Ian: James Morrison’s Baggies scraped together enough points in their last 12 games to stay above the relegation zone, but this looks a difficult game against a side who lost just two of their final ten games at Carrow Road.

Aidan: The Potters finished down in 17th last season, 18 points off the top six, but have had a decent summer, beating Everton and drawing with Valencia in prestigious friendlies, before they saw off Oldham 2-0 in the EFL Cup last weekend. It’s also worth remembering Stoke usually start the season well. This is the fourth year running they have kicked-off with a home game and they are aiming for a fourth successive victory.

Aaron: Newly promoted Willem II lost all three home meetings with their fellow top four sides in the second tier last season. The hosts were thumped 4-1 at Go Ahead Eagles in their return to the Eredivisie, and this is an even tougher test.

Alex: FC Porto ended a three-year wait for the Primeira Liga title last season and beat Rio Ave to nil both home and away in the process. They have opened their campaign with two wins to nil, while Rio Ave generated just 0.19 expected goals in their 1-0 defeat to Gil Vicente last weekend.

Gareth: Tamworth will feel they are capable of challenging for promotion this season and the early signs are promising. AFC Fylde won promotion last term and made a solid start with a 2-2 draw at home to Wealdstone last weekend, but they are facing a Lambs side who claimed 38 points from 23 home games last season

Warren: QPR have lost the influential Sam Field and their mix of free transfers and loan signings might take time to gel. Pompey have lost just one of their last five encounters with the R’s and finished last season with two wins and two draws in their last four fixtures at Fratton Park.

Barcelona have won back-to-back La Liga titles and netted 95 times last season, and the return of Jose Mourinho to Real Madrid is unlikely to stop the Catalans from clinching a third successive title.

Mourinho has not won a league title since 2015 and there is almost certain to be friction among the big egos at the Bernabeu, especially with the Special One at the helm.

Arsenal landed a long-awaited Premier League title last season and have improved with the additions of Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis over the summer.

The main reason for their favouritism, however, is what is going on at their rivals.

Manchester City begin life without Pep Guardiola and both Chelsea and Liverpool have new managers to bed in, while Manchester United are still relatively unproven under Michael Carrick.

The Scudetto has not been successfully defended since 2020, but Inter can break that streak despite an upheaval at the back.

John Stones and Manuel Akanji arrive to compensate for the losses of Denzel Dumfries, Stefan de Vrij and Stefan de Vrij and, while the Nerazzurri may look weaker overall, many of their rivals have also taken a step backwards.

Napoli have an ageing squad and will have to do without Antonio Conte, while AC Milan have given Ruben Amorim a chance in the dugout and Juventus are still playing catch-up after a terrible period of recruitment.

Like Bayern Munich, PSG look almost untouchable at the top of Ligue 1 and, while Lens were last season’s surprise package, a host of departures bring the other Ligue 1 teams into play.

While other teams have suffered summer losses, sixth-place finishers Rennes have taken strides forward after cashing in on Jeremy Jacquet and boast last season’s top scorer in Esteban Lepaul.

It is hard to see anybody topping a rampant Bayern Munich, but Borussia Dortmund are the best chance of challenging the Bavarians after finishing second last season.

They have kept the majority of their squad together and added a host of exciting youngsters to their books, while last season’s third-place finishers, RB Leipzig, have lost Yan Diomande.

Bayer Leverkusen are unproven after the appointment of their third manager in the past year, while Stuttgart are unlikely to be able to bridge last season’s 11-point gap to Dortmund.

The first leg of this tie was a thrilling 3-3 draw in Belgium and that is far from an anomaly when it comes to Bodo/Glimt and Union Saint-Gilloise. Over 3.5 goals has been a winner in two of the hosts’ last three games, while the Belgians’ three fixtures this term have averaged 4.67 goals per game.

Dinamo Zagreb were utterly dominant in their 5-0 demolition of Kauno Zalgiris in the first leg, limiting the Lithuanians to three shots and none on target. There is little to suggest they will allow Tuesday’s hosts any more joy in the return leg, so expect them to stroll to victory.

NEC Nijmegen may be playing in Europe for the first time since a 2008/09 UEFA Cup campaign, but they were arguably the better side in the first leg and will take a good deal of confidence into the home leg against an Olympiakos side that were beaten by AZ Alkmaar and Ajax in pre-season.

