Key events

Arsenal begin their title defence at home to Championship winners Coventry. This is the same fixture from the opening weekend in 1993-94, when the Gunners were humbled by Micky Quinn, who claimed to have put a £50 on himself to win the top scorer gong.

Check out the report from that day, courtesy of the Guardian Research Department.

Arsenal v Coventry match report from 1993. Photograph: Guardian sport

Arsenal complete £51m deal for Konsa

England international Ezri Konsa has joined the Premier League champions Arsenal from Aston Villa on a four-year deal after the two clubs agreed a £51m fee.

Ezri Konsa is an Arsenal player. Photograph: Carlos Barría/Reuters

Iraola wants to add to 'quite thin' Liverpool squad

Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola insists they will “definitely sign some players” after admitting his squad is still “quite thin”.

The departures of Mohamed Salah, Andy Robertson and Ibrahima Konate – plus the pending sale of Curtis Jones – have in no way been offset by the recruitment of Spain winger Victor Munoz and Rennes defender Jeremy Jacquet and a loan deal for fellow centre-back Ronald Araujo from Barcelona.

They are light up front as, in addition to losing Salah’s significant contribution, striker Hugo Ekitike is sidelined for several months after surgery on an Achilles tendon injury.

Liverpool had a £50million bid turned down for Brighton winger Yankuba Minteh, who himself is likely to be sidelined for potentially three months after an operation on a leg injury sustained in pre-season, and reinforcing wide attacking areas remains their priority.

Paris St Germain’s Bradley Barcola is their preferred option, although they disagree significantly on his valuation, but it is understood the club are looking at a number of possibilities to establish availability and test the market.

“We will definitely sign some players. Some deals you have to wait until the end,” Iraola told Sky Sports. “But the end is the important picture, the one we will have on September 1, because it is true that we are still quite thin.”

Liverpool look set to start Sunday’s match at Newcastle with Jacquet, whose pre-season amounted to only 45 minutes of last weekend’s friendly against Como, in central defence and the primarily left-sided 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha on the right. PA Media

Andoni Iraola wants to add flesh to the bones. Photograph: Nikki Dyer/Liverpool FC/Getty Images

What is going to happen in Ligue 1 this season? Housewives’ favourite Luke Entwistle has the answer.

On the eve of a new Ligue 1 season, many clubs seem a little distracted. Even those accustomed to competing at the top have concerns that transcend the pitch. In a league that contains the greatest team on the continent, the focus of the majority of clubs has shifted to surviving and providing, rather than competing.

Any fighting spirit has long since been kicked out of Paris Saint-Germain’s competitors; back-to-back Champions League titles will do that. It feels like a long time ago since Kylian Mbappé moved to Real Madrid on a free transfer, leaving behind a scent of opportunity that filled the nostrils of Marseille, Monaco and Lille. Roberto De Zerbi was bullish when he joined Marseille. “I’m not here to finish second,” said the manager, who has since moved to Tottenham. Finishing second has now become an aspiration, especially for a club such as Marseille, given their predicament.

Villa sign Wan-Bissaka on loan

There is another new face at Aston Villa after Aaron Wan-Bissaka completed a season-long loan move from West Ham, with an option to buy.

The former Crystal Palace and Manchester United man will provide some much-needed Premier League knowhow at right-back.

I will be at Hull v Manchester United tomorrow to see the Michael Carrick era begin in earnest. It will be interesting to see how he sets up his midfield against the newly promoted Tigers, who will be eager to take a big scalp on their return to the Premier League.

It seemed like a joke, a hoax, when at 10pm on 19 June, Ravenna broke the news of Ronaldinho’s signing. The Brazilian, a former Ballon d’Or winner and one of the most recognisable figures in world football, had played his last official match in 2015 for Fluminense; a professional signing in Serie C at 46 years of age seemed unrealistic, to say the least. With football’s attention taken by the World Cup, the game was shocked by this bolt from the blue. For the most part, it remained in disbelief.

There was much discussion, in the city and around the world, about the real value of this operation, and we talked about it too, speaking with the mayor, the fans, and the president of Ravenna, Ignazio Cipriani, scion of the family known globally for Harry’s Bar, who is giving his city much more than a dream.

Just had a look at Robbie Ure, who has decided to have his full name on the back of his Sevilla shirt …

The fourth season of the critically acclaimed football drama Ted Lasso has taken a surprising twist. The show’s writers have decided to have their hero coach AFC Richmond’s women’s team, testing whether Ted’s “Lasso way” can work in a very different footballing environment. We’re only three episodes in, but I’ve already found myself wondering if the series will showcase what makes the women’s game distinct, or just treat it as the same sport with different characters.

The early signs are promising: we’ve already seen the issue of substandard facilities, initial disinterest from the club’s fanbase and the flak that Coach Chilton gets for exhibiting the same qualities lauded in the men’s coach, Roy Kent.

Kári Tulinius gets in touch to say: “You have that right about Seville being a great place to live as a player. It’s up there among the world’s great football-mad cities. The derby between Sevilla and Real Betis is one the games I’d most like to attend in the world. There’s a reason it’s known as El Gran Derbi.”

Where Parrott will come up against Scottish strker Robbie Ure, who joined Sevilla a few weeks back.

Robbie Ure is now a Sevilla player. Photograph: Antonio Pozo/PRESSINPHOTO/Shutterstock

Coventry City have completed the signing of goalkeeper Dan Bentley from Wolves on a free transfer.

The former Bristol City started Wolves’ first game of the Championship season, a 2-2 home draw against Blackburn, but has been allowed to leave for Coventry, where he has signed a two-year deal. Bentley will provide backup for Carl Rushworth, who joined permanently from Brighton earlier this summer after an impressive season in the Championship.

Krishnamoorthy emails: “A digress from Premier League thought but it involves a former player. Rodri said ‘I am fulfilling my dream’ on joining Barcelona. He said virtually the same on joining Atletico and Man City. Why can’t these players come up with something that adds a bit more spice. As a matter of fact, most joining and leaving have a standard text that is rattled off with zero thoughts.”

Wait until you hear about Robbie Keane’s unveilings …

We have previewed all 20 Premier League teams, with Sunderland the latest to fly off the shelf.

Marco Rose is positive ahead of his Bournemouth debut at Manchester City on Sunday. The German head coach was unveiled in May after Andoni Iraola made the decision to leave the south coast club.

Bournemouth are one of nine Premier League teams to make a managerial change this summer and Rose knows what to expect up against new Man City boss Enzo Maresca.

Rose told a press conference: “The things I saw so far with Chelsea and now Manchester City, it’s a clear idea, a clear philosophy. You know what you get, you know what they want to play, you see the processes and the approach they have. It’s quite intense against the ball, high pressing and, with the ball, you know what quality you face and you see a clear idea in established play.

“It’s a tough challenge but we are quite positive. We had a really good pre-season. I settled in very well and everyone supported me and the new coaching staff.”

The Cherries lost forward Junior Kroupi to a foot injury during pre-season, but scored 22 goals across five friendly fixtures this summer. “Everyone put a lot of effort into the preparation and all the things around so we feel well prepared for the upcoming season and for the game against Manchester City,” Rose added ahead of his Premier League bow. PA Media

Marco Rose is primed for a Premier League debut. Photograph: Robin Jones/AFC Bournemouth/Getty Images

Fair play to Troy Parrott for moving to the Netherlands and proving himself. In terms of picking places to live as a footballer, Seville has to be up there. What a lifestyle he is about to buy into.

Real Betis strengthened its attack for a first Champions League campaign in 21 years by signing Ireland forward Troy Parrott, whose five goals in two World Cup qualifying games lifted his country into an unlikely playoffs spot.

Parrott signed a five-year deal after joining from Dutch club AZ Alkmaar, Betis said in a statement late Thursday.

The transfer fee for the 24-year-old former Tottenham player was reportedly 16 million euros ($18.8 million). Parrott scored 31 goals for AZ last season and made headlines with stunning back-to-back games for Ireland in November. AP

Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany said a change in Jamal Musiala’s treatment for a neurological dysfunction was ⁠the reason the midfielder collapsed in two consecutive matches and that there is no cause for alarm.

The 23-year-old Germany international ⁠went down six ⁠minutes after ​coming off the bench in Bayern’s 4-2 friendly win at Heidenheim on Tuesday and required medical attention before being assisted ⁠from the pitch. He also collapsed during Bayern’s 3-1 friendly victory over RB Leipzig on Saturday.

Musiala said this week that he had been diagnosed ⁠with the disorder and that the episodes were “currently part of my everyday life”.

