Club football is finally back after just 2 months. Having lost the Community Shield on penalties last Sunday, Premier League reigning champions Manchester City will kick-start the new season as they head to Burnley to face their former captain, Vincent Kompany, and the Clarets. We'll look at this game, as well as Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea, Real Madrid, and PSG, and then offer a few betting tips for our online sports betting community. **Burnley vs. Manchester City** Manchester City are strongly favored to emerge victorious in this match, and the expectation is that they will do so by a significant margin. The team has maintained an impressive record against Burnley, securing 11 consecutive wins while also keeping 10 clean sheets during these encounters. Across these 11 games, they have netted 40 goals, while conceding only once. A striking example of their dominance occurred last season when Man City claimed a 6-0 win over Burnley in the FA Cup quarter-final, marked by Erling Haaland's impressive hat-trick and Julian Alvarez's brace. We expect this remarkable dominance to continue this weekend, as Man City aims to regain momentum following their loss to Arsenal in the Community Shield. The board has properly backed Burnley manager, Vincent Kompany during this transfer window, as evident by his €90 million spending spree. Notable additions include the dynamic forward Zeki Amdouni, who scored 22 goals for Basel last season and has already netted 5 goals in 5 matches for the Swiss national team. They have also signed promising goalkeeper James Trafford from Manchester City, a move that comes shortly after his instrumental role in leading the England U21 team to victory in the European Championship. Undoubtedly, Trafford will be eager to deliver an impressive performance against his former employers. Burnley should put up a fight, even though that might not be enough. The team has undergone significant improvement since clinching the Championship title last season with a comfortable 10-point lead, boasting the highest goal tally and the lowest goals conceded. We expect the game to be more competitive than many think but, ultimately, that gulf in quality should become apparent. **Bet Prediction**
**Arsenal vs. Nottingham Forest** Arsenal's unbeaten streak in home league games against Nottingham Forest extends back to 1989, when they suffered a 3-1 defeat. In the years that have since followed, The Gunners have secured 5 victories, and settled for draws in 4 out of 9 encounters. The expectations for the season are high, with a significant portion of their fan base believing that this could finally be the year they break their 18-year Premier League title drought. The summer transfer window has brought promising developments, as the club invested €240 million in acquiring talents like Declan Rice, Kai Havertz, Jurien Timber, and David Raya. Their recent victory over Manchester City provided a psychological boost for the team as they ended an eight-game losing streak against Pep Guardiola's side. This victory was significant not only because they defeated Manchester City, but also because of the impressive manner in which they achieved it. One of the new signings, Jurien Timber, stood out as arguably the best player for Mikel Arteta's team, demonstrating his adaptability by effectively defending from an unusual left-back position. Declan Rice contributed significantly in the midfield, while the wide players, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli, created challenges for the Manchester City fullbacks. Ahead of this game, a huge win is expected by the Gunners to kick-start their league campaign, and we’ll be surprised if they don’t deliver. Last season, Arsenal stood out by leading the league in matches featuring **over 2.5 goals**, accounting for 68% of their games. Particularly on their home turf, an impressive 89% of their matches reached that goal threshold. One of our betting tips today is for the Gunners to hit that mark. We also expect lots of corners given the expected pressure they’re going to heap on the visitors. **Bet Prediction**
**Chelsea vs. Liverpool** This meeting is gradually becoming England’s most mind-boggling fixture in recent years with each of the last 6 encounters between them ending in a draw, and the last 4 ending goalless. It’s even more perplexing when one factors in the offensive prowess of both squads, along with the additional absurdity stemming from the involvement of three different Chelsea managers (Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, and Frank Lampard) in those last 4 matches. Mauricio Pochettino, Chelsea's new manager, faces an arduous challenge, with the squad having undergone a historic overhaul. Chelsea looked good in pre-season, winning three and drawing two of their five games, however, this positivity has been dampened by an injury suffered by recent acquisition, Christopher Nkunku, which has sidelined him for about 4 months. The talented French forward showcased promise during pre-season, netting 3 goals, making his absence a significant setback for a Chelsea team determined to repair their reputation after a humbling 12th-place finish last season. To address the offensive void, **another** new signing Nicholas Jackson will bear the responsibility of scoring goals. The 22-year-old Senegalese international scored 13 goals across 2 seasons at Villarreal before securing a €37 million transfer to London. He’s also looked decent in pre-season, scoring twice and will be expected to contribute right away. Liverpool will have a new-look midfield on Sunday, with Fabinho and Henderson having left for the Saudi Pro League while Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister heading to Anfield. The Reds haven’t lost an opening day fixture in a decade, winning 8 and drawing 2 of their last 10. However, one of those draws came last season, and they never recovered from it, as they finished outside the Top 4 for the first time in 7 seasons. Something they’ll be looking to avoid. Despite recent matches ending in