This weekend sees the return of the Premier League after the International break with three 3pm kick-offs. Burnley host Hull in the battle of the newly promoted sides, another promoted side in Middlesbrough play Crystal Palace and struggling Stoke host Tottenham at the Bet365 Stadium.
Burnley vs Hull – Saturday 10th September 2016 – 15:00
Burnley welcome Hull to Turf Moor this Saturday, with Burnley looking to bounce back from their disappointing result against Chelsea.
Burnley have enjoyed a mixed start to life back in the Premier League, with two defeats and a win from their opening three games.
They began the season with a 1-0 defeat at home to Swansea, with a goal from Leroy Fer in the 82nd minute settling the tie.
Sean Dyche's side followed that up with an excellent 2-0 win at home against Liverpool, with goals from Sam Vokes and Andre Gray completing a miserable afternoon for Jurgen Klopp and his men.
Prior to the international fixtures, Burnley traveled to Stamford Bridge to face Antonio Conte's Chelsea, but it was an afternoon to forget for Burnley.
Goals from Eden Hazard, Willian and Victor Moses completed a 3-0 win, bringing Burnley back to down to Earth with a bang.
Much More To Come
The club completed the key signing of Belgium International Steven Deffour a fortnight ago, this was a serious statement of intent from the club.
He is a high quality international and exactly the type of player Burnley will need to attract if they are to remain in the Premier League.
Along with the potential signing of Hendricks, Dyche is looking to get a mix of quality internationals and young hungry players looking to prove themselves in the Premier League.
Big Season For Dyche
Burnley will have a very difficult season ahead, but the Championship season has given them the perfect audition for life in the Premier League.
Dyche has worked miracles with Burnley, he has instilled an incredible work ethic into his players and they have overperformed over the years for their manager.
They won an incredible 26 matches out of a possible 46, losing just five matches through the course of a highly competitive Championship.
The highly successful Championship campaign will have given the squad the belief and the skill to compete in the Premier League.
Hull City represent a huge challenge for Burnley, they have started the season in excellent fashion.
They have already won two of their opening three games, Sean Dyche's men will need to play exceptionally well to win this game.
Burnley will be looking to continue their excellent recent record against Hull City. In 22 matches, they have won 15, drawn 1 and lost 6.
Burnley are 13/10 with Andre Gray at 4/1 to open the scoring.
Despite all of the chaos surrounding the club they have made an excellent start, with wins against champions Leicester and Swansea away.
Their opening day 2-1 win against Leicester shocked the football world, with the Premier League champions undone by excellent goals from Adama Diomande and Robert Snodgrass.
Hull followed that up with an excellent 2-0 win away at Swansea, with goals from Shaun Maloney and Abel Hernandez late in the game enough to take all three points.
They produced a spirited performance against Manchester United in their third game, remaining resolute in defence until the 92nd minute, when Marcus Rashford slotted home to resign Hull to a 1-0 loss.
Takeover Imminent?
The takeover is a shadow that is looming large over the club, with a Chinese consortium linked with a move but the nature of performances have been absolutely incredible.
They currently sit 5th in the Premier League table, with only Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea with more wins than them.
The main aim of the season will be to remain in the top flight, if they can maintain their early form though, they can enjoy a highly successful season.
Burnley Represent Great Opportunity
Hull face another challenge in the form of Burnley this weekend, these are the types of games that the Tigers will be targeting for maximum points.
Their form in the last four meetings against Burnley hasn't been great, with three defeats and one win in those matches.
Both sides will be targeting goals and a clean sheet, more important will be the win as they both look to climb up the table.
Hull are 23/10 with Abel Hernandez at 6/1 to score first.
Middlesbrough vs Crystal Palace – Saturday 10th September 2016 – 15:00
Middlesbrough welcome Crystal Palace to the Riverside this Saturday, with Middlesbrough looking to capitalise on Palace's mixed start to the season.
Middlesbrough kicked off the new season with a good performance in the 1-1 draw against Stoke, with the point at home one that Aitor Karanka will have been delighted with.
To follow that up with a 2-1 win away against rivals Sunderland was an excellent achievement, with Middlesbrough capitalizing on their solid start.
They followed that up with a 0-0 draw at West Brom, a result that maintains their unbeaten start to the season.
Middlesbrough In Great Shape
It was a match that saw both sides evenly matched, with Boro enjoying the majority of possession, with 59%.
They struggled to convert this into opportunities on goal though, with seven shots overall and only two of them on target.
Karanka will be looking to register his first win as a Premier League manager at home at the second attempt.
Palace Ideal Opposition
Middlesbrough face another challenge in the form of Palace this weekend, these are the types of games that Boro will be targeting for maximum points.
Home games will be crucial to their hopes of maintaining their top-flight status, with an out of form Palace an ideal opponent for Middlesbrough.
Their recent record against Palace is mixed, with a win, a loss and a draw from their previous three encounters.
Middlesbrough are 13/10 with Alvaro Negredo at 5/1 to open the scoring.
Crystal Palace travel to Middlesbrough, on the back of a 1-1 draw against fellow strugglers Bournemouth.
