THE PREMIER LEAGUE schedule returns to some normality this weekend as we reach the end of the busy festive period. There are eight games on Saturday and two down for decision on Sunday. Here are 5 talking points to digest before the action.
LVG in desperate need of a win
Despite his side’s rotten run of form, Louis van Gaal insists Man United can still win the Premier League title. United have gone seven games in all competitions without a win and are in danger of finding themselves outside of the running for the top four.
The pressure is mounting on van Gaal and the level of discontent inside Old Trafford has audibly risen with each passing game. Swansea are the visitors to the Theatre of Dreams on Saturday hoping to inflict more woe on United’s under-fire manager.
Incredibly, the Welsh club have won the last three meetings between the sides and will have their eyes on another victory this weekend. Still without a manager following the sacking of Garry Monk, the Swans have enjoyed their own mini-revival and have given themselves some breathing room down towards the bottom.
All the pressure will be on the hosts to force the agenda on Saturday and play with the same energy and vigour they showed against Chelsea. Van Gaal needs something to click and fast or else his last game as manager could come against the side who were his first opposition back in August 2014.
Relegation six-pointer
It may be stretching it to label Sunderland’s meeting with Aston Villa as the proverbial six-pointer given we’re in the first week of January – but such is the current situation both clubs find themselves in, it very much is.
The league’s bottom two sides go head-to-head at the Stadium of Light with both in desperate need of something, anything, to ignite their abject seasons. Villa, the visitors, find themselves staring down the barrel and need a remarkable upturn in fortunes to haul themselves out of the red.
They are without a win since the opening day and are floundering as their season continues to go from bad to worse. Sunderland aren’t in much better shape.
Defeat to Liverpool on Wednesday was their fifth straight league loss and they, like Villa, are in danger of being cut off as those above them continue to pick up points.
The alarm bells won’t be ringing quite yet for the Black Cats and Big Sam, they’ve been here plenty of times before, but anything less than three points on Saturday and they will be sitting a little uneasier at the start of 2016.
Can Leicester maintain their incredible form into 2016?
There’s no doubt as to what the success story of 2015 was but the challenge for Leicester now is to continue their form and maintain their lofty league position as the season progresses into the business end.
Claudio Ranieri’s team have surpassed even their own expectations with a remarkable run of form which saw them finish the calendar year level on points with Arsenal at the top of the Premier League table.
Each week, you almost expect one defeat or bad result to be the start of a slide down the standings but they’ve maintained their form throughout the first 19 games of the campaign.
They welcome Bournemouth to the King Power Stadium on Saturday for a fixture which you would expect, as 2nd versus 16th, to yield three points for the hosts.
Bournemouth looked tired against Arsenal last time out and the busy Christmas period appears to have taken its toll on Eddie Howe’s thin squad. But, like Leicester, they have surpassed expectations this term and have recovered from a shaky start to reach the turn of the year outside the relegation zone.
Their challenge is to stay outside it come May while for Leicester, who knows what’s possible for the Foxes in 2016.
Can Arsenal handle the pressure as league leaders?
Could this finally be Arsenal’s season? There is a growing body of evidence to suggest this is the Gunners’ league title for the taking as they find themselves in pole position.
Arsenal are now better placed to win the title than in any other season since they last lifted the league trophy back in 2003-04. Although they have flirted with glory on occasion since, all the variables appear to have fallen into place for Arsene Wenger’s men.
There is a renewed sense of hope around the Emirates but there will always be that nagging doubt. There have been near misses before when the Gunners have fallen away when it mattered most.
St Andrews in 2008, when William Gallas took his anger out on an advertising board, springs to mind. They squandered a five point lead that year – but this campaign feels different.
They have defensive stability, brought by the arrival of Petr Cech, and their key players – Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez – are spearheading the title challenge.
Newcastle provide the opposition on Saturday and Wenger will be hoping the turn of the year doesn’t ignite one of his side’s collapses.
Islington City Council have already marked the trophy parade in the diary for May. Tempting fate, maybe but this is Arsenal’s title to lose.
New Year, new start
It may not be the start of the season but the turning of the calendar is a chance for sides to wipe the slate clean and look to right the wrongs of the previous 12 months.
There are some teams, Aston Villa, Man United and Newcastle to name a few, who will be glad to see the back of 2015 while others, Leicester, will have wanted it to extend that bit longer.
It was a year which saw Chelsea win the Premier League and then sack Jose Mourinho a matter of months later. The fairytale of Leicester, in both surviving relegation and then climbing to the top, is undoubtedly one of the highlights while Man United and Liverpool continued to struggle.
There was no shortage of drama throughout the year and with both ends of the table extremely tight as we enter 2016, the next twelve months promise to be even better.
Bring it on.
