Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca believes up to six teams remain in contention for the Premier League title following Arsenal's recent stumble. The Gunners suffered a 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa, while Manchester City closed the gap with a third straight win. Maresca highlighted the tight standings with more than half the season left to play.
The Premier League title race intensified after a dramatic weekend of results on December 6, 2025. Arsenal, who had built a six-point lead, lost 2-1 to Aston Villa at Villa Park, allowing Manchester City to narrow the deficit to just two points with a 3-0 victory over Sunderland. City also overcame a 2-0 deficit to beat Leeds United with a last-minute winner and edged Fulham 5-4 in a thrilling encounter earlier in the week.
Chelsea, managed by Enzo Maresca, drew 0-0 with Bournemouth, leaving them eight points behind Arsenal in fourth place. Maresca emphasized the competitiveness of the top of the table, telling media: "The table is so tight. You win two games in a row and you are there. Lose two and you drop. I still think four, five, six teams that are at the top, [can win two] and will all be close."
Aston Villa sit third, three points off the lead, but manager Unai Emery downplayed their chances after 15 matches. "We are not contenders," Emery said. "If we are still [in the race] in game 35 then maybe I can speak about it." Arsenal's Mikel Arteta countered: "They are [in the title race]. When you look at where they are, the way they play, they have beaten some big teams, especially at home. Everybody is going to have to play everybody, so at the moment they are where they are and we are there as well."
Arteta remained defiant despite the loss, noting Arsenal's 18-game unbeaten streak prior: "We've been 18 games unbeaten and still we are there, very close to each other. That's the level of the league and we know that. Now it's time to bounce back."
Defending champions Liverpool, in eighth place and 10 points adrift, drew 3-3 with Leeds. Dominik Szoboszlai expressed frustration: "Last year we became champions, now I don’t even know which position [in the table] we are."
Manchester City's Pep Guardiola focused on performance over points: "Many things are going to happen still. It’s down to the way we play, not how many points behind we are. In the last nine to 10 games, we have been good. We have suffered a lot but we have to learn from it so it doesn’t happen again. When you score five goals against Fulham, you are doing good things."
The standings as of December 6 show Arsenal first, followed by Manchester City, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Everton, Crystal Palace, Sunderland, and Liverpool.