As seems to be the case so often this season, the next set of fixtures in the Premier League appear crucial to the outcome of the title race. Arsenal currently lead the way, five points clear of nearest rivals Manchester City with a game in hand over them, giving them a huge advantage.
One key point to make is that neither side has faced each other yet in the league, setting up a classic "six-pointer" when they eventually clash. The first of those meetings comes next Wednesday (February 15) at the Emirates Stadium, where a points swing either way could be huge.
The two title challengers can't get too ahead of themselves though, as they both have games to play before then, with any dropped points creating issues. How they respond in those clashes will be huge too after the title race took another twist and turn over the past week.
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Arsenal appeared to open the door to City to close the gap to just two points after they were defeated by Everton and new manager Sean Dyche. The Toffees have been embroiled in a relegation scrap, but the former Burnley boss made an instant impact and became only the second side to earn a win over the Gunners in the league.
"The best way to do it [respond] is understand who we are, how we got where we are and start to do the basic things right, start to play the way we want to play," Mikel Arteta said in his post-match assessment of the loss. "Then start to do it better individually and collectively and then you will earn the right to win games."
While it was seen as a bruising defeat, their north London rivals Tottenham did them a favour as they earned a huge victory over Manchester City on the Sunday, which was a huge reprieve. It keeps things the same as they were before the weekend started, albeit with a game more now played.
For Arteta though, he may hold a key advantage over his adversary Guardiola when it comes to rebounding from such a defeat. The Spaniard has had a similar core of players throughout his team selections this season, such as Aaron Ramsdale, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes, Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka, Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka.
These players have been the go-to options, with occasional changes around them to ensure that the side match whoever they are facing. Compare that to City, who have continued to have large changes made to their line-up as Guardiola tries to find a winning formula.
Kevin De Bruyne was dropped on Sunday while a new idea was tested in Rico Lewis playing on the left with Kyle Walker on the right. The tactical flexibility of Guardiola is both a blessing and a curse, offering changes to beat an opponent but a lack of consistency in performances and results so far.
While Arteta makes tweaks, they are often subtle and his smaller and settled squad in this instance could give him a boost in this race for first.
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