See the key quotes from Friday's press conferences as managers preview Matchweek 4 of the Premier League.
Arne Slot (Liverpool)
On Harvey Elliott’s foot injury and Federico Chiesa's availability: "Harvey it’s a big disappointment for him but not only for him, also for us because availability is important in a phase of the season where we play seven games in 22 days. He didn’t play that much in the first three games, but he played a lot in pre-season and showed himself really well. If he stayed fit he would have had a lot of playing time in the upcoming fixtures, but now he isn’t that gives a chance to someone else. He will work as hard as always to come back in the best possible way. Federico has trained with the team now three or four times so let’s see how he does today and which decision I make because we have more than 20 players."
On Ryan Gravenberch’s form and new No 6 role: "He’s been a midfielder all his life, maybe he’s playing a bit deeper than he did before, but it's not that much of a difference. He, like the other ones who do really well, benefit from how the team is playing. Ryan came back strong like many others and [by] stronger I mean really fit. He played some good games and took his chance, but I think in general, like the others who score goals, we are talking about the benefits also from a team structure.”
On Liverpool maintaining momentum after the international break: "That’s always the question after two weeks, but if you saw them playing with the national teams, I think the momentum for the individual [is there]. Now let's see if they come back together if they can play in the same way as the last few games.”
On plans to rotate his squad during the next few weeks: "That is something I decide before every game. My former teams played almost every game with the same players, but this is a different league so I might have to adjust to that but it also depends what they show physically. In the first three games we were really strong physically but we only played one game in seven days. Now they have a point to prove and I assume they all want to play every game, so they have to show up every time, in quality but especially in work rate, but we have more than 11 very good players so I can use more but I cannot tell you now if I am going to do so or not."
Eddie Howe (Newcastle)
On team news: "We hope Bruno [Guimaraes] is OK. Joe [Willock] is improving - he has been training with the group this week, albeit not full training. Positive signs for him.
"Callum [Wilson] is a little bit behind where we want him to be. We envisaged he might be training for the games coming up, but he is not there yet.
"Emil [Krafth] has been nursing a problem, we have seen him in training, he's joined in the last couple of days so we are hoping he will be fine.”
On Newcastle's start to the season: "We've had some very good results. Really pleased with the start we have made in what is such a difficult league. Performance-wise, we know we still haven't hit top gear. Now we are going into a spell where we are playing away from home, some difficult games so we’re preparing for that test.”
On Sandro Tonali’s Italy return and viral assist v France: "I was pleased to see him play. He has performed well - those games would have done him the world of good. It's the first few steps for him, we are delighted he is available for us. Sandro has that flair and ability to make the difference. He is a player we absolutely love."
On club discussions about January transfer plans: “No, no discussions yet towards January. No further discussions on anything. It is about unity. And it is about coming together now and making sure we focus on this time at the moment. For me, it is all about the games and trying to get results.”
Pep Guardiola (Manchester City)
On fitness of Nathan Ake, Rodri and Phil Foden: “He [Ake] is injured. I think he will be [out] until the next international break. We are unlucky with Nathan and the national team. Every time he goes there he comes back injured. [Rodri and Foden] they’re good, they train. Really good.”
On Brentford, the last team to win at the Etihad two years ago: "I don’t remember against a team from Thomas Frank, a person who I admire unbelievably, an easy game. Never, ever. Since they were promoted to the Premier League, always it has been tough here and there. They have a really, really good process in the build up, the high-pressing is unbelievable, man-to-man, so aggressive and after they defend so tight, so compact, really well organised in transitions and set-pieces. It’s a complete, complete team. Always it has been so difficult [against Brentford]. I have a feeling tomorrow will not be an exception.”
On Man City’s unbeaten home record: "That means how well we have done it, if for more than two years we have not lost a game here. That’s good.”
On Haaland’s availability following the passing of a close friend: “It’s a tough moment for him and his family. It was sad, sad news. It’s a close person to him and his family, 39 years old. Our thoughts are with him and all his family. It’s sad and we will see tomorrow if he is able mentally and physically to play.”
Enzo Maresca (Chelsea)
On the potential involvement against Bournemouth of deadline day signing Jadon Sancho: "It depends on the training session. Jadon is one of our wingers. I'm seeing the exact way I expected of him. He is a very good player in the last third, one-v-one, quality in the last third, so he is exactly the player we were looking at. It's a matter of finding the right moment for him and to give him a chance."
