The leagues have been dark for a fortnight. Season 4 clicked over on the calendar on 4 July, yet across Europe not a single competitive league ball has been kicked — the top flights have sat idle through pre-season while the Continental qualifying rounds keep the floodlights warm. That ends on Saturday 18 July, when the whole game kicks off at once. And whoever set the fixtures was in no mood to ease anyone in.

No slow reintroductions, no gentle away days at the seaside. The opening round hands us last season's top two, a derby in Madrid, a derby in London, and a couple of six-pointers that will feel like April by teatime. Here's where to point your attention.

The opener that reads like a title decider

England's marquee tie is the fixture you'd normally save for the run-in: London Red vs Manchester Blue, champions against runners-up, at 19:00. Sjow's London Red romped to the crown with a division-high 22 wins and, more tellingly, the meanest defence in the country — just 13 conceded in 38, marshalled in front of keeper David Raya. Phesiola's Manchester Blue chased them down a different way, losing only five games all season (fewest in the division) while drawing fifteen, and mugging Crystal Palace for second on the final afternoon.

The visitors carry the more frightening attack. Erling Haaland — a 96-rated centre-forward and, at a shade under 58m SVC, one of the most valuable assets in the game — leads a spine stiffened by Rodri and Mateo Kovačić, both rated in the mid-90s. London Red's answer is control and that watertight back line. It is a genuinely enormous game to hand two title contenders on day one, and both know it.

Super Saturday in Spain: a derby at the summit

If England's opener is loaded, Spain's is almost unfair. Madrid White vs Madrid Red is not merely a derby — it is a straight rematch of last season's one-two. Gevenito's Madrid White won the double, taking the title with 85 points and the division's stingiest defence (12 conceded) before adding the cup. Madrid Red finished a single win behind on 82, their own defence leaking only 13. Three points and one goal separated these two across an entire campaign; now they meet again before anyone has a point on the board.

Elsewhere in the same time slot, Barcelona — who boast the highest-rated squad in the league and a midfielder valued north of 123m SVC — begin at home to fourth-placed Roda, a reminder that even Spain's "easy" opener pairs third with fourth.

London calling, and a top-four echo

The capital gets its own tear-up: Tottenham vs Chelsea. Taddy's Spurs are the reigning national cup holders, and they sit on the fattest bank balance in the division — an eye-watering 218m SVC — yet finished only 11th last term with a porous 47 goals conceded. Cristian Romero must organise better in front of a back line that shipped too many; Chelsea, 12th and anchored by Moisés Caicedo, will fancy spoiling the party.

For a purer measure of the elite, look to Crystal Palace vs Liverpool — third against fourth from last season, meeting immediately. Strategos's Palace were pipped to the runners-up spot on the final day and will want a statement; Biarritz's Liverpool, the great drawers of Season 3 (sixteen of them), lean on the vastly experienced Virgil van Dijk against Palace's own excellent Marc Guéhi. Two of the country's best centre-halves, head to head, in week one.

The sleeping giant and the survival subplots

Keep an eye on Bournemouth vs Manchester Red. On paper Mastermind's side are a giant: the biggest stadium and fanbase in the division, a squad rated 87 with Matthijs de Ligt and Jacob Maguire in the middle. In practice they finished 14th and conceded fifty. A season of redemption, if it comes, starts on the south coast.

And the trapdoor never sleeps. Last season sent Derby, Burnley and Luton down; up came Leeds, Burton-upon-Trent and Aston Villa. Two of that trio meet straight away in Burton vs Aston Villa — promoted against promoted, the division's smallest ground hosting its lowest-rated squad against a Villa side operating on the leanest balance in the league. It has "must not lose this one twice" written all over it already. Coventry vs Leicester, a pairing of last season's survivors, carries the same nervy edge.

Meanwhile, the qualifiers tick over

Bridging the gap until Saturday is the only live football in town: the Continental qualifying round. England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France each have three clubs scrapping through Europe's preliminary stage while their bigger neighbours wait for the group draw. It is a useful barometer of pre-season sharpness — but the real reckoning arrives with the league whistle.

Ten days of quiet, then everything at once. The community, at least, is ready.

Good luck to everyone for the new season!

Mark the date. Set an alarm. Season 4 does not tiptoe in — it kicks the door down.