Alan Pardew's side have continued their poor form from last season, they are now on a streak of five defeats from seven matches, sooner or later things have to change.
Only a late Scott Dann goal in the 93rd minute saved a point for Palace, who have struggled in front of goal for the whole of this new season.
Palace will count themselves unlucky, they were dominant in every statistic, with higher possession, more shots and crucially more shots on targets.
Time Running Out For Pardew?
The signing of Christian Benteke for a club record fee of £32 million is a huge show of faith, but time is running out for Pardew, even at this early stage of the season.
Loic Remy has also joined from Chelsea, with a formidable strike force in the offing if both players can find form.
Along with the delivery from Andros Townsend they have plenty of quality in the final third.
Palace Look To Banish Last Seasons Memories
Crystal Palace enjoyed an excellent first part of the season last year, as soon as 2016 came they found themselves in serious trouble.
In 2016, Palace have lost an incredible 16 games out of 21 played and although Pardew is an Eagle through and through, this dismal run cannot continue.
Their opening day defeat at the hands of West Brom was a wake-up call, a loss against Bournemouth could have had severe implications.
They face a Middlesbrough side who have adapted well to life back in the Premier League, they have remained unbeaten in their opening three matches.
Palace find themselves hovering above the relegation zone in 17th, with just one point from a possible 9.
Crystal Palace will be looking to improve their record against Middlesbrough, in 20 matches they have won 8, lost 9 and drawn 3.
Crystal Palace are 23/10 with Christian Benteke at 13/2 to score first.
Stoke vs Tottenham – Saturday 10th September 2016 – 15:00
Stoke welcome Tottenham to the Bet 365 Stadium this Saturday, with Stoke looking to register their first win of the season.
Stoke have yet to win a game, with an opening day draw against Middlesbrough and a 4-1 drubbing at home, with Pep Guardiola's Manchester City dispatching them with ease.
Rock Bottom After Everton
Their last match saw them lose 1-0 away against Everton, with an unfortunate own goal from Shay Given enough for the Toffee's.
A foul from Phil Bardsley on Ashley Williams was enough for referee Michael Oliver to point to the spot.
Leighton Baines stepped up and missed but the ball ricocheted off the goalkeeper's head into his own net.
In truth Everton were dominant in every aspect, with 54% possession, 21 shots and 9 of them on target.
Compared with Stokes 45% possession, 8 shots overall and just one on target Everton were the worthy winners.
They find themselves bottom of the Premier League, with just one point, no wins and a -4 goal difference.
Tottenham A Huge Threat
Tottenham travel to the Bet365 stadium with an unbeaten record this season, they have drawn two and won one of their three games.
Stoke will need to be far more clinical in front of goal, the signing of Wilfried Bony will go a long way to solving that problem.
Marko Arnautovic, Jonathan Walters, Bojan and Xheridan Shaquiri have yet to fire this season and there is plenty of scope for them to improve, starting with this game.
The signing of Bruno Martins Indi will provide Stoke with solidity at the back, with the Dutch international an excellent signing.
Stoke will be looking to banish last seasons result, where they lost by 4-0 at home to the visitors.
Stoke are 16/5 with Wilfried Bony at 7/1 to open the scoring.
Tottenham travel to Stoke, on the back of a 1-1 draw against Liverpool at White Hart Lane.
It was a hard fought fixture that saw Spurs fall behind to a James Milner penalty in the 43rd minute.
Erik Lamela clipped Roberto Firmino's heels in the box, and after a period of dominance Liverpool took a deserved lead.
Spurs showed excellent resilience to come back into the match, they equalized in the 72nd minute after Danny Rose thumped in a thunderous effort past Simon Mignolet.
Excellent Start For Spurs
Spurs have enjoyed an excellent unbeaten start to the season with an opening day draw against Everton, followed up with a late 1-0 win against Crystal Palace.
Mauricio Pochettino and his side find themselves in 7th place in the Premier League, with 5 points from their opening three games.
They have a goal difference of +1 and will be desperate to see Harry Kane firing on all cylinders soon.
Much More To Come
Spurs will know that there is plenty more to come, with Harry Kane and Dele Alli yet to announce themselves this season.
With the excellent signings of Wanyama, Vincent Janssen and the deadline day arrival of Moussa Sissoko their attack options are enviable.
They have been goal shy this season, with only three goals scored in their opening three games.
Having already played Liverpool, Everton and Palace they will be delighted to still remain unbeaten.
In Stoke they face a side who they have an excellent recent record against, with a 4-0 win at the Britannia last season a highlight for Pochettino and his side.
Tottenham will be looking to maintain their excellent record against Stoke, in 69 matches they have won 35, lost 18 and drawn 16.
Tottenham are 4/5 with Harry Kane at 4/1 to score first.
Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Gray to score first @ 4/1 and Hull to win 2-1 @ 11/1
Tip 2 - Negredo to score first @ 5/1 and Middlesbrough to win 2-1 @ 17/2
Tip 3 - Bony to score first @ 7/1 and a 2-2 draw @ 16/1