Five iconic Premier League Opening Weekend games; David Beckham’s famous strike for Man Utd and more

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David Beckham’s legendary strike from the halfway line is among the five most iconic Premier League opening weekend moments as the 2025 season edges closer.

With the busy pre-season schedule now complete, Premier League clubs are now turning their attention to the new season.

The Premier League opening weekend provides teams with a clean slate as they look to get their year off to the best possible start.

From Liverpool, who are looking to launch a successful title defence, to the newly-promoted sides, Leeds United, Burnley, and Sunderland, who are all looking to kickstart their survival battles.

Now, as the countdown to the new season draws to a close, TBR Football looks back on five of the greatest opening round games in the history of the Premier League, starting with a classic featuring Liverpool and Arsenal.

Arsenal 3-4 Liverpool – 2016/17

Arsenal came into the 2016/17 season on the back of their highest finish in a decade. But the 2015/16 season ultimately ended in the disappointment of missing out on the title to Leicester City.

They met a resurgent Liverpool team on the opening day, who were beginning to show signs of developing into a well-oiled machine under Jurgen Klopp. Klopp’s side made a statement with a big away win.

The game started badly for Arsenal when Theo Walcott missed a penalty with the score locked at 0-0. But Walcott atoned for his miss by finishing into the bottom corner with his right foot to give the Gunners the lead.

However, Liverpool struck back in a decisive manner, as Philippe Coutinho curled in a brilliant free-kick from long range after a foul from Rob Holding. The two sides went in level at half-time, before the game burst into life.

The visitors took the lead through Adam Lallana, who produced a near carbon-copy of Walcott’s finish. Coutinho then added his second, arriving in the box to volley home a cross from Nathaniel Clyne. When Sadio Mane cut in from the right to slam home to put Liverpool 4-1 up, the game appeared to be over.

However, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain fired home at the near post to give Arsenal hope, and a header from Callum Chambers set up a grandstand finish. But Klopp’s side clung on and took home the points in a classic season opener.

Middlesbrough 3-3 Liverpool – 1996/97

For football fans of a certain vintage, the terrace chant which goes “I know a man called Ravanelli, he plays football on the telly, when he scores he shows his belly, hey Ravanelli” is burned into their brains.

The man known as the silver fox announced himself to the Premier League on the opening day of the 1996/97 season with a hat-trick against Liverpool, having completed a £7 million move to the north east from Juventus.

Liverpool took the lead three times in the game, as Stig Inge Bjornebye, John Barnes and Robbie Fowler all found the net.

But Ravanelli hit back three times to justify his fee on his first appearance at the Riverside. He was part of a Boro side which was brilliant and frustrating in equal measure as they made both domestic cup finals but suffered relegation.

However, Ravanelli became an instant part of Premier League folklore in his first game, and his iconic celebration is remembered to this day.

Manchester United 5-1 Leeds United – 2021/22

Having stormed to a ninth-place finish under Marcelo Bielsa the previous season, Leeds United came into the opening weekend of the 2021/22 season with high hopes of causing an upset.

However, they met a Manchester United side full of confidence under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and they promptly put their Yorkshire rivals to the sword.

Paul Pogba had arguably the best game of his second spell at Old Trafford as he pulled the strings from a deep-lying midfield role, laying on four assists.

A Bruno Fernandes hat-trick downed Leeds, who had a brief moment of hope when Luke Ayling levelled the scores at 1-1.

However, neither manager would see out the season, with Bielsa leaving Leeds in the midst of a relegation battle and Solskjaer failing to deliver the title challenge Man Utd fans so desperately craved.

Manchester City 4-0 Swansea City – 2011/2012

Whilst a brilliant opening weekend victory is by no means a guarantee of success in the season, as the game above shows, it can be a signal of intent to the rest of the competition.

And when Manchester City put Swansea City to the sword in August 2011, it was the first note in the title-winning symphony that ended with Martin Tyler’s bellow of Aguero.

Sergio Aguero came off the bench to score two goals on his City debut, providing a further assist for David Silva to start what would become a legendary career in Sky Blue.

It meant there was a brilliant symmetry to City’s season as Aguero started and ended the season with a goal, as Roberto Mancini delivered the first of many league titles to the Etihad.

Wimbledon 0-3 Manchester United – 1996/97

Although a routine 3-0 victory for Manchester United is not necessarily iconic as a standalone fixture, David Beckham provided one of the most iconic moments in Premier League history in the South London sunshine.

Although he was already a league winner with the Red Devils, a young Beckham could not have known that his life was about to change when he picked up the ball just inside his own half and spotted Neil Sullivan off his line.

Beckham’s goal is now famous all over the world, as he executed a perfect chip to leave Sullivan backpedalling as the ball sailed over his head. The Wimbledon keeper ends up holding the net, facing the Man Utd fans as they go wild behind him.

This one goal arguably transformed the history of the Premier League, as it went on to become the most-watched league in the world.