Tony Kelshaw 
Boyhood Everton fan Joey Barton will have Fleetwood fired up for an EFL Cup tie with the Toffees at Highbury but this is a tough task for Town. The visitors have started the new campaign in cracking form and will be keen to maintain that momentum with another win on the Fylde Coast.
Man Utd looked woefully short of match sharpness in their Premier League opener and Luton are a value bet to take advantage in the EFL Cup. The Hatters are flying high in the Championship, have already battled through two rounds of this competition and will be fired up for this tie.
Jose Mourinho faces a tricky juggling act as Tottenham visit Leyton Orient in the third round of the EFL Cup. Spurs must play this match just two days before travelling to North Macedonia to face KF Shkendija in a Europa League qualifier, but may still have the strength in depth to cope.
We’re continuing our Irish Champions Weekend tips with eight expert selections for Sunday’s star-studded card at the Curragh. The Irish St Leger is the showpiece event and there are also three other Group 1 prizes up for grabs, one for sprinters and two for top-class juveniles.
Dominic Thiem heads into the US Open final in much better form than Alexander Zverev and is fancied to dominate their clash at Flushing Meadows. Both men are trying to secure a first grand slam title, but the Austrian seems far more assured of holding his nerve in the New York decider.
Birmingham finished 31 points below Brentford in the Championship last season but maintained a good head-to-head record against the Bees. City took four points from two tight tussles, having picked up a couple of draws during the previous campaign’s hard-fought encounters.
The women’s final at the US Open is a battle between former world number ones and a high-class contest is anticipated between Naomi Osaka and Victoria Azarenka. Both players came through tough semi-finals in three sets here and another close encounter seems on the cards.
This mouthwatering clash would have made an ideal final instead of the last four as it pits tournament favourite Daniil Medvedev against Dominic Thiem, the highest-ranked player left in the draw. A close encounter seems on the cards, with plenty of twists and turns.
Victoria Azarenka lost out to Serena Williams in the 2012 and 2013 US Open finals but is fancied to gain some revenge in this year’s semis. The 31-year-old from Belarus has looked in imperious form at Flushing Meadows, whereas Williams has had to battle through a series of gruelling encounters.
Alexander Zverev is fast becoming a man for the big occasion and is tipped to reach the US Open final by seeing off Pablo Carreno Busta. The German has put a poor run of form on the ATP Tour behind him at Flushing Meadows and can have too many weapons for his game, but outgunned opponent.
With Ferrari gearing up for their 1,000th race, we’re offering some sentimental support for Sebastian Vettel in our Tuscan Grand Prix predictions. The four-time world champ is going through a tough break-up from the Italian team but has still scored points in four of this year’s eight contests.
Kansas City and Houston were involved in a couple of high-scoring thrillers last term but replicating those classic contests will be tough. It is always easier for defences to prepare for a new NFL season and that should be even more apparent after a summer of disruptions this year.
Nations League holders Portugal look fired up to try and retain their title and are taken to edge out a spirited but limited Sweden side in Stockholm. The Navigators kicked off their campaign with a convincing victory over Croatia, while their hosts were beaten by France at Friends Arena.
Belgium have won all 11 previous encounters with Iceland and are expected to continue that trend in Tuesday night’s Nations League clash. The Red Devils prevailed 2-0 and 3-0 when these teams met in the inaugural staging of this competition and remain in red-hot form for this renewal.