PSG and Aston Villa played out two thrillers in the 2024/25 Champions League quarter-finals, with the tie ending 5-4 on aggregate, and another high-scoring affair is expected in Salzburg. Both teams have scored in Aston Villa’s last five pre-season friendlies, and Les Parisiens saw goals at both ends in five of their final seven games last term.

Wolves may have lost Joao Gomes and Matt Doherty following their relegation, but the arrivals of Raul Jimenez and Kieran Trippier leave them with a very good squad for the Championship and they open against a Blackburn side that ended last term perilously close to the relegation zone.

Only the relegated Oxford United and Sheffield Wednesday won fewer points on the road than West Brom last season and the Baggies may be in for a difficult season after losing Karlan Grant and Josh Maja in the summer. Norwich won four of their final seven home games last term and opened their season by thrashing MK Dons 4-1 in the EFL Cup.

Bradford City missed out on promotion last season, but they had the third-best home record in League One with 15 wins in 23 attempts. 18th-placed finishers Peterborough lost 14 of their third-tier trips, including six of their last eight trips and their February visit to Bradford.

Sevilla finished a dismal 13th in La Liga last season and have done little to improve their squad over the summer. They have lost Akor Adams, who scored ten league goals, and UEFA Conference League finalists Rayo Vallecano went unbeaten in their last four away games last term.

After a decline that began in 2011, Racing Santander secured a long-awaited return to the top flight last season, but they face a tough opener against a Villarreal side that qualified for the Champions League last term. The Yellow Submarine won 22 of their 38 games and should get the new season off to a winning start in Santander.

Osasuna avoided relegation by the skin of their teeth last season and the summer loss of talented winger Victor Munoz will have hit them hard. They picked up just two points from their last seven away games and Celta Vigo will be full of confidence after securing their joint-best La Liga finish last year.

Sporting beat Guimaraes in both league meetings last season and had an excellent home record, winning 13 of their 17 league games at this venue. The hosts should claim the spoils against a team who saw their losing streak extended to four games last weekend in their season opener, but Guimaraes can grab a consolation strike. Os Conquistadores scored in all three head-to-head meetings last season, beating Sporting in a cup clash, and the Lisbon outfit have found clean sheets hard to come by with just one in their last seven competitive games.

Telstar won 4-1 when these sides last met in April and look capable of claiming three points on Friday. The hosts opened the new campaign with a 2-1 win over NEC, while Sparta are winless in seven stretching back to last season and have lost five of those games.

Saint Etienne won 3-0 at Sochaux in the opening round of fixtures and the promotion hopefuls should be able to beat Clermont with a bit of room to spare. The visitors were fortunate to take a point at home to Reims last weekend, a similar level of performance won’t be enough against a slick Les Verts outfit.

Dijon finished at the top of the third tier last season to win promotion and their success was largely due to their strong home record with 32 points from 16 games. Les Rouges picked up a point at Montpellier in their season opener and can follow that up with all three against Pau, who have lost their last four competitive games and struggled during pre-season.

Nantes lost 1-0 at home to Red Star in their season opener and could be suffering a relegation hangover. Laval ended last season with an eight-game unbeaten run at the Stade Francis Le Basser and can use home advantage to claim at least a point here.

Both teams have scored in five of Telstar’s last six games and they have just one clean sheet in their last 11 competitive fixtures, while they conceded in all their pre-season games. Sparta have gone six games without a clean sheet stretching back into last season.

Both teams scored in Almere’s season opener and in six of their seven pre-season games. Jong PSV won their opener 3-2 and have failed to score in just one of their last six including pre-season friendlies, so goals at both ends are predicted.

Heracles have conceded in each of their last nine competitive games. The hosts scored four themselves against Venlo in their season opener so should be able to strike against Den Bosch. The visitors saw both teams score in their season opener and like Heracles they have gone nine games without a clean sheet.

Both teams scored in five of Grenoble’s final seven games last season and they scored in all of those. They opened the new season with a 4-2 defeat to Dunkerque and goals at both ends could be on the cards again when they face Metz. The visitors beat Guingamp 2-1 in their opener and both teams scored in seven of their eight pre-season friendlies.

Telstar won 4-1 when these sides last met in April and look capable of claiming three points on Friday. The hosts opened the new campaign with a 2-1 win over NEC, while Sparta are winless in seven stretching back to last season and have lost five of those games. Telstar may conceded in victory as they have just one clean sheet in their last 11 competitive games and they conceded in all their pre-season games. 

