There are weeks in a football season when nothing happens, and there are weeks when everything happens. The next ten days belong firmly to the latter category.

Liverpool arrive at the Emirates on a run that has rewritten the early-season narrative. Arne Slot inherited a side many predicted would dip; instead, the Dutchman has built on what came before with quiet, methodical precision. The 4-3-3 looks the same on the team sheet. Up close, it is a different animal entirely.

Arsenal, meanwhile, have rediscovered the version of themselves that briefly looked unstoppable in autumn. The trick now is sustaining it. Mikel Arteta has been here before — twice, in fact — and twice the trophy has slipped away in the final furlong.

What makes this fixture decisive is not just the points on offer. It is the psychological residue. Whoever wins on Sunday will believe the title is theirs to lose. Whoever loses will spend the next two months wondering if they had what it takes all along.