It’s the most wonderful time of the year! With Arsenal playing every day we’re all saying please give them some rest! It’s the most chaotic time of the year!
Tacky, but I spent a good five minutes thinking of that. The Christmas period is fast approaching and with the conclusion of this final international break of 2023, it means that there remain six Premier League matches before the festive Premier League table topper is revealed.
Manchester City are in pole position on 28 points with Arsenal and Liverpool behind on 27, Tottenham on 26 and Aston Villa on 25. For the Gunners, they have an opportunity to build some momentum after their 3-1 win over Burnley.
However, whilst the Brentford clash might seem favourable there is an incredible amount of pressure riding on the first weekend back to action. Whilst the Gunners might be facing a side in the bottom half, both Manchester City and Liverpool in addition to Tottenham and Aston Villa are facing off against one another.
This means that at least two teams in the top five are guaranteed to drop points. A dream scenario for the Gunners would of course be to win whilst their four rivals all draw and gain a two-point boost to take them to the summit with five games remaining.
In simple terms, to finish top, Arsenal need to win their six matches before Christmas and Liverpool need to beat or draw with Manchester City next week. This is because on December 23 the Gunners will travel to Anfield to face Liverpool two days before the big day.
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Arsenal were unlucky not to win on Merseyside last year after they took an early two-goal lead and control of the game. However, just before half-time Mohamed Salah scored and swung the momentum completely in the opposite direction with Arsenal somewhat lucky to escape with just a point thanks to some Aaron Ramsdale heroics.
However, this time around Arsenal will hope that the likes of Declan Rice’s inclusion in the team has enabled a shift in their direction once again. Arsenal always have to navigate a trip to Aston Villa themselves and the hosting of the bogey side of the Emirates Stadium - Brighton & Hove Albion.
The road to being top at Christmas is not an easy one and it likely requires six wins from six. However, if the expectations of the club are to, at the very minimum, challenge for the title then winning these games will likely need to be achieved.
That said, with the league being so chaotic and the ability for sides to drop points at any time, perhaps it will not require a perfect run. Only time will tell.
