5 things to watch out for in the Premier League this weekend

The final set of international fixtures of the year have culminated now and we are ever so close to the return of the Premier League this weekend.

After FIFA’s reconstruction on the model according to which these fixtures are to be played, 11 round of league fixtures have been played so far with a total of 3 international breaks sandwiched between them during the months of August, September and November.

Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City are currently setting the pace for their rivals in the league with an eight-point lead over second-placed Manchester United, thanks to their convincing 3-1 win over Arsenal at home.

However, due to the sheer unpredictability and fierce competition among the top clubs along with the busy festive period that is yet to come, Guardiola will know that no lead at this stage is unassailable and nothing can be taken for granted.

Game week 12 promises to be an exciting affair and will have serious implications at both ends of the table. Here we take a look at 5 things to watch out for as the world’s most entertaining league returns to action this weekend:

#5 The return of David Moyes

After West Ham’s 4-1 drubbing at home to Liverpool last week, Slaven Bilic, who was under immense pressure after the Hammers’ lacklustre start to the season was removed of his duties as the manager of the club.

The East-London club wasted no time in finding a replacement and David Moyes was appointed as the man in charge at the helm to steer them away from the possibility of relegation.

Moyes is no stranger to the Premier League and his best days came when he was in charge of Everton where his side punched above their weight so often that he was chosen as the replacement for Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.

However, things did not go according to plan at Old Trafford and he was sacked 10 months into the job. Subsequent spells at Real Sociedad in La Liga and Sunderland in England followed, but none of them were fruitful.

The Hammers have been the leakiest defence so far in the league and have conceded 23 goals, highest in the league, and are currently 18th in the table. Moyes will have his work cut out starting on Sunday when they travel to Vicarage road to face Marcos Silva’s high-flying Watford.

Maybe there is still time for the ‘chosen one’ to turn things around at the London Stadium.

#4 Manchester City; ruthless and relentless

Manchester City have done almost all things right so far this season. Guardiola’s men have dropped just two points, overall, and are also the only unbeaten side in the league.

They have been equally impressive in Europe, a feat which has been hard to achieve for City in recent years, and have already ensured qualification to the knockout stages of the Champions League in record time.

The Citizens showed no signs of stopping heading into the international break and will be looking to pick up from where they left off when they take on Leicester at the King Power Stadium, on Saturday.

This particular fixture last year sent shock waves among the City faithful when they were beaten 4-2 by the Foxes thanks to a Jamie Vardy hat-trick. City were outplayed on the night and have remarkably addressed their defensive problems by spending £150 million in the summer.

Despite the visitors being in tremendous form, Claude Puel’s Leicester, who are unbeaten under the manager, will be looking to take advantage of the absence of Nicolas Otamendi, a player who has been a key figure in City’s back line this season, after he picked up his fifth yellow card of the season against Arsenal which has resulted in an automatic suspension.

Sergio Aguero, the club’s joint top-scorer this season with 10 goals in 12 appearances, will be available for selection despite suffering a dizzy spell at half-time while on international duty with Argentina.

#3 The battle at the wrong end of the table

Enter c — Everton will look to take inspiration from their comeback win over Watford

Not many people expected Everton to be at the bottom half of the table at this point after a highly promising transfer window in the summer. The Toffees were one of the highest spenders in the league this year and it seemed like Ronald Koeman had everything under control even before the curtains were raised at Goodison Park at the dawn of a new season.

However, Koeman was sacked just 16 months into his job after the club’s abysmal start to the season which resulted in them dropping down to the relegation zone despite spending £140m in the summer.

David Unsworth has taken over as interim manager and the club registered only their third win of the season when they came back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 against Watford at home in their last game.

On the other hand, Crystal Palace are rock bottom in the league table and have only managed to get 4 points so far this season. Recent form suggests that Roy Hodgson’s side are trying to turn the tides at Selhurst Park and they were unlucky to come away without a point against Tottenham before the international break.

The Eagles have the worst record in terms of finding the back of the net so far this season after just 4 goals from their 11 games. However, they face clubs in and around them in the table in the next few league games and Hodgson will be looking at this fixture to provide a much-needed boost for his players to turn things around by the beginning of next year.

Palace are six points away from safety at the moment and are in real danger of slipping away from the rest of the pack. This fixture is a relegation pointer and the result could go a long way in determining who will still be around in the top flight next season.

#2 Burnley’s best ever start in the first division

Sean Dyche is arguably one of the most sought-after manager in the league at the moment after Burnley’s unexpected rise to the top half of the table this season. The Clarets are currently 7th in the table, level on points with Arsenal and Liverpool, and only three points away from the last Champions League qualification spot occupied by defending champions Chelsea.

Burnley face strugglers Swansea City while in fine form after being unbeaten on the road despite facing the likes of Chelsea, Tottenham and Liverpool already this season.

Only both of the Manchester clubs and Tottenham have conceded fewer goals than them in the league, even though they failed to replace their best performer from last season, Michael Keane, who was roped in by Everton in the summer.

Paul Clement and Swansea, on the other hand, have plenty of problems of their own after failing to fill the void left by star players Gylfi Sigurdsson and Fernando Llorente who joined Everton and Spurs respectively.

Swansea have won only one of their last six league games, a run of results that has seen them score just three goals - a poor average of 0.5 goals per game.

However, they have won all of their last four premier league meetings with the Clarets and will be looking at the club’s top scorer Tammy Abraham, who has been involved in 71.4% of Swansea’s seven Premier League goals this season (4 goals, 1 assists) , which happens to be the highest ratio in the division, to deliver the goods.

Dyche is one of the longest-serving managers in the league and a win could lift Burnley to a potential fifth place in the league given that other fixtures go their way.

#1 The North London derby

The battle for bragging rights in north London

All eyes will be at the Emirates Stadium, when Arsenal take on arch-rivals Tottenham in the North London derby on Saturday afternoon. Due to the rise of Tottenham under Mauricio Pochettino, one could argue that there has been a shift in power in North London, over the last few years.

Spurs are currently four points ahead of Arsenal in the table and look the better side in every department except for history and trophies won. Pochettino, as Spurs' manager, is yet to taste defeat at the Emirates in the Premier League, and with Christian Eriksen and Harry Kane in the form of their lives, Tottenham show no signs of stopping their rampage.

Arsenal, on the other hand, were beaten by Manchester City before the international break and have lost four of their opening 11 games of the season. The Gunners look like they have already given up on the title race but a win over Spurs could move them to within one point of their rivals.

Kane, Dele Alli, Harry Winks and Hugo Lloris are all back in training after suffering minor injuries and will be available for selection while Arsenal will be happy to welcome back Shkodran Mustafi and Danny Welbeck from injuries.

Mike Dean will be the man in charge for the crunch game on Saturday, and previous experiences could mean it might not bode well for the Gunners, as they have won just 2 out of the 18 matches refereed by Dean between August 2009 and January 2013, losing 11 in the process.

However, he was in charge the last time Arsenal defeated Tottenham in the league back in 2014 and has sent two players off in his previous six derbies in charge.

Edited by Aakanksh Sanketh