Preview: New faces on display as first Premier League games point the way for new campaign

LONDON, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) 

Newly promoted Burnley can expect a baptism of fire for their return to the Premier League while Manchester City will visit their Turf Moor Stadium on Friday night to kick off the new season.

The team, coached by former Man City defender Vincent Kompany, easily secured promotion from the Championship last season. However, they received a hint of what their return to the top tier might entail after a 6-0 loss to City in an FA Cup tie at the Etihad Stadium.

 Pep Guardiola's squad lost the Community Shield final to Arsenal on penalties just last weekend. Adjusting to life without Ilkay Gundogan, now with Barcelona, the reigning Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League winners will likely face a rigorous contest at the compact Turf Moor Stadium.

 Arsenal will host Nottingham Forest on Saturday afternoon, their spirits lifted after last weekend's triumph and a busy summer which witnessed significant spending on players like Declan Rice, Kai Havertz, and Jurrien Timber. An unfortunate blot on their preparation is the knee injury sidelining striker Gabriel Jesus until at least the first international break.

Luton's debut match in the Premier League takes them to Brighton. It remains to be seen how Brighton will fare after the departure of World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister to Liverpool. Moreover, Moises Caicedo is poised to join Liverpool after Brighton agreed on a 140 million US dollar fee for the Ecuadorian international.

The Everton and Fulham match might not showcase many new faces, but Arnaut Danjuma might bring hope to Everton, considering their struggles last season.

Andoni Iraola will lead Bournemouth for the first time against Conference League victors West Ham, who are still on the lookout for Declan Rice's replacement.

Sheffield United faces a stern test at home against Crystal Palace, who are adapting to life without Wilfried Zaha. 

The day concludes with a riveting match as Newcastle plays against Aston Villa. Newcastle, having secured a fourth-place finish and added talent like Harvey Barnes, Sandro Tonali, and Tino Livramento, looks promising. On the other hand, Villa is optimistic after a strong second half of the past season under Unai Emery, though Emi Buendia's knee injury casts a shadow.

Sunday features a major showdown between Chelsea and Liverpool. Mauricio Pochettino begins his tenure as Chelsea's coach with several new faces, while Liverpool has had to adapt after the exits of Jordan Henderson, Roberto Firmino, and James Milner. A silver lining for Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp is the full recovery of Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz. However, Chelsea's plans hit a snag with Christopher Nkunku's injury, leaving Nicolas Jackson to spearhead the attack.

Finally, Tottenham introduces Ange Postecoglou as their manager in a match against Brentford, marking the beginning of the post-Harry Kane era after his transition to Bayern Munich. Brentford will play without Ivan Toney due to his suspension for illegal betting.