Every season, the English Premier League throws up a plethora of interesting matches. The clashes between the traditional big clubs are always ones to look forward to, while the local derbies have the extra spice and bragging rights associated with them.
This season promises to provide much more entertaining matches due to the array of top managers in the league, with Arsenal’s manager Arsène Wenger labelling the season as the “world championship of managers”.
There are a number of interesting matches and rivalries to look for including long-standing rivalries between some of the managers. However, there are a special few matchups that have more at stake than being a derby, a traditional big match or a title decider.
These are the Box-Office matchups and here we take a look at those five matchups to look out for this season.
#5 Liverpool vs Manchester United
The signature matchup in English football and one of the biggest footballing rivalries in the world, Liverpool facing off against Manchester United is a fixture every United, Liverpool or neutral fan would never miss. These two clubs are the most successful ones in English football and share a whopping 38 league titles and 8 European Cups between them.
Liverpool were utterly dominant in the 1970s and 1980s before the arrival of Sir Alex Ferguson at United, who turned them into serial winners in the 1990s and 2000s. This meant every season’s matchup had high stakes with at least one of the team in a title fight and highly aggressive contests with drama and quality.
However, the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United in 2013, the fall of the two from being title contenders and the reduced number of local players in both teams has led to these high-octane matches into regular big matches instead of the hotly contested affairs of the past.
Now, with José Mourinho replacing Louis van Gaal at United and the huge spending spree that followed, United are very well back in the big time. The Klopp revolution is underway at Liverpool and this season could be the trigger that catapults this Box-Office matchup back to prominence, thanks to the big characters of the two managers.
Provisional EPL Fixture Dates
Liverpool vs Manchester United – 17th October 2016
Manchester United vs Liverpool – 14th January 2017
#4 Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur
One of the fiercest rivalries in English football, the battle of North London between Arsenal and Tottenham has been a staple of the English top flight and a constant in the English Premier League. In the Premier League era, Arsenal dominated the rivalry until 2010 when Spurs finally won at Arsenal for the first time in 17 years.
Further, Arsenal fans celebrate St.Totteringham’s Day every year on the day when Spurs cannot mathematically finish above Arsenal in the league table adding to the agony of the Spurs fanbase. In fact, the last time Tottenham finished above Arsenal in the league was the 1994-1995 EPL season.
However, the rise of Gareth Bale and his subsequent mega-sale to Real Madrid, followed by shrewd acquisitions over subsequent years under Spurs chairman Daniel Levy and the mild stagnation of Arsenal in recent years have nearly levelled the playing field between the sides.
The appointment of Mauricio Pochettino as manager turned out to be a masterstroke as he led Spurs to a title fight with Leicester last season. However, a dramatic late season collapse meant Arsenal finished above Tottenham on the final day of the season yet again.
This season promises to be an exciting one in North London as Arsenal and Spurs start a season, evenly matched, and both gunning for glory and bragging rights.
Provisional EPL Fixture Dates
Arsenal vs Tottenham – 6th November 2016
Tottenham vs Arsenal – 29th April 2017
#3 Liverpool vs Chelsea
A rivalry that has sparked into a heated one in the last decade since Roman Abramovich’s takeover of Chelsea and José Mourinho’s appointment as manager.
Intense Champions League games including Luis García’s ‘ghost goal’, domestic cups and league matches, have added a lot of spice to this fixture over the years, and the transfer of fan favourite Liverpool striker Fernando Torres to Chelsea on the deadline day in January 2011 was a huge moment in the heated rivalry.
However, with relatively new managers at the helm, this season’s matchup promises to provide a different kind of display on the touchline irrespective of the actual football on the pitch.
Chelsea’s new manager Antonio Conte and his Liverpool counterpart Jürgen Klopp are well-known for their passion on the touchline and this will lead to high-octane reactions and celebrations on the touchline. Emotional celebrations, fist pumps, referee warnings and massive hugs are going to be a regular fixture in this fixture.
With both teams out of Europe this season, they have an excellent chance to finish in the top 4 making this matchup much more significant and a definite Box-Office attraction.
Provisional EPL Fixture Dates
Chelsea vs Liverpool – 17th September 2016
Liverpool vs Chelsea – 2nd February 2017
#2 Manchester United vs Arsenal
This was a matchup that sparked an intense rivalry when Arsène Wenger became the manager of Arsenal in 1996 as both the teams went head-to-head in the league.
Although Wenger is still Arsenal’s manager, Sir Alex Ferguson has retired and after failed tenures of David Moyes and Louis van Gaal to succeed him, José Mourinho is currently in the United hot-seat.
This draws immediate attention to this fixture due to the immense war of words, shoves and skipped handshakes between Wenger and Mourinho in the past decade during Mourinho’s days at Chelsea.
Now, both the managers will be renewing the bitter rivalry once again, which Mourinho has always prevailed over his counterpart. Barring the Community Shield win in 2015, Mourinho has never lost a competitive fixture against Arsène Wenger’s side, winning 7 and drawing 6 over the past decade.
If the recent altercation at Stamford Bridge in October 2014 is any indication, where both managers came very close to landing blows, the famous rivalry between Patrick Vieira and Roy Keane of early 2000s could be rekindled on the touchline this season, which makes this matchup a mouth-watering one.
Provisional EPL Fixture Dates
Manchester United vs Arsenal – 19th November 2016
Arsenal vs Manchester United – 6th May 2017
#1 Manchester United vs Manchester City
This is without a doubt the biggest Box-Office matchup this season. A rivalry that rose to prominence following the takeover of Manchester City by Sheikh Mansour in 2008, the Manchester derby has provided a number of sporting moments since then.
Out of all those, the last gasp winner scored by Sergio Agüero against QPR to win the first EPL title for City by beating United on goal difference remains the greatest one by far.
The arrival of Pep Guardiola and José Mourinho to the blue and red half of Manchester, respectively, has taken the level of this clash higher by several notches, as the two elite managers share a mutual dislike for each other since their days in Spain when managing Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Apart from Mourinho, Zlatan Ibrahimovic has a beef against Pep from his days at Barcelona, and the Swedish superstar will be determined to prove a point. Further, the EPL title is tipped to end up in Manchester, by pundits and neutrals alike, which increases the stakes even more.
This makes the Manchester derby the most exciting one in recent history and the fixtures are a must-watch this season.
Provisional EPL Fixture Dates
Manchester United vs Manchester City – 10th September 2016
Manchester City vs Manchester United – 25th February 2017
