Three talking points from the Premier League weekend
Arsenal managed to resist Manchester City and remain at the summit of the Premier League heading into Christmas thanks to a spot-kick from Viktor Gyokeres in their 1-0 victory over Everton.
Liverpool took full advantage of Tottenham's nine players struggling with discipline to continue their upturn in form without Mohamed Salah.
Wolves, who sit at the foot of the standings, continue to break negative records following a tenth consecutive league loss to Brentford.
AFP Sports examines three key discussion points from the latest round of matches:
Will Arsenal break the Christmas jinx?
The Gunners find themselves leading the pack on Christmas Day for the third time in four seasons after securing their first Premier League away triumph in four attempts at Goodison Park.
Topping the table at this pivotal stage often signals potential title winners, yet for Arsenal it has acted more like a hex.
Across the four prior instances where they have been ahead at Christmas during the Premier League years, they failed to claim the championship.
This pattern holds true in two recent cases, with Mikel Arteta's squad overtaken by Manchester City in both 2022-23 and 2023-24.
Notably, in the last five occasions when the Christmas leaders did not lift the trophy, City emerged victorious.
Nevertheless, Arteta remains optimistic that his team will at last reap the benefits of staying in contention for their first league crown in 22 years.
"The aspect that instils belief and assurance in me is the quality of play and its ongoing reliability," the Spaniard shared with AFP. "Achieving that in this competition is extremely challenging, and it shows the team stays in the hunt consistently."
Tottenham's anger fails to aid Frank
Tottenham cannot be faulted for lacking spirit in defending their embattled head coach.
However, poor self-control proved their undoing in yet another home loss, 2-1 to Liverpool on Saturday, which has intensified scrutiny on Thomas Frank.
Frank pointed fingers at referee John Brooks for not disallowing Liverpool's second strike due to a shove by Hugo Ekitike on Cristian Romero.
Yet by then, Tottenham's Xavi Simons had already received a red card for a reckless challenge on Virgil van Dijk.
Romero picked up a yellow for his complaints following Ekitike's score and was then dismissed in added time for lashing out at Ibrahima Konate, precisely when Tottenham were pressuring the visitors.
"Engaging like that and striking someone directly in the referee's view. If my four-year-old acted that way, I would ask 'what on earth are you doing?'" remarked ex-Tottenham midfielder Jamie Redknapp after Romero's eighth career dismissal.
The former Brentford manager Frank now mirrors the plight of numerous recent Spurs bosses, struggling to assemble a squad worthy of the club's elite venue.
Only the relegation candidates have earned fewer points than Tottenham's eight from their nine home league fixtures this term.
Wolves on track for regrettable milestone
With demotion seeming certain, Wolves risk etching their name as the Premier League's poorest ever team.
A tame 2-0 defeat at home to Brentford on Saturday leaves them winless and with merely two points from 17 outings.
The annals have already been updated amid a dismal spell for one of England's most historic clubs.
A run of 10 straight top-division losses marks a debut negative for Wolves across their 148-year legacy.
Derby's paltry 11 points from 2007-08 hangs in jeopardy, as Wolves share the joint meagrest Christmas haul in Premier League annals with Sheffield United from 2020-21.
"Should we be known for battling right to the final whistle," pondered vice-captain Matt Doherty post the recent setback. "Or for shirking the challenge?"