English Premier League leader Chelsea should be given its toughest test yet this season when it visits big-spending Manchester City on Saturday, three days after both teams were knocked out of the League Cup.
The reigning champion has won its opening five games, scoring 21 goals in the process, to take an early four-point lead over Arsenal and Manchester United.
City, which spent more than 120 million pounds ($187 million) in the latest transfer window, is fourth - three points further back - and will want to show Chelsea it is a realistic title contender this season by beating the Blues at Eastlands in the day's early kickoff.
Neither team will be too concerned about being eliminated from England's second-tier cup competition at the third-round stage - both played largely reserve sides and are more concerned with progress in the Premier League, FA Cup and Europe.
"We couldn't take any risks," said City manager Roberto Mancini. "When you play like us and Chelsea, on Saturday at 12.45 (local time), the time to recover is very short. They would need minimum three days."
City lost 2-1 at West Bromwich Albion and Chelsea was beaten 4-3 at home to Newcastle in two all-Premier League matches.
Like Mancini, Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti said he had no regrets about resting the majority of his first-team regulars for the League Cup, preferring to keep them fresh for a match that could end with the Blues being 10 points ahead of City after just six games.
'This cup is not our priority - we have a very important game on the weekend and I wanted to rest some players," said Ancelotti, who saw three players - Gael Kakuta, Yossi Benayoun and Salomon Kalou - sustain injuries against Newcastle.
City, which showed its credentials by thrashing Liverpool 3-0 at home in its first home match of the campaign, did the double over Chelsea last season, winning 2-1 at Eastlands and 4-2 at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea has so far played teams expected to finish in the bottom half of the table but faces a tough run of matches, with Arsenal at home and Aston Villa away to come after City.
Second-place Arsenal will have one eye on the City-Chelsea match as it prepares for its home game against West Brom later Saturday.
Arsene Wenger's side recovered from the disappointment of conceding a late goal in the 1-1 draw at Sunderland last weekend by beating fierce north London rival Tottenham 4-1 in the League Cup on Tuesday.
Arsenal will be without captain Cesc Fabregas, who has been ruled out for the next two weeks with a hamstring injury sustained against Sunderland.
Third-place United visits Bolton on Sunday, buoyed by a 3-2 victory over rival Liverpool last Sunday and a 5-2 midweek cup win over Scunthorpe.
At the other end of the table, fifth-bottom Liverpool's season went from bad to worse when it was upset at home by fourth-tier Northampton in the League Cup, piling more pressure on manager Roy Hodgson.
The 18-time champions have had a tough set of matches to open up the league season and will be hoping for some respite with Saturday's home game against Sunderland followed by matches at Anfield against Blackpool and Blackburn.
"It's one of many setbacks we're facing at the moment and it's a tough period to work and live through, but we will work and live through it," Hodgson said after the club's cup exit. "We will survive it and get better. I will learn an awful lot from this defeat about an awful lot of people."
Elsewhere on Saturday, bottom side West Ham hosts Tottenham, second-bottom Everton visits Fulham, Birmingham is at home to Wigan and Blackpool hosts Blackburn.
On Sunday, Wolverhampton hosts Aston Villa and Stoke visits Newcastle.
