As the 2022/23 season goes on pause for the FIFA World Cup, Arsenal are top of the Premier League for the first time in 15 years.
The Gunners have a 5-point lead over Manchester City with both teams having played 14 matches. Arsenal have remarkably won 12 games this season, two more than the defending champions. No other Premier League club has picked up 10 wins this term.
Man City lost at home to Brentford, 1-2, in their last league outing before the campaign interval and there is little doubt the Pep Guardiola’s players would have had the World Cup on their minds. 9 of 11 starters for City are heading for Qatar, with Riyad Mahrez and Erling Haaland their only first-team regulars staying behind for those six weeks.
That hiccup by the Citizens means that Guardiola’s ex-apprentice Mikel Arteta and his Arsenal side will be 5 points clear at Christmas, with the season scheduled to resume on Boxing Day.
This is the sixth time Arsenal will be top of the pile at Christmas but they will be desperate to avoid history repeating itself. Each of the last five times the Gunners have led the pack at Christmas, they’ve gone on to lose the title. the The 2007/08 season was the last time Arsenal were top on December 25.
Three points for @Arsenal will see them top of the #PL table at Christmas for the first time since 2007/08 🎄
— Premier League (@premierleague) November 12, 2022
However, they haven’t gone on to win the title after any of the last five times they’ve done so 👀#WOLARS pic.twitter.com/VCx1PxhEQL
Man City dropping points also allowed for Newcastle Utd to close the gap behind them, with the high-flying Magpies only 2 points adrift but they have played a game more than City.
Newcastle have lost just once in the league and they will be third in the Premier League at Christmas, for the first time in two decades. Eddie Howe continues to perform a fantastic job on Tyneside and the club’s turnaround in the last 12 months has been simply sensational.
Tottenham are in possession of the fourth and final Champions League spot and they are 3 points above Man United, though the Red Devils have played one match fewer. As it stands, the battle for the remaining European places is a free-for-all with a handful of teams in the mix. Liverpool are sixth, 4 points off Man Utd, while Brighton and Chelsea are level on 21 points – one behind Liverpool.
Liverpool have been punching well below their weight this term and the Reds have significant ground to make up in the next portion of the campaign. Jurgen Klopp sees his cavalry 7 points shy of the UEFA Champions League places, although they have a game in hand over 4th-placed Tottenham.
So far, the Reds have picked up 22 points from a possible 42, meaning they have won 2 points more than they’ve lost. Fortunately for them, the season isn’t half over and there is plenty of time for the pendulum to swing.
With the campaign essentially split into two mini-seasons, Liverpool may suddenly close in on the top four as many of their senior players are not going to the World Cup.
Mohamed Salah (Egypt) and Andrew Robertson (Scotland) did not qualify for the tournament, while Roberto Firmino (Brazil) and Thiago (Spain) were not called up by their respective national teams. Diogo Jota is ruled out with a hamstring injury and Luis Diaz is sidelined with a knee problem and his native Colombia did not qualify for the showpiece in Qatar.
Towards the opposite end of the table, Nottingham Forest, Southampton, and Wolves occupy the bottom three places. West Ham and Everton are both 1 point clear of the drop zone.
Two of the bottom three, Southampton and Wolves have rang personnel changes in recent weeks and the coming period will allow both teams to come to grips with life under their new respective bosses, Nathan Jones and Julen Lopetegui.
Wolves have won fewer games (2) than any other team in the English top flight, while the Saints have claimed victory just four times in 26 league meetings since March this year.
There have been five managerial sackings so far this season with Scott Parker, Thomas Tuchel, Bruno Lage, Steven Gerrard, and Ralph Hasenhuttl all dismissed within three months since the start of the campaign.
Aston Villa have sprung to life since Unai Emery took charge, with the Villains earning three wins from four league matches post-Gerrard – they only took two wins from 11 games this term under the ex-Liverpool captain. At the time of his departure Villa were outside of the relegation zone by virtue of goals scored, now they are 5 points clear of the drop.
Aston Villa pick up more away points (3) in Unai Emery’s first away game than in their opening 7 away PL games this season (2 points).
— Sky Sports Statto (@SkySportsStatto) November 13, 2022
Aston Villa win after conceding the first goal in a PL game for the first time since December 2021.
Emeryball. pic.twitter.com/Ya3b6N6gU6
Man City attacker Erling Haaland is running away in the race for the PL Golden Boot. He has netted 18 goals in 13 league outings, averaging a goal every 58 minutes. Harry Kane has scored the second-most with 12 goals for Spurs. Brentford striker Ivan Toney has 10 league goals to his name.
Man City’s chief playmaker Kevin De Bruyne leads the way in the assists chart, with nine. Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka has created six goals. De Bruyne has also created 14 big chances, which is seven more than any other player in the Premier League, and the Belgium maestro averages the most key passes per game (3,4) throughout the division.
Nick Pope and Aaron Ramsdale have kept seven clean sheets apiece for Newcastle and Arsenal. No keeper in the league has mustered more shutouts this season than the pair of England goalkeepers. Danny Ward (Leicester) and Man City goalie Ederson have each kept six clean sheets.
The domestic season now takes a breather for six weeks while an estimated 132 Premier League-based players take to Qatar. The Premier League resumes on December 26, eight days after the World Cup final at the Lusail Stadium.
