Who: Arsenal vs Newcastle United
What: English Premier League
Where: Emirates Stadium in London, United Kingdom
When: Saturday at 5:30pm (16:30 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 13:30 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.
This season’s Premier League title race is quickly – and unexpectedly – becoming one of the greatest in the competition’s history.
Manchester City’s win at Burnley on Wednesday night, albeit nervy, ended Arsenal’s nearly four-month stay at the top of the standings, a position that seemed insurmountable only a month ago.
The Gunners can fire back, though, with two games to play before City take to the field again in the league.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a look at how Arsenal could reclaim the top spot against Newcastle on Saturday and potentially go on to establish a six-point advantage.
City’s 1-0 win at Burnley on Wednesday night left them tied with Arsenal on both points (70) and goal difference (+37). City tops the table only courtesy of more goals scored (66 to Arsenal’s 63).
Pep Guardiola’s side were nine points adrift of the Gunners after drawing with West Ham on March 14. Three straight wins, combined with back-to-back losses for Arsenal, have seen the title race turn on its head.
The Gunners entertain Newcastle United on Saturday in a game that will allow them to move three points clear of City with a win.
The North London club’s following fixture is also at home, against Fulham on May 2, and comes before City’s next Premier League game – away to Everton on May 4.
City do not have a game this weekend because they are competing in the semifinal of the FA Cup against Southampton. A date for the league game originally scheduled against Crystal Palace in this round has yet to be found.
It will not come before the May 4 trip to Everton, however, by which time Arsenal could be six points clear although City will have two games in hand.
The Gunners’ last match was their 2-1 defeat at Manchester City, which gave Guardiola’s side the chance to take the title race into their own hands.
Before that, Arsenal lost 2-1 at home to Bournemouth while in between those games was a 0-0 draw with Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League.
That result was enough for the Gunners to progress to the last four, where they will meet Atletico Madrid, having won the first leg at Sporting 1-0.
That victory is Arsenal’s only win in six matches in all competitions, a run that also saw them dumped out of the FA Cup by Southampton and defeated in the League Cup final by City.
Newcastle, a side that were early-season challengers for the Premier League only two seasons ago, have staggeringly lost their last four matches.
They have won only one of their last seven in all competitions. That win was at least in the Premier League and on the road – a 1-0 victory at Chelsea.
Eddie Howe’s side will enter this round of matches in 14th position.
Arsenal secured a 2-1 win at Newcastle in September in the reverse Premier League fixture between the sides this season.
It needed a dramatic late comeback, however, as Nick Woltemade’s 34th-minute goal stood until the 84th minute when Mikel Merino levelled for the Gunners.
Gabriel Magalhaes then secured an injury-time winner for Arteta’s men, who had heavily dominated the match in both their play and all the statistics.
Arsenal edged to a narrow 1-0 win against Newcastle in the corresponding fixture at Emirates Stadium last season.
Declan Rice scored the only goal of the May 15 game in the 55th minute after a tussle that was almost inseparable based on the stats.
Newcastle knocked Arsenal out of last season’s English League Cup semifinal with a 4-0 aggregate win.
The first leg was played in London with Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon scoring the goals while the return leg saw Jacob Murphy net the opener before Gordon found his way onto the scoresheet once again.
The two cup wins for Newcastle last season completed a three-match winning streak against Arsenal.
The Premier League fixture in Newcastle saw the home side win 1-0 through Isak’s 12th-minute goal.
This will be the 199th meeting between the sides with Arsenal winning 87 and Newcastle winning 72 of the encounters.
The first meeting was in 1893 in the old Division Two (the second tier of English football) when Arsenal were held to a 2-2 home draw. Newcastle won the return fixture later that season 6-0.
It has been nearly 16 years since Newcastle won a Premier League game at Arsenal – a 1-0 win in November 2010.
Andy Carroll scored the only goal of the game on the stroke of half-time while Laurent Koscielny was sent off in the 90th minute for the Gunners.
There have been 13 Premier League matches played at Emirates Stadium between the sides since Newcastle’s last league win there.
The Gunners have scored 34 goals on the way to 12 wins in that run. Newcastle scored only six in reply – and have scored only twice in their last 11 league visits.
Bukayo Saka and Jurrien Timber are Arsenal’s main injury concerns for the visit by Newcastle. The former has an Achilles problem and has not featured since the League Cup final defeat by City a month ago.
Timber has a groin problem and is close to a return, but, like Saka, it is felt this game will come too soon.
Riccardo Calafiori could return to the side, however, having missed the last three games with a knock. Mikel Merino is still a long-term injury with a fractured foot.
Anthony Gordon remains a doubt for Newcastle after missing their recent defeat by Bournemouth with a hip issue.
Tino Livramento has a thigh injury and is a doubt, as is fellow defender Fabian Schar.
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