Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Premier League clash between Arsenal and Burnley at the Emirates Stadium.
The hosts come into this match looking to bounce back from successive defeats, the first of which left them three points adrift of the Champions League places.
Burnley, meanwhile, are languishing in the relegation zone following a run of just one win in 10, including four defeats from their last five outings.
Make sure you don't miss a moment of the action courtesy of our minute-by-minute updates below.
Wolves and Liverpool got the final gameweek before Christmas underway last night, but the prospect of another away win here looks bleak with Burnley struggling at the wrong end of the table. Arsenal have endured a miserable week themselves, though, so there is a glimmer of hope for the visitors.
We will take a closer look at both sides a little later, but first let's check out the team news...
Well the headline news as far as the hosts are concerned is that Mesut Ozil returns to the starting lineup, having been left out entirely against Spurs in midweek for "tactical reasons".
The omission raised questions over his future at the club, but Emery recently insisted that he does remain in his plans and sure enough he starts this one today.
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Xhaka has carried out that role in recent games - including against Spurs in midweek - but the inclusion of Monreal, who is another left-footed player, in that central three could also force Emery to push Elneny - a right-footer who has also played in defence before - back instead.
Whichever of Elneny or Xhaka that does not start in defence will partner Guendouzi in the central midfield role in a 3-4-3 formation, which also sees Ozil - captain for the night - Aubameyang and the returning Lacazette lead the line.
He is expected to start out on the left today as Lacazette plays through the middle - one of five changes from midweek including a notable one which sees Lucas Torreira rested/dropped to the bench.
Long, Tarkowski and Mee are the trio selected once again as Burnley look to stop the flood of goals they have been conceding this season and rediscover their far superior defensive form of last season.
Sam Vokes is the only player who can match that taly, and he is missing entirely today as Ashley Barnes and Chris Wood lead the line in what looks like a 3-5-2 formation to start with.
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Burnley have been hit in the wide areas by injuries to Gudmundsson and Brady - neither of whom are fit to return for this one - while they also lost Aaron Lennon last weekend to a knee injury which required surgery.
There is a notable inclusion on the bench too, with young left-back Ali Koiki making the Burnley matchday squad for the first time.
There are still plenty of problems to address - the defence probably being the main one of those - but they have made definite progress during their first half-season or so under the new boss and the future is looking a lot brighter now than it was for much of Arsene Wenger's final years at the club.
Last weekend's 3-2 defeat to Southampton saw them fall three points adrift of those Champions League spots, but a victory here would draw them back level with Chelsea - at least under the Blues host Leicester later today.
Even so, they come into this match off the back of a damaging week which not only saw their 22-game unbeaten run ended by struggling Southampton, but then saw them crash out of the EFL Cup at the hands of bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur on home turf on Wednesday.
Burnley appear to be almost ideal opposition for Arsenal to face as they look to bounce back from those defeats, and surely today is a chance for the Gunners to finally lead a Premier League game at half time for the first time this season.
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However, another loss this afternoon would see them fall to back-to-back league defeats for the first time since Emery's very first two games in charge, and three successive losses across all competitions for the first time since March.
This is their final home game of 2018 so they will want to give their fans something to cheer about before seeing out the year away to Brighton on Boxing Day and then Liverpool next weekend.
It is 11 years since the Gunners suffered a home defeat to a team that began the day in the bottom three, when they fell to a 1-0 loss against West Ham.
The difference between this season and last is quite remarkable for the Clarets, who actually sat above Arsenal after 17 games of the 2017-18 campaign and were only outside the Champions League places on goal difference having won nine and lost just four of their games.
Avoiding defeat today would see them climb out of the bottom three temporarily, but even considering how drastically Burnley overachieved last season, it is an alarming decline from the Clarets.
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Well, it is quite easy to identify, if not to fix. Burnley had scored only one more goal at this stage of 2017-18 than they have managed so far this season, but they have conceded 21 more at the other end.
Only the top two of Manchester City and Manchester United had conceded fewer than Burnley at this stage of last season, whereas now only bottom-placed Fulham have conceded more than Burnley's 33.
One concern for Dyche may also be that game number 18 of last season was the first of an 11-match winless streak for Burnley - a run they simply cannot afford to suffer again this time around having not already banked a decent number of points.
Like Arsenal, the Clarets are coming into this match off the back of a defeat to Spurs, with Christian Eriksen breaking their resolve in stoppage time at Wembley last weekend.
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Dyche's side have won only one of their last 28 games against top-six opposition - their 3-2 triumph over Chelsea on the opening day of last season - losing 21 of those matches.