Sporting beat Guimaraes in both league meetings last season and had an excellent home record, winning 13 of their 17 league games at this venue. The hosts should claim the spoils against a team who saw their losing streak extended to four games last weekend in their season opener, but Guimaraes can grab a consolation strike. Os Conquistadores scored in all three head-to-head meetings last season, beating Sporting in a cup clash, and the Lisbon outfit have found clean sheets hard to come by with just one in their last seven competitive games.

Kilmarnock have endured a mixed start to the season but they are generally strong at Rugby Park and have only lost to Celtic, twice, across their last 11 competitive home games. Back Killie to win and concede as Ayr are yet to draw a blank this season and look capable of scoring against a Killie outfit who have shipped nine goals across their last two games.

Former Sparta man Patrick Brouwer could haunt his old club. Brouwer scored and had an assist in Telstar’s opening round win made an impact when these sides met at the back end of last season with an assist, he can get on the scoresheet himself this week.

Sporting summer signing Rodrigo Zalazar is off the mark for the season and can make it at least two in as many games. Zalazar scored 16 goals in 28 league games for Braga last season and he can add to his haul for his new club when Guimaraes visit.

Telstar won 4-1 when these sides last met in April and look capable of claiming three points on Friday. The hosts opened the new campaign with a 2-1 win over NEC, while Sparta are winless in seven stretching back to last season and have lost five of those games.

Wolves have a strong squad at Championship level and have won their last three games without conceding. They face a Blackburn side that narrowly avoided relegation last season and have shown little in the way of improvement over the summer.

Ayr are yet to draw a blank this season and have scored an impressive 13 goals across six games. The Championship side look capable of scoring against a Killie outfit who have shipped nine goals across their last two games, but Kilmarnock have struck four themselves in that period so goals at both ends looks likely.

Promoted Sochaux were outclassed in a 3-0 defeat at home to Saint Etienne last weekend and look set to fall short at Red Star on Friday. The hosts opened their campaign with a 1-0 win at Rodez and were generally strong at home last season, losing just three of their 22 Ligue 2 games at Stade Bauer.

Dijon finished at the top of the third tier last season to win promotion and their success was largely due to their strong home record with 32 points from 16 games. Les Rouges picked up a point at Montpellier in their season opener and can follow that up with all three against Pau, who have lost their last four competitive games and struggled during pre-season.

Over 2.5 goals has landed in three of the last four meetings between these sides and at least three goals in total looks likely when they meet on Friday. Cercle Brugge played out a 2-2 draw in their season opener and over 2.5 goals has landed in each of their last 10, with both teams scoring in all of those games. St Truiden have seen at least three goals scored in four of their last seven games.

Guimaraes scored in all three head-to-head meetings last season, beating Sporting in a cup clash, and Sporting have found clean sheets hard to come by with just one in their last seven competitive games. That suggests both teams can contribute and combine for at least four goals. Sporting won each of their final three league games last term by at least three-goal margins, and beat the visitors by an aggregate score of 9-2 in their two league meetings.

Wolves have scored at least twice in each of their last three games including friendlies. The relegated hosts have enough quality to strike at least twice against Blackburn.

Wolves have a strong squad at Championship level and have won their last three games without conceding. They face a Blackburn side that narrowly avoided relegation last season and have shown little in the way of improvement over the summer. Wolves have won their last three games to nil and the last two of these have been 3-0 affairs, while Blackburn lost a friendly 3-0 to Nottingham Forest last month.

Sporting won each of their final three league games last term by at least three-goal margins, while Guimaraes scored exactly one goal in both league meetings last season – losing 5-1 at this venue back in May. A 4-1 win for the hosts has a chance.

Portsmouth spent last season battling the drop and seem set for another season of struggle. They have made some bold transfer moves but they have signed players unproven in this league, and don’t necessarily seem any stronger than they were last season so they are among the contenders to drop down to League One.

Cambridge won promotion last term and are yet to really strengthen their team. The U’s spend four years in League One before a campaign in League Two last term, and they only finished higher than 18th in one of those seasons. Of all the promoted teams, Cambridge are perhaps the most likely to drop straight back down.

Tranmere lost 20 of their final 26 games last season and only avoided the drop by two points. The two teams that came up from the National League should be competitive and that should result in an intense relegation fight, and Rovers look likely to be involved.