Who will be top at Christmas – Sorting the wheat from the chaff

Article by Robert Wake

Ok, so maybe the title is a little harsh, but you get my drift. Each of the top eight in the Premiership, currently separated by just 6 points will play six games, weather permitting, between now and when we sit down to stuff ourselves with turkey and Christmas pud. After this International break, the games will come thick and fast, punctuated only by the early rounds of the FA Cup in January. Traditionally, this is the time of year when the real contenders put together a run of results that confirm them as genuine title challengers, while others fall away. A snowy trip to Sunderland, a cold day in Hull can derail even the best.

Some Clubs have, what on paper seem tougher schedules than others. For instance, Southampton, undoubtedly the surprise package so far face back to back trips to Arsenal and Chelsea as well as home games with Manchester City and Tottenham. Everton, start the next six with the Merseyside derby against Liverpool, and face trips to Old Trafford and The Emirates before Christmas.

Looking at the fixtures would perhaps suggest Liverpