moyes in terms of how he is a pragmatist.

“They spent a lot of money in the summer, about £130m on new players, but are they going to do better than last season under Moyes, when they finished ninth? I am not sure they will. This is a very difficult game to call because West Ham have not been playing particularly well and I am not convinced by Chelsea either. They were very fortunate to beat Bournemouth last time out. I really do not have a clue how this one will go, so I suppose the sensible thing for me to go for is a draw.” Sutton's prediction: 1-1

Paul Merson

“I have the same thing to say about Chelsea every week, we just don't know what we're going to get with them. They beat Bournemouth 1-0 in the last game, but goalkeeper Robert Sanchez was the man of the match in my opinion. And if you're Chelsea, that's actually worrying.

“This is an important derby for Chelsea, West Ham away is a big game for their supporters. I have a strong feeling this could become a tough game for them. As the season progresses, I fully expect Chelsea to be above West Ham in the Premier League table. But at the moment, there's not much difference between the two sides. Barring the big win over Wolves, Chelsea have been quite poor for their standards. The problem with West Ham is that they're still figuring out their best XI after making some important signings this summer. Funnily enough, it's a bit similar to Chelsea. I still don't know what Chelsea's best front three would look like because there's just too many players who blow hot and cold.

“I won't be surprised if Jadon Sancho starts against West Ham though. He played very well against Bournemouth and made the right decisions with the ball at the right times, assisting the winning goal in his very first game. It's definitely a good start to life at Chelsea for him, but coming off the bench and making an impact is completely different to doing the same from the beginning of a game. I think this game will end in a draw.” Prediction: West Ham 1-1 Chelsea

Tottenham vs Brentford

Chris Sutton

“Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou made changes for their Carabao Cup game against Coventry and, while they won and the end justified the means, you have got to say it looked pretty dicey for them when they trailed 1-0 after 88 minutes. A lot has been made about Postecoglou talking about always winning a trophy in his second season, but I have heard what he said and it has been taken out of context. Now, no matter what he says about it, people are going to use it as a stick to beat him with.

“This is a tricky game for Spurs and no-one is surprised anymore by the organisation we saw from Brentford against Manchester City last week, or how devastating they were when they got a chance early on. But the Bees are without Yoane Wissa after his injury at Etihad Stadium, and he is a big miss for them.

“My worry for Spurs at the moment is that, this season, they have not been as clinical or creative with the final pass when they get in the final third of the pitch as they have been previously under Ange. They will have to be better at that here, but they are at home and I am backing them to get over the line.” Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Paul Merson

“I was very disappointed with Tottenham last week. They were also fortunate to go through to the next round of the Carabao Cup. I'd have really fancied Brentford to get the win here, but Yoane Wissa will be a massive miss for them. That injury to him is a huge loss for Brentford. They troubled Manchester City early on in the last game, but ultimately they didn't do justice to the chances they created. Without Wissa in that team, I'd back Tottenham to beat Brentford. Bryan Mbeumo on his own won't be enough to beat Spurs.

“Ange Postecoglou has to win this match to take some pressure off him. Spurs are in a little league of their own and how they perform against the teams in that group will define their season. This little league includes teams like Newcastle, Manchester United, Chelsea and Aston Villa. Of course, the defeat to Arsenal would have hurt them bad considering the magnitude of the fixture. But they have to put that behind them and get the win against Brentford.” Prediction: Tottenham 2-1 Brentford

Man City vs Arsenal

Chris Sutton’s prediction

“Arsenal got a lot of praise for the way they shut out City here for a draw last season, but they then lost the title race by two points. Of course that left them open to anyone who wanted to be 'Captain Hindsight' - like I did when I turned the result around and used it to question the Gunners. Yes, that criticism was harsh but we are talking about the fine margins between finishing first and second.

“Inter Milan showed on Wednesday that you can hurt City at the same time as keeping them quiet, and they were very brave with the way they were playing out. They surprised me actually, because they beat City's press very easily. I don't like to back against Arsenal because, defensively, they are so strong. They have also won all but one of their 11 away Premier League games in 2024 - the exception being that draw at the Etihad in March - and have kept nine clean sheets.

“That is incredible and, if they wanted to, they could cause City problems on the counter-attack too, the same way Inter did. I was at that game and thought City were well below their best. Erling Haaland was quiet and Kevin de Bruyne might not be fit to face the Gunners after getting injured before half-time.

“Still, it is almost two years since City failed to score in two successive games - October 2022, when they drew 0-0 in Copenhagen in the Champions League and then lost at Anfield in the Premier League. I am expecting a reaction, and I don't think they will be as flat as they were on Wednesday.” Sutton's prediction: 2-1.

Paul Merson

“If Arsenal had lost or dropped points against Tottenham last week, this could've been a must-win game for them. But now this is just a game they must not lose and there's a difference in that. Arsenal defended well in the derby win over Spurs and it was similar to Inter in their draw in the Champions League opener against Manchester City. But even when Inter were so brilliant at the back, City still carved out chances throughout the game.

“No matter how suffocated they get, City always end up creating chances. Tottenham don't have this quality and hence, Arsenal have a bigger challenge this weekend. They have to be switched on for more than 90 minutes to get a result. It's also important for Arsenal to try and trouble City on the counter. They just can't let their opponents come at them again and again, if that happens they'll get found out.

“It won't be as comfortable as the game against Tottenham. I have a strong feeling Jorginho will play this game despite Declan Rice returning from his suspension. With Kai Havertz in midfield the other day, it really helped both Thomas Partey and Jorginho. One thing Jorginho does really well is, he keeps the ball. During the 1-0 win at Emirates last season, City could not touch him, he was just too good.

“It's a real headache for Arteta now. He must decide whether he should play Jorginho or not. A quick word on William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes as well, they are the best centre-back pair in the league. But I feel sometimes the work that happens in front of them goes unnoticed. Partey and Rice are both very disciplined and provide a lot of cover to the centre-backs. I like John Stones and Ruben Dias together, but they don't play with each other consistently enough like the Arsenal duo.

“Kevin De Bruyne is likely to miss this game, but City have incredible depth. Their squad is unreal. However, I feel that the Julian Alvarez transfer could be the one that hurts them in the end, even though they got a lot of money out of it. My head is saying Manchester City win, but my heart says 'don't get beat Arsenal.' But if I had to pick one team to win, that would be City. I'm still going for a draw here.” Prediction: Manchester City 1-1 Arsenal.