As families up and down the country tuck into their turkey leftovers, 20 Premier League teams will be putting on a festive spectacle across December 26 and 27, including eight intriguing Boxing Day battles.
Champions-in-crisis Manchester City kick off the post-Christmas action at home to Everton in the December 26 lunchtime kickoff, several hours before title favourites Liverpool welcome Leicester City to Anfield.
In between the 12.30pm and 8pm fixtures, Chelsea and Fulham lock horns in a West London derby at Craven Cottage, while Manchester United have many wrongs to right away to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Nottingham Forest also face a stern test of their Champions League credentials at home to Tottenham Hotspur, and Newcastle United's home battle with Aston Villa has all the makings of a fascinating fixture.
Let us not forget the four teams who also have the luxury of a football-free Boxing Day; Arsenal take on Ipswich Town in North London on December 27, the same evening that Brighton & Hove Albion tackle Brentford.
Another Premier League gameweek means another Sports Mole prediction competition against a famous musician or band, and for the holiday season, we are pitting our wits against Peter Hooton, the lead vocalist of Liverpool indie band The Farm and a lifelong Reds supporter.
Read on to discover Peter and Sports Mole's predictions for Premier League gameweek 18, as well as finding out who won last weekend's battle with The Now's Shane Callaghan.
Man City vs. Everton
Thursday, 12.30pm
© Imago
Peter: Man City 2-0 Everton
Sports Mole: Man City 3-0 Everton
City's recent form has been scarcely believable, but they have plenty of favourable fixtures ahead, starting with this one against opponents who have enjoyed very few good days at the Etihad in the past few years.
In the last 365 days, Everton have won just one Premier League away game, and that was at Ipswich, and ending their near 15-year wait for a win at the Etihad looks unlikely to come here.
Chelsea vs. Fulham
Thursday, 3pm
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Peter: Chelsea 3-1 Fulham
Sports Mole: Chelsea 3-1 Fulham
After being frustrated by an impenetrable Everton, Chelsea will fancy their chances of returning to winning ways against a more open Fulham side, even if they may have more to worry about defensively.
Fulham have proven themselves to be a competitive outfit since returning to the top flight under Silva, but their record against Chelsea remains woeful, and their winless streak could extend to 20 here at the Bridge.
Newcastle vs. Aston Villa
Thursday, 3pm
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Peter: Newcastle 2-2 Aston Villa
Sports Mole: Newcastle 2-1 Aston Villa
Newcastle (16) and Aston Villa (15) come into this festive contest having lost more Premier League games on Boxing Day than any other clubs in the competition's history.
A lesser power away from home, Villa could now draw level with their hosts in that dubious ranking, as the Magpies are flying high after recovering their form in the final third.
Nott'm Forest vs. Spurs
Thursday, 3pm
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Peter: Nott'm Forest 2-1 Spurs
Sports Mole: Nott'm Forest 2-2 Spurs
Tottenham may be able to boast the Premier League's best defensive record away from home alongside Manchester United, but that will count for little against an inspired Forest side if their recent vulnerabilities are exposed once again.
Postecoglou's men can still fight fire with fire on their day, though, and Forest have seldom outplayed the Lilywhites in recent times, so another engrossing encounter may end with honours even.
Southampton vs. West Ham
Thursday, 3pm
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Peter: Southampton 0-2 West Ham
Sports Mole: Southampton 1-1 West Ham
Not since 2015 have West Ham fallen to defeat against the team starting the day at the bottom of the Premier League table, and while that trend should continue on Boxing Day, Lopetegui's men may have to be content with just the one point.
Missing two of their principle attacking threats in Antonio and Paqueta, the Irons will have their work cut out against a Saints backline that has been shored up since Russell Martin's exit, and Juric's Premier League tenure appears destined to begin with a low-scoring stalemate.
Bournemouth vs. Crystal Palace
Thursday, 3pm
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Peter: Bournemouth 2-1 Crystal Palace
Sports Mole: Bournemouth 1-0 Crystal Palace
Conceding just seven goals across eight Premier League home matches in 2024-25, Bournemouth will be confident of keeping an often-misfiring Crystal Palace outfit at bay.
The Eagles will be buoyed by the likely return of Eze to top-flight action, although we cannot envisage a Boxing Day success for the visitors on the South Coast.
Wolves vs. Man Utd
Thursday, 5.30pm
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Peter: Wolves 1-1 Man Utd
Sports Mole: Wolves 2-3 Man Utd
In one of the most intriguing festive fixtures, it could be telling in how both club's seasons pan out, because another win for Pereira in his second game could see them cruise to safety.
Another defeat for United would be catastrophic, but they have a good record here and seem to be doing better on the road, so they will seek to capitalise on Wolves having the joint-worst home record in the division so far.