On his squad following the transfer window: "I said after the Palace game that I feel very lucky that we have many players that can play in any position, they are versatile and that is something I like. All of the targets we were looking at, they are all here. Some players that we were looking at that didn't arrive is because we want players on our conditions, not on their conditions.”
On Ben Chilwell’s situation: "We are going to sit with him and find a solution because he is the only one [still here]. The reason why he is training apart is because the idea was for him to leave but because he didn't find a solution, he is probably going to start to train with us.”
On Nicolas Jackson’s new contract: "Very happy. First of all because he is doing very well. Since I joined the club, he is working hard off the ball and on the ball. He is the kind of player that will always score goals. With us, in the first three Premier League games, he already gave some assists, he has scored goals. Very happy for Nico and also for us."
Ange Postecoglou (Tottenham Hotspur)
On team news: “Our internationals all came back okay. Yves Bissouma is the only one that has got an issue. It's not serious but he is getting treatment today. We will see if he can train tomorrow and make a decision there. Micky Van de Ven is all good. He has trained pretty fully through the international break and Dom [Solanke] back half of this week joined with the first team and trained today. We have training tomorrow and if they get through alright I guess they will be available. Richy [Richarlison] and Will Lankshear are the only two that are in rehab now.”
On challenging Arsenal this season: “Not specifically Arsenal but we want to be a club that can challenge everyone. That’s what we’re trying to aim to become and to do that you’ve got to perform at a certain level on a consistent basis and have a squad strong enough to withstand the challenges that will invariably come during the course of a season. We’ve started the season fairly solidly from a performance perspective. The results haven’t reflected that but I think we’re in a good place to really push on from last year and improve in all areas of our game and if we do that and were close to challenging last year there’s no reason why we can’t this year.”
On the impact winning the north London derby could have: “Hard to say. I’ve never felt there is an easy way to success. I don’t think one thing determines or can change your trajectory to a great effect but it helps because it is not just the win in a big game, in a derby but a win against one of the top sides so that gives you more belief and confidence and potentially that can inject some real momentum into our season.”
On what makes Arsenal so hard to play against: “The consistency in approach, mentality. In the last two years in particular they’ve just had a real relentlessness about them. They haven’t had to change their team too much. There is a solid core that has carried them through and that gives you belief over time. They have this confidence in themselves that they can challenge over the course of a Premier League season. Their form over the last two years in totality has been outstanding. They’re going to be a tough nut to crack but it's a great opportunity for us to do that.”
Gary O’Neil (Wolves)
On new signing Carlos Forbs: “Seems a long time ago since he signed but he got to meet everyone today. He’s an exciting young player. Bundles and bundles of potential which is key for what we’re doing at this football club which you can see. Most of the signings have a lot of potential to grow and become real high level Premier League performers. Carlos adds to that group. He has good pedigree.
"He came through at Manchester City, played some games at Ajax, has real blistering pace, can go on the outside and come on the inside, play on both sides of the pitch. I'm really excited by him. He gives us something with that pace and that dynamic one-v-one ability on the outside that we have been short of. We had it last season with Pedro Neto but he missed a lot of the season. Carlos we hope can give us a bit more than that.”
See: Latest Premier League injuries
On Jose Sa’s future following Sam Johnstone’s arrival: “You don’t need me to sit here and tell you how many big saves he’s made for us over the last few years, what he is and what he is capable of. He has his opportunity to fight for his place, the same as any other position. I expect Jose to stay and fight Sam, Dan [Bentley] and Kingy [Tom King] for the goalkeeper’s shirt.”
On depth of his squad: “We have much more depth which is good. Even substitutions wise it has been much easier. If you look back to the end of last season and where we were subs wise it was tough. Every time you put somebody on you basically had to change the shape or ask someone to play out of position but this season most of the subs have been like for like. I’m excited now just to get to work. We’ve got an incredibly tough run of fixtures that I can’t wait to get stuck into with the players.”
