Odds and preview ahead of the Premier League’s Boxing Day fixtures
After the Carabao Cup quarters just before the festive break, the Premier League returns to take centre stage on Boxing Day.
We’ve got a tasty tie to kick-off the weekend’s action with two of the league’s in-form sides in Leicester and Manchester United go head-to-head at the King Power.
In the afternoon, we’ve got two 15:00 fixtures before we head down to North London for a London derby between Arsenal and Chelsea. Could Mikel Arteta’s side turn around their poor start to the season against their rivals?
Manchester City and Everton are both in action against Newcastle and Sheffield United respectively in the evening, but before any of the action gets underway, we’ve taken a closer look at the form, team news and latest odds.
Second face third in the Premier League table as Manchester United travel to Leicester, with both sides coming into the match off the back of impressive results in their last league fixture.
Brendan Rodgers will have had slightly more rest after United’s Carabao Cup exploits on Wednesday night, but United haven’t lost in six Premier League matches and are putting together a decent run of form.
The Foxes will likely be without Daniel Amartey and Ricardo Pereira, with Jamie Vardy and Caglar Soyuncu expected to make the squad, while Ole Gunnar Solsjkaer could be without Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Scott McTominay through injury.
Manchester United are 13/10 favourites to secure three points, while Leicester are 2/1 to close the gap to Liverpool. A draw is 13/5.
Vardy has been involved in over half of Leicester’s league goals so far this season, scoring 11 and assisting four of their 26. He’s 16/5 favourite to score first, with 21/20 on him finding the net anytime.
Bruno Fernandes has 14 goal involvements in 13 league matches for United this season. He’s 9/2 joint-favourite to score first alongside Edinson Cavani, with Marcus Rashford is 2/1 to score anytime.
Dean Smith’s Aston Villa sit in ninth in the table before this weekend’s fixtures, but with two games in hand, they could jump into Champions League contention should they win them.
Crystal Palace will hope to give a better showing of themselves than they did last time out against Liverpool, eventually losing 7-0.
Villa are odds-on 19/20 favourites to claim three more points here, while Roy Hodgson’s Palace are 29/10 to secure a win. A draw can be found at 13/5.
The signing of Emiliano Martinez has plugged the gaps in a leaky Villans defence, and they’ve kept three consecutive clean sheets. A Villa win to nil is 13/5.
Ollie Watkins has impressed so far too, and he’s the 7/2 favourite to open the scoring, with 12/5 on a Jack Grealish goal anytime. For Palace, talisman Wilfried Zaha is 6/1 to break the deadlock, with ex-Villa striker Christian Benteke 13/5 anytime alongside Jordan Ayew.
Has Fulham boss Scott Parker finally found the formula that works for the Cottagers? They’re unbeaten in three and have picked up six points in their last five games, after collecting four points from their opening nine matches.
They’ll face another tricky tie here though in the form of the high-flying Saints, even if the South Coast side are without key men like Danny Ings and Oriol Romeu, as only one of Southampton’s four defeats so far this season have come in away matches.
Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side are 27/20 favourites for another three points, with Parker’s Cottagers 21/10 to win at home. The draw is available at 23/10.
Both sides have featured in eight games so far this campaign which have seen fewer than 2.5 goals in the match, and it’s odds-on at 4/5 that it happens again here.
Che Adams will have to fill the void of the injured Ings, but he’s started the season well finding the net four times. He’s 9/2 favourite to break the deadlock alongside Fulham’s Aleksander Mitrovic, while Ivan Cavaleiro is 23/10 anytime to find the net.
Tuesday night’s Carabao Cup defeat at the Emirates means it’s six domestic league and cup fixtures without a win at home for Arsenal, while they’ve picked up two points from their last six Premier League matches.
But the formbook tends to go out of the window in derby matches. Chelsea ended their run of two league defeats in a row against West Ham last time out, eventually running out 3-0 winners.
There are more injury concerns for Mikel Arteta ahead of this one, with Thomas Partey still missing, while Gabriel Martinelli, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Gabriel could miss out too. Chelsea are still without Hakim Ziyech, Ben Chilwell and Reece James, but Callum Hudson-Odoi could return.
Frank Lampard’s Chelsea are 19/20 favourites to win, while Arteta’s Arsenal are 3/1 to win at home. The draw can be backed at 5/2.
The Blues overturned a 1-0 deficit to win 2-1 at the Emirates last season, and they’re 10/1 to do so again here.
Timo Werner has only found the net four times this season, but he’s 4/1 to open the scoring here, with Olivier Giroud and Tammy Abraham 9/5 to score anytime. Should Aubameyang be fit, he’s 11/2 to score first or 21/10 anytime, while Alexandre Lacazette is 12/5 to score anytime.
For the first time in a while, Pep Guardiola will have almost a full bill of health, as only Eric Garcia looks like he’ll miss out. But there’s still plenty to come from City this season, and could the four goals against Arsenal in the Carabao Cup kick-start their campaign?
They’ll face a Newcastle side with key players missing for a multitude of reasons, with the likes of Alan Saint-Maximin, Fabian Schar, Jamaal Lascelles and Martin Dubravka on the sidelines, among others.
The Cityzens are overwhelming 1/8 favourites to secure three points at the Etihad, while Newcastle are 25/1 to pick up a win on the road. The draw is 17/2.
Callum Wilson has eight goals so far this campaign, as many as both of City’s top scorers, Riyad Mahrez and Raheem Sterling, combined. He’s 11/1 to find the back of the net first, while there’s 10/3 on him adding to his tally anytime.
City have averaged just shy of four goals per game against the Magpies in their last 10 matches at the Etihad. There’s 29/20 about over 3.5 Manchester City goals in this one, with Sergio Aguero the 5/2 favourite to score first, while Gabriel Jesus is 3/4 to score anytime.
After falling away at the top of the league, Carlo Ancelotti has steadied the Everton ship with three wins in three against Chelsea, Leicester and Arsenal, catapulting them back into the top four.
In contrast, Chris Wilder’s Sheffield United just can’t hang on to the lead in matches, going ahead against Manchester United only to lose 3-2, and squandering three points against Brighton in the latter stages of their last match.
The Toffees are odds-on 10/11 favourites to continue their good form with another win, while there’s 16/5 on the Blades picking up their first win. The draw is 5/2.
With two clean sheets in their last three, Ancelotti is working wonders with Everton’s defence. They secured a 1-0 win at Bramall Lane last season, and they’re 9/4 to Win to Nil again here.
Lys Mousset is back for the Blades, and he scored against Everton last season. He’s 6/1 to open the scoring, or 12/5 anytime. As for the Toffees, Dominic Calvert-Lewin is 3/1 to break the deadlock, while there’s 6/5 on him finding the net anytime.