Only three teams - Southampton, Cardiff and Fulham - have picked up fewer points on their travels this season, and incredibly you have to go back to 1969 for Burnley's last top-flight away win in December.
It is hard to see anything other than an Arsenal win today. Burnley may not make it easy for them, having given Spurs such a close run last weekend, but the Gunners should still be coming away from this one with all three points.
SPORTS MOLE SAYS: Arsenal 2-0 Burnley
The Gunners have conceded just four goals in those 10 games too, and never more than once in a game, with Burnley's last win over Arsenal coming in the League Cup 10 years ago.
Unsurprisingly, then, Burnley have lost all four previous Premier League trips to Arsenal, conceding 13 goals and scoring just twice in that time.
It was a lot less emphatic in the reverse fixture at Turf Moor, but Arsenal still came out on top courtesy of Alexis Sanchez's 90th-minute penalty.
ARSENAL STARTING XI: Leno; Maitland-Niles, Sokratis, Monreal, Kolasinac; Elneny, Guendouzi, Xhaka; Ozil; Aubameyang, Lacazette
BURNLEY STARTING XI: Hart; Long, Tarkowski, Mee; Bardsley, Hendrick, Cork, Westwood, Taylor; Barnes, Wood
CHANCES AT BOTH ENDS 😅
Joe Hart makes a superb save to deny Arsenal at one end, but Burnley break and Ashley Westwood should do better for the away side.
📺 Watch Arsenal v Burnley live on Sky Sports PL & Main Event or follow here: https://t.co/WgthSCuefB pic.twitter.com/TjpLS7ugyP— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 22, 2018
Ozil deserves huge credit for his role in the goal, though, having picked out an exquisite pass into the box for Kolasinac, putting just enough weight and spin on the ball for the overlapping full-back. He just keeps the ball in play by knocking it back into a dangerous area, where Aubameyang is waiting to fire home.
18 - Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been directly involved in 18 goals in his 17 Premier League games at the Emirates Stadium (13 goals, 5 assists). Routine. #ARSBUR pic.twitter.com/39BVnH8rvs— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 22, 2018
AUBAMEYANG BANGS AGAIN
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 22, 2018
A beautiful ball in from Ozil is cut back for Aubameyang to fire Arsenal ahead.
📺 Watch Arsenal v Burnley live on Sky Sports PL & Main Event or follow here: https://t.co/WgthSCuefB pic.twitter.com/Um5K0d3qp9
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Burnley are in this game and Arsenal are certainly not having things all their own way, although it is still the home side who looked most like scoring for much of that first half.
The real architect of the goal was Mesut Ozil, though, as he picked out an incredible pass to Kolasinac on the overlap, allowing the full-back to set up the striker.
Burnley responded to that one immediately, though, and could have broken the deadlock just seconds later when they hit the Gunners on the counter, only for Westwood to drag his tame finish wide of the target.
A second goal could well kill the game off and open the floodgates for the Gunners, but if Burnley get the next goal then it could become very interesting indeed.
Guendouzi releases Kolasinac down the left and he gives it inside for Lacazette. Aubameyang is out on the left and Lacazette duly finds him, and from there the new league top scorer blasts a slightly-deflected finish past Hart.
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COUNTER ATTACK KINGS
Aubameyang now the leading scorer in the Premier League as he finishes a rapid Arsenal move.
📺 Watch Arsenal v Burnley live on Sky Sports PL & Main Event or follow here: https://t.co/WgthSCuefB pic.twitter.com/P9YlD1DGJR— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 22, 2018
6 - Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored two or more goals in a Premier Leauge game for the sixth time since his Arsenal debut in February, at least twice as often as any other player in the league (Salah, 3). Trouble. #ARSBUR pic.twitter.com/qw7JSIy1Fk
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 22, 2018
22 - Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored 22 goals in his 31 Premier League appearances for Arsenal, five more than any other player for the club after 31 games (Thierry Henry next on 17). Superstar. #ARSBUR pic.twitter.com/xkMKerubMz— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 22, 2018
It is a scrappy one as a scramble inside the area falls into the path of Barnes, who drills his finish past Leno. Burnley are right back in this one!
Ozil dribbles into the area and sees his tame shot squirm into the path of Iwobi, who makes no mistake with his finish. There is a question of offside, but it was a tight one.
The league's top scorer netted either side of half time before Ashley Barnes made things interesting with a goal back shortly after the hour mark. However, Alex Iwobi finally wrapped up the points for Arsenal in stoppage time to leave Burnley languishing in the relegation zone.
Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for the early Premier League kickoff as Arsenal beat Burnley 3-1 to move level on points with the top four for a few hours at least. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too.
From me, though, it is goodbye for now!