Mikel Arteta (Arsenal)
On his new three-year contract: "I’m really happy and excited. It shows the alignment between the club and the coaching staff. We enjoy working together and we have higher ambitions that we want to fulfil. I couldn’t think of a better place to be to develop my career as a player, to experience an amazing football club with the people that I met and the experiences that I had. Now as a manager, it has been something far beyond and better than what I ever dreamed about probably.
On whether he can build a legacy like Arsene Wenger and other successful Arsenal managers: “Hopefully yes, but you’re talking about the best in the history of football, certainly in this country. My aim and motivation is to be the best version of myself, the best coach in the world ever for Arsenal. What the club needs, what those players need, what we need as a team to keep developing and achieve what we want - that’s the only objective.
On Martin Odegaard’s fitness: “We need some more tests so let’s see what happens in the next day or so, what the extent of the injury is and how quickly we can get him back. He’s super positive about everything. We know Martin - he wants to be there every single day but we have to wait and see. He's willing, there's no question about that. He wants to be present every game and obviously in a big game like this one, but we need to make sure that we know first of all how good he can be or not. Players with 48 hours to go are always available, but let's see what happens.”
On Raheem Sterling and his potential involvement against Spurs: He looks great! First of all, because he’s got a big smile on his face, a lot of energy. He’s at it and wants to prove a point. When someone has got that in their belly, you sense it straight away. I see his hunger - he’s a player who wants to play every minute of every game, and when that’s not the case, he’s not happy. He loves football, it’s what he likes doing every single day and I see that. His commitment, the level of energy that he’s bringing to the team, and the quality is a big boost. You can feel that in the players as well when he walked through the door, we are better with him. He’s going to make us better.”
Unai Emery (Aston Villa)
On the busy schedule ahead: “We have had one year of this experience, playing a similar amount of matches until January and then hopefully more depending on whether we are progressing in the Champions League, Carabao Cup and FA Cup. This year hopefully we can keep the same process we are doing and not having injuries for a long time. I will manage the matches, trying to focus on each match with the players we have available.”
On the fitness of Ezri Konsa and Ollie Watkins: “The players are coming back after they played with their national teams, they are in the squad. He [Watkins] is progressively getting better, feeling better, and he’s in the squad, thinking tomorrow he’ll be available to play.”
Emery: "This year hopefully we can keep the same process we are doing and not having injuries for a long time."
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) September 13, 2024
On Jhon Duran’s form and whether he can play with Watkins: “I think Jhon Duran is getting more mature and he’s getting confidence. Ollie Watkins after his small problems and trying to get fitness quickly, is progressively feeling better. “They can play individually or they can play together. I want the best from them from here until the end of the season. I am happy with those players in this form.”
Andoni Iraola (AFC Bournemouth)
On new injury concerns after the international break: “Dango [Outtara] has come back injured from the national team; unlucky for us, unlucky for him. Dango’s is the ankle, he’s had this injury before, he twisted the ankle. Let’s hope it’s not a lot of time but he is injured right now, yes.”
On an enforced change in goal against Chelsea: “We knew it before he [Kepa Arrizabalaga] came [on loan], the rules are that he cannot play. Mark [Travers] will start tomorrow and he has been very good the times he has had the chance; I am confident he will do well.”
Oliver Glasner (Crystal Palace)
On the size of Crystal Palace’s overhaul during the transfer window: “I told the players for us it is like a restart and when you have a Formula One car and you have to change one tyre, that is 25 percent, and it’s the same in our squad. It is 30 to 40 percent changes in our squad and that means we have to build the group new again and find the common sense of how we want to play, treat each other in the locker room. So this started today because the international players, the last ones were the Colombian players who arrived yesterday afternoon.”
On deadline day signing Trevoh Chalobah: “Unfortunately Trevoh Chalobah was injured in his first session with us in his abdominal muscles, so really a strange injury. He's also not available tomorrow, but I think it won't take very long, but also he's questionable for QPR and Manchester United [next week] as well.”
Marco Silva (Fulham)
On Fulham’s start and facing West Ham: “The [Manchester] United game was a good performance. It was clear we were the best team against Leicester and against Ipswich we weren’t at our best level but we got a point. West Ham have quality in all positions. You can see straight away that Julen [Lopetegui] is trying to get them to play a different way. It will be a tough game, the first London derby of the season.”
On Reiss Nelson: “We were looking for a wide player and we are really happy to have him with us. We can see straight away that he is a skilful player."
