Brighton & Hove Albion
Amorim Shrugs Off Slot and Prepares United for Brighton Test
Amorim dismisses Arne Slot’s comments and focuses on improving United’s ball play for Brighton match.
Ruben Amorim gave a terse reply to Arne Slot’s recent comments, cutting through the noise ahead of Manchester United’s home match with Brighton & Hove Albion. When pressed on Slot’s remarks at Friday’s press conference, Amorim responded simply: “I don’t care.”
He elaborated on his view of external criticism in the same briefing. “I don’t care what Slot is saying, what people are saying about our team,” he huffed during Friday’s press conference. “I can watch the game and say we can do better and we need to do better in the future but sometimes you need to adapt to the game.”
United goalkeeper Senne Lammens had previously highlighted the team’s tactical adjustment against Liverpool, noting that the Red Devils played long to avoid being smothered by Liverpool’s high press, an approach that delivered the desired result after the famous Anfield victory.
Amorim left little room for outside analysis of his squad. “I don’t need anyone to evaluate my team,” Amorim added before turning his attention to the visit from Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday. “I can evaluate my team and I am really clear that we should play better with the ball and we are going to try to do that in this game.”
Brighton head coach Fabian Hürzeler has been studying United’s responses and is preparing his side for a similar long-ball strategy. “The main thing you need to understand is that it starts with the press, how you attack the goalkeeper, which centre back you want to attack,” Hürzeler explained to Sky Sports ahead of Saturday’s trip to Old Trafford. “And then make sure that you’re ready for the long ball.
“When the long ball is played, there are two things that are very important: that you try to win the second ball, and that, if you don’t win the second ball, you have good positioning for the third ball.
“Make sure that, with your last line, you always cover the inner line, so when they try to flick the ball, especially with [Benjamin] Šeško, you can defend against the deep runs from [Matheus] Cunha, from [Bryan] Mbeumo, from [Mason] Mount.
“They are very good at these things, so it’s a job for the whole team, not only of the defensive players. The main thing is to keep the compactness, make sure you have close distances, that you close the gaps, and that you’re really intense for the second ball.”
Meanwhile, Arne Slot’s public tone has come under scrutiny amid Liverpool’s poor run of form. Slot’s comment calling Newcastle United a “smaller club” while discussing Alexander Isak’s recovery was deflected by Newcastle manager Eddie Howe. “I don’t think that’s wise for me to get involved in those discussions,” Howe replied. “Alex is no longer at this football club, so I won’t comment on it.”
When reminded of Newcastle’s position in the Champions League phase and their ambitions, Howe added: “The set-up is here is very good. It is not perfect, we’ve got things to improve and to grow. But the owners here have developed the facilities since I’ve been here very, very well. ]
Aston Villa
Premier League Gameweek 4 predictions: derby day heads the weekend card
A full set of Gameweek 4 score predictions, including the Manchester derby and Arsenal’s trip.
The first midweek stretch of the season has already brought Champions League and Carabao Cup action, and the Premier League schedule now tightens again around Gameweek 4.
Sunday’s Manchester derby is the clear centrepiece, but there is plenty elsewhere to weigh up, from Chelsea and Liverpool enjoying home advantage to Arsenal facing a testing trip away from home.
Here is a revised look at how the weekend may unfold, based strictly on the evidence from recent form, results and context in the draft.
Aston Villa are tipped to edge Nottingham Forest 2-1, with both sides still searching for their first league win and Villa Park likely to favour the home team. Bournemouth and Brentford could cancel each other out in a 1-1 draw, while Chelsea are expected to make short work of Hull and win 3-0 as their attack meets a defence that has impressed but may not be able to sustain that level.
Crystal Palace are backed to beat Ipswich 2-1 after a timely lift in form, and Liverpool are forecast to defeat Fulham 3-1, with the hosts carrying momentum into the fixture. Tottenham and Everton look set for a 1-1 draw, a result that would fit the recent frustrations around Spurs and the unbeaten start made by the visitors.
Arsenal are predicted to keep their perfect start going with a narrow 1-0 win at Sunderland, while Brighton are expected to leave Coventry with a 3-1 victory. The weekend’s biggest game, Man Utd against Man City, is called as another 1-1 draw, reflecting uncertainty on both sides despite City’s winning run.
Monday closes with Leeds against Newcastle, a meeting that could finish 2-2 after both clubs have shown enough going forward to suggest another open contest.
Aston Villa
Premier League matchday three: a flawed, revealing set of performances across the board
Matchday three showed Premier League quality everywhere, but also familiar flaws, late swings and missed chances.
