Three talking points from the Premier League

Arsenal hit back at Manchester City's push in the Premier League title fight by thrashing Tottenham 4-1 in the north London derby, marking the second such victory this season.

The Gunners extended their lead over City, following the 2-1 triumph against Newcastle on Saturday, to five points once more.

Nevertheless, City retain control over the title outcome with an extra match to play and the benefit of home ground when they face the top two sides in April.

For the race into the Champions League, Liverpool enjoyed a positive weekend, even with a lacklustre showing in their 1-0 victory at Nottingham Forest, as Chelsea and Aston Villa both lost ground with home draws.

AFP Sport examines three key discussion points from the Premier League weekend:

Eze, Gyokeres prove their worth

A pair of high-profile acquisitions Arsenal secured last summer, aimed at securing their first league crown in 22 years, delivered telling blows during yet another tough outing for Spurs.

Eberechi Eze appeared set for a transfer to Tottenham before Arsenal intervened at the final hour to sign him for his childhood team.

The England player has netted six Premier League strikes since then, including five versus Spurs.

Despite injuries sidelining Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz, Eze found it hard to earn a spot in Mikel Arteta's lineup over recent weeks.

Yet upon his comeback, he notched a brace, building on his earlier hat-trick from Arsenal's initial 4-1 derby success back in November.

Viktor Gyokeres has begun to find form after the new year, though he faced backlash for underperforming in major fixtures.

Among the Swede's 10 league tallies, just one, a penalty versus Everton, arrived against a top-half opponent.

However, with Arsenal requiring a strong reply following frustrating stalemates at Brentford and Wolves that let City narrow the gap, Gyokeres picked an ideal moment to showcase his finest display since arriving from Sporting Lisbon.

"For me, the best, the most complete (performance)," Arteta commented.

"When we needed him most. That is when big players and big clubs have to stand up."

O'Reilly, City's homegrown star

City maintained pressure on the frontrunners with a brace from Nico O'Reilly.

The 20-year-old initially broke through covering left-back duties, but lately he has shifted to his preferred midfield position.

Players like Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki remained unused substitutes against Newcastle, highlighting Pep Guardiola's trust in O'Reilly.

"Nico give us in the middle that physicality that we need. He now plays in his position," Guardiola noted. 

"He has always played that, he is so complete and so young."

Having earned a cap for England under manager Thomas Tuchel earlier this season, O'Reilly is building a compelling argument for World Cup inclusion.

Chelsea 'set fire to four points'

Chelsea's failure to hold onto a lead marked the second straight home match to leave manager Liam Rosenior furious.

The Blues were ahead against second-from-bottom Burnley from the fourth minute until the 93rd, thanks to Joao Pedro's quick opener.

Still, their profligacy up front proved costly when Zian Flemming nodded home from a corner in added time.

"We've set fire to four points from two home games," Rosenior stated. "It's not good enough for a club of this level for me to say we were the better team."

Chelsea sneak into fourth place, ahead of Manchester United and Liverpool solely on goal difference, buoyed by a favourable schedule at the start of Rosenior's tenure.

Their upcoming five league outings include clashes with Arsenal, Aston Villa, Newcastle, and City.