Top 4 in the PL on Christmas Day Odds - Leicester City at 3/1!

Manchester City haven’t been on top of the Premier League table on Christmas Day since the 2017/18 season where they finished as champions with 100 points following Gabriel Jesus’ late winner at St Mary’s against Southampton on the last day of the season. In that campaign the Citizens had a blistering start to the season, earning 55 points from their first 19 league fixtures.

Last season City started their campaign slowly due to having very little preparation for the 2020/21 season due to the Champions League finishing after the Premier League season had concluded, thus, giving them and others competing in Europe a significant disadvantage at the start of the campaign. But, they did show their class yet again, as following a 2-0 defeat to Spurs on 21st November, they went on to win 62 of the next 69 points available to them on their way to becoming champions.

Guardiola’s side will be expected to bounce back from their shock 1-0 defeat in the Community Shield against Leicester City with a strong performance against Tottenham Hotspur on the opening day of the season this Sunday. City were fourth at Christmas last time out following a hard-earned 1-0 win at Southampton on 19th December, thanks to a goal from Raheem Sterling.

Liverpool have been top at Christmas in each of the last three seasons, hence why they are priced at 2/7 to be in the top four at Christmas in the upcoming season.

Jurgen Klopp’s side managed 48 points from 56 in 2018/19 in their run-up to Christmas, as well as 49 from 51 and dropped just nine points in 14 matches on their way to being top of the table in the festive period last time out, but, a poor patch of form following a 1-1 draw with West Brom on 27th December saw them win just three of their next 14 league matches.

If Liverpool are to challenge City for the title like they will be aiming to do, then they must start quickly once again, but, they will know that they will more likely need to be closer to the standards that they set in 2019/20 as Guardiola’s side will be as strong as ever, especially since adding Jack Grealish from Aston Villa for a British record fee of £100m.

Chelsea are expected to be the closest title contenders to the likes of City and Liverpool following their Champions League triumph last season.

The Blues haven’t been on top of the table at Christmas since the days of Antonio Conte, as they strolled to the Premier League title in the 2016/17 season. In that season they dropped just seven points in their opening 17 matches, winning the league with 93 points, seven clear of local rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

If Thomas Tuchel’s side are to be in the top four at Christmas, then they will likely have to improve upon their goalscoring form, as they only managed to score 58 goals last campaign in the league, but, if the rumours are to be true and Romelu Lukaku is to re-sign for the Stamford Bridge club, then this will significantly help them on their way, as the 28-year-old Belgian is coming into the Premier League off the back of an impressive season with Inter Milan that saw him score 30 and assist 10 in 40 outings, winning the Serie A in the process.

Manchester United are next on this list, with the Red Devils looking to be top of the league on Christmas Day for the first time since Sir Alex Ferguson was the manager in the 2012/13 season.

Last season, the Red Devils recovered well from a poor start and found themselves as second in the table on Christmas Day last year, just two points behind then league leaders Liverpool, following a thumping 6-2 victory against Leeds United, of whom they play in their opening fixture on Saturday.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side are improving season upon season, having finished third in the 2019/20 season against all odds, before managing second in the league last time out behind rivals City. With the arrivals of Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane confirmed, United should have more than enough to be in the top four come Christmas Day.

Leicester City have narrowly missed out on the top four in the last two seasons, following good first halves of the season.

Last time out, the Foxes were third in the table at Christmas having earned an impressive 2-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur, thanks to an own goal by Toby Alderweireld and a smart Jamie Vardy finish, earning them 27 points from 14 matches.

In the campaign prior to last, Leicester had a good start which saw them sit in second place after 18 games on 39 points, with only runaway league leaders sitting above them on 52 points. Brendan Rodgers will know that this season may be crucial in keeping his star assets, as having narrowly missed out on the Champions League in back-to-back seasons they will need to take the game to the ‘big six’ once again.

Arsenal will be hoping to have a much better season than that which they had last time out, which saw them finish in eighth place.

The Gunners poor standings from last time out may actually be an advantage when it comes to league form, as they failed to qualify for any form of European competition, meaning that they will have just the Premier League to focus on if they are to qualify for the Champions League for the first time since the 2015/16 season, of which the following season was the last time they played in the competition.

After matchday 14 last season, Mikel Arteta’s side were 15th in the table with just 14 points, seeing them sit just four clear of 18th placed Fulham. If Arsenal are to earn a place in the top four comes Christmas Day, then they must avoid the run they went on after matchday two last time out, where they won just two of their next 12 league fixtures.

Arteta will be hoping that the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang can recapture the form which saw the Gabonese striker hit 22 league goals in the 2018/19 and 2019/20 seasons, compared to the 10 he managed last time out, as inevitably, the Gunners goal tally of 55 last time out will need significantly improved upon.

The last team on this list of clubs that will likely be challenging for a place in the top four come Christmas is Tottenham Hotspur, who are now under the management of former Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo.

With the likes of Harry Kane looking increasingly unsettled at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Santo will know that his side will need to play in the Champions League next season for the first time since the 2019/20 campaign, or in turn, risk losing some of his prized assets.

If Santo can bring together the disciplined defensive style that saw his Wolves side finish in 7th in their debut season, whilst repeating the impressive record against the ‘big six’ that he had in his time at Molineux, then there is every chance that Spurs can have a positive season. However, if they are to be in the top four by Christmas, then the Lilywhites can’t afford to get caught up by fatigue from playing in the Europa League.