Premier Table: Match Week 8 Preview

Aston Villa is next up to try to derail the Manchester City express which seems unbothered by 114 counts of cheating. The Citizens have roared out of the break to add two more victories to their perfect record which now stands at seven wins in seven league outings. City holds a three-point lead over defending champion Arsenal at the top of the table as the defiant Citizens head to Villa Park. The Villans have been better in recent weeks since a deplorable start to the season. Plaudits need to be tempered, however, as the Villans’ two wins in their current three match unbeaten run came against struggling Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle. Manchester City will present a better barometer as to whether Aston Villa Manager Unai Emery has truly turned his club around.

This is Unai Emery's Aston Villa 😤 https://t.co/X5DpozYaTa

— Aston Villa (@AstonVilla) October 21, 2026

Arsenal, meanwhile, will host Everton in a match of two of the league’s stingiest defenses. The Gunners, however, can also find their opponent’s net, a skill often lacking for the Toffees.

A London derby at Stamford Bridge between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur is just a bit more interesting after Spurs showed they can actually win a game, although last week’s groundbreaking win did come against a newly promoted side in Coventry City. Chelsea posted its first clean sheet last week and has looked impressive in two wins out of the international break.

The jury, meanwhile, remains out on Manager Andoni Iraola’s Liverpool team which hosts Brighton on Sunday. The Reds were steamrolled by Manchester City and then were able to edge by a 10-man Brentford side in their two outings since the international break. Brighton, meanwhile, has sailed into third place in the table, leading the Premier League with 23 goals scored. Both Brighton and their hosts will be managing personnel absences at Anfield. Among the missing Seagulls, Kaoru Mitoma and Yankuba Minteh are part of a lengthy injury list. Liverpool will be without a suspended Ryan Gravenberch and injured Dominik Szoboszlai.

While undefeated until last week’s shorthanded loss to Liverpool, where the Bees played more than a half down a man, Brentford has dropped multiple points this season in drawing four of their matches. The Bees are just a point above their Sunday opponent, newly promoted Hull City. The Tigers, after roaring to two consecutive victories to start the season, have struggled in losing two of their last three matches. Hull’s attack, which has found the net five fewer times than the visiting Bees, is heavily dependent on midfielder Mohamed Belloumi.

Ipswich Town is level on points with Hull as the league has two newly promoted sides in the top half of the table. The Tractor Boys have been on a rollercoaster of late, alternating wins and losses in successive weeks. Friday, they host a Nottingham Forest side which has dropped three consecutive matches and is sitting in the relegation zone where many thought Ipswich might be residing. Tricky Trees’ ownership expected more from new Manager Oliver Glasner and, as the former Crystal Palace manager’s seat grows warmer, he may soon rue his jilting the Eagles for the presumed greener pastures of Forest.

Glasner’s successor at Crystal Palace, Pierre Sage, might well beat him to the sack. A loss last week to archival Brighton was not unexpected but a 5-0 humiliation was unacceptable. Sage badly needs a win at Selhurst versus struggling Newcastle on Sunday to keep Palace supporters and ownership on side.

Manchester United Manager Michael Carrick suffered a humiliation mid-week when the Red Devils were embarrassed 4-1 at Como in Champions League action. Carrick also has just one Premier League win this season. Eddie Howe, Antonio Conte and Julian Naglesmann are among the interesting names reported to be on the radar as Carrick’s replacement though Carrick will reportedly hold onto the reins for this week’s match at Old Trafford versus Bournemouth. Bournemouth ironically damaged the job security of a former Manchester United manager on Thursday. The Cherries defeated Ruben Amorim, now managing AC Milan, in Europa League action. Amorim also failed to beat Bournemouth in two tries as Manchester United manager.

A key relegation battle shapes up at Coventry City on Saturday when the Sky Blues play host to Fulham. Coventry is just above the relegation line with one further point accumulated than currently relegation bound Fulham. The “six pointer” is a rare topflight meeting between two clubs who have not face each other in a top division clash since the 1967/68 season. Despite his club tripping up at Tottenham Hotspur, Coventry Manager Frank Lampard must feel good about the potential for a decent run of fixtures, having won the two matches before the Spurs loss and now facing two relegation stragglers, Fulham and Sunderland, in consecutive weeks.

The Black Cats have stumbled out of the gate after their impressive return to the Premier League last season. Almost unthinkably after leading Sunderland back to the Premier League and a European berth, Manager Regis Le Bris is under pressure with his Black Cats sitting at the bottom of the table after four consecutive losses. Leeds will visit the Stadium of Light on Saturday.

NOTE: Premier Table Now Takes Its Own International Break And Will Return On Tuesday, November 10.