Arsenal responded to pressure from Manchester City in the Premier League title race by beating Tottenham 4-1 in a north London derby for the second time this season.
The Gunners beat Newcastle 2-1 on Saturday to extend their advantage to five points.
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However, when the two teams meet in April, City still hold the fate of the title in their hands, with a game in hand and home advantage.
Liverpool had a good weekend in the race for Champions League places, although they struggled in a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest, while Chelsea and Aston Villa dropped points at home.
AFP Sport looks back at three talking points from the Premier League weekend:
Eze, Gyokeres prove their worth
Two big-money signings last summer as Arsenal splashed out to finally win a first title in 22 years did their damage on another miserable day for Spurs.
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Eberechi Eze was destined for a move to Tottenham Hotspur until the Gunners swooped in at the last minute to bring him back to his boyhood club.
The England international has since scored six goals in the Premier League, five of which came against Tottenham.
Eze has struggled to break into Mikel Arteta’s side in recent weeks despite injuries to Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz.
But after returning to the team, he scored twice and scored a hat-trick in Arsenal’s 4-1 first derby victory in November.
Victor Jacques has hit his stride since the start of the year but has still been criticized for failing to impact big games.
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Of the Swede’s 10 league goals, only one – from a penalty against Everton – came against a team in the top half.
But Arsenal were desperate for a response after a disappointing draw with Brentford saw Wolves keep Manchester City close, and Joe Kreis picked his moment to produce his best performance since joining from Sporting Lisbon.
“For me, it was the best, most complete (performance),” Arteta said.
“When we need him the most. That’s when the big players and the big clubs have to step up.”
O’Reilly – Manchester City’s homegrown star
Manchester City continued to chase the leaders thanks to two goals from Nico O’Reilly.
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The 20-year-old broke through at left-back but has been pushed into a more natural midfield position in recent weeks.
Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki remained on the bench against Newcastle, with Guardiola expressing his confidence in O’Reilly.
“Nico gives us the physicality we need in midfield. He plays in his position now,” Guardiola said.
“He’s always played like this, he’s so complete, he’s so young.”
Earlier this season, O’Reilly made a strong case for World Cup qualification under England manager Thomas Tuchel.
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Chelsea ‘ignited four points’
Chelsea were unable to hold on to their lead for the second consecutive home game, leaving manager Liam Rogniel furious.
After Joao Pedro scored first, the Blues led second-to-last Burnley from the fourth quarter to the 93rd minute.
But their wastefulness in front of goal cost them, with Zian Fleming heading home from a corner in injury time.
“We’ve got four points from two home games,” Ronniol said. “For a club at this level, I can’t say enough that we are the better team.”
After Roniol started coaching, Chelsea entered the top four on goal difference, but was only ahead of Manchester United and Liverpool on goal difference.
They face Arsenal, Aston Villa, Newcastle and Manchester City in their next five league games.
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