Weekend Boxset: Meeting expectations

September 11, 2026

Weekend Boxset: Meeting expectations

A slow start or just rubbish? It’s usually about now we find out.

Seven great matches to take you from Friday to Sunday. It’s the Sound of Football Weekend Boxset.

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All times are UK

Friday

Bundesliga: Union Berlin v Schalke

19.30 on BBC iPlayer
After their dramatic 0-0 win against Bayern in front of an emotionally charged full house at the Veltins Arena, newly promoted Schalke can capitalise on their moral victory with a win in Berlin. The Ruhrpott club has one of the biggest supporter bases in Germany but they remain among the favourites to be relegated. Their opening day defeat to Augsburg (a non-traditional club with no history or pedigree of success but are well-financed and organised) illustrated just how far Die Knappen have fallen. The Bayern result suggests that they have the resolve but, unfortunately, they don’t get to play their hated rivals of bygone years every week. If Schalke are to compete for honours and play in Europe again, they are going to need to come to places like Stadion An der Alten Försterei and face down traditional underdogs who are only too willing to stick it to the fallen giants. Not that Union are in much better shape. The East Berliners have so far conceded seven goals in two games and while they were able to rescue a point in their season opener against Frankfurt, they were hammered 4-0 at Leverkusen the following week. If Schalke can just picture the opposition in Bayern kits, maybe veteran striker Edin Dzeko can grab a late winner. TD

Saturday

Championship: Derby County v Birmingham City

12.30 on Sky Sports Football & Ultra
There comes a point, around this time, when a slow start becomes a poor start. While neither of these sides were expected to push for the automatic promotion places they were expected to challenge for the play-offs (especially now the knockout phase of the season has been extended to six clubs) but after six games both of these sides have just one win. In the midweek round of fixtures both ended up losing games they will feel they deserved more from. Birmingham lost 2-1 at Carrow Road, almost recovering after Norwich went two goals in the first half against the run of play. Derby lost 1-0 at home to West Brom, with the goal coming from the visitors’ only shot on target. Rams’ summer signing Filip Bilbija has yet to play more than 25 minutes for them since joining in the summer. The 26-year-old scored in the Paderborn’s successful play-off final against Wolfsburg, adding to 15 goals in Germany’s second tier last season. Much is expected of him once he can get himself up to the fitness demands of the Championship. GS

Premier League: Tottenham Hotspur v Everton

17.30 on Sky Sports Premier League, Main Event & Ultra
A match between a team that can’t buy a goal against a team that couldn’t buy a striker. A Spurs supporting colleague of mine said that the team are trying to process a season of trauma when the club nearly finished the campaign in the Championship. After unlocking the transfer war chest and with a perceived front-line coach in situ, people could be forgiven for thinking that Spurs would be the Premier League’s biggest mover, and they might yet. But defeats to Brentford and Newcastle have reopened wounds that have only just been sutured. Their first point against Notts Forest offers some optimism and it is understandable that after a busy transfer window it is taking time for the team to gel. The next step is to find the back of the net. Unbeaten Everton are not in quite as bad shape as their hosts but their fans were stunned by the club’s botching of their transfer window. For sure the return of Jack Grealish is welcome but Folarin Balogun’s dramatic Deadline Day reversal meant that David Moyes only has one striker to work with unless someone can be found among free agents to support Thierno Barry. But the Toffees are not lacking in other departments and new signing Hayden Hackney seems to be settling in nicely with one assist from his first three games. TD

Premier League: Sunderland v Arsenal

20.00 on TNT Sports 1 & Ultimate and HBO Max
Last season’s dizzying seventh-place finish and Europa League qualification have now give way to the cold, hard reality of life in four competitions. Sunderland have strengthened an already impressive squad with the signings of veteran Thomas Meunier, Kevin Danso and Malick “two-jets” Fofana, amongst others. Both Meunier and Danso bring defensive stability as well as competition for places at the back. Meanwhile, Two-Jets is already helping in attack with an impressive cross which resulted in the equalising penalty against Brentford. It’s encouraging to see things improving on the pitch after an opening day horror show at Ipswich which saw the Lads gift the Tractor Boys two easy goals in an afternoon to forget. No such concerns for champions Arsenal, who breezed past newly promoted Coventry, despatched Villa and smothered Chelsea in an impressive start to the defence of their Premier League title. There’s a freedom about the champions at the moment, demonstrated in the impressive performances of Ødegaard and Havertz, who look like a couple of new signings. Conversely, actual new signing Christos Tzolis looks like he’s been with the Gunners for years. Sunderland made the Stadium of Light something of a fortress last season, but this will be a real test for Reggie and the Lads. Expect a raucous atmosphere as Wearside looks forward to a week that will see the club take part in European competition for the first time since 1973 sandwiched between tonight’s match and a visit to the Etihad. The big time has arrived for the Mackem nation. The question is, how will they handle it? JB

