Sporting Tribune presents five things to look out for when Matchday 23 of the Premier League resumes this weekend
Arsenal looks to bounce back after rare defeat
Arsenal’s good mood was sent crashing down to the ground last week with a shock 1-0 defeat to Everton, and they even had bitter North London rivals, Tottenham, to thank for doing them a favour against Man City later in the weekend. Yuck.
Mikel Arteta will demand a reaction but has the unenviable task of countering Thomas Frank and Brentford, who have been among the biggest thorns in the top sides this season.
Return of Joao Felix
Joao Felix’s 60-minute Chelsea debut was chaos from start to finish.
The Atletico Madrid loanee evoked memories of Eden Hazard before being shown a straight red card which has kept him out of the Blues’ last three games.
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Felix is finally back in contention for Graham Potter’s side, who may need him to get through West Ham.
Conte back to touchline after surgery
Antonio Conte has recovered from surgery to remove his gallbladder and has been back at Tottenham’s training ground ahead of the trip to Leicester.
Just whether the Italian will be back on the touchline for that game is unclear, however, as assistant Cristian Stellini confirmed Conte has been ordered to take it easy for a little while, something he notoriously does not do.
The Italian tactician missed out on Spurs 1-0 win over Man City, and will be itching to return to action.
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Manchester United and Leeds are back at it again
Just days after their 2-2 draw, Leeds and Manchester United will clash again.
Leeds will hope for more of the same, but for Man United, it’s all about coping without Casemiro better than they did the first time around. Fred and Marcel Sabitzer are the only fit senior midfielders on the books, and they struggled to replicate the Brazilian’s impact.
Erik ten Hag has had a few days to try and sort something out, but with limited options, he’s facing one of the toughest tests of his time in England.
Merseyside Derby
Everton’s unlikely win against Arsenal last weekend will give them a new level of confidence as they head into a Merseyside derby against a wounded Liverpool side.
Games in the Premier League don’t get much feistier than this one, and it’s been a while since both Everton and Liverpool have been under this sort of pressure. Neither side can afford a defeat.
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