The 2026/27 Premier League season kicked off last weekend with huge fanfare and excitement. Some of the results were expected, while there were a few upsets as well. All-in-all, we were treated to some really entertaining affairs.
We hope the same continues in Gameweek 2, which has in store some mouth-watering clashes. The Eagles will open Gameweek 2 against the Cityzens, Liverpool will welcome Nottingham Forest to Anfield, Chelsea will host the high-flying Seagulls, while the Villans will close out proceedings on Monday against the Gunners.
Here, we present our previews and predictions for all matches of Gameweek 2 of the 2026/27 Premier League season.
Crystal Palace began their Premier League campaign with a defeat against Everton, while Manchester City escaped at home with a late win against Bournemouth.
Both teams have new managers at the helm, and it will definitely take some time for the players to understand their respective styles of play and tactics in order to implement them to get positive results. The Eagles have lost a few key players in the summer transfer window, while City have been on a selling spree, trying to recoup transfer fees for unwanted players, which has enabled them to make key signings to replace key outgoing players.
From an injury perspective, Palace could miss Chadi Riad for this game, who is out with a knee injury, while City have most of their first-choice players available barring Jérémy Doku, who is doubtful.
Coming to the two teams, City have the edge in this fixture, as Palace haven’t been able to beat them in the league for a few seasons now. Man City also have a far superior squad on paper compared to Palace, and even though they struggled against a wily Bournemouth side last week, the Cityzens also showed that they can find a way to grind out results. This could be another tight encounter, but City should have all three points in the bag come the full-time whistle.
Score Prediction: Crystal Palace 1–3 Man City
Late drama ensued at St James’ Park last weekend as Liverpool grabbed a late draw courtesy of a Dominic Szoboszlai penalty. Their opponents for this weekend, Nottingham Forest, suffered a late defeat against Leeds United at home last week courtesy of a sensational Anton Stach free kick. The Tricky Trees also suffered defeat to Leeds in their EFL Cup second-round tie in midweek.
Both teams have new head coaches at the helm, and although Liverpool attacked well against the Magpies, their defensive issues were quite clear in the two goals they conceded. Their midfield was too easy to bypass on the counter as well. The only good thing was the fight they showed until the end, coming back twice to snatch a point. As for Forest, they were undone by a great free kick in the end after having the better chances in the first half.
Liverpool still have key players missing through injuries: Conor Bradley, Giovanni Leoni, and Hugo Ekitiké remain out alongside Joe Gomez, Stefan Bajcetic, and Vitezslav Jaros. Forest, meanwhile, are only going to miss Ryan Yates and Nicolò Savona for this game.
Liverpool still have issues that Andoni Iraola needs to address, especially in midfield. That said, although they drew against Newcastle, at home they are a different side altogether. However, Forest have secured top results against the Reds in recent years and will be hoping to get their first win of the season at Anfield. Difficult one to call this one, but we feel Liverpool will edge Forest in a tight, cagey encounter.
Score Prediction: Liverpool 2–1 Nottingham Forest
If not for a late moment of lapse in concentration, the Cherries would have come away with a famous win from the Etihad, but they lost 2–1 to start their campaign with a defeat. As for their opponents, the Toffees made a fabulous start with an emphatic 2–0 win against Crystal Palace at home. Everton also won their midweek game against Preston North End in the second round of the EFL Cup.
Bournemouth are an attacking unit, and their style of play hasn’t changed under new head coach Marco Rose. They started with an early goal against City and still created chances while defending solidly. However, they succumbed under late pressure. As for Everton, they looked comfortable against a tricky Palace side, with Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Thierno Barry scoring the goals. Although Palace had a couple of chances, Everton defended well to keep a clean sheet and bag three massive points.
From an injury perspective, Bournemouth are still missing a few players in Eli Junior Kroupi, Amine Adli, Julián Araujo, and Veljko Milosavljevic. Everton, meanwhile, could be without Christian Nørgaard and Tim Iroegbunam for this fixture.
Since the 2024/25 season, Everton have only beaten Bournemouth once while losing the remaining six fixtures, including a loss in the FA Cup. Bournemouth have been decent at home in the last few seasons, so this could be a tough encounter between these two. We believe this one could end in an entertaining draw.
