Questions ahead of the return of the Premier League

The Premier League returns on Boxing Day following the end of the World Cup with lots still to play for. It's been over a month since we last saw Premier League action on our screens and a lot has happened since. So what questions will we face ahead of the return of the Premier League?

How much will Gabriel Jesus' injury impact Arsenal's title challenge?

Gabriel Jesus has made such a difference for Arsenal this season following his summer move from Man City as the Gunners sit five points clear at the top of the Premier League. He might not have scored many goals but his overall game has been key to how Arsenal have played this season and his injury may have a huge impact on how they perform for the next few months.

Jesus is set to be out for three months after picking up an knee injury during the World Cup which lead him to missing the rest of the tournament. His injury will be no doubt be a massive blow for the Gunners because of how important he's been for them and the difference he's made since his arrival in the summer. His movement and work rate have been key to how Arsenal have played along with his pace and the Gunners may miss his attributes over the next three months.

Their back up striker in Eddie Nketiah is capable of stepping up having done so at the back end of last season. But he's a different kind of player to Jesus and is still very young at the age of 23. He will of course look to take his chance as Arsenal's main striker but not having a player of Jesus' calibre and quality up top may impact The Gunners' potential title challenge.

Will the break help Liverpool physically?

Liverpool looked tired and leggy during most of the first half of the campaign with their relentless pursuit of a quadruple last season possibly playing a part. You could argue that their midfield is getting on a bit with most of them now in their 30s. But overall their entire team has looked leggy.

They didn't have much of a break between the end of last season the beginning of the current season because of them going the distance in every competition they were involved in last season. But after a month off due to the World Cup, that break could help the reds massively from a physical point of view.

Jurgen Klopp had a tough seventh season at Borussia Dortmund like he is having a tough seventh season at Liverpool. But after the winter break of that season, results were much improved as they ended the campaign in the Europa League places after being in the bottom three at Christmas. This season could be similar as the reds have had a month to recover and refresh themselves ahead of the second half of the season.

Their attack will hopefully rediscover their best form as both Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino didn't go to the World Cup whilst Diogo Jota used the break to recover from the injury that ruled him out of the tournament.

They should also feel reenergised in midfield as Thiago didn't go to the World Cup along with some of the others in that area. Fabinho and Jordan Henderson might not have had as much recovery time since their Quarter Final exits with Brazli and England respectively. But their midfield might still feel reenergised as Thiago wasn't at the World Cup.

Will Harry Kane pick himself up after World Cup penalty miss?

Harry Kane will obviously be hurting after his penalty miss against France at the World Cup and it might take him a while to fully get over it. He has had a couple of weeks to get it out of his head but the pain of it might still be there when he returns to Spurs. This is because it might take time for him to get over it.

A lot of people will be hoping that he can bounce back straight away as he's a strong character and is more than capable of putting disappointments behind him. The best players in the world have gone through what he's been going through at some in their careers and have bounced back from it because of the characters they are.

By the time he returns to Spurs Kane either be still reeling from it or he'll put his full focus on Spurs depending on what his mental state is. That could determine whether he's picked himself up or not by the time Spurs play Brentford on Boxing Day.

Will Man United kick on now Ronaldo has left?

The future was Cristiano Ronaldo was much talked about during the first half of the season as he didn't get the move away he wanted in the summer. With behaviour didn't have a massive impact on the team as they were able to get results without him in the side. But with the player out of the club for good; Will United kick on from his exit?

They really should kick on as they will no longer have that moody figure in the camp that Ronaldo was for much of the first half of the season. The younger players will have been disappointed with how he was behaving as Ronaldo would have been someone who they were hoping to look up to due to his experience in the game and the quality of player he's been. They would've learnt a lot from him if he behaved more like a professional but that turned out not to be the case as Ronaldo was anything but that.

But on the other hand United may miss having that proven goal scorer in their team who can get them a goal at a crucial moment. Ronaldo provided that on one or two occasions during the first half of the campaign and with him gone they may need to bring in a replacement in January. Especially as none of their forwards are consistently clinical in the final third.

They may miss having him around for that reason and they might struggle to kick on because of that. But from a team morale point of view, they might kick on knowing that they won't have that disruptive figure who will sulk whenever he's not playing.

Will under pressure managers before the break kick start their sides' seasons?

There were at least two managers under pressure before the World Cup in Everton's Frank Lampard and West Ham's David Moyes. Both sides went into the break in poor form with their jobs apparently on the line because of it. But after a month of looking back at their sides' performances and coming up with ways to work on their weaknesses; Will both Lampard and Moyes kick start their sides' seasons?

The World Cup break was arguably what both managers needed as it will have given them the opportunity took back at their sides' games and see how they can get things right after the break. Some clubs might have sacked their managers if they were in poor form going into a mid-season break. But West Ham and Everton have stuck with theirs and have given them the opportunity to look back at their performances and find ways of improving them in order to get better results.

Both managers will have seen the World Cup break in that way and they'll both be hoping that their sides' form can improve as a result of them looking back at their past games and getting the players to work on their weaknesses on the training field.