Speaking ahead ​of Bayern’s German Supercup match against ‌Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, ‌Kompany moved to ease concerns about the player’s health. “I spoke with Jamal, he said, ’no ‌problem, you can say it’,” he told a press conference. “With his treatment he changed some things and that had some side effects. That is normal, that during treatment you try something else.”

Bayern’s sporting director Max Eberl said the club were fully behind the player, who had wanted his condition to be make public. Musiala ‌will not be in the squad for Saturday’s match, giving him time to adjust to his condition now being public knowledge.

“We’ve known ​about it the entire last season,” Eberl said. “The players also knew about it. For us, it’s become part of everyday life. He changed something in his medication, which is why these situations became clear. We will give him all our support, have already done so, ⁠and will continue to do so. We’re doing this together.” Reuters

Ten things to look out for this weekend? Good to have it at double digits, nine would just be silly.

Nothing like a bit of exclusive news to kick off the shift. Can we keep this momentum going? We shall see!

Uefa and Concacaf discuss joint Nations League in latest challenge to Fifa

Uefa and Concacaf have begun talks about setting up a combined Nations League tournament featuring all 96 European and North and Central American and Caribbean countries, in another direct challenge to Fifa.

The Guardian has learned that having come together to push for Gianni Infantino’s removal in the light of the World Cup sell-off controversy, the two confederations are now working on creating their own biennial tournament, which could launch as early as 2028 after the next European Championship.

But you will always thank the memories, Tom. I have the greater stamina so will be here for four hours of non-stop fun/football journalism.

Short stint for me on the Friday football blog this morning, here to take over is Will Unwin.

Disasi loan to Palace leads Cobham exodus

Outgoings are the main focus for Chelsea at the moment. They’re set to loan Axel Disasi to Crystal Palace. West Ham wanted to bring the French defender back to the London Stadium but that was always a tough one for a Championship club to pull off. Elsewhere Atlético Madrid are interested in Nicolas Jackson. However, sources say Chelsea have no intention of loaning the striker out, so any deal would need to be a permanent one. Can Atléti afford the fee? Chelsea’s valuation for Jackson is £65m.

While football is truly back today, we did also have football last night and there was even a Premier League team involved.

Ryan Naderi’s second-half strike gave an unconvincing Rangers a narrow 1-0 win in the first leg of their Conference League playoff tie against Czech side Jablonec at Ibrox.

Brighton generously repaid the cost of their travelling fans match ticket for the hardy souls who made it to the far north of Norway to watch the Seagulls draw 0-0 with Tromsø in their Conference League playoff. Those watching back home had to shell out £12 for something called SolidSport and did not get refund.

Also in Conference League qualifying action, Hearts managed a 2-2 draw at home with Rapid Vienna and Hibs drew 0-0 away in Gent.

Full roundup here:

One of my favourite things for any new season is the first month when referees try to enforce a new directive, make a couple of harsh decisions on bookings or red cards and then slowly go back to the old ways after the first international break. A couple of years ago it was lengthy extra-time periods, but see also ‘preventing the restart’ or ‘high threshold’ for VAR. This season we have some new ones and Sarah Rendell has been looking at them and some other fresh items here:

Tottenham close on deals for Manchester City’s Savinho and Marmoush

Manchester City are close to agreeing the transfer of Savinho to Tottenham for £85m, with a separate deal of around £75m for the arrival of Omar Marmoush from the FA Cup-winners to the north London club also being worked on.

Full story:

Why not start the day right with some transfer tittle-tattle? There’s some tasty morsels in today’s Rumour Mill, including this little treat:

After Vinícius Júnior signed a shiny new deal at Real Madrid, Arsenal are having to look elsewhere for a new winger. Turkey’s Kenan Yildizm who plies his trade with Juventus, is of interest to Mikel Arteta and the Gunners hierarchy. One potential way of getting the deal done is to send Gabriel Martinelli in the opposite direction.

Will Unwin has the full rumour roundup:

Preamble

Football is back! Well football has been back for a couple of weeks now (we see you, Carabao Cup and EFL), but by football I mean over-financed, TV-entertainment product we call the Premier League. Rejoice!

Have you watched your season recap? Are you up-to-date on the latest character developments? Have you heard of Pierre Sage? Well don’t worry if not, there’s plenty of time today to get ready before Arsenal take on Coventry in the Friday night curtain-raiser at 8pm (BST). Yes, it’s still summer time.

My colleagues and I will be keeping you abrest of all the latest football news and previews on this Fridau buildup blog.