Sunday

Women’s Super League: Manchester United v Chelsea

12.00 on Sky One and Sky Sports Mix & Plus
It’s largely unsafe to judge how a club’s season will go based on the evidence of just one game, but the results of the opening weekend fixtures for both of these sides will do little to convince fans that they have improved over the summer. Chelsea’s 1-1 draw against Villa at Stamford Bridge (the Blues’ WSL home this season) was all too familiar for their fans. Last season they dropped eight points from winning positions and, while that may not sound a lot, it’s an unwanted record high for Chelsea and would have been more than enough for them to win a seventh straight title. They also under-performed on expected goals (xG) by almost a goal a game (44 actual goals to 64.4 xG in 22 matches). Against Villa, Chelsea, having scored early, largely controlled the game (3.6 xG) only to concede an own-goal equaliser with ten minutes to go. United failed to create a single shot in the first half of their game away to a strong-looking London City Lionesses. They scored with their only shot on target, which was almost the last touch of the game, and made the 2-1 final score more flattering than they deserved. Fridolina Rolfo, missed that match and will be unavailable for the remainder of the season after announcing this week that she is expecting her first child in March. GS

Premier League: Manchester United v Manchester City

14.00 on Sky Sports Premier League, Main Event & Ultra
This could well be the closest-matched Manchester derbies in a few years and comes after both teams survived their opening salvos in the Champions League. United overcame competition debutants, Mr Loverman (Sabah) with some comfort while City went to Porto and came back with a 2-0 win, both goals coming from Erling Haaland. I had the dubious pleasure of watching Haaland in the flesh against Palace a couple of weeks ago and was astonished at how invisible he is. Given that he is one of the world’s greatest and well-known strikers it was curious that, for long periods of the game, he went unnoticed by both fans and defenders. His economy of movement versus his strike rate is phenomenal. He’s like a submarine with a caterpillar drive if you’ll forgive the cultural reference. City’s apparent slow start to the season was in fact limited to a poor showing in the Community Shield. Enzo Maresca’s team sit joint top with maximum points. But but but it should be acknowledged that they ran things close against Bournemouth, were restricted to just one goal against Coventry and Palace were well short of requirements. United, who have not had the best start themselves, will probably be their stiffest test so far, both in terms of football and emotionally. TD

Serie A: Sassuolo v Juventus

19.45 on TNT Sports 1, HBO Max and DAZN
Sassuolo finished 11th last season on their return to the top flight after a season away. They were comfortably distant from the relegation battle or any European interest and, after three games of this season, they find themselves in the same position, seemingly content to stay there. Last weekend, they led twice in their local derby at Bologna, but allowed the home side to register their first point of the campaign with an injury time equaliser from Artem Dovbyk. Juventus also had to settle for a draw in their match against AC Milan. This time though, they were the ones gaining the point in injury time, with substitute Federico Gatti grabbing the equaliser just four minutes after coming on. It was a game Juve should have won, having had a number of chances to score before Milan took the lead midway through the second half with their only shot on target of the match. It was a strong performance from Juve considering they are in the middle of a injury crisis in midfield and attack. Kephram Thuram and now Manuel Locatelli won’t be back until the new year, while last season’s top scorer Kenan Yildiz is unlikely to be seen before December. On top of those, Weston McKennie, Andrea Cambiaso and Pape Matar Sarr are all doubtful for this game, putting pressure on new signing Randal Kolo Muani and loanee Nick Woltemade to deliver. With their Europa League campaign starting next week life isn’t going to get any easier for the Old Lady. GS

Whatever you watch, have a great weekend.

Graham, Terry and Jan