A full preview of all four Matchweek 5 fixtures, from Craven Cottage to the Etihad Stadium

Matchweek 5, 2026/27 season | Sunday 20 September 2026

By The Matchday Pundit

The Final Sunday Before the International Break
Four fixtures round out Matchweek 5 of the Premier League season today, offering the final taste of
domestic football before the September international break takes hold. AFC Bournemouth host
Liverpool at the Vitality Stadium, Leeds United welcome Crystal Palace to Elland Road, Manchester
City entertain Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium, and Fulham face a struggling Manchester United at
Craven Cottage. Between them, the four matches offer genuinely contrasting storylines, from a
manager’s emotional return to his former club, to a title favourite’s pursuit of a perfect record, to a
crisis riven Manchester United side desperate to arrest a worrying slide. Here is our full breakdown of
all four games, along with a prediction for each.

Bournemouth versus Liverpool: Iraola’s Emotional Homecoming
Kick off at the Vitality Stadium is set for 14:00 BST, with the headline story surrounding Andoni
Iraola’s return to the club where he spent three successful years before joining Liverpool.
Bournemouth sit fifteenth in the table with three points from four matches, yet to record a win
domestically despite leading in every single one of those league fixtures so far, a pattern of
squandered advantages that has repeatedly cost Marco Rose’s side. The Cherries did taste victory in
their maiden European fixture on Thursday, however, beating Real Sociedad 2:1 away in the Europa
League courtesy of first half goals from Justin Kluivert and Rayan, offering a timely confidence boost
heading into this reunion fixture.

Liverpool arrive eighth in the table with six points from four matches, having drawn three of those
fixtures, a stuttering record for a club with genuine title ambitions this season. Iraola’s side did enjoy a
confidence boosting midweek win, beating Tottenham Hotspur 3:1 in the Carabao Cup, though the
manager rotated heavily and is expected to recall his strongest available options for this trip to the
south coast. Alisson returns in goal behind Virgil van Dijk and Jeremy Jacquet, with Alexander Isak
and Florian Wirtz spearheading an attack that also features Cody Gakpo, while Conor Bradley,
Giovanni Leoni, Federico Chiesa and Hugo Ekitike all remain unavailable through injury. Given both
sides have drawn three of their opening four league matches this season, and Bournemouth’s habit of
surrendering leads shows no sign of abating, a high scoring, unpredictable contest looks likely. Our
prediction is a draw, with goals at both ends making a 2:2 scoreline the most probable outcome of an
emotionally charged afternoon for Iraola.

Leeds United versus Crystal Palace: The League’s Surprise Package Continues
Kick off at Elland Road is also scheduled for 14:00 BST, with Daniel Farke’s Leeds United sitting third
in the table with only champions Arsenal and Manchester City above them after four matches. Leeds
have been one of the standout stories of the opening month, unbeaten in the league so far and
having thrashed Newcastle United 4:1 last time out, a result in which Dominic Calvert Lewin found the
net for a fifth consecutive home league match. Elland Road has become a genuine fortress under
Farke, with five wins and two draws from the club’s last seven home matches across all competitions,
and Leeds are increasingly being tipped to finish the season in a European qualification position.

Crystal Palace, by contrast, head to Yorkshire having collected just three points from their opening
four league matches under new head coach Pierre Sage, including a gut wrenching 3:2 defeat to
Ipswich Town last weekend. The Eagles did respond with a comfortable 4:0 win over Lech Poznan in
their opening Europa League fixture in midweek, and have shown they can score goals, netting
twelve times across their last four matches in all competitions, even if their defence has looked
alarmingly open, having already conceded eleven goals in the league alone. Leeds won this exact
fixture 4:1 last season, and with Harry Wilson, Joe Rodon and Mateo Joseph all unavailable for the
visitors through injury, the hosts head into this contest as clear favourites. Given Palace’s tendency to
concede freely and Leeds’s rediscovered attacking rhythm, our prediction is a home win with goals at
both ends, Leeds United winning 3:2 to extend their excellent recent home record.

Manchester City versus Sunderland: Pursuing a Perfect Record Amid Controversy
Kick off at the Etihad Stadium is set for 14:00 BST, with Enzo Maresca’s Manchester City looking to
make it five wins from five Premier League matches to open the season, a feat the club has now
achieved on four previous occasions in its history. City arrive on the back of a controversial 1:0 derby
win over Manchester United, played for over an hour with ten men following Phil Foden’s red card, a
result compounded by a VAR review into Erling Haaland’s winning goal that later drew a formal
apology from English football’s refereeing body. Maresca has been quick to defend his side’s
performance in that game regardless of the surrounding controversy, and City followed it up with a
comfortable 5:0 win over Norwich City in the Carabao Cup during midweek.