Score Prediction: Bournemouth 2–2 Everton
After suffering a huge defeat against the defending champions, Coventry City will face a highly confident Hull City side, who come into this game having upset Manchester United at home in the opener.
Coventry went to the Emirates with some hope of finding a positive result, but Arsenal were simply too strong for them. New signing Christos Tzolis was impactful for the hosts, causing Coventry all kinds of problems. Arsenal ended up winning 3–0 to begin their title defence in style. As for Hull, they produced an all-round top-class performance to beat Man United. In midweek, Coventry returned to form with a 4–2 win over Plymouth Argyle in the EFL second round, while Hull drew away to Stoke City before prevailing on penalties.
Injury-wise, Coventry could be without Haji Wright and Ephron Mason-Clark, both of whom are doubtful. On the other hand, Hull City have a slew of players sidelined due to long- and short-term issues: Eliot Matazo, Óscar Zambrano, Charlie Hughes, Darko Gyabi, Jack Butland, Hidemasa Morita, Matty Jacob, Joe Gelhardt, and Lewis Coyle are all out.
The Tigers slightly edge the Sky Blues as far as the head-to-head record between the two is concerned, although last season they played out goalless draws on both occasions. Since this is a game between two newly promoted sides who have faced each other several times, this could be a tight affair, though we believe Hull could come away with a narrow win.
Score Prediction: Coventry City 0–1 Hull City
The Lilywhites started their Premier League campaign with a humiliating defeat away to Brentford, while the Magpies played out an entertaining draw against Liverpool.
Even after making a host of signings in the summer, Spurs looked like a disjointed unit against the Bees, who completely dominated proceedings at home to inflict a damaging opening-day defeat on the visitors. Spurs did have an improved performance in midweek as they beat Charlton Athletic 5–1 in the EFL Cup second round.
As for Newcastle, they went ahead twice against Liverpool but conceded a late penalty to end up with a draw. Forwards Yoane Wissa and Anthony Elanga looked particularly dangerous in attack and caused Liverpool a lot of issues on the counter. Newcastle too progressed through to the EFL Cup third round after a close victory over West Bromwich Albion.
Spurs still have a long list of injuries, with Micky van de Ven, Pedro Porro, Dejan Kulusevski, Pape Matar Sarr, Xavi Simons, Mohammed Kudus, and Wilson Odobert currently on the sidelines. New signing Sávio may also miss out due to illness. As for Newcastle, they could miss Dan Burn, Tino Livramento, and Joelinton for this tough away fixture.
Coming to the prediction for this game, Spurs don’t look like a settled team and have virtually a new midfield and defence, while Newcastle looked a more assured side in attack, especially with the threat of Wissa and Elanga. Although they could concede goals, we feel Newcastle could leave Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with their first win of the new season.
Score Prediction: Spurs 1–2 Newcastle United
Leeds United came away with three important points from the City Ground last weekend, while Brentford battered Spurs at home in their opening fixture.
Leeds also won their EFL Cup second round fixture this midweek, in which they again beat Nottingham Forest. Brentford too qualified for the third round of the League Cup with a 6–1 thrashing of Birmingham City and are looking dangerous in attack.
From an injury perspective, Leeds will be without Wilfried Gnonto, Mateo Joseph, Gabriel Gudmundsson, and Ilia Gruev, while Brentford could miss Sepp van den Berg and Antoni Milambo.
Both Leeds and Brentford are evenly matched on paper, both boasting great balance in attack and defence. That said, while Brentford were great at home last season, their away record left a lot to be desired. Scoring nine goals in two games will give them a lot of confidence, however, and we believe Keith Andrews’ men could improve their away record with a win at Elland Road in this game.
Score Prediction: Leeds United 1–2 Brentford
Manchester United started their Premier League campaign with an unexpected loss against newly promoted Hull City. In contrast, Ipswich began their campaign with a win over Sunderland.
