All eyes were fixed firmly on the Etihad Stadium this weekend as the champions from the last two seasons faced up.
It was Manchester City that had the killer instinct as they won 3-0 against an uncharacteristically lifeless Chelsea side.
Elsewhere, there were victories for Manchester United, Arsenal, Everton, Swansea City, Norwich City, Leicester City and Liverpool, with draws being played out at White Hart Lane and Vicarage Road.
Having taken all of the action into consideration, Sports Mole has picked its best XI players, as well as selecting the best goal and biggest villain.
Asmir Begovic (Chelsea)
It may seem odd to pick a goalkeeper that conceded three goals, but the fact is that without Begovic, Chelsea could well have shipped five or six goals - and that was just in the first half! It seemed that he had a duel going on with Sergio Aguero and although he was eventually beaten by the Argentine, there was also some smart stops. One in particular was even acknowledged by the Man City striker, who applauded the gloveman's athleticism.
Aleksandar Kolarov (Manchester City)
With Gael Clichy providing competition, the Serbian has not always been the first choice left-back at the Etihad Stadium. However, more performances of the quality that he put in against Chelsea will do his chances of regular action no harm. His crosses into the penalty area caused countless problems for the visiting defence, while he also showed signs that a decent understanding was being forged with new signing Raheem Sterling.
Chris Smalling (Manchester United)
His teammate Daley Blind may have been named the man of the match at Villa Park, yet it was Smalling's display that truly caught the eye. In a defence that contains inexperienced full-backs and Blind, who is not naturally a centre-back, Smalling put in a leader's performance to help the others through. He made a number of crucial interceptions and challenges as United held out to record a second clean sheet of the campaign.
John Stones (Everton)
With displays like this, it's little wonder that Jose Mourinho is so keen to take the centre-back to Chelsea before the transfer window slams shut. When big clubs circle to sign a youngster, it tends to have a negative impact on the mental state of the player in question. Yet, to the 21-year-old's credit, he showed no signs of that being the case as he kept Graziano Pelle quiet for much of the contest on the South Coast.
Steven Whittaker (Norwich City)
The Scot has not always been a favourite among the supporters at Norwich, but he could well have won over some of the doubters following his impact at the Stadium of Light. He found the net with a really good finish to put the Canaries 2-0 up on Wearside. After that, it was a steady defensive showing from Whittaker, who shackled Jeremain Lens.
Jefferson Montero (Swansea City)
New signing Andre Ayew has dominated the headlines in Swansea's opening two fixtures thanks to his goalscoring touch, but the form of Montero shouldn't be ignored. Fresh from giving Branislav Ivanovic the runaround a week ago, the Ecuadorian caused Newcastle right-back Daryl Janmaat so many problems that the Dutchman was given two yellow cards for fouls on him during the first half. For good measure, he also set up his side's second goal for Ayew.
Fernandinho (Manchester City)
There will be some people - particularly those of a Chelsea persuasion - that believe the Brazilian midfielder was fortunate to be on the pitch following a clash with Blues striker Diego Costa. Nevertheless, Fernandinho made the most of his let-off with an industrious showing against the champions. His goal in the closing stages came courtesy of a crisp finish that left Begovic little chance.
Ross Barkley (Everton)
Last season was, by and large, a miserable one for Barkley. Having represented his country at the World Cup, much was expected of Everton's playmaker. However, due to injury problems and a lack of form, it didn't happen. Against Southampton, though, the 21-year-old suggested that he was back to his best form as he scored a goal and assisted another for the first time in one Premier League match.
Mesut Ozil (Arsenal)
Ever since the Germany international arrived in North London for £42m from Real Madrid in 2013, he has polarised opinion. But, what cannot be doubted is just how good he was at Selhurst Park on Sunday afternoon. Ozil was at his creative best and would have ended the contest with more than one assist to his name had his teammates not been wasteful in front of goal.
Sergio Aguero (Manchester City)
There was not even one minute on the clock when Aguero raced clear of the Chelsea defence to have the game's first chance. From that moment onwards, the visiting rearguard was petrified of the 27-year-old. He eventually got his goal after some neat footwork inside the box and on another day he would have been celebrating a hat-trick. With 10 goals in his last nine outings, there are few better strikers in Europe on current form.
Romelu Lukaku (Everton)
When the Belgian is on this sort of form, he's unplayable. Playing as a lone striker, but with Arouna Kone in close support, Lukaku thrived against Southampton. His first goal, which broke the deadlock, was a well-placed header to end a sweeping counter-attack. Then, just before the break he fired in a low shot beyond the reach of Maarten Stekelenburg to make it 2-0 to the travelling Merseysiders. On days like this one, the centre-forward looks worth the £28m that Everton forked out for him 12 months ago.
Numpty of the Week
Daryl Janmaat (Newcastle): Younes Kaboul and his fellow Sunderland defenders were strong contenders for this unwanted award, but after Gary Neville's brutal - yet fair - analysis last night, we've decided to lay off the Frenchman! However, we have opted to keep with the North-East flavour.
Now, on that type of form, Swansea's Montero would have caused problems for any right-back in world football. But when you've already picked up a yellow card for fouling him, to then blatantly pull the Ecuadorian's shirt in front of the referee is madness. The result, unsurprisingly, was a second caution, which left his Newcastle teammates to play with 10 men for the remaining 50 minutes at the Liberty Stadium.
Goal of the Week
Romelu Lukaku - Southampton vs. (Everton): While the finish may have been a relatively simple one, what preceded it was an example of the perfect way to counter-attack.
A neat passing move out of defence eventually found Kone wide on the right. From there, the Ivorian swung over a cross towards the back post for Lukaku, who expertly guided his headed effort back past Stekelenburg and into the net.
Liam Apicella
