Football writer Alex Keble analyses where this weekend's fixtures could be won and lost, including:
- Can Arsenal take a big step to the title or will Chelsea prove they are still in the race?
- How does Amorim raise energy levels against explosive Palace?
- Will Nuno’s West Ham hit Liverpool’s weak points - or prove too defensive?
- Will Emery learn lessons from Leeds to get Villa playing with greater urgency?
- Can either Le Bris or Iraola take this chance to correct their faltering form?
- How can Frank get Spurs to play more expansively at home?
- Can Newcastle use Man City win to kick-start their season?
- Will Haaland run riot against Leeds?
- Can Burnley prove they are capable of fighting against relegation?
- Will Welbeck's form rid Brighton of the memory of last year’s disaster?
Can Arsenal take a big step to the title or will Chelsea prove they are still in the race?
Results last weekend have made this derby at Stamford Bridge the biggest match of the 2025/26 Premier League season so far, and should Arsenal win it could prove to be crucial in the title race come the end of the season.
There is still a very long way to go, but Arsenal’s potential rivals are dropping like flies.
Liverpool’s six defeats in seven Premier League matches leaves them with an almost impossible job to recover and retain their crown, and although Manchester City are capable, their path has narrowed.
Over the last 10 years the average number of defeats by a Premier League champion is 3.8. City are already on four.
Granted, the highest figure of the decade was Man City’s six defeats in 2020/21, when Pep Guardiola’s side had 20 points at the 12-game mark – two fewer than they have this season – only to accelerate away in the second half of the campaign. But they had only lost two matches at that point.
City need an unprecedented recovery, then, to catch Arsenal, potentially leaving only Chelsea, the team currently in second who – young, inexperienced, and probably lacking in defence – face a nine-point gap to the top if Arsenal can win at Stamford Bridge.
An Arsenal victory will put further distance between themselves and Chelsea – leaving nobody in their way, except maybe themselves.
How does Amorim raise energy levels against explosive Palace?
It was the stagnancy, the sense of aimless drift, that most disappointed Manchester United supporters in Monday evening's 1-0 home loss to Everton.
“You can't go from the fight that they showed in certain games to that,” former United defender Gary Neville said on the Gary Neville Podcast. “It just erodes confidence, it erodes trust.”
Ruben Amorim’s project had appeared to turn a corner over the last couple of months but Man Utd are now on a three-game winless run in the Premier League, while the basic formulation of the head coach’s 3-4-2-1 formation is back under the spotlight after a passive display against 10-man Everton.
This is probably the worst possible time to be travelling to Selhurst Park, where Oliver Glasner’s explosive, high-energy, fast-transitioning Crystal Palace are built to capitalise on inconsistent performances.
Palace, who have won four consecutive games to nil in all competitions, didn’t concede a goal in either Premier League match against Man Utd last season and counter-attacked to a 2-0 win at Old Trafford in February.
It is easy to envisage Jean-Philippe Mateta bullying the centre-backs, Adam Wharton dominating the midfield battle, and Ismaila Sarr dancing clear on the break.
Watch: Mateta scores Palace's second v Man Utd
Certainly that’s what will happen if the visitors are as hesitant and predictable as they were on Monday night.
Amorim needs to find a way to raise the team’s energy levels; to reignite the fire that saw United win all three of their games in October. Anything less and Palace can take full advantage.
Will Nuno’s West Ham hit Liverpool’s weak points - or prove too defensive?
West Ham United’s seven points from their last three Premier League matches indicates that Nuno Espirito Santo has quickly imparted his ideas on the squad.
The Hammers are solid defensively and structured in their counter-attacks, using Callum Wilson (three goals in two) as the Chris Wood-style fulcrum.
In theory it is precisely the kind of football that will hurt Liverpool.
They have repeatedly been vulnerable when facing low blocks they are unable to break down and when facing direct counter-attacking football down Ibrahima Konate’s side, where 42 per cent of the attacks Liverpool concede have come – and where the in-form Crysencio Summerville plays.
However, the way West Ham let a two-goal lead slip at AFC Bournemouth gives pause for thought.
Nuno has always had a tendency to make conservative substitutions, hunkering down to preserve a lead, but it backfired at the Vitality Stadium because the Hammers, out of the relegation zone on goal difference only, are brittle to cope with inviting pressure onto themselves.
If West Ham take the lead against Liverpool and then do something similar it might hand Arne Slot’s side the chance to rediscover their attacking rhythms.
Will Emery learn lessons from Leeds to get Villa playing with greater urgency?
In the second half at Elland Road, after a meek first 45 minutes in which Aston Villa had deliberately narrowed the pitch only to get bullied in midfield, Unai Emery introduced width and pace on the flanks by bringing on Donyell Malen to play alongside Ollie Watkins in a far more direct forward line.
It turned the game around, coincidentally following almost exactly the same pattern as Villa’s 3-1 home victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers in September last season.
Then, Villa were 1-0 down at the break after a slow start, but Jhon Duran came on to play up front with Watkins, substitute Leon Bailey provided width, and Villa began to bypass a congested midfield, stretch Wolves’ defensive shape, and play longer balls into the final third.
Emery needs to plan something similar from the start. Eight of Villa’s 15 Premier League goals this season have been scored from outside the box, while only Burnley and Sunderland have recorded a lower Expected Goals (xG) total than Villa’s 10.9.
