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5 talking points ahead of this weekend's Premier League fixtures

:Headline: 5 talking points ahead of this weekend's Premier League fixtures: ID:353556: from db_amp
Liverpool are bidding to return to the Premier League summit.

This weekend sees not only the FA Cup quarter-finals take place but also five Premier League matches.

Here, Press Association Sport takes a look at some of the talking points ahead of the top-flight action.

Liverpool eyeing return to the summit

Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool are at Fulham on Sunday (Peter Byrne/PA).

While leaders Manchester City play in the cup, second-placed Liverpool can reclaim top spot when they visit Fulham on Sunday. The Reds have been held to draws in each of their last three away league games but go into the contest on-song, having beaten Burnley 4-2 at Anfield last weekend and then produced a superb 3-1 Champions League win at Bayern Munich on Wednesday. Second-bottom Fulham will be hoping Jurgen Klopp's men suffer some kind of hangover from the Germany trip as they look to halt their losing run. The 3-1 reverse at Leicester last time out – the Cottagers' second match with Scott Parker in charge – was a sixth defeat on the spin.

Chelsea's top-four chase

Maurizio Sarri's Chelsea currently lie sixth (Steven Paston/PA).

The only other club in the top six playing a league match this weekend is the one currently lowest among them – Chelsea. Maurizio Sarri's side, who drew 1-1 with Wolves last weekend thanks to Eden Hazard's stoppage-time equaliser, face Everton away looking make the battle for Champions League places even tighter. Chelsea are currently one point behind fifth-placed Manchester United, three behind fourth-placed Arsenal and four behind third-placed Tottenham, with a game in hand over all of them.

Focus on Pickford

Jordan Pickford (centre) made some high-profile errors last weekend (Owen Humphreys/PA).

There will be considerable interest in how Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford fares in Sunday's contest at Goodison Park. The 25-year-old former Sunderland player made a couple of high-profile errors in last weekend's 3-2 loss at Newcastle before being named in Gareth Southgate's England squad on Wednesday. Pickford will certainly want to put in a strong performance in his final game before the international break.

Will Burnley stop the rot?

Sean Dyche's Burnley are two points above the relegation zone (Martin Rickett/PA).

Burnley were six points clear of the relegation zone in 14th place on February 23 after beating Spurs 2-1 at Turf Moor, their fifth victory in an eight-match unbeaten run. But since then they have lost three times in a row, and they head into Saturday's home clash against Leicester lying 17th and only two points above 18th-placed Cardiff. Returning to winning ways against the Foxes looks no easy task, with their tails up after registering their first victory under Brendan Rodgers' management last time out.

Magpies momentum

Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez has seen his men win five of their last eight games (Owen Humphreys/PA).

Newcastle head into their match at Bournemouth on Saturday looking to add another win to their fine run of results – five victories in the last eight games. Having been in the drop zone before that run, Rafael Benitez's men are now six points clear of it, and will move above the 12th-placed Cherries with a win.

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TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal34245582265677
2Liverpool34228475344174
3Manchester CityMan City32227376324473
4Aston Villa34206871502166
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd33165125150153
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle331551369541550
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham34139125463-948
9Chelsea32138116157447
10Bournemouth34129134960-1145
11Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton321111105250244
12Wolverhampton WanderersWolves34127154654-843
13Fulham34126165054-442
14Crystal Palace34109154456-1239
15Brentford3498175259-735
16Everton34118153648-1233
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3479184260-1826
18Luton TownLuton3467214775-2825
19Burnley3458213769-3223
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3437243392-5916
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