City chase Arsenal for 1st place, Liverpool makes pivotal win in Premier League

Arsenal get back on track with another 3 points this weekend to keep 1st place out of the hands of Manchester City, a team with 4 straight victories in the Premier League.

Liverpool vs Brighton

Even with apparent issues this season, the mighty Reds have gone 4 games undefeated in all competitions, winning their most recent bout against Brighton in a 2-0 shutout victory. Liverpool saw 18 shots taken for 5 on target, despite being out-possessed by Brighton with 51% of the ball. Liverpool's Hugo Ekitike found a way in the 1' to open the scoring with a half volley finish near the penalty spot to help the Reds take the lead. It became the Frenchman's special day when he netted a 60' brace from a back post header offer a corner kick taken by Mohamed Salah, earning his 2nd brace in a row in the Premier League (4 goals in his last 3 games), and his 7th goal of the season. The Reds move up to 7th place with 26 points and a 8-2-6 record as they continue to pursue a hopeful top 4 finish in the Premier League this season.

Arsenal vs Wolverhampton

Arsenal had a relatively close game on the score line in their recent 2-1 result over the Wolves, but they press on with their pursuit of their first Premier League title since the 2003/04 season. The Gunners carried out absolute domination over the 20th place relegation bound Wanderers with 17 shots, 5 on target and 70% possession. However, both their goals of the day game from Wolverhampton own goals, with the first coming in the 70' from an Arsenal corner kick deflected off the back post against the back of Wolves' keeper Sam Johnstone and into the net. Surprisingly, the Wolves answered with an incredible 90' header from Tolu Arokadare to equalize, with the Gunners surely set to drop another 2 points. Just 4 minutes later though, Wolves' defender Yerson Mosquera would accidentally redirect a header into his own net, allowing Arsenal to take the 2-1 win without any of their own players netting a goal this match to stay in 1st place in the Premier League with 36 points in total.

Crystal Palace vs Manchester City

Manchester City have yet to give up on their 9th Premier League title in 15 seasons as they captured a solid 3-0 win over 5th place Crystal Palace on Sunday. They claimed their 5th win in a row in all competitions as they to continue to put pressure on Arsenal at 2nd place in the Premier League with 34 points. This match, City was hitting the target with surefire accuracy, as they committed 7 shots with 6 on target and 63% possession, even though Crystal Palace doubled the Sky Blues shot count with 14 in total. City's Erling Haaland rose above the Palace defense to bury a header in the 41', while Phil Foden followed up in the second half with a calm finish in the 61' assisted Bernardo Silva's breakthrough dribble. An 88' penalty found Erling Haaland at the spot to tuck away his 17th goal of the season to seal the Sky Blues 2nd shutout win in a row in the Premier League, as they follow 1st place Arsenal by the end of matchday 16 just 2 points behind.

Get ready for more Premier League matchups before the holidays with games kicking off this upcoming weekend, starting with Newcastle vs Chelsea at 7:30 am EST on Saturday, December 20.