Struggling for creativity, Villa need more pace in the side, more urgency in getting the ball forward and more bodies around Watkins.
The way they ended the Leeds game – and the Wolves match last season – is how they should start this one.
Can either Le Bris or Iraola take this chance to correct their faltering form?
Sunderland and Bournemouth are locked on 19 points from 12 matches and both teams have now gone three matches without a win.
As Villa recover, and with the likes of Liverpool, Man Utd and Tottenham Hotspur lurking within one point despite difficult starts to the season, it is imperative that teams who have made a fast start to do not let their form slip as we enter the winter period.
Sunderland’s 1-0 defeat at Fulham might have been a sign of regression towards the mean, although Regis Le Bris’ team have been far better on home soil.
They are yet to lose in six matches (W3 D3), while Bournemouth rank 14th on away form with just five points – and no wins from the last four.
That form guide points to a positive result for the promoted team, which would be well timed.
Sunderland are yet to win a match in November, and if that run continues they will be in poor form for the start of a December sequence against Liverpool, Man City, and Newcastle United.
Sunderland's next PL fixtures
How can Frank get Spurs to play more expansively at home?
A 4-1 defeat at Arsenal last Sunday felt like a significant moment for many Spurs supporters, who after a wait-and-see approach to their side’s sluggish performances under Thomas Frank are now ready to demand more.
Frank has been overcautious tactically in too many matches for supporters who have regularly expressed their desire for expansive attacking football and distaste for the conservatism that defined Antonio Conte, Jose Mourinho, and even Ange Postecoglou over the final six months.
Spurs are winless in five home Premier League matches and, more often than not, have looked excessively cautious in a 4-3-3 formation of workmanlike midfielders unable to play through the thirds.
Players such as Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray are being sidelined – although, encouragingly, both started at Paris Saint-Germain in midweek - while Rodrigo Bentancur and Joao Palhinha take centre stage.
The visit of Fulham is an important opportunity for Frank to show that he can be flexible and can coach attacking football.
Marco Silva’s side have collected only one Premier League point away from home this season, suggesting they are there for the taking.
But if Frank once again packs the team with defensive midfielders, and if his side look hesitant in possession, then Fulham might snatch a point as Wolves did earlier in the season.
Of the 17 ever-present sides across the last two seasons, none have won fewer home points (12 from 15 matches) in 2025. It isn’t all Frank’s fault, but the fans are starting to run out of patience.
Can Newcastle use Man City win to kick-start their season?
Newcastle United are yet to win consecutive Premier League matches this season and they will not be able to recover from a tough start to the campaign unless that changes, meaning Eddie Howe needs to fix his team’s away form.
So far in 2025/26, Newcastle have won 12 points from six matches at St James' Park (2.0 points per game) and three points from six away matches (0.5 points per game).
Everton’s 1-0 victory at Old Trafford on Monday was evidence they will be formidable opponents, not least because their tendency to drop off and play long – avoiding getting caught in end-to-end contests – means Newcastle will not be allowed to play their natural game.
But Newcastle have to start winning matches like these. They play Spurs and Burnley, both at home, in their next two, matches that you would expect the Magpies to win.
So, if this weekend they can maintain momentum from the brilliant result against Man City, Newcastle could easily find themselves on a four-match winning streak as we approach Christmas – and right back in the hunt for Champions League qualification.
Will Haaland run riot against Leeds?
Leeds United are an aggressive team who look to confront the opposition high up the pitch even when playing away from home – which unfortunately explains why they have conceded a division-high 15 goals on the road this season.
Arsenal beat them 5-0 in August and this month both Brighton & Hove Albion and Nottingham Forest put three past Daniel Farke’s side.
The new directness of this Man City team should make them particularly good at breaking past Leeds. Expect Jeremy Doku and Erling Haaland to be given plenty of opportunities to stretch them.
It gets worse for Leeds. City have won 23 of their last 25 Premier League matches against promoted sides (drawing only two) and have won their last five in a row at the Etihad Stadium by an aggregate score of 16-2.
Haaland, with 14 goals in 12 Premier League matches this season, only needs one to join the 100 club. This could be the match he reaches his century.
Can Burnley prove they are capable of fighting against relegation?
When you are embroiled in a battle at the bottom end of the Premier League table, every single fixture presents itself as a challenge.
But while it’s true that Brentford at the Gtech Community is a stern challenge – Keith Andrews’ side have beaten Villa, Liverpool, Man Utd, and Newcastle on this ground already in 2025/26 – these are also the kind of fixtures Burnley need to be winning.
Burnley are only one point off 17th place, yet their three victories this season have come against Sunderland, Leeds and Wolves - the two other promoted teams and the club rock bottom on two points.
Their 24 goals conceded is also the third-most in the division and they have the lowest xG total of 8.7.
Scott Parker needs a result to show his team belong at this level.
Will Welbeck form rid Brighton of the memory of last year’s disaster?
Nottingham Forest have won back-to-back Premier League games, as many as they had in their previous 15, and so supporters will be looking forward to welcoming Brighton, the team they beat 7-0 in this exact fixture last season.
But there can surely be no repeat of that.
Brighton are in excellent form and nobody more so than Danny Welbeck, who took his season's tally to seven goals in his last seven Premier League games with an equaliser against Brentford last time out.
His battle with Murillo could prove decisive in a match that feels impossible to call.