ties, expectations are high for **Mo Salah** to have an explosive performance. The Egyptian forward registered an impressive tally of 29 goals and 14 assists in all competitions last season, including **19 goals and 12 assists** in the league alone. We expect a significant impact from him on Sunday, and our bet of the day is for him to get a goal at anytime. **Bet Prediction**
**Manchester United vs. Wolves** There’s huge drama ahead of this Monday night fixture and for once, it isn’t at Old Trafford. This week, Wolves surprisingly announced that they've parted ways with Julen Lopetegui, after just 9 months with the club. Despite a challenging start, Lopetegui turned around Wolves' fortunes last year, leading them to a respectable 13th place finish. This achievement was notable considering they scored a league-low 31 goals in 38 games. Lopetegui complained about the lack of improvement in the squad, particularly since their only notable signings were Matheus Cunha and Boubacar Traoré, who were last season's loanees and have now been secured permanently. Clearly, this criticism didn’t go down well with the board. To fill Lopetegui's shoes, the club has brought in Gary O'Neil. The 40-year-old manager played a crucial role in helping Bournemouth avoid relegation last season when a drop seemed certain. Surprisingly - and some might say unfairly - O'Neil was let go at the end of the season. Under the leadership of Erik ten Hag, the Red Devils have been borderline flawless at Old Trafford. Last season’s opening day loss to Brighton was the only league loss suffered by the Dutch manager as he made their home a fortress again. Manchester United **won 27 games at Old Trafford in all competitions**, tying the record for the most home wins by the club in a single season set by the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson in 2002/03. We expect they carry this fine form into this season. One key stat to keep an eye out for is when Manchester United do their scoring. They’ve been an effective second half team, with **23 goals scored by substitutes**. Leading the way for scorers from the bench is **Marcus Rashford whose 7 of 30 goals** in all competitions came as a sub. With both Anthony Martial and new signing, Rasmus Højlund not expected to feature in this game, Marcus Rashford will be Erik ten Hag’s main man up top and, for the best odds available among all betting sites, we have Rashford getting on the scoresheet at anytime. **Bet Prediction**
**PSG vs. Lorient** Reigning champions, PSG, are entering this season with a level of turmoil that exceeded everyone's expectations. Star player, Kylian Mbappé, has experienced a [complete breakdown in his relationship with the club's top management](https://m.betking.com/blog/betting-tips/the-kylian-mbappe-and-psg-dilemma/). Not only has he been absent from any of the pre-season matches, but he has also been banished from the first-team training, instead practicing with a group of players deemed "unwanted"; a group that includes fellow World Cup victors Leandro Paredes and Julian Draxler. On Wednesday, the situation at the club took a turn for the worse, with reports emerging that Neymar, Marco Verratti, Hugo Ekitike, Juan Bernat, and Renato Sanches had been informed by Luis Enrique and Luis Campos that they were not part of the club's plans. Disturbingly, these players have allegedly been excluded from the team's official season photoshoot, while Kylian Mbappé's photo has been removed from display at Parc des Princes and the club's retail outlets, underscoring the depth of the club's internal discord. Obviously, we don’t expect any of these names to make the team sheet this weekend. The game itself is one that could not be as straightforward as fans expect. This will be the 4th time both sides are meeting on Match Day 1, with Lorient winning twice and drawing one of the previous three, despite each of them coming at Parc des Princes. In fact, Lorient have won **6 of their 16 Ligue 1 games in Paris** - including a 3-1 victory in April - making Parc des Princes their favorite away ground. Given the current off-field disruptions experienced by PSG, it is plausible to expect that Lorient might leave this match with a positive outcome. One statistic worth noting is that this fixture has seen **both sides score** in each of the last 5 meetings, with four producing **over 2.5 goals**. We strongly feel this might follow a similar pattern given the expected end-to-end game play. **Bet Prediction**
**Athletic Bilbao vs. Real Madrid** Real Madrid kick off their LaLiga season with a match that they've held firm control over for almost twenty years. Out of the previous 36 league encounters against Bilbao, they've suffered defeat only on two occasions, **securing victory 28 times and settling for a draw in 6**. Their last league loss to Bilbao dates back to 2015, instilling ample confidence in Carlo Ancelotti as he approaches this fixture. Los Blancos will face the absence of four players. Ferland Mendy, Dani Ceballos, and wonderkid, Arda Guler will be unavailable due to minor injuries. However, the most significant development is the unfortunate ACL tear Thibaut Courtois sustained during a training session on Thursday. They projected this injury to keep the Belgian goalkeeper sidelined until next year, potentially prompting Real Madrid to seek another goalkeeper, with early suggestions pointing to free agent, David de Gea. On a positive note, they will have the company of summer acquisitions Jude Bellingham and Joselu. Despite Courtois’ heartbreaking injury, we expect Los Blancos to rally around and push for a win given their superior talent. In contrast, Bilbao enters the match with a fully available squad, devoid of any injury concerns. Adhering to their Basque-only policy, we expect their lineup to look a lot like last season’s, featuring the Williams brothers, Nico and Inaki, who will play pivotal roles in their game plan. The sole change in their starting lineup would likely be the summer signing, Iñigo Ruiz de Galarreta, who recently joined from Mallorca. **Bet Prediction**