Liverpool vs. Leicester
Thursday, 8pm
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Peter: Liverpool 3-0 Leicester
Sports Mole: Liverpool 4-1 Leicester
After a couple of defensive calamities, Leicester boss Van Nistlerooy might consider sacrificing an attacker to add an extra body in defence on Boxing Day, not that it should do much good for very long.
Slot's men may be guilty of giving an easy goal away right now, but any rearguard mistakes should be cancelled out by ruthless finishing, as the Reds maintain their healthy lead in first place.
Brighton vs. Brentford
Friday, 7.30pm
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Peter: Brighton 2-1 Brentford
Sports Mole: TBC
Arsenal vs. Ipswich
Friday, 8.15pm
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Peter: Arsenal 3-0 Ipswich
Sports Mole: Arsenal 3-0 Ipswich
McKenna has stuck to his guns no matter who Ipswich have faced this season, meaning that the Tractor Boys are unlikely to sacrifice an attacking player in favour of an extra defender for the trip to the Emirates, and the visitors have a knack for scoring away from home.
However, even a Saka-less Arsenal should not have any problems picking the Ipswich lock, and we can only picture the Gunners making light work of the Tractor Boys, with another clean sheet in tow.
Peter Hooton Q&A
How did you come to support Liverpool and what are your favourite memories from your time as a fan?
My grandad and dad were both born next to the ground and supported Liverpool FC, so from an early age I followed in the family footsteps. There are so many brilliant memories but the most memorable game I went to was beating Roma on their home ground to win the European Cup in 1984 as they had already declared themselves 'Campioni d'Europa' and we were supposed to be the sacrificial lambs!
Who have been your favourite five players for your club? (Historically or currently)
Kevin Keegan, Kenny Dalglish, John Barnes, Steven Gerrard and Mohamed Salah
What's going on with the band at the moment?
We have just finished a new album which will be released in May 2025. We have released Feel the Love, Let the Music Take Control and Forever and Ever on streaming platforms in the last year but this will be a full release on all formats on the Modern Sky label. We are really excited about our first release in decades, and we will be playing festivals in the UK and Ireland throughout 2025. Check our website for further details - https://thefarmmusic.co.uk/.
You can follow The Farm on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter).
2024-25 SEASON LEADERBOARD (ARTISTS)
Scores are calculated as one point for a correct result and five points for a correct scoreline.
1. Kyle Starkey (16pts | Gameweek 3)
2. Make Friends' Max Lewin (15pts | Gameweek 2)
3. Everyone Says Hi's Nick Hodgson (13pts | Gameweek 1)
4. Blitz Vega's Kav Sandhu (10pts | Gameweek 5)
5. Trampolene's Jack Jones (9pts | Gameweek 4)
= Kneecap's Mo Chara (9pts | Gameweek 6)
7. Feet's Harry Southerton (7pts | Gameweek 13)
= IN PARALLEL's Harrison Baker (7pts | Gameweek 15)
9. Kids in Glass Houses' Iain Mahanty (6pts | Gameweek 7)
= proFESSional's Rob Hennebry (6pts | Gameweek 8)
11. Maddox Jones (4pts | Gameweek 9)
12. She Drew The Gun's Louisa Roach (3pts | Gameweek 10)
= The Now's Shane Callaghan (3pts | Gameweek 17)
= Chilli Jesson (3pts | Gameweek 11)
15. Soft Launch's Josh McClory (2pts | Gameweek 12)
= My First Time's James Mellen (2pts | Gameweek 14)
= Apollo Junction's Ben Hope (2pts | Gameweek 16)
2024-25 COMPETITION HISTORY
Gameweek 1: Everyone Says Hi's Nick Hodgson 13-14 Sports Mole
Gameweek 2: Make Friends' Max Lewin 15-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 3: Kyle Starkey 16-13 Sports Mole
Gameweek 4: Trampolene's Jack Jones 9-9 Sports Mole
Gameweek 5: Blitz Vega's Kav Sandhu 10-11 Sports Mole
Gameweek 6: Kneecap's Mo Chara 9-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 7: Kids in Glass Houses' Iain Mahanty 6-3 Sports Mole
Gameweek 8: proFESSional's Rob Hennebry 6-7 Sports Mole
Gameweek 9: Maddox Jones 4-10 Sports Mole
Gameweek 10: She Drew The Gun's Louisa Roach 3-4 Sports Mole
Gameweek 11: Chilli Jesson 3-8 Sports Mole
Gameweek 12: Soft Launch's Josh McClorey 2-3 Sports Mole
Gameweek 13: Feet's Harry Southerton 7-10 Sports Mole
Gameweek 14: My First Time's James Mellen 2-8 Sports Mole
Gameweek 15: IN PARALLEL's Harrison Baker 7-2 Sports Mole
Gameweek 16: Apollo Junction's Ben Hope 2-3 Sports Mole
Gameweek 17: The Now's Shane Callaghan 3-6 Sports Mole
Ben Knapton