The Red Devils ended the previous league season with a third-place finish and a berth in this season’s Champions League. Now-permanent head coach Michael Carrick has helped them improve on the form and find some much-needed consistency. However, United did not carry the same form into their season-opener and slumped to a 2–0 defeat. The Tractor Boys, on the other hand, are back in the Premier League after a season’s gap and have started their campaign well. In midweek, they also beat third-tier side Leicester City in the second round of the EFL Cup.
From an injury viewpoint, Man United could miss new signing Carlos Baleba, with Mason Mount, Tom Heaton, Matthijs de Ligt, and Manuel Ugarte also unavailable. Ipswich, meanwhile, could be without Florentino Luís and Azor Matusiwa.
Looking at their current form, Ipswich are the team in form, but playing away at Old Trafford is no mean feat, especially with a squad that is considerably weaker on paper. Also, Man United will be even more keen to get their first win of the season at home. We believe they should win this one comfortably.
Score Prediction: Man United 2–0 Ipswich Town
This is a mouth-watering clash. Last season, Aston Villa beat Arsenal at home, but this season both teams have started proceedings in vastly different fashion: while the Gunners began their title defence with a comfortable win over Coventry City, Villa had a nightmare start and were thrashed by Brighton.
Villa ended last season superbly, winning the Europa League and qualifying for the Champions League with a fourth-place finish in the league. This season, though, they are yet to get going. In contrast, Arsenal have started from where they left off last season and are already looking likely to go back-to-back in the league.
Injury-wise, the Villans have a few issues, with Tammy Abraham, Leon Bailey, Amadou Onana, Johan Manzambi, and Brian Madjo out injured. Arsenal, meanwhile, may miss Jurriën Timber, William Saliba, and Bruno Guimarães.
Looking at the two teams, Arsenal are the overwhelming favourites for this game, as they are solid in defence and are looking great going forward as well. Villa have lost many key players this summer, and their defence looked suspect against the Seagulls; Arsenal should win this comfortably.
Score Prediction: Aston Villa 0–3 Arsenal
Chelsea opened their Premier League campaign with a win, although it didn’t come easy. Brighton too began the new season with an emphatic victory over a ten-man Aston Villa.
The Blues have a new manager at the helm in the shape of former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso. Although their attack, comprising Morgan Rogers, João Pedro, and Cole Palmer, looked lethal in the opener, their defence left much to be desired, as they won a close game after conceding two goals. As for Brighton, they had a terrific game both in attack and defence, humiliating Villa 4–0 and keeping a clean sheet as well. Chelsea also progressed to the next round of the EFL Cup with a 2–0 win over Luton Town in midweek.
From an injury perspective, Chelsea have a fair few players out: Cole Palmer (doubtful), Jordan Henderson, Mamadou Sarr, Caleb Wiley, Aarón Anselmino, and Emanuel Emegha are out injured, with Wesley Fofana suspended. Brighton, meanwhile, will be without Evan Ferguson, Kaoru Mitoma, Stefanos Tzimas, and Yankuba Minteh.
Looking at both sides, Chelsea have the home advantage, but Brighton cannot be taken for granted. They beat Chelsea at the Bridge last season and have some really good attacking players. This could be another close game, but, when all’s said and done, we feel Chelsea retain a slight edge in attack and should end the game with all three points in the bag.
Score Prediction: Chelsea 3–1 Brighton
Sunderland suffered an away defeat to newly promoted Ipswich in their season-opener, while Fulham suffered a close away defeat to Chelsea in their opening game.
Although their pre-season went well, the Black Cats kicked off the league campaign on a downer note by conceding a late goal to give all three points away. As for the Cottagers, they showed a lot of fight against Chelsea to come back after going behind twice to make it 3–2, but couldn’t find one more leveller. That said, they did well in their EFL Cup second-round tie, beating Wimbledon 3–0 to progress to the next round.
Injury-wise, both teams don’t have many issues, with Sunderland only missing Simon Adingra, who is out with a foot injury, and Fulham missing Tom Cairney due to a knee injury.
Sunderland had a decent record at home last season and didn’t lose many at the Stadium of Light. Fulham, meanwhile, have won four of their last eight visits to the ground at Wearside, winning four and only losing one. This could be another tight affair, one that we believe may end in a draw.
Score Prediction: Sunderland 1–1 Fulham
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