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Premier League midweek action - the key talking points

Tottenham play their first official match at their new stadium while Manchester United return to the scene of their FA Cup exit.

Liverpool's last-gasp win over Tottenham on Sunday has threatened to take the title race right down to the wire.

Manchester City get the chance to respond in the midweek action while plenty of top managers have points to prove as they chase all-important places in next season's Champions League.

Here Press Association Sport picks out five key talking points from the Premier League's midweek games.

Pep talk

Pep Guardiola
Manchester City face a potential banana skin against Cardiff (Martin Rickett/PA)

For all Pep Guardiola can talk of Manchester City's positive mindset, we have reached that tension-filled stage of the season where cash and expectation can count for nothing. City's clash with struggling Cardiff – raging as they are from the alleged injustices of their near-miss against Chelsea – bears all the hallmarks of an upset waiting to happen. Can City hold firm in the face of such momentous pressure?

Spurred to improve ahead of first game at new stadium

Tottenham will look to end a miserable run of recent results when they play Crystal Palace in their opening match at their new stadium
Tottenham will look to end a miserable run of results when they host Crystal Palace in their opening match at their new stadium (John Walton/PA)

It seems a minor miracle that Tottenham still reside in the Champions League positions despite picking up just one point from their last five matches. Excitement over the club's new ground becoming open for business seems to have deflected fears over the team's recent form. A win against Crystal Palace in their opening game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is imperative to keep the likes of United and north London rivals Arsenal at bay.

Sarri-fall

Maurizio Sarri
The end could be nigh for Maurizio Sarri this week (Steven Paston/PA)

Maurizio Sarri's reign as Chelsea boss is surely hanging by a thread. His side got out of jail against Cardiff but the displeasure among the travelling contingent was not hard to discern. Sarri has been at a loss to diagnose his side's low motivation levels and has reached the point where anything but three convincing points at home to Brighton on Wednesday is almost certain to hasten the end.

Molineux test for Ole's United

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Manchester United take on FA Cup conquerors Wolves on Tuesday (Martin Rickett/PA)

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer richly deserved the permanent role at Old Trafford. Yet as so often happens, confirmation of his appointment has come alongside questions about United's recent form. Two successive defeats were snapped by a wholly unconvincing win over Watford at the weekend. The way United respond at Wolves – who deservedly knocked the Red Devils out of the FA Cup last month – will provide a big demonstration of Solskjaer's managerial capabilities.

Worn-out Warnock

Neil Warnock
Neil Warnock has been far from impressed with some of the refereeing in Cardiff games (Nick Potts/PA)

Many in the game have an understandable soft spot for tell-it-like-it-is types like Neil Warnock, but such fondness could be wearing thin. Warnock's latest rant after Cardiff's defeat to Chelsea, in which he described the officiating as "criminal" and branded Premier League officials the "worst in the world", has seen him hit the headlines again. The authorities will surely be taking a keen interest in his future comments.

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A general shot of a Premier League football ahead of the Premier League clash between Everton and West Ham United at Goodison Park on October 30, 2016
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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool14112129111835
2Chelsea1594235181731
3Arsenal1585229151429
4Manchester CityMan City158342721627
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest157441918125
6Aston Villa157442323025
7Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton156632522324
8Bournemouth157352320324
9Brentford157263128323
10Fulham156542220223
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1562731191220
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle155551921-220
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd155461918119
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham155372028-818
15Everton143561421-714
16Leicester CityLeicester153572130-914
17Crystal Palace152761420-613
18Ipswich TownIpswich151681427-139
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1523102338-159
20Southampton1512121131-205


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