Pep Guardiola with Arne Slot
Pep Guardiola with Arne Slot
Manchester City have been handed a tough start to the Premier League season as they will face three of the traditional 'Big Six' clubs in their opening six fixtures.
After an away trip to Wolves to kick off their season, City welcome Tottenham Hotspur to the Etihad Stadium for the first home game of their campaign.
They then make the difficult trip to Brighton before taking on Manchester United at home in the first Manchester derby of the season.
Pep Guardiola's side will then travel to Arsenal before returning home against newly promoted Burnley.
As such, we should be able to get a decent gauge of where City's title credentials are at after the opening six games of the season but how does their start to the season compare to their title rivals?
Liverpool and Arsenal have also been handed bruising starts to the season. Arne Slot's side face a trip to Newcastle and a home game with the Gunners inside their opening three fixtures, while Mikel Arteta's men start the season with a trip to Manchester United before taking on four of last season's top seven in their next five matches.
Newcastle also have a brutal start to the season as they face a trip to Aston Villa and a home game with Liverpool in their opening two matches and a home clash against Arsenal within their opening six matches, too.
Villa will not face a team who finished in the top eight last season after their opening day clash against Newcastle, while Chelsea also have a favourable start to the season with a trip to Manchester United arguably their toughest fixture.
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United face Arsenal, City and Chelsea in their opening six games while new Tottenham boss Thomas Frank will be confident of making a strong start to the season with their visit to City looking like their only gruelling prospect in the opening stages of the season.
Here's a full look at how City's opening six fixtures compare with their title rivals.
Man City
16/08/2025 17:30 Wolverhampton Manchester City
23/08/2025 15:00 Manchester City Tottenham Hotspur
30/08/2025 15:00 Brighton Manchester City
13/09/2025 15:00 Manchester City Manchester United
20/09/2025 15:00 Arsenal Manchester City
27/09/2025 15:00 Manchester City Burnley
Liverpool
15/08/2025 20:00 Liverpool A.F.C. Bournemouth
23/08/2025 15:00 Newcastle United Liverpool
30/08/2025 15:00 Liverpool Arsenal
13/09/2025 15:00 Burnley Liverpool
20/09/2025 15:00 Liverpool Everton
27/09/2025 15:00 Crystal Palace Liverpool
Arsenal
17/08/2025 16:30 Manchester United Arsenal
23/08/2025 15:00 Arsenal Leeds United
30/08/2025 15:00 Liverpool Arsenal
13/09/2025 15:00 Arsenal Nottingham Forest
20/09/2025 15:00 Arsenal Manchester City
27/09/2025 15:00 Newcastle United Arsenal
Chelsea
17/08/2025 14:00 Chelsea Crystal Palace
23/08/2025 15:00 West Ham United Chelsea
30/08/2025 15:00 Chelsea Fulham
13/09/2025 15:00 Brentford Chelsea
20/09/2025 15:00 Manchester United Chelsea
27/09/2025 15:00 Chelsea Brighton
Newcastle
16/08/2025 12:30 Aston Villa Newcastle United
23/08/2025 15:00 Newcastle United Liverpool
30/08/2025 15:00 Leeds United Newcastle United
13/09/2025 15:00 Newcastle United Wolverhampton
20/09/2025 15:00 A.F.C. Bournemouth Newcastle United
27/09/2025 15:00 Newcastle United Arsenal
Aston Villa
16/08/2025 12:30 Aston Villa Newcastle United
23/08/2025 15:00 Brentford Aston Villa
30/08/2025 15:00 Aston Villa Crystal Palace
13/09/2025 15:00 Everton Aston Villa
20/09/2025 15:00 Sunderland Aston Villa
27/09/2025 15:00 Aston Villa Fulham
Manchester United
17/08/2025 16:30 Manchester United Arsenal
23/08/2025 15:00 Fulham Manchester United
30/08/2025 15:00 Manchester United Burnley
13/09/2025 15:00 Manchester City Manchester United
20/09/2025 15:00 Manchester United Chelsea
27/09/2025 15:00 Brentford Manchester United
Tottenham
16/08/2025 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur Burnley
23/08/2025 15:00 Manchester City Tottenham Hotspur
30/08/2025 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur A.F.C. Bournemouth
13/09/2025 15:00 West Ham United Tottenham Hotspur
20/09/2025 15:00 Brighton Tottenham Hotspur
27/09/2025 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur Wolverhampton
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