NFL Christmas Day Game: Why Only One on Dec 26?

The Premier Leagueso attached to its traditions, left aside this year the classic ‘Boxing Day’a celebration of this sport that this season distributed its matches on the 18th between the three days of the weekend, with the fight for the title becoming more and more accentuated, the Arsenal clinging as a leader and the Manchester City and the Aston Villa in full growth, waiting for any error from the team Mikel Arteta.

Even so, the Premier will have matches almost every day until the end of 2025. The 18th date this coming weekend and the 19th, the last of the first round, will be between the end of the year and the New Year.

Cornered is Boxing Day, a celebration in which a large part of the matches were played throughout December 26, the day after Christmas. The stadiums were filled, invaded by children and young people in the midst of the celebrations, full of color. In this case, history has been overturned by television interests that have imposed their contractual conditions for the development of the day.

In this way, Boxing Day, so called because it is considered the second day of Christmas, in which the noble classes gave gifts or boxes to their workers, will not be like this.

The Premier will only have one match on December 26, the clash at Old Trafford between Manchester United and Newcastle. Seven games will be played on Saturday and the remaining two on Sunday the 28th. Thus, the channels that have the rights will be able to broadcast the matches as usual.

He Manchester Uniteddespite having lost competitive prominence in recent years, is still an entity with great pull, a classic of English football. In their stadium, Old Trafford, they will open the eighteenth matchday, on Friday, with the visit of Newcastle United.

A duel between two irregular teams, usually installed at the top, but now relegated to a secondary role in the Premier. The team of Reuben Amorim faces the clash against the “Magpies” plagued by casualtiesthe most recent being Kobbie Mainoo, like captain Bruno Fernandes who will be absent until the next start of the year. Harry Maguire and Matthijs de Ligt will not arrive either. Yes, the Argentine Lisandro Martínez will be therewho returned after more than 300 days after suffering an injury and did so surprisingly as a central midfielder.

United have only won one of their last four games. It is seventh, out of the European positions like Newcastle, which also has only one victory in that section. The precedents encourage the panorama of the visitors who have won five of the six recent head-to-head matches.

On Saturday, however, the race for the top of the standings resumes. Arsenal are at the top but with almost no margin for error. Their advantage over City is only two points. And about Aston Villa, third, three. Further away, distant, is Chelsea, fourth, ten behind their neighbor, with only one game won in the last five they have played.

Qualified with difficulties, due to penalties against Crystal Palace for the semi-finals of the League Cup and with symptoms of certain fatigue, the Arsenal extends the defense of his leadership in the clash against Brighton at the Emirates Stadium in London. They dropped points against Chelsea (1-1) and then suffered their second league defeat against Aston Villa (2-1). Five lost points taken advantage of by their rivals. Await Brighton, in a slump, which has not won since beating Nottingham Forest on November 30. Since then four meetings have passed.

Injuries have plagued Arteta’s team. Without Kai Havertz from the beginning he has lost Gabriel Magalhaes, Ben White, Cristhian Mosquera y Max Dowman.

By the time Arsenal kick off the match, Manchester City will have already completed their match at the City Ground against Nottingham Forest. With Erling Haaland y Cherki At a high level, the table Pep Guardiola Wait for the right moment to attack the leader. Carry seven wins in a row the sky blue team, five of them in the Premier and has shaved a handful of points off Arsenal.

With the name of Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo between his eyebrows as a winter reinforcement, he has found the tone and is getting closer to his best level, the one that the Old Continent will dominate. Guardiola’s team was defeated last year in Nottingham although things have changed.

Sean Dyche’s team marks permanence. It is one step away from relegation although with an income of five points.

In the race to the top there is also the Aston Villa of Emiliano Dibu Martínezwith ten consecutive victories in all competitions, seven of them in the Premier. After beating Manchester United and Arsenal recently, the Birmingham team enjoyed a boost in self-esteem. He has added 33 of the last 36 points.

He stars in the most important match of the day at Stamford Bridge, against Chelsea of Enzo Fernandez, Alejandro Garnacho y Say goodnightfourth in the table but without regularity. In their last five games, the Club World Cup champion has drawn three, lost one and only managed to win one, against Everton, two weeks ago. Enzo Maresca recovers Estevao and Delap for the clash and with Cole Palmer with more minutes and close to finding his best level.

Furthermore, the Liverpool of Alexis Mac Allister has a good opportunity to advance its progress with the visit to Anfield of bottom club Wolverhampton, which has not yet won a game, is hopeless and has only achieved two draws. The rest, fifteen games, have been lost.

Still affected by the loss of the Swede Alexander Isakseriously injured in the clash against Tottenham, which will leave him out for four months, and without Mohamed Salahwith the Egyptian National Team in the Africa Cup, the champion receives the Wolves.

Arne Slot’s team has improved in recent games and is at the same level as Chelsea, in the fight for fourth position, although far from the fight between Aston Villa, Manchester City and Arsenal, from which it is ten points away.

On Sunday the eighteenth day will close with two games remaining, Sunderland against Leeds and Crystal Palace against Tottenham. And between Tuesday, December 30 and Thursday, January 1, the first round of the Premier will close.

17:00 (hora argentina) Manchester United-Newcastle

9:30 Nottingham Forest-Manchester City

12:00 Brentford-Bournemouth

12:00 Liverpool-Wolverhampton

14:30 Chelsea-Aston Villa

13:30 Crystal Palace-Tottenham

16:30 Chelsea-Bournemouth

16:30 Nottingham Forest-Everton

17:15 Arsenal-Aston Villa

17:15 Manchester United-Wolverhampton

14:30 Crystal Palace-Fulham

17:00 Brentford-Tottenham

17:00 Manchester City-Sunderland