You Bet | Weekend matches likely to produce new English Premier League leader

With Chelsea away on Super Cup duty, the English Premier League is almost certain to have a new leader by the end of the weekend and the likelihood is that it will come from one of tomorrow's big matches as Liverpool host Manchester United and Arsenal take on Tottenham.

The scenario would have appealed to Alex Ferguson, who liked nothing more than to strike a psychological blow against his title rivals as well as knocking Liverpool off their perch, and even at this early stage it will be interesting to see how David Moyes, his successor, handles the situation.

The early signals are mixed for United's new regime. Moyes' first game in the Premier League brought an expansive 4-1 victory at Swansea, but that was sandwiched between a muted Community Shield win over Wigan and Monday's goalless draw at home to Chelsea.

Jose Mourinho's tactics were a key factor on Monday but United had been held scoreless at home in the Premier League only once in the previous three seasons and the result raises the question of whether Moyes will ever be as bold as Ferguson.

Tomorrow's trip to Anfield, where Ferguson's United won more often than they lost in the Premier League and scored in 16 out of 21 visits, will tell us more about the Moyes methodology. Another safety-first game would suggest a further departure from the attacking policy of Ferguson, whose United side were unbeaten away to big-six teams last season and scored in every one of those games.

If Ferguson were still in charge of United, the match would be a good bet for over 2.5 goals, which has occurred in nine of the 12 Liverpool-United meetings in the past five seasons. Moyes, however, could exert downward pressure on United's goal scoring.