Martin Ødegaard’s claim that “all of the teams are good” has already been tested by three weeks of Premier League football, and matchday three offered more evidence that quality in this division is abundant, but perfection remains elusive.
Across the round, several teams produced encouraging spells without turning them into clean, controlled wins. Some were left to regret missed chances, others survived by narrower margins than expected, and a few drifted into the familiar territory of being competitive without quite being convincing.
At one end of the scale, Liverpool were pushed hard by Ipswich, with Gary O’Neil admitting: “I hate having to talk about good performances when you don’t get points because you need to maximize them,” while Ipswich could not consistently threaten a side that still looked vulnerable at times.
Aston Villa’s visit to the MKM Stadium was harder to explain. Unai Emery insisted the match had gone exactly as intended, although the performance raised obvious questions about how a game plan can survive without even a shot on target.
Chelsea began sharply, with Morgan Rogers’s second-minute volley setting the tone after a set-piece routine, but Arsenal gradually took control. Chelsea created almost nothing after the interval, while Martin Ødegaard’s winner underlined the difference between a bright start and a complete performance.
Elsewhere, Hull’s seven points from three games drew a playful Champions League reference from Sergej Jakirović, while Tottenham remained stubbornly in the middle ground. Roberto De Zerbi’s side were held to a goalless draw that suited neither heaven nor hell.
There were also reminders that strong starts can unravel quickly. Bournemouth led 2-0 at St. James’s Park before another late setback, while Everton earned a point thanks to Ainsley Maitland-Niles’s 96th-minute strike and Manchester United were undone by Everton’s set-piece threat after a flat first half.
Elsewhere, Brighton “woke up too late,” Nottingham Forest were left frustrated by a disallowed goal, Brentford needed a triple half-time change to find a response, and Leeds experienced a textbook game of two halves. Sunderland, meanwhile, secured a different outcome from the same spot and the same goalkeeper, when Enzo Le Fée produced a far better penalty than he had before.
For Manchester City, Erling Haaland again provided the decisive edge, as Coventry’s resistance made the result far less straightforward than expected.
Arsenal
Premier League clubs set a new transfer spending benchmark in 2026
Premier League clubs lifted transfer spending to $4.75 billion across the 2026 summer window.
Premier League spending climbed beyond the $4 billion mark for the second straight summer in 2026, with total outlay across the division reaching $4.75 billion (£3.5 billion). That figure tops the roughly $4.1 billion (£3.1 billion) spent on new signings in 2025 and confirms another aggressive market across the league.
The final day of the window supplied the biggest individual headline, as Manchester City completed a $168.8 million (£125 million) joint-British transfer record move for Enzo Fernández. Activity at Aston Villa and Newcastle United also contributed to the increase, taking the league to levels not seen before.
Manchester City finished as the biggest spenders on $609.1 million (£458m). Chelsea were second with $470.7 million (£349m), followed by Tottenham Hotspur on $423.9 million (£302m). Newcastle United spent $362.2 million (£268m), Aston Villa $347.4 million (£256m), Liverpool $306.2 million (£198m) and Arsenal $262.8 million (£194m). Ipswich Town’s total came to $255.3 million (£171m).
Further down the list, Brighton & Hove Albion recorded $208.4 million (£154.5m), Hull City $203.2 million (£150.5m), and Manchester United $200.4 million (£148m). Coventry City stood at $171.8 million (£126m), Nottingham Forest at $159.9 million (£117.5m), and Brentford at $143.8 million (£106m). Everton, Fulham and Leeds United all finished above $100 million, while Crystal Palace and Bournemouth were below that threshold.
Sunderland were the lowest spenders at $88.7 million (£65.7m). The totals were compiled by Transfermarkt.com and last updated on Sept. 2 at 6:00 a.m. ET, with fees converted at the prevailing rate.
Manchester City’s Enzo Maresca-led rebuild finished above $600 million overall, with Fernández and Ndiaye joined by Elliot Anderson, Ayyoub Bouaddi and Allan. Chelsea, after a miserable 2025-26 season, were the second biggest spenders and made Morgan Rogers their key addition, with the Aston Villa player arriving for a club record $159.6 million. Chelsea were one of 11 Premier League clubs to break their transfer record this summer.
Tottenham also broke their transfer record twice, signing Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali for a combined $252 million. Ipswich Town’s $255.3 million left them eighth, while Sunderland ended bottom despite signing Malick Fofana from Lyon on Deadline Day.
