After all the hype surrounding the club's dealings in the last few days of the winter transfer window, Premier League action returns this weekend.
The two most attractive fixtures are scheduled for tomorrow when leaders Manchester United visit in-form West Ham United at Upton Park and North London rivals Tottenham and Arsenal cross swords at White Hart Lane.
The neutral fan hopes that tomorrow's London derby will be a replica of the first round clash which ended four-all (Van Persie 2, Adebayor 2 - Bentley, Bent, Jenas, Lennon).
In five London derbies this season, Arsenal have lost only once, 0-1 at Fulham. The same goes for Tottenham who also went down once, 1-2 at Fulham.
The Gunners beat West Ham 2-0 and Chelsea 2-1 while Spurs emerged triumphant only at home to West Ham, 2-0.
Manager Arsene Wenger has remarked that his Arsenal side does not need an 'instant saviour' but former chairman David Dein warned that the Gunners face a difficult challenge to confirm themselves as Champions League regulars.
After months of negotiations, Russian playmaker Andrei Arshavin ended his on-and-off transfer saga by completing his move to Arsenal. Tomorrow, Arshavin will come face to face with fellow Russian international Roman Pavlyuchenko if the former Zenit playermaker makes his Arsenal debut against the Spurs.
Defending champions and current leaders Manchester United are two points clear of the pack with a game in hand.
The Red Devils have climbed back to the top of the Premier League thanks in the large part to their phenomenal defensive record.
United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar is unbeaten in the last 12 Premier League matches, a new record. The Dutchman has now also bettered the league record of 1,104 minutes without picking the ball from his net. The previous mark was set by Reading's Steve Death in 1979. Alex Ferguson has paid tribute to Van der Sar for the "calm and assurance" he brings to the team.
Rio Ferdinand has remarked that United's success in the FIFA World Club Cup in Japan last December helped to boost rather than hinder their Premier League title challenge.
West Ham United, whose players are responding magnificently to the training methods and tactics of manager Gianfranco Zola, will hope to get another good result after their 0-0 draw at Arsenal.
The Hammers are undefeated in their last six Premier League outings, scoring 13 goals and conceding five during such run. One of the Hammers best players, defender Matthew Upson, having also regained England recognition, has ruled out a return to this former club Arsenal.
In Wednesday's FA Cup fourth round replay between rivals Everton and Liverpool, the home side won 1-0 with a goal towards the end of extra-time.
Liverpool's title push received a boost last weekend when they completed a double of wins over Chelsea with a 2-0 triumph at Anfield. The Reds travel to the south coast today to face Portsmouth at Fratton Park where striker Peter Crouch will be keen to put one over his former manager Rafael Benitez.
Robbie Keane rejoined Tottenham Hotspur on the last day of the transfer window after he was not given a fair crack of the whip at Anfield.
Under-fire Pompey manager Tony Adams signed striker Theofanis Gekas on loan from Bayer Leverkusen. Defender Sylvain Distin believes that his team had enough quality to weather the storm and save their Premier League status.
Back to London, Chelsea will be looking to return to winning ways when they host Hull City at Stamford Bridge. The Blues can become the first club to do the double on the Tigers after their resounding 3-0 (Lampard, Anelka, Malouda) victory at the KC Stadium.
Hull failed in their bid to capture veteran Italian defender Christian Panucci from Roma.
Santa Cruz stays
After dropping two priceless points at home to Wigan, Aston Villa will seek to preserve their away record in the league when they meet Blackburn at Ewood Park.
John Carew, back in the reckoning after a long injury, is confident that Villa have enough firepower to break down Blackburn's defence.
Rovers boss Sam Allardyce was delighted that striker Roque Santa Cruz will continue to play for his team, at least till the end of the season. Yet, Big Sam was shocked to learn that midfielder Brett Emerton has been ruled out for the rest of the season.
At Goodison Park, Everton, on a high after their FA Cup replay win over Liverpool, take on Bolton. The Toffees are hoping to improve their disappointing home record of only three wins - against Fulham, Sunderland and Hull.
David Moyes could give a debut to Brazilian striker Jo, who joined Everton on loan from Manchester City. Bolton have sold skipper Kevin Nolan to Newcastle.
After their dramatic 3-2 win over Tottenham, Bolton midfielder Matt Taylor expressed his confidence that manager Gary Megson will silence his critics as results improve.
Two sides that have shown progress lately, Wigan and Fulham, will meet at the JJB Stadium.
The arrival of Newcastle's Charles N'Zogbia, who was linked with a host of other clubs, has given Wigan boss Steve Bruce a lift.
Fulham manager Roy Hodgson is hopeful that Olivier Dacourt, signed from Inter, will prove to be an adequate replacement for Jimmy Bullard who moved to Hull last month. Wigan's Antonio Valencia has stayed put despite receiving an approach from Real Madrid.
Top spenders Manchester City will go all out to collect maximum points from their clash with the stuttering Middlesbrough.
Manager Mark Hughes will probably be given until the end of the season to turn things around, especially now that he spent more than £60 million on new players last month.
Former Newcastle goalkeeper Shay Given will be between the sticks for the Citizens as other new faces are likely to be paraded in front of their new fans.
Sunderland, who have lost only once in their last four Premier League matches, play hosts to Stoke at the Stadium of Light.
Their derby against Newcastle was a great spectacle as both side opted for an attacking approach.
Stoke snapped up Henri Camara from Wigan to further boost their striking options after their capture of James Beattie.
At the Hawthorns, bottom club West Brom will continue to do their utmost to keep in touch with their relegation rivals.
The Baggies clash with Newcastle who are just two points above their opponents. Goalkeeper Steve Harper refused to join Tottenham as he wanted to remain at St James' Park.