Ruben Amorim's moment of truth vs. Chelsea, Arsenal vs. Manchester City highlight tough Premier League weekend

After a 3-0 loss to Manchester City in the derby last weekend, Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United welcomes Chelsea at Old Trafford on Saturday. We all know the main talking point here, as Amorim himself said in his pre-match conference. This is a game of huge importance and the pressure to deliver is massive.

“This is football and this is the club with more pressure maybe than any in the world,” said the Portuguese manager. “But we need to win. We lost against Arsenal and City. Here, losing, especially in the beginning after last season, is a problem.”

Amorim is right, at least from a Premier League perspective. The focus on United to win and succeed is huge. In fact, this has been the case since Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure as manager in 2013. The historical importance of this club and what they represent — not just in Manchester but around the world — places a massive spotlight on them. But now? Even more so, simply because they are not a good football team. Period.

After last weekend’s loss, United has its worst start to a Premier League campaign since the 1992-93 season, which was the debut of the league and consequently, ended up as the club’s first title in 26 years and the first of 13 Premier League trophies under the guidance of Ferguson. But this is different. This isn’t a team that’s going to catapult itself to winning the league — that’s a preposterous sentiment. But what gives this particular United team even more pressure to deliver is the fact that this summer, the club spent £239.2 million (around $324.2 million) on transfers, and part of the expenditure was from the club’s borrowed credit facilities, which totaled to more than £100 million.

So now you have a club that is spending in the same manner of a club that has European football but whose current objective is to just survive.

So that’s why the pressure on Amorim and his squad rises to extreme heights. The problem is the football on the pitch is not good and Amorim’s stubborn philosophy (his refusal to change tactics) is exposing major vulnerabilities.

Chelsea, on the other hand — the Club World Cup winner — enters Saturday's game (12:30 p.m. ET, Peacock) feeling relatively confident, despite relinquishing three points to Brentford last weekend after a last-second equalizer from the home side. But the Blues remain undefeated in this young season, alongside Liverpool and Crystal Palace. In addition, Enzo Maresca’s side looks good offensively, having scored nine league goals so far, the same as Arsenal and the aforementioned Liverpool. It did just lose to Bayern Munich in the Champions League, but there is no shame in that. The question will be more if Chelsea learned anything from losing to the German champions and therefore take it into practice against United. Its recent record against United is also a positive, as Chelsea has collected seven points from a possible nine in its last three encounters with the Red Devils, with the latest one being a 1-0 win in May.

The good news for United is Matheus Cunha and Mason Mount are available for selection after recuperating from injuries, but Diogo Dalot remains unavailable after picking up an injury during the international break.

For Chelsea, Joāo Pedro remains the most important factor here as he leads the Premier League with more goal involvements than anyone else this season. The Brazilian attacker has two goals and three assists, making him extremely dangerous. Oh, and he loves to play against United as he has three goals in the last five matches against the Red Devils, which is his best record against any other club in the league.

This could also be an interesting afternoon for Alejandro Garnacho, who signed for Chelsea just before the deadline for a reported £40 million. This is a very big season for Garnacho, who is also hoping to make the World Cup squad for Argentina. According to reports, the 21-year-old winger called Argentina national team head coach Lionel Scaloni asking if there was a place for him in the team, whilst the manager said it all pretty much depends on him. This move, therefore, is his best bet to prove his worth.

After seeing what Marcus Rashford did for Barcelona against Newcastle United on Thursday, United fans are beginning to sense that perhaps the issues are not so much about the players, but rather the system that fails to help them be successful.

But Amorim remains stoic about his philosophy and has refused to change. We’ll see on Saturday if this continues to be a hindrance, or will United will finally uncrack the beliefs of his strategy? So far, it’s the former. But here’s the thing, if Man United loses — and does it in embarrassing fashion — the stability of Amorim’s job would now be standing on very thin, cracking ice.

Against Man City, Arsenal needs to be the protagonist

On Tuesday, as Arsenal came out victorious in a 2-0 win over Athletic Club in the first matchday of the Champions League, club legend Thierry Henry said, “right now, I will say that nobody has a team as deep as Arsenal. Some teams can match the starting XI, but Arsenal almost have two teams … this year, you cannot hide … you have to bring something.” He continued as part of CBS Sports’ coverage. “Finishing second doesn’t give you a trophy. At some point you’ve got to validate what you’re doing … if you want to beat Liverpool or City, you cannot just play not to lose. You need to go and get it.”

Henry — Arsenal’s and the Premier League’s greatest player — is correct. This, right now, is the time for Arsenal to take charge and with Manchester City visiting Emirates Stadium on Sunday (11:30 a.m. ET, Peacock). The Gunners have an opportunity to make an early statement, affirming Henry’s points. Andrea Berta, who arrived last March as sporting director from his 12-year tenure at Atlético de Madrid, did a tremendous job in assembling a roster worthy of silverware. From Viktor Gyökeres to Martín Zubimendi, Eberechi Eze and Piero Hincapié, Arsenal’s depth is the strongest it has ever been since Mikel Arteta arrived at the club as manager.

This season, therefore, there has to be justification for the great work that has been done, and Sunday’s game against Manchester City is a perfect opportunity to demonstrate ambition and objective. It’s a fool’s errand to minimize the threat of Pep Guardiola’s team but this is a transitioned Manchester City, which has changes across the lineup. There’s tremendous talent, no doubt, including the familiar names. Rodri’s return cannot be overstated, Jeremy Doku continues to elevate his game whilst it seems that Phil Foden has reclaimed much-needed confidence. And we all know how Erling Haaland can punish any opponent.

But Arsenal, at least on paper, is stronger and if it doesn’t enter the pitch Sunday with the unrivaled belief that it can win as opposed to simply hoping to not lose, then I will be disappointed for their fans. The recent records also favor the Gunners as Arsenal has not lost to Man City in the last four league encounters. The last time around? It was a 5-1 capitulation. I am not saying that’s what we will see Sunday, but I do think a similar statement of intent and confidence is not only necessary, it’s necessary in order to build on the belief that Arsenal can win the Premier League title for the first time in more than two decades.

As Henry said, it’s time to go and get it.