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Talking Points With the Premier League on hold for the FIFA World Cup

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An unparalleled season in the Premier League has been suspended for six weeks to make way for the Premier League Globalism The cup with Arsenal enjoys a five-point lead at the top of the table.

Arsenal, who haven’t won the title since the undefeated 2003/04 season “The Invincibles”, have failed to even break into the top four in the past six seasons.

Mikel Arteta’s men are on their way back to the Champions League, but Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United have some ground to make if they want to get back into the top four.

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AFP Sport looks at three talking points from the Premier League season so far:

– Arsenal Arteta project paying off –

The three-year anniversary of Arteta’s appointment as Arsenal manager will take place during the World Cup hiatus.

Arsenal have gone through a series of highs and lows from winning the FA Cup in 2020 to finishing eighth in successive seasons.

But the Spaniard’s patience paid off in stunning fashion as Arteta molded a young squad into title contenders.

City may regret the decision to sell Gabriel Jesus and Aleksandr Zinchenko to Arsenal as they added title experience to a group of promising stars.

No team has ever failed to win the league after taking 37 points from their first 14 matches.

The real test still lies ahead, particularly with two great matches against City ahead, but Arsenal’s early-season pace has led to another intriguing title battle.

– Newcastle go up ahead of schedule –

The traditional Big Six were well aware of the threat Newcastle would pose in the coming years, buoyed by the seemingly endless wealth of the Saudi sovereign wealth fund.

But the magpies are ahead of the schedule in the fight for a place in the top four.

Eddie Howe’s men got 22 of a possible 24 points to go into the break in third.

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With Champions League fortunes a realistic target, Newcastle are expected to hand out their newfound wealth again in January.

But Hou’s best work so far is reviving the careers of players who arrived at St James’ Park long before the Saudi money poured in.

Miguel Almiron won October’s Player of the Month award, while Callum Wilson’s performance saw him make it into England’s World Cup squad.

Even if they drop in form in the New Year, Newcastle are the new force of English football who are not going away.

– Haaland beats England –

Arsenal’s feat of keeping City out of the top of the table was all the more impressive in the context of Erling Haaland’s explosive start to his career in England.

Pep Guardiola’s men won back-to-back titles largely without a known striker, but they did get the man they wanted to be Sergio Aguero’s successor in Norway.

Haaland, who scored 86 goals in 89 appearances for Borussia Dortmund before moving to Manchester, dismissed any notion he might struggle to adapt to City’s style.

The 22-year-old has scored hat-tricks in three successive home league matches amid a streak of 18 goals in his first 13 Premier League appearances.

A ligament injury has slowed that rate in recent weeks, but Haaland will feel rested and fresh after the World Cup break with Norway failing to qualify for Qatar.

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