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The festive season has arrived. A time not much preferred by Premier League teams mainly because of the hectic schedule and also of the injuries that come out of it. This weekend of the Premier League turned out to be more interesting or even astounding for the spectators than expected. Taking into the fact that there was no match between any 2 of the top 6 teams, the excitement levels were still intact.
Also, what's Christmas without a few surprises?
Here are the three main talking points from the EPL weekend.
#3 Dream start for Ole
Manchester United, on paper, hold the quality to surpass even the best of teams and challenge for silverware each time they set foot on the field. Disappointingly for them, that hasn’t been the case this season.
So when the United board were final on the decision of sacking Jose Mourinho and placing faith on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to see out the rest of the season, the fans were not quite sure of what to expect from the interim manager.
Well, he did make an excellent first impression, to say the least.
The fans were shown a game of free-flowing passing and attacking football which was a trait that was clearly missing in the Mourinho era. With Paul Pogba back in the heart of midfield, the World Cup winner did show his worth. His array of skills and his shooting prowess turned out to quite a test for the Cardiff defence.
The game also witnessed some of the best goals that United have scored in this season. From a stunning Marcus Rashford free kick to an eye-catching Anthony Martial goal, the fans finally had something to shout their hearts out.
Can United still become contenders for the Top 4? The fans after what they saw last game would definitely hope so.
#2 Arsenal win over Burnley
A matchup that saw Arsenal face up against a team that is placed in the relegation zone of the Premier League table was not something that was considered a herculean task for the Gunners. But there was more to it than you think.
Arsenal went into this game on the back of 2 consecutive defeats already in this week, one of which was to bitter rivals Tottenham. But it seemed the Gunners were rather inspired than being down in confidence. From leading for the first time going into halftime, Arsenal played the game just as if they wanted to prove a point.
Two goals from Pierre Emerick Aubameyang and an extra time finish by Alex Iwobi meant Arsenal were able to get all the 3 points and sustain themselves in the race to reach the Top 4 in the competition.
The two Goals also helped the Gabonese striker clinch back his title of the Premier League leading goalscorer which had shifted to Liverpool's Mo Salah after his goal against Wolves.
#1 Crystal Palace stun Manchester City
This has to be the biggest upset of the weekend. By saying this, no means of disrespect is aimed at the Crystal Palace team. They were more clinical with their finishes and also fought really hard to get their much-deserved win but the brand of football associated with City had made some believe that the game would be won rather easily.
City scored the first goal of the game but the lead didn’t hold for long thanks to some exquisite and deadly strikes from the away team. Kevin De Bruyne was a breath of fresh air when he came upon substitution and his goal which was clearly meant as a cross did make things interesting, but the game was already put to bed when City conceded a penalty and was netted in by Luka Milivojevic to make it 3-1 in the 51st minute.
City kept on attacking and also came really close to equalising when Leroy Sane’s free-kick hit the woodwork. But the Palace defence kept their calm and managed to pull off a wonder which many pundits wouldn’t have even thought off before the game.
This was City’s first home defeat this season but more importantly are now 4 points behind table-toppers Liverpool.