Sunderland arrive at the Etihad full of their own confidence, having beaten AZ Alkmaar 1:0 in the
Europa League on Wednesday following a narrow 2:0 defeat to champions Arsenal the previous
weekend, a result that offered genuine encouragement given the calibre of opposition. Regis Le Bris’s
side have shown they can compete with elite opposition, and Sunderland remain the only club among
the twenty five Erling Haaland has faced in the Premier League to have kept him off the scoresheet
entirely, a curious quirk that will offer Black Cats supporters a sliver of hope. That said, City have won
twenty of their last thirty league matches and Haaland has scored six goals in his last four
appearances alone, form that makes a repeat of that particular quirk look unlikely. Phil Foden begins
a three match suspension following his red card and will miss out, while Habib Diarra and Romaine
Mundle remain unavailable for the visitors through injury. Given the gulf in attacking quality and City’s
overwhelming recent home record, our prediction is a comfortable home win, Manchester City
winning 3:0 to preserve their perfect start to the season.

Fulham versus Manchester United: Carrick’s Pressure Reaches Boiling Point
The day’s most dramatic storyline arrives at Craven Cottage, where kick off is set for 16:30 BST.
Manchester United travel to west London having lost their last two matches in alarming fashion, first
the controversial derby defeat to ten man City, and then a historic 3:2 Carabao Cup collapse against
Brighton and Hove Albion in which United threw away a two goal advantage at Old Trafford. That
sequence of results has left Michael Carrick under considerable pressure, with United having won just
twice in seven matches across all competitions this season and remaining without an away win in the
league entirely.

Fulham, meanwhile, sit eighteenth in the table with a single point from four matches, though they
arrive with genuine momentum having beaten West Ham United 3:2 in the Carabao Cup during
midweek and held Liverpool to a battling goalless draw at Anfield the weekend before that. Alvaro
Arbeloa’s side have not lost to Manchester United at Craven Cottage since 2009, a record that will
give home supporters real belief. Bruno Fernandes remains United’s most productive outlet with three
goals and nine created chances this season, while Joshua King has emerged as Fulham’s chief
attacking threat. Given the defensive frailties both sides have shown this season, and United’s
alarming recent pattern of throwing away advantages, this looks a fixture where goals are likely at
both ends. Our prediction is a narrow away win for Manchester United by three goals to two, though a
home win or draw would come as little surprise given the current turmoil surrounding Carrick’s
position.

Five Talking Points Across Today’s Card
The first talking point centres on Andoni Iraola’s emotional return to Bournemouth. Managers rarely
admit to split loyalties, but Iraola has been open about his affection for the club and its staff, and how
that emotion translates into his approach from the touchline, whether he holds back or presses just as
intensely as usual, could shape the tone of the entire contest at the Vitality Stadium.

Second, Leeds United’s remarkable start under Daniel Farke deserves recognition regardless of
today’s outcome. Sitting third in the table after four matches, with Elland Road becoming an
increasingly difficult venue for visiting sides, Leeds are quietly building a case as one of the most
impressive stories of the opening month of the season, and a positive result against Palace would
only strengthen that narrative.

Third, the ongoing fallout from Erling Haaland’s controversial derby winner continues to shadow
Manchester City even as they chase a perfect start. Maresca has been vocal in defending his players’
response to going down to ten men, and how City perform today, with that controversy still fresh in
the conversation, will offer a clear signal of whether the episode has affected the squad’s focus in any
meaningful way.

Fourth, Sunderland’s curious historical record against Erling Haaland adds a fascinating subplot to
proceedings at the Etihad. Being the only side among twenty five opponents to have kept the
Norwegian off the scoresheet is a quirk Black Cats supporters will hope holds for at least one more
afternoon, even against a player currently averaging a goal and a half per match across his recent
scoring streak.

Fifth, and perhaps most significant for the wider Premier League conversation, is simply how
Manchester United respond to mounting scrutiny at Craven Cottage. Successive capitulations against
City and Brighton have placed Michael Carrick under real pressure, and today’s result, whatever it is,
will dominate discussion around Old Trafford throughout the entire international break.

What Today’s Results Could Mean Going Forward
Taken together, today’s four fixtures carry significant weight for how the table shapes up heading into
the international break. A win for Manchester City would keep Maresca’s side level with Arsenal at the
summit with a perfect record intact, while a positive result for Leeds would further cement Farke’s side
as a genuine surprise package worthy of European qualification talk. For Liverpool, avoiding a third
draw in five matches would ease growing questions about Iraola’s start to the season, while for
Manchester United, the outcome at Craven Cottage could prove decisive in determining whether
Carrick’s position stabilises or the current crisis at Old Trafford deepens further heading into the
coming weeks.

Whatever unfolds across all four matches, today’s Super Sunday promises to offer a fascinating
snapshot of where several Premier League clubs truly stand before the season pauses for
international duty. From title contenders defending perfect records to a crisis club fighting to stop the
rot, the afternoon’s results will shape the narrative around English football for the entirety of the
coming break, leaving supporters plenty to debate before domestic action resumes next month.

Matchday Pundit