It was obvious looking at last weekend's Premier League fixture list that Sunday's line-up featured the more appetising encounters, and that was most certainly the way it turned out, with some absolute thrillers amongst the five fixtures. 19 goals, 3 red cards, five injury time strikes and controversy galore, together with two of the most striking scorelines we will witness this season, all combined to provide a cracking afternoon's entertainment. Man.City's near perfect start to the League season has featured some breathtaking football at times, and David Silva's pass to Edin Dzeko for their sixth goal at Old Trafford summed up the quality they now feature in their side. At the other end of the spectrum, Chelsea's defeat at Loftus Road was, from a purely footballing perspective, a most distasteful abomination of a spectacle, but could not be matched in terms of atmosphere, edge-of-the-seat excitement and drama. That's why I steer away from international football and resent the constant breaks in the League schedule to accommodate lengthy lists of drab, uncompetitive qualifying matches, but we still have a couple of weeks to enjoy proper football before the next break, so let's take a look at the coming weekend's top flight fixtures:

1) Everton v Man.U.: Not an ideal venue for United to attempt a swift recovery from their embarrassing Sunday afternoon, as they haven't won at Goodison for four years, and have conceded three goals on each of their last two visits. They have also ridden their luck somewhat in coming away with just two points from their last two away League games, and Alex Ferguson would be well advised to stop tinkering with his side for the moment and put his strongest team out for this match. If he does, they have every chance of ending their poor recent record at Goodison. If he doesn't, they may well find themselves in fourth place come Monday night.

2) Chelsea v Arsenal: They just don't learn, do they? You would have thought that Chelsea's much disliked group of graceless individuals should be able to cope with a hostile atmosphere and opponents constantly harrying and hassling them by now, but several of their players completely lost their cool at QPR on Sunday in what can best be described as a claustrophobic cauldron, and allowed their hosts to take three points from a match in which very little football was played. This fixture should be far more to their liking, particularly as Arsenal remain the only side in the top half of the table who are yet to win away, and the Gunners have lost their last three away League matches. Fernando Torres will return for this game to replace Didier Drogba, and will be keen to keep his place with a strong performance. Considering the defensive difficulties that Arsenal have had this season, which have seen them concede a number of goals away from home matched only by Swansea, Torres may just achieve his aim, and a repeat of the last two seasons' renewals of this fixture, which have ended in victories for Chelsea, may not be an unlikely outcome.

3) Man.City v Wolves: Speaking of sides with defensive difficulties, Wolves have failed to keep a clean sheet since August and you have to fear a devastating outcome here. One surprising statistic that is guaranteed not to last the weekend is that only Newcastle and Man.U. have conceded fewer away League goals than Wolves so far. After this match, I don't think there will be many teams who have conceded more.

4) Norwich v Blackburn: Still on the defensive theme, Norwich have failed to keep a clean sheet in any game in any competition this season so far, but that hasn't stopped them soaring to a very comfortable eighth place despite having visited Liverpool, Man.U. and Chelsea already. Blackburn have also conceded in every game they have played so far, and should do so again on Saturday two or three times to leave them struggling at the foot of the table. Incidentally, Steve Kean would be well advised to have a quiet word with his strikers before the game in order to avoid a repeat of Rovers' last two visits to Carrow Road, during which Mark Hughes and Jay Bothroyd were each sent off in first half injury time, leaving their teammates with uncomfortable second halves to negotiate.

5) Sunderland v Aston Villa: I'm sure Darren Bent will be made most welcome back to the SOL as he attempts to remind Sunderland what they have been missing, but at least Nicklas Bendtner has weighed in with two goals in his last two appearances to maintain a gap between his side and the relegation places. Prior to last season's 1-0 win in this fixture, Sunderland had a poor record against Villa, having won just one of the previous ten encounters in League and Cup, but Villa are starting to struggle a little with two consecutive defeats, and more woe may be heading their way on Saturday.

6) Swansea v Bolton: We're still waiting for Swansea to concede their first goal at the Liberty this season, but would you back Bolton to be the side to break that duck? Their only wins of the season have come away from home, so I suppose I shouldn't be too quick to write off their chances here, but it really is difficult to ignore a defensive record as good at the Swans boast at home, and they may well be able to extend their unbeaten home run, at least until the big boys start to arrive with the visit of Man.United next month.

7) Wigan v Fulham:  Two sides having absolutely miserable seasons apart from when they play QPR, who remain the only team either has beaten so far. Fulham's shameful away record over recent seasons has been well documented, but they don't appear to have done anything to remedy it this season, having scored just once and avoided defeat just once on the road so far. They have also failed to win on their last thirteen visits to Wigan, the last five of which have ended 0-0 or 1-1, so with both sides in depressing form, the safest call is for yet another low scoring draw while we look forward to more tantalising matches elsewhere.

8) West Brom v Liverpool: Norwich's woodwork put in a man-of-the-match performance last Saturday to deny Liverpool victory, but now that West Brom have been shorn of Shane Long with a nasty injury, the Reds may not have to wait too long to get back on track. Prior to last season's self-destruction in this fixture, when two penalties for the Baggies overturned Martin Skrtel's opener, Liverpool had won on their previous nine visits to the Hawthorns, the last five of them without conceding a goal, and they should be able to make up some of the ground they lost on the leaders last week.

9) Tottenham v QPR: Can QPR do it again? Only if Spurs show the same ill-discipline that Chelsea displayed last Sunday will Rangers have a chance of avoiding defeat here, and it will be no surprise to you that their record at White Hart Lane is not good, having won on just one of their last 17 visits. Adel Taarabt will be desperate to prove a point to the club that let him go, but he has shown precious few signs so far of the sparkling form that propelled his side into the top flight last season, and he looks set for a disappointing afternoon on Sunday.

10) Stoke v Newcastle: If Newcastle are still unbeaten after their next two games, they will face an almighty struggle to maintain their record thereafter, as they face consecutive trips to Man.City and Man.United, followed by a home match against Chelsea. However, the record may well have fallen before then, as it is only seven months since they crumbled to a 4-0 defeat at the Britannia, and Stoke are yet to lose at home, having conceded just once (to Man.United). This match should provide a stern test for Newcastle's resilience, even though they have only conceded twice away themselves, but having ridden their luck to have avoided defeat on the road so far, Monday night could see the end of their good fortune.

Just one side let the treble down last week, but we're still well in profit for the season, so how about re-investing some of our previous winnings on a £10 accumulator involving Man.City, Sheffield United, Huddersfield and Hamilton. If all were to win their matches, the return would be £50.14 with Paddy Power.

Good luck!