Arsenal face tough test that should reveal EPL title tension

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Have Arsenal figured it out?

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Did the 4-1 thumping of Spurs stabilize the ship? Or was that just down to the awful mess that Spurs have become?

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We should find out this week as we get another double dose of games with midweek fixtures following this weekend’s games.

Can Manchester City close the five-point gap, especially considering they still have a game in hand?

We get the match of the week on Sunday with Arsenal hosting Chelsea before the Gunners have to go to Brighton next Wednesday.

When Manchester City have looked poised to really put the screws to Arsenal this season, they’ve slipped up themselves. But games against Leeds and Nottingham Forest in the next seven days suggest that if Arsenal drop any points, City will draw closer.

The matchup between Arsenal and Chelsea is fascinating for both sides. After winning four matches in a row following a changing of their manager, Chelsea stumbled with a pair of draws against Leeds and Burnley.

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While we wait to see if Manchester City can make it a true title race, Chelsea’s fortunes will be a major plot point in the story of this season.

This is the kind of game that will tell you if Chelsea’s bounce in form was down to the new manager or if it was just the change that spurred a short run of results.

Despite the constant spend of London’s Blues, their fortunes over the past handful of seasons always seem to come down to the form of star attacker Cole Palmer.

An injury-plagued season has seen his return drop compared to recent years and, combined with the return to form of Manchester United, sparked transfer rumours.

Palmer is used to being in the running for the Golden Boot as league’s top scorer, but this year sits in 11th with eight goals, 14 behind Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.

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Perhaps even more remarkable, Palmer has just a single assist all season, which is not just an indictment of the English star, but also of Chelsea’s reliance on him for finishing.

Arsenal’s storied defence has looked suspect of late, rattled and nervous, particularly when defending set pieces. If Palmer gets a chance to pull on his goal scoring boots this weekend, it certainly will open the door for Chelsea’s Champions League chances and buoy Manchester City’s title hopes.

Three financial behemoths — Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool — look to be scrapping for the last two Champions League spots. Maybe Aston Villa get sucked back into that race if they continue to wobble, but they have a six-point cushion to work with right now.

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As evidenced by Chelsea’s struggles recently, this season has seen the bottom-feeders actually challenge and get results against the top echelon, as evidenced by Leeds and Burnley pinching points off the Blues the past two weeks.

Liverpool, for the first time in their history, have failed to beat any of the newly promoted teams at home, drawing with Leeds, Sunderland and Burnley.

And Burnley, despite being in second-to-last place in the league, also have taken points off Manchester United this season. Arsenal dropped points two weeks ago against bottom Wolves.

Stock up

Manchester United: After a disappointing draw against West Ham, they bounced back with a gritty win away at Everton. Three points up on Liverpool and Chelsea, and just three back of Aston Villa, they host struggling Crystal Palace this weekend before going up to Newcastle. A pair of wins here will really make the path to Champions League qualification much easier as all their competition have European knockout matches to deal with in the coming month while they only have to worry about league games. Helps that summer signing Benjamin Sesko finally is looking like he’s figuring it out.

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Bournemouth: OK, a 0-0 draw at West Ham isn’t great, but it kept their seven-match unbeaten streak going and within touching distance of a Europa League berth next season. They have Sunderland and Brentford this week, both winnable matches, which is remarkable considering the players they’ve lost in the past nine months. The Cherries boast the signing of the season too, with Igor Thiago sitting second in league scoring with 17 goals.

Liverpool: They’re still hit and miss in terms of form, but they’ve won three of four and have kept two clean sheets in a row. They’ve reeled in Chelsea, keep putting pressure on United and they have West Ham and Wolves this week. If they can beat the teams they’re supposed to beat, they’ll get into the top five. Also buoyed by Alexander Isak returning to individual training after his broken leg.

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Stock down

Sunderland: The story of the first half of the season have now lost three in a row and four of their past five. They’re at the point of the season where they just have to start avoiding losses and pick up a few draws. Big week to build momentum with trips to Bournemouth and Leeds.

Aston Villa: Still in decent shape with a six-point bulge to qualify for the Champions League, but they were in this spot last season before fading badly. They’ve won just once in their past four matches, but their problem is scoring goals. Since beating Forest 3-1 on January 3, they only scored more than a single goal once in seven matches and haven’t managed a goal in four of those. They have to start scoring, maybe Wolves will help this weekend, but then they face Chelsea at home, where they haven’t won in the past four games.

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Everton: Ultimate mediocrity. They are in ninth have lost their past two following one win and a pair of draws before that. Big week with games at Newcastle and at home to Burnley. They’ve only scored 29 goals and just four teams in the whole league have scored fewer.

Crisis club

It has to be Spurs again. No new-manager bounce at all after firing Thomas Frank and installing Igor Tudor. They were humiliated at home by bitter rivals Arsenal, swept aside with minimal effort. They go to Fulham then host Crystal Palace and, if the wins don’t start coming, the relegation fear will be real.

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This week’s EPL schedule

Friday: Wolves vs Aston Villa.

Saturday: Bournemouth vs Sunderland; Burnley vs Brentford; Liverpool vs West Ham; Newcastle vs Everton; Leeds vs Manchester City.

Sunday: Brighton vs Nottingham Forest; Fulham vs Tottenham; Manchester United vs Crystal Palace; Arsenal vs Chelsea.

Tuesday: Bournemouth vs Brentford; Everton vs Burnley; Leeds vs Sunderland; Wolves vs Liverpool.

Wednesday: Aston Villa vs Chelsea; Brighton vs Arsenal; Fulham vs West Ham; Manchester City vs Nottingham Forest; Newcastle vs Manchester United.

Thursday: Tottenham vs Crystal Palace.

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