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Five talking points ahead of this weekend's Premier League matches

City head into Saturday's fixture looking to extend their record-breaking 15-game winning run.

Manchester City host Tottenham and Liverpool travel to Leicester in the headline Premier League games this weekend.

Here, the PA news agency looks at some talking points ahead of the latest round of fixtures.

Old rivals clash

Much has changed since Tottenham beat Manchester City in November
Much has changed since Tottenham beat Manchester City in November (Clive Rose/PA)

Tottenham were starting to look like serious title challengers when they beat Manchester City 2-0 in November but the fortunes of both clubs have turned dramatically in the opposite directions since. While City have not lost again, and head into Saturday's reverse fixture looking to extend their record-breaking 15-game winning run, Spurs are drifting. Jose Mourinho's men have slipped to eighth with a three-game losing sequence only broken by last week's victory over struggling West Brom. Their 5-4 defeat to Everton in the FA Cup in midweek was another blow to confidence. Mourinho needs to revive the spirit of the Special One to get the better of old rival Pep Guardiola this time.

Liverpool face testing trip

Liverpool suffered a chastening loss to Manchester City last weekend
Liverpool suffered a chastening loss to Manchester City last weekend (Laurence Griffiths/PA)

Liverpool's hopes of defending their title were all-but ended by last week's damaging loss to City. The champions have endured a wretched spell with just two wins in their last nine league outings and the 4-1 thrashing by City was a hefty blow, both psychologically and in terms of the points it left them trailing by. The Reds look tired and jaded and in such circumstances a trip to third-placed Leicester, in the dreaded 12.30pm Saturday slot, would hardly be top of their wishlist. After dropping so many points to bottom-half teams, Liverpool need to start performing against better-placed sides to repair some damage – or else their top-four place could be in jeopardy.

West Brom defence

West Brom have continued to struggle despite the arrival of Sam Allardyce
West Brom have continued to struggle despite the arrival of Sam Allardyce (Glyn Kirk/PA)

After thrashing Southampton 9-0 recently, Manchester United may fancy their chances of further boosting their goal difference as they come up against the leaky defence of West Brom. The relegation-threatened Baggies brought in Sam Allardyce in the hope of tightening up and clawing their way out of the drop zone, but they have continued to ship goals at an alarming rate. They have conceded 28 in Allardyce's 10 league matches in charge and have won just once in that period. United could be licking their lips.

Southampton and Wolves meet again

Danny Ings scored as Southampton beat Wolves on Thursday
Danny Ings scored as Southampton beat Wolves on Thursday (Nick Potts/PA)

That 9-0 loss for Southampton was one of four defeats in succession for Ralph Hasenhuttl's side before they edged out Wolves in the FA Cup on Thursday. It will be interesting to see if that win gives Saints an injection of confidence as they prepare to face Wolves again this weekend, this time at home. Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo was also far from complimentary about his team after the cup defeat and will be demanding a response to prevent their poor form continuing any further. These factors could add spice to a mid-table encounter.

Refereeing

It has been a difficult few weeks for the men in the middle
It has been a difficult few weeks for the men in the middle (Laurence Griffiths/PA)

There will be some in the game – particularly in the officiating departments – hoping for nothing more than a weekend free of refereeing controversy. It has been a tough few weeks for the men in the middle, and their video assistant colleagues, with some particularly contentious decisions and incidents which have exposed shortcomings in the laws. Referee Mike Dean has even received death threats, so fierce has the heat become. A cooling off would certainly be welcomed.

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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola pictured on January 3, 2021
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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool108111961325
2Manchester CityMan City1072121111023
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest10541147719
4Chelsea105322012818
5Arsenal105321711618
6Aston Villa105321715218
7Tottenham HotspurSpurs1051422111116
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton104421714316
9Fulham104331413115
10Bournemouth104331312115
11Newcastle UnitedNewcastle104331010015
12Brentford104151920-113
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd10334912-312
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham103251319-611
15Leicester CityLeicester102441418-410
16Everton102351017-79
17Crystal Palace10145813-57
18Ipswich TownIpswich100551021-115
19Southampton10118719-124
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves100371427-133


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