EPL Weekend: Arsenal vs. Manchester United Highlights Return From International Break

Hey, whaddaya know, the Barclay’s (English) Premier League returns this weekend after the final international break of the 2014 calendar. Hopefully you enjoyed the break because the league crams in eight more rounds of games between this weekend and the close of the year. (There are also games on Jan. 1, 2015.)

Obviously the table hasn’t changed over the last two weeks. Chelsea is still steamrolling to the title, while everybody else is struggling to find a coherent, week-to-week starting XI that works. Let’s look at a few topics ahead of kickoff, shall we?

Narrative shift?: Once upon a time Manchester United-Arsenal was the game on the EPL calendar. It also coincided with the rise in the league’s availability in the United States on television.

This weekend at the Emirates the rivals meet (12:30 p.m., NBC) and although the title isn’t at stake a win by either club starts generating a little goodwill among the supporters as we narrow in on the crowded holiday season. On the flip side, we’re also staring down a lot of potential copy-and-pasted “Is it time for Arsene Wenger to step down” columns should Arsenal lose, which would be coupled with plenty of “Louis van Gaal’s team turns the corner” missives, or vice versa. Of course if we’re guessing potential columns for the English media to gush over, it’s Danny Welbeck scoring the winner for Arsenal in his first match against his former club with a nod to the league’s “you couldn’t have scripted” this clichés.

As for the game itself, Arsenal gets a boost with the potential return of forward Olivier Giroud, however the Gunners defense remains a mess as Laurent Koscielny and Mathieu Debuchy are still sidelined — an issue exasperated by the club’s woeful lack of defensive cover. United has its fair share of injuries on the defensive side, too, with Daley Blind now out with a knee injury, joining the likes of Luke Shaw, Phil Jones, Marco Rojo, Jonny Evans and Michael Carrick on the sidelines.

So yes, both teams are going to be piecing it together at the back which could either lead to a wide-open, goal-fest or a drab, close-to-the-vest kind of afternoon with each team afraid to press forward. The presence of Alexis Sanchez and Angel Di Maria make the latter seem less likely, as does the EPL’s reputation for rock ’em, sock ’em soccer at all costs.

If there’s one prediction I’m comfortable making ahead of time it’s that we’ll hear the phrase, “this is the perfect advertisement for the Premier League” uttered at least twice.

Mic’d Up: Stoke City’s American international Geoff Cameron will call Sunday morning’s Crystal Palace-Liverpool match alongside Arlo White on CNBC (8:30 a.m.). The network previously used Everton keeper Tim Howard for commentary earlier this season.

Admittedly I don’t know much about Cameron as a media entity or how polished he’ll sound behind the microphone. That said, I do like the strategy used by NBCSN to try active American players as analysts. In the age of social media it’s doubtful anyone will cut Cameron much slack, but as a viewer I’d think there’s more to gain from someone who’s actually tried to defend Raheem Sterling, for example, in a competitive soccer game than someone who hasn’t. (I wonder if NBC producers will want White to ask Cameron for his thoughts on Jurgen Klinsmann, given the USMNT’s struggles over the international break.)

Also of note as it pertains to this match, Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge re-injured his thigh and will be sidelined for the rest of 2014.

Degree of difficulty: Aforementioned Chelsea is four points clear of second-place Southampton, eight points better than Manchester City and double-digits ahead of everyone else How Jose Mourinho deals with Diego Costa’s on-going hamstring issues might be the only way to slow down the Blues, a topic I’ve touched upon in the past. Mourinho says Costa is “totally recovered” and ready for the onslaught of games ahead.

The Spanish international has 10 goals in nine league games this year, galvanizing the Chelsea attack. Losing Costa for an extended period of time wouldn’t sink Chelsea completely since the Blues do have Loïc Remy in reserve, but the situation bears monitoring … if you wan to convince yourself there might actually be a title race once the calendar flips over to 2015.

[Photos via Getty]