The World Cup has come and gone and so league football resumes with a bang. The English Premier League will restart on Boxing day after a six-week hiatus and we are happy about the return of the most prestigious football league in the world.
What do we look forward to in the upcoming fixtures of the Premier League? What teams will continue their impressive forms and what teams will have a change in fate?
Arsenal to continue momentum
Arsenal caught us by surprise with a string of impressive performances before the World Cup and are set to continue the momentum. The Gunners top the Premier League table, five points clear of Manchester City, and are optimistically being tipped to lift the league title come May.
Mikel Arteta’s charges, who play West Ham on Monday night, could temporarily find themselves eight points ahead of City who face Leeds United on Wednesday.
Led by the likes of Martin Ødegaard, Bukayo Saka, Thomas Partey and Gabriel Jesus, the North Londoners have lost only one Premier League game since the start of the 2022/23 season.
ALSO READ: EFL Cup: City eliminate Liverpool; United meet Charlton in quarter-finals
Unfortunately, Arsenal have lost Jesus to a serious injury and the Brazilian is sidelined for the next three months. Prior to the commencement of the January transfer window, Arsenal will have to depend on the services of Eddie Nketiah to lead the line and depending on the adaptation of a new striker – if any – then they could be in safe hands.
The Hammers are 16th on the log and just a point above the relegation zone. Ahead of their clash tonight, West Ham have lost three Premier League games in a row. They have also been victorious in just one of their previous six games in the top-flight.
Injuries still rocking Liverpool
The loss of in-form key players Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz affected the attacking potency of Liverpool. This left Mohamed Salah and Darwin Núñez with the duties to prosecute games up front.
Roberto Firmino also turned up severally when called upon. It’s easy to conclude that these available forwards could be enough to do the damage in the final third but unfortunately for the Reds, Firmino has now joined the list of players on the treatment table.
Thiago Alcantara was absent for a while before the World Cup break and there is no denying the fact that he was sorely missed in midfield. Also, Guinean midfielder Naby Keita is a constant visitor to the Doctors and his injury-prone spell at the club hasn’t helped matters.
James Milner, Curtis Jones and Arthur are all unavailable through injury and it remains to be seen how Liverpool will carry on from here. Expect the Merseyside outfit to still know how to find the back of the net as always.
Another big concern remains how the defensive setup will prevent opposition teams from scoring them aplenty. Virgil van Dijk has lost the falir and solidity that characterized his early days at the club, a period in which he was regarded as the Premier League’s best defender. He’s now more vulnerable than ever and Jurgen Klopp will need to address that as soon as possible.
Newcastle, Brighton impressive; Chelsea fidgety
This is Newcastle United’s best season in a very long while. Only a year ago, the Magpies were in a relegation battle after their October 2021 purchase by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
That has completely changed however and the team are looking poised to secure Champions League football. With enough money to fly around, the owners could go on a spending spree during the January transfer window.
Already, Newcastle have entertained us with some of the best performances we have witnessed this season, parading the likes of Bruno Guimarães, Kieran Trippier, Callum Wilson, Fabian Schär and Paraguayan Miguel Almirón. Their performances, inspired by the tactical Eddie Howe, have helped them to third spot in the Premier League table.
Brighton are a team to watch out for as well. They have all the qualities to hurt the big boys and could even secure a European spot if they keep their heads high. Despite the departure of Graham Potter to Chelsea, they have been decent so far and sit comfortably in seventh with 21 points.
ALSO READ: The night Messi led Argentina to World Cup glory
It’s been a tough season for Chelsea, who are now owned by a Consortium led by American businessman Todd Boehly. The Blues also got a new manager in Potter after a fall out between Boehly and German tactician Thomas Tuchel.
Despite spending a fortune on the likes of Kalidou Koulibaly, Wesley Fofana, Raheem Sterling, Marc Cucurella, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Carney Chukwuemeka, there hasn’t been any tangible improvement in the team’s performances.
Chelsea have lost five league games so far this season and did not impress fans with their displays in friendly encounters during the World Cup break. Potter knows he has a lot to do to help the Pensioners return to winning ways.
The Premier League is indeed back!
Matchweek 17 fixtures
Monday, December 26
- 13:30 Brentford – Tottenham
- 16:00 Crystal Palace – Fulham
- 16:00 Everton – Wolves
- 16:00 Leicester City – Newcastle
- 16:00 Southampton – Brighton
- 18:30 Aston Villa – Liverpool
- 21:00 Arsenal – West Ham
Tuesday, December 27
- 18:30 Chelsea – Bournemouth
- 21:00 Manchester United – Nottingham Forest
Wednesday, December 28
21:00 Leeds – Manchester City
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