Two down, one to go.

Yes, that's right, everyone, we've made it through another international break, with one remaining to close out the 2021 calendar year. Somehow we're only seven matches into the English Premier League season, though more will come thick and fast in the weeks ahead.

The November break is just four weeks away, and after that, it's a straight grind through to March, when the next round of international fixtures takes place. The football never stops.

Chelsea is the league's top dog on 16 points, followed closely by Liverpool (15 points), Manchester City, Manchester United, Everton and Brighton (!) (all on 14 points). There's only a six-point gap between the top and bottom half of the table after an exciting first two months of the season.

There's much more to come, starting with an intriguing slate of matches this weekend, highlighted by what should be an entertaining fixture at the King Power Stadium.

Leicester City vs. Manchester United

King Power Stadium, Saturday, 10:00 a.m. ET

Streaming: USA Network, Universo

September 21, 2014. It may sound like an arbitrary date in the distant past, but this was perhaps one of the defining matches of this generation of Leicester City Football Club.

Led by burly Jamaican centerback Wes Morgan, Kasper Schmeichel—the son of Manchester United great Peter —in goal and a mohawked scamp of a center forward by the name of Jamie Vardy, Leicester looked like it would return to the Championship after a lone season in the Premier League.

Their opponents that day? The mighty Manchester United.

What unfolded was an incredible 5-3 win for the Foxes and one of the most improbable but entertaining matches in EPL history. Down 3-1, the home side turned things around and was put in front 4-3 by one of Vardy's most memorable goals, one that introduced him to the footballing elite. Leicester would go on and survive that season, leading to a truly unbelievable 2015-16 campaign when they captured the Premier League.

Fast-forward seven—yes seven—years, and the Red Devils once again return to the King Power Stadium for an early-season contest in which the scales are slightly more balanced than they were in 2014. Vardy, who absolutely loves a goal against the "Big Six," will be out to do more of that in a season he's started red hot with six goals.

United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be without his two first-choice centerbacks, former Fox and captain Harry Maguire (calf/heel) and Raphael Varane (groin). Leicester is in dire need of a win, having gone without one in its last four matches, and it will need Vardy—as well as Kelechi Iheanacho if Brendan Rodgers decides on a two-forward system—to perform against a weakened visiting squad.

Luckily for United, they signed a solid player in the summer who goes by the name of Cristiano Ronaldo. The 36-year-old, fresh off a midweek international-record-breaking 10th hat trick for Portugal vs. Luxembourg, is showing few signs of slowing down on the goal-scoring front and has been integral in leading his club through a tricky opening portion of the season.

If Solskjaer can get even a little bit more from Jadon Sancho, his other big attacking signing from the summer, they'll be cooking with gas. For now, the weight will remain on CR7's shoulders.

And if Vardy scores, the scenes when he inevitably hits the famous Ronaldo "Siuuu" celebration will be immaculate. In short, legends will be on display at the King Power, and this one could go either way.

Match Prediction: Leicester City 2-2 Manchester United 

Newcastle United vs. Tottenham Hotspur

St. James' Park, Sunday, 11:30 a.m. ET

Streaming: NBCSN, Telemundo

Is a new era dawning in the Premier League? One in which Newcastle United, of 1955 FA Cup-winning fame, crashes the elite and creates space for itself with its newfound wealth? That seems to be where we're headed after the club was taken over by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF).

If you're not a numbers person, maybe this visual will help to put context around the money that the club has just walked into. Absolutely incredible. Obviously, the January transfer window is a few months away, but the names connected to the club have been spanned the spectrum, from Timo Werner to Phillipe Coutinho to even Raheem Sterling, per football journalist Christian Falk, Spanish newspaper Sport and the Newcastle Chronicle, respectively.

But Newcastle is in 19th place with just three points from its first seven matches, none of which came from a win. Yes, zero wins, three draws and four losses. Not an ideal state. This poor start to the year and the takeover has all but guaranteed that manager Steve Bruce won't be in charge for much longer.

He'll at least be at the helm on Sunday when Tottenham Hotspur heads to town, a club that the Magpies may be targeting as one they can replace in the top third of the table in the years ahead. If Bruce and Co. want to turn things around (or at least begin to), Spurs must be dealt with in what should be an energetic atmosphere in England's great north-east.

Nuno Espirito Santo's charges finally snapped their disappointing string of three consecutive defeats (with only one goal scored) vs. Aston Villa before the international break and will be hungry for more on their trip north. 

The problem for Spurs is something they haven't really dealt with in years past: a lack of goal-scoring.

Heung-Min Son is off to a slow-ish start, netting three of the club's six goals this season. Harry Kane, the man they need to start contributing, has been abysmal since his protracted summer transfer saga and is suddenly a shell of his former self for both club and country. That's not ideal, no matter how you spin it...well, until you realize that Newcastle's defense has allowed the most goals in the league.

Expect a raucous St James' Park that won't particularly care about the result, which should go in the visitors' favor.

Match Prediction: Newcastle 1-3 Tottenham

Watford vs. Liverpool

Vicarage Road, Saturday, 7:30 a.m. ET

Streaming: Peacock Premium

Can you hear the faint echo of a beautiful song returning to the great shores of England?

Dilly ding, dilly dong...the Don is back.

Yes, Claudio Ranieri has returned to the Premier League after two years away, having taken the reins at Watford. In 2016, Ranieri famously won the whole thing on 5000-1 odds with Leicester City and will forever hold a special place in the hearts of football fans nationwide.

His first task in charge of the Hornets? Oh, just a simple visit from undefeated Liverpool and its league-leading attack. The Reds have drawn their last two matches in exciting fashion and will be out for more against a struggling Watford side, new manager or not.

With the massive clash at Manchester United coming next week, Liverpool may be looking slightly past Watford and on to the Red Devils, but having Jurgen Klopp in charge to keep them focused will go a long way.

Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane are finding their stride, and that is bad news for the home side in a match that should be a relatively easy victory for the Reds, much to the chagrin of the ever-cheerful Ranieri. Liverpool will be without Fabinho and Alisson Becker due to the UK's COVID quarantine guidelines after international duty with Brazil, but the traveling side should still have too much.

Match Prediction: Watford 0-2 Liverpool   

Other Fixtures and Predictions

Saturday

Aston Villa vs. Wolves (10:00 a.m. ET): 2-2 Draw

Manchester City vs. Burnley (10:00 a.m. ET): 2-1 Man City

Norwich City vs. Brighton & Hove Albion (10:00 a.m. ET): 1-1 Draw

Southampton vs. Leeds United (10:00 a.m. ET): 3-2 Leeds

Chelsea vs. Brentford (12:30 p.m. ET): 3-1 Chelsea

Sunday

Everton vs. West Ham United (9:00 a.m. ET): 1-1 Draw

Monday

Arsenal vs. Crystal Palace (3:00 p.m. ET): 2-1 Arsenal