\n<\/p>\n
It\u2019s big at the top and bottom of the Premier League and huge at the foot of the Football League too\u2026<\/p>\n
After a break of what feels like forever \u2013 Manchester United have never had a longer scheduled lay-off<\/strong> \u2013 the Premier League returns with a full weekend from Friday to Monday.<\/p>\n With Easter in the rear view mirror, it\u2019s just massive everywhere\u2026<\/p>\n<\/p>\n This is massive for City, obviously, in the context of the title race, but it\u2019s also impossible to take eyes off Chelsea at the moment too.<\/p>\n The Blues are a confused, confusing mess, with too many leaders, all seemingly assuming the others know what they are doing. In the thick of it is a manager already out of his depth, leading a group of nonplussed players, many of whom are fluttering their eyelashes at other clubs.<\/p>\n Chief among them: vice-captain Enzo Fernandez, who misses the City visit through a suspension imposed by Liam Rosenior in a desperate attempt to claim some authority<\/strong>.<\/p>\n On the face of things, City should have few concerns about going to Stamford Bridge, where they haven\u2019t lost in their last five. But the fear with Chelsea, and the frustration among their supporters, is they can still turn it on if they are feeling that way inclined.<\/p>\n And for City, it\u2019s must-win. Come Sunday, albeit with two games in hand, it is entirely possible that they will be staring up at a 12-point gap between themselves and\u2026<\/p>\n<\/p>\n A lot has happened in the near-month since Arsenal last played in the Premier League. That was the 2-0 win over Everton when Max Dowman sparked pandemonium at the Emirates<\/strong>the boy\u2019s late show serving as a potentially defining moment in the title race.<\/p>\n The four games since have humbled Gooners somewhat. From a Quadruple they now claim never to have considered, Arsenal\u2019s potential trophy haul has been halved after defeats more damaging than simply the scoreline<\/strong> and consequence.<\/p>\n In truth, despite the Champions League being the only positive of their last four weeks, it could half again and Arsenal fans won\u2019t care much as long as the Premier League is their last trophy standing. And they don\u2019t bottle it.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve all had great fun at the Gunners\u2019 expense<\/strong> in the Barclays vacuum but now it\u2019s finally back, against Bournemouth on Saturday lunchtime, it is on Arsenal to reassert the authority lost having being out-coached by Pep Guardiola, and out-fought and out-thought by second-tier Southampton.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The man tasked with saving Spurs has been in post for a week and a half and, obviously, the messages being transmitted by the club are very positive. The players have taken to De Zerbi very positively, they are \u2018really enjoying\u2019 training, yada yada\u2026<\/p>\n Let\u2019s see how buoyant they are in Sunderland on Sunday. By the time they arrive on Wearside on Saturday, Tottenham will finally have slipped into the bottom three if West Ham have beaten rock-bottom Wolves on Friday night.<\/p>\n That is unlikely to affect De Zerbi\u2019s approach but it will be fascinating to see what wisdom the Italian has been able to impart on his beleaguered bunch in the 11 days since he took over from Igor Tudor.<\/p>\n De Zerbi is a front-footed coach, often to an extreme, who demands a very particular way of playing. His sides patiently tease and tempt opponents into positions they would prefer not to be before attacking at break-neck speed. They press in a similarly frantic fashion too, all of which would make Spurs great to watch if, as De Zerbi would have preferred, the manager had a full pre-season to preach his philosophy.<\/p>\n He\u2019s had a full week. How much will he have to compromise in the short-term to serve Spurs\u2019 immediate needs?<\/p>\n MORE: Top 10 issues De Zerbi and Tottenham must instantly address to try and avoid calamity<\/strong><\/p>\n Look, we can\u2019t ignore Liverpool this weekend. Arguably, there will be more eyes on Mo Salah as he plays at Anfield for the first time since it was announced his farewell procession had officially begun.<\/p>\n There will definitely be more eyes on Arne Slot<\/strong>very few of them sympathetic to the Liverpool manager\u2019s plight. Slot did not help himself with an ill-advised switch to a back three at PSG \u2013 it did not work<\/strong> \u2013 but he had reached the sh*t-chucking stage in the hope that something, anything might stick a good while before flying to Paris.<\/p>\n We will all be stunned if it turns out that Slot does have the answers to Liverpool\u2019s many woes after all. Without one of those<\/em> Anfield nights, which has rarely seemed more unlikely, next week prompting a swift and stunning uptick in performances and results, the Dutchman is on borrowed time.<\/p>\n Before PSG, though, come Fulham at Anfield. Which gives Slot an opportunity to see what shape the Premier League\u2019s most expensive player is in.<\/p>\n Isak was back on the bench in Paris, coming off it for the final 12 minutes to make one pass, one tackle and one turnover as the Reds sought little more than survival.<\/p>\n If Slot has any intention of trusting his \u00a3140million striker to help save him, a far longer cameo will be necessary against the Cottagers.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n In truth, there aren\u2019t many games on the continent this weekend to grab you by the balls and squeeze. The leaders in Italy, Spain and Germany all have seven-point leads, as will PSG in France if they win their game in hand over Lens.<\/p>\n Of the big European league pacesetters, Inter have perhaps the toughest test this weekend when, on Sunday night, they host local-ish rivals Como.<\/p>\n We say \u2018rivals\u2019 \u2013 Como won\u2019t have registered on Inter\u2019s radar until very recently. But in their second season in the top flight following three promotions in six seasons from Serie D, Cesc Fabregas has Como on course to keep going all the way to the Champions League.<\/p>\n They are currently fourth, one point ahead of Juventus. An incredible achievement, though their underdog story requires a little more context\u2026<\/p>\n MORE: Como\u2019s Champions League push under Cesc Fabregas is not the fairytale it seems<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n There is a very tasty East Anglian derby between promotion-chasing Ipswich and in-form Norwich on Saturday lunchtime, and we could have pointed you towards the all-Hatters affair in the Vertu Trophy final between Luton and Stockport on Sunday.<\/p>\n But you will have to pardon the self-indulgence for a few paragraphs while some of us sh*t ourselves ahead of the crunch League Two clash at Rodney Parade on Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n Bottom-placed Harrogate Town go to third-from-bottom Newport for a six-pointer to be endured, not enjoyed. It is tighter than two coats of paint at the foot of the Football League, where Town and Tranmere are separated by four places and three points, with Barrow and Newport sandwiched in between, all desperate to avoid dropping out of the 92.<\/p>\n In seasons past, you could generally rely on at least one basket case of a club to take up one of the two relegation spots, but this year no one is going to the National League willingly, even if Tranmere are spiralling having won just once since New Year\u2019s Day.<\/p>\n Harrogate have recovered from a 20-match winless run through the winter to give themselves a fighting chance in spring, while Premier League title winner Christian Fuchs has revived Newport after they spent 22 matchdays so far in the drop zone.<\/p>\n A win on Saturday won\u2019t keep either up but a defeat would make a potentially catastrophic relegation far likelier with three games to go.<\/p>\n <\/div>\nGame to watch \u2013 Chelsea v Manchester City<\/h2>\n
Team to watch \u2013 Arsenal<\/h2>\n
Manager to watch \u2013 Roberto De Zerbi<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Player to watch \u2013 Alexander Isak<\/h2>\n
European game to watch \u2013 Inter Milan v Como<\/h2>\n
EFL game to watch \u2013 Newport County v Harrogate Town<\/h2>\n