Arsenal face an immediate test of their title credentials against a revamped Manchester United, while a new-look Liverpool launch the new Premier League season at home to Bournemouth on Friday.
Benjamin Sesko and Viktor Gyokeres are set to make their Premier League debuts for United and Arsenal respectively at Old Trafford after a summer that could have seen them line up for their opposition on Sunday.
Arsenal were linked with a move to Sesko for over a year before deciding to bet on Gyokeres as the man to fire them to a first Premier League title since 2004 for a fee that could rise to £66 million ($89 million).
The Gunners have finished second for the past three seasons and were lacking a clinical finisher to take that final step towards being champions
Gyokeres netted a remarkable 97 times in 102 games during two years at Sporting Lisbon, much of which came under the orders of United boss Ruben Amorim.
Instead of being reunited with the Swede, Amorim has been given the resources to overhaul his attack with the signings of Sesko, Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha at a combined cost of over £200 million
United endured their worst season since being relegated in 1974 during Amorim’s first year in charge.
The Red Devils finished 15th in the Premier League and failed to qualify for Europe after losing the Europa League final.
Both clubs desperately need a fast start and the battle between the two new number nines will go a long way to deciding the outcome.
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Liverpool have bucked the trend by outspending their rivals with a squad overhaul fresh from winning the league.
Only once, Manchester City in 2019, have the Premier League champions been the biggest spending English club in the market since 2007.
A £260 million outlay on Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike, Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez is far from over with Isak and Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi linked with moves to Anfield.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez are among those to have been sold to raise funds, while the club are still reeling from the tragic death of Diogo Jota in a car accident last month.
The transition has exposed some teething problems in pre-season as a slick attacking force has been picked off on the counter-attack.
Arne Slot, though, is confident his side are ready as they look to defend the title for the first time since 1984.
“I think we’ve lost five to six players that played quite a lot of minutes for us last season and we brought in four new ones, so then it’s normal that there’s a little bit of adaptation,” said Slot.
“But we are definitely ready for the league to start.”
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