Chelsea's on-loan Brazilian international Alexandre Pato scored on his debut to help push pathetic Aston Villa to the verge of inevitable relegation with a seventh successive Premier League defeat on Saturday. Pato, the former Milan starlet who has been kicking his heels since joining from Corinthians two months ago, came on as a 25th-minute substitute and was immediately involved in the move which led to Ruben Loftus-Cheek netting his first league goal.
Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri ruled himself out of the running for the job of Italy head coach on Thursday and said he hoped to stay at the Premier League leaders for years to come.
Manchester United midfielder Marouane Fellaini believes he was made the scapegoat for the team's torrid time under former manager David Moyes in the Premier League last season.
All eyes will be on Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal when he takes his team to Derby County for an FA Cup fourth-round tie on Friday with the fans' boos from their home defeat by Southampton still ringing in his ears.
Liverpool's Egyptian forward Mohamed Salah scored his 29th Premier League goal six minutes from time to secure a 2-1 win at Crystal Palace that took them up to provisional second spot in the table on Saturday.
Manchester United's winless run continued but they gave under-fire coach Louis van Gaal crumbs of cheer with a committed display in an entertaining 0-0 draw with Chelsea while Arsenal went top of the table on Monday.
Liverpool target Chelsea after midweek tinkering, while third-placed Manchester City, whose hopes of qualifying for the Champions League knockout stage were dealt a severe blow in a humiliating 2-1 home defeat by CSKA Moscow on Wednesday, travel south to face struggling Queens Park Rangers.
There may be little glamour in being a mid-table Premier League team but this season suggests that those clubs who become bored with such an existence can find the alternative is far worse.
Players from both teams took a knee in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement before Wednesday's game at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas, but their gesture was overshadowed by booing from a small section of fans.
Manchester City failed in an audacious transfer deadline day move for Leicester City midfielder Riyadh Mahrez, British media reported on Wednesday.
Only one point separates the two sides with Chelsea on 31 and City on 30 but Antonio Conte's impact at Stamford Bridge appears greater than his City counterpart Pep Guardiola's at the Etihad.
Chelsea's terrible start to the season plumbed new depths on Saturday when the Premier League champions lost 2-1 at West Ham United.
Manchester City's Kompany out of Liverpool clash with calf injury
Manchester City made sure of third place in the Premier League when they romped to a 5-0 win at Watford on Sunday to ensure a Champions League berth for next season.
Chelsea ticked off three more points in their Premier League title quest with a 2-1 victory over Manchester City on Wednesday but Tottenham Hotspur's Houdini-like 3-1 win at Swansea means the race is far from over.
Per Mertesacker is confident new goalkeeper Petr Cech will enhance Arsenal's defence and the centre back said he has already developed an understanding with the Czech international.
Raheem Sterling scored a hat-trick as champions Manchester City made a convincing start to their title defence with a 5-0 win over West Ham United.
Images from the EPL matches played on Saturday
But for third-placed Spurs, who trail leaders Manchester City and Liverpool by five points, this may prove to be a loss that leaves them with too much ground to make up.
Liverpool were sent spinning to a 2-0 defeat at promoted Burnley in the English Premier League on Saturday while Chelsea came from behind to win 2-1 at Watford thanks to late goals from Michy Batshuayi and Diego Costa.
Manchester City emerged from a trough of despair to beat Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 and move to within three points of the Premier League title at Wembley on Saturday.
Theo Walcott's double fired Arsenal back to the top of the Premier League as the Gunners got their title challenge back on track with a 3-1 victory at West Ham United on Thursday.
Guardiola said City had plenty of options, with Gabriel Jesus the only main striker fit and ready but Ilkay Gundogan and Raheem Sterling are able to slot into the role.
Imperious Liverpool extended their Premier League home winning streak against Arsenal to six on Saturday with an easy 4-0 victory that lifted them to second in the table.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Chelsea are 10 points clear at top of the English Premier League championship table.
McTominay injury takes gloss of vibrant United display
Liverpool blew a chance take a vice-like grip on the title race and Chelsea suffered their worst league defeat in 23 years.
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
Gerrard will wave goodbye to the Liverpool fans in his final home match against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Here are five talking points from the weekend's Premier League action:
Liverpool's hopes of qualifying for the Champions League all but ended.
France coach Didier Deschamps, who has kept tinkering with his squad since the start of the European Championship, will be forced to rejig once again when the hosts face Iceland for a place in the semi-finals. With centre back Adil Rami and holding midfielder N'Golo Kante suspended, Deschamps, who has been praised for shrewd tactical moves in the tournament, is looking for the best options for Sunday's game at the Stade de France.
Arsene Wenger hit back at Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho's thinly-veiled criticism.
Chelsea have been accused of being boring but they will not mind one bit if they beat Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge on Sunday to win the Premier League title for the first time in five years.
Here are five talking points from the weekend's action:
IMAGES from the EPL matches played on Saturday
Chelsea moved into the Premier League's top four as Mason Mount's superb first-half goal earned them a 1-0 win at champions Liverpool who suffered a club-record fifth straight home league defeat on Thursday.
Chelsea is currently at the fourth place in the Premier League standings with 63 points from 37 matches.
The Premier League bursts back into life after the international break.
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