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The Premier league is the gift that keeps on giving. Match week 25 did not disappoint as the matches kept up with the drama and competitiveness the Premier League is known for.
The loss notwithstanding, Liverpool remain top of the league although the gap to Manchester City has reduced to three points. City, on the other hand, showed their class with a comfortable victory over the Gunners. Tottenham kept their faint hopes of a title challenge alive with a late victory against Newcastle.
Chelsea leapfrogged Arsenal back to 4th position after their 5-0 hammering of Huddersfield. Manchester United also went above Arsenal in the table and remain only two points adrift of Chelsea. Cardiff earned an emotional victory over Bournemouth but remain in the bottom three. Fulham and Huddersfield are the other two teams in the relegation spots.
Here's a look at five things we learned from match-week 25 of EPL action:
#1 Liverpool are jittery
Liverpool's game against Manchester City was a very vital one. A victory against the Citizens would have increased their lead over them to 7 points. Manchester City won that game and since then the Anfield giants have been jittery.
They failed to capitalize on Manchester City's defeat at the hands of Newcastle. A victory would have increased the gap to 7 points. Liverpool ended up playing out a draw with Leicester City. Manchester City now ramped up the pressure on them with a comfortable win over Arsenal and Liverpool could only manage a tame draw again this match week.
It has to be an absolutely terrifying prospect to be chased down by a club like City with a manager of such high pedigree like Pep Guardiola. The pressure of the chase has led to Liverpool losing vital points and making the title race closer than it should be.
Klopp's defence that has been very resolute all season has begun conceding and have let an early Liverpool lead slip in the last two games. The Anfield club is absolutely feeling the pressure and must get their act together if they want to win their first EPL title in ages.
#2 Manchester City are a class apart
If there ever were any doubts about Pep Guardiola's managerial greatness, he has erased all of it with this City side. Some fans questioned his resume because he coached at clubs with the best players that already had a culture of winning.
The Premier league, known to be feistily competitive, was supposed to be the acid test for the Spanish tactician. The ex Barcelona and Bayern boss has passed the test in flying colours and is undoubtedly the best coach in the business.
Yes, Manchester City has backed him to the hilt in the transfer market and he has addressed any player problem with high-quality replacements. However, teams with far better individual players play far worse than Pep's team. Quality is therefore not the issue.
Manchester City are one of the best-coached teams in the world and the gap in coaching was shown against Arsenal. Ever the perfectionist, Pep has removed inefficiency from the City play. They know exactly what is required of them.
Each action on the field seems like it has been planned. There is rarely any unnecessary dribbling, passing for the sake of passing, rash decisions or poor giveaways. The efficiency of Pep's team is a sight to behold and when they are on it they can pose problems to any team in the world.
They remain firmly in title contention and must not slip up again to avoid Liverpool running away with it.
#3 Higuain may yet prove his doubters wrong
Truth be told, the Huddersfield match was the best game for a Chelsea side after two defeats and dropping out of the top four. Huddersfield have netted only 13 times this season and conceded 46 goals. They are a team surely on their way to the Championship and Chelsea, in need of a bounce. used them exactly for that.
Much has been made about the 31-year-old Gonzalo Higuain moving to the Premier League without any prior experience of the English top-flight. Concerns have been made about his fitness and ability to adapt to the physicality of the league. His poor showing on debut versus Bournemouth did not help his cause.
However, the striker got an injection of confidence with his two strikes versus Huddersfield. The two goals were well taken and might just be an indication as to what we will be seeing from the ex-Real Madrid and Juventus superstar.
If the Argentine thrives in the EPL, He will definitely shut up his haters and put their doubts to bed.
#4 Son Heung Min is every manager's dream
Being the manager of a top football club is very difficult. The pressure is always on from the fans, players, the owner, the board and pundits. Ultimately, the manager takes the blame for poor results, be it a result of decisions made by himself or circumstances beyond his control. The manager eventually gets the sack and the cycle begins again.
Son Heung Min is every manager's dream - a quality, hardworking and baggage-less player. His contribution versus Newcastle proved to be a winning one and saw him make another important strike since he returned from the Asian Cup.
Pochettino must be thanking his stars that Son has returned back to aid their title challenge in the absence of Kane and Delle Alli. Keeping the South Korean captain fit and firing would be all important for Mauricio Pochettino ahead of the return of Harry Kane and Dele Alli.
#5 Wolves are the best team outside the top six
It seems pretty obvious considering they already occupy the 7th position. However, in terms of style of play, organization and quality, Wolves are a far better team than any other outside the top six.
It is no mean feat considering they were just promoted back to the top flight this season. They have to be one of the best newly promoted teams in EPL history.
Traditionally, the 40-point mark is usually enough to escape relegation. Wolves have accumulated 38 points with 14 matches to go. Game after game, they have shown that they can not only survive but thrive among the very best in this league.
For a newly promoted side, they have quality all over the side and the spine of the team is strong enough to match any team and even give the top teams a run for their money.
Much credit must be given to their manager, Nuno Espirito Santo who has consistently set up his side to play good quality football.
