Who: Liverpool vs Arsenal
What: English Premier League
Where: Anfield in Liverpool, United Kingdom
When: Sunday, August 31, at 4: 30pm (15: 30 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 1: 30pm (12: 30 GMT) in advance of our live text commentary stream.
Liverpool and Arsenal will both try to remain perfect in the Premier League on Sunday when they meet in Merseyside, England.
Champions Liverpool finished 10 points clear of Arsenal last season, with the Gunners claiming second spot for a third consecutive season.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a look a titanic early season title clash.
What have Liverpool’s Premier League results been so far?
Liverpool have had the far more adventurous route to their flawless record, twice giving back late leads only to score match-winning goals even later.
Last Monday, it was Mohamed Salah setting up 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha deep in second-half stoppage time to seal a 3-2 victory at Newcastle United.
Their opening game resulted in a 4-2 home win against Bournemouth, but the Reds had to overcome a late fightback by the visitors.
Who have Arsenal beaten in the Premier League so far this season?
Arsenal have yet to concede in the new campaign and last Saturday romped to a 5-0 home victory over Leeds United that was realistically decided when Bukayo Saka scored the Gunners’ second goal in first-half stoppage time.
The north Londoners opened the new season with a 1-0 win at Manchester United, although the goal came after a mistake by the home keeper in an underwhelming performance by the Gunners.
Do Liverpool still need Alexander Isak?
The Reds have had one bid for Newcastle striker Alexander Isak turned down, and manager Arne Slot has hinted a second offer could be on the cards.
The meeting between the two clubs at St James’ Park was a contentious environment fuelled by the transfer saga surrounding Liverpool’s pursuit of Isak.
But the good news for Slot is that so far, his side appears less reliant on the veteran Salah for their attacking production, thanks in no small part to their summer transfer business.
In particular, former Eintracht Frankfurt attacker Hugo Ekitike is off to a quick start at Anfield with two goals and an assist, including Liverpool’s second tally at Newcastle.
“I think he has already made a big impact in the attacking part of our game,” Slot said Friday. “Not only scoring goals but also being part of build-up situations where he was someone that started the attack or was part of us starting an attack. I’m talking about a difference a bit more than last season, although when [Luis Diaz] played there he was also a lot of times part of our build-up.”
How are Arsenal shaping up for another Premier League title bid?
Saka, Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard are already dealing with injuries, with the former two expected to miss at least several weeks.
That will put the focus on recent signings like Noni Madueke, Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze, who were acquired in part to help Arsenal combat exactly these kinds of situations.
Gyokeres scored his first two Premier League goals – including one from the penalty spot – against Leeds. Eze has yet to debut for the Gunners after completing his transfer from Crystal Palace for a reported fee just north of $80m this week.
“It’s the start of the season and we lost three of our main players, but that’s the reality,” Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said. “A very unfortunate situation, three very different situations. But that’s why we keep insisting, like everybody else, you need a big squad to be able to cope and sustain the level.”
What happened last season between Liverpool and Arsenal at Anfield?
The Gunners have drawn their last three trips to Anfield, but lost the last six prior to that.
It will certainly be all hands to the pump once again for Arsenal,