Liverpool Aims To Extend Lead As Arsenal Faces Man United And Man City Travels To Forest

Liverpool is almost guaranteed to win the Premier League, but the race for the Champions League spots behind them is heating up.

Only six points separate struggling Nottingham Forest in third place from Aston Villa in 10th. A top-five finish is almost certain to guarantee a spot in next season’s premier European club competition.

Second-placed Arsenal are 13 points behind Liverpool but with a cushion over the chasing pack and will be keen to pile more misery on Manchester United after hammering PSV Eindhoven 7-1 on Tuesday.

Sportxparte examines three key topics before this weekend’s matches.

Liverpool’s perfect visitors

Arne Slot confessed that luck and an exceptional performance from goalkeeper Alisson Becker secured a narrow 1-0 Champions League victory for his team against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.

With the return leg of the last-16 tie against the French champions to come at Anfield on Tuesday, Slot could not have hand-picked a more accommodating fixture this weekend to lighten the load.

Southampton, languishing at the bottom of the table, journey to Merseyside with a meager nine points from 27 matches. The Saints’ situation is so dire that their primary objective is simply to surpass Derby County’s infamous Premier League low of 11 points.

Slot will most likely rotate his side, especially after strong performances off the bench in Paris from Wataru Endo, Darwin Nunez and match-winner Harvey Elliott.

Man City faces Forest

After a disappointing season, Manchester City finds itself fighting for a Champions League spot next year.

Even this typically straightforward objective is not guaranteed for Pep Guardiola’s team.

With six titles in the past seven seasons, City have rarely had to worry about their place in the Champions League in the Guardiola era.

However, they’ll travel to Forest on Saturday with a sense of unease. The reigning champions, currently in fourth place, are just one point behind Forest in third.

Fifth-placed Chelsea, just one point adrift of City, host lowly Leicester on Sunday, leaving City with little margin for error at the City Ground.

However, Guardiola’s men may be facing Forest at the right time.

The two-time European champions secured six consecutive Premier League victories starting in early December, aiming to qualify for the Champions League for the first time since 1980.

However, their form has dipped, with only two wins in their last seven league matches.

Arsenal Looks to Continue Goal-Scoring Spree

Arsenal could be 16 points behind Liverpool by the time they kick off against Manchester United on Sunday.

With their title hopes fading, Mikel Arteta’s team will use the match at Old Trafford to demonstrate a renewed attacking prowess.

After scoring just two goals in their previous four games in all competitions, the Gunners’ attack finally exploded in the Netherlands this week as they virtually ensured progress to the Champions League quarter-finals.

Arsenal, missing injured strikers Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus, as well as wingers Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli, scored seven goals in a match for the first time in 13 years.

Adding to their goal glut against misfiring United would be a welcome sign that they can muster the firepower required to apply a little pressure to Liverpool while challenging for European glory.

Languishing in 14th place and plagued by defensive problems, the struggling Red Devils could be the perfect opponent for Arteta’s team to refine their improvised attack.