LONDON, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- Third-placed Aston Villa will take on Premier League leader Arsenal in the standout match of the weekend, which is also the first game to be played on Saturday lunchtime.
Aston Villa won a thrilling game 4-3 away to Brighton on Wednesday to climb to third in the table, with Ollie Watkins also returning to form in front of goal. The fourth consecutive win for Unai Emery's side, which has suffered only one league defeat since August, saw it overtake Chelsea in the standings, just a point behind Manchester City.
Arsenal had a comfortable 2-0 win at home to Brentford but has fitness doubts over key midfielder Declan Rice and central defender Cristhian Mosquera, both of whom had to be substituted during Wednesday's win.
Manchester City is also in action on Saturday, with Sunderland likely to provide a solid test for Pep Guardiola's side.
Manchester City's recent matches have been rollercoaster affairs, such as Tuesday's 5-4 win away to Fulham, where Guardiola's side thrilled in attack but again looked fragile in defense, allowing its rival back into the match.
Sunderland impressed during its visit to Anfield on Wednesday and has also secured a win at Stamford Bridge, indicating it will not be an easy opponent.
Chelsea travels to the south coast to face a Bournemouth side that has looked flat and slipped into freefall after starting the season in the top four.
Bournemouth's last victory came on October 26, and this may not be the best time to face a Chelsea side that was stunned by Leeds United on Wednesday night. Chelsea will still be without the suspended Moises Caicedo following his red card against Arsenal.
Leeds' recent win may have saved Daniel Farke's job as coach ahead of Saturday evening's clash with Liverpool. Liverpool's tentative recovery after its win against West Ham was halted by another disappointing performance at home against Sunderland on Wednesday.
Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak have both scored in the last two games, but Arne Slot will need his players to show character in the hostile atmosphere of Elland Road.
Summer signing Yoane Wissa could make his debut for Newcastle United in their home game against Burnley, who are on a five-match losing streak. Thomas Frank will face a tough challenge when Tottenham hosts his former club Brentford.
Tottenham's main objective will be to contain Brentford's 11-goal forward, Igor Thiago. Frank knows that a loss to his old club could weaken his position at Spurs.
Elsewhere, Sean Dyche takes his improving Nottingham Forest to face Everton, who sacked him for current coach David Moyes in January. While that was probably the correct decision, Dyche has again shown in Nottingham that he is a good coach to drag a team out of trouble.
Fulham plays Crystal Palace in a south London derby on Sunday, with winger Samuel Chukwueze pressing for a start after impressive cameos in recent games.
West Ham travels to face Brighton after securing a late equalizer against Manchester United on Thursday night, putting additional pressure on Ruben Amorim as his team heads to play bottom-placed and winless Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday.
That game also sees striker Matheus Cunha face his former club, which has clearly missed his goals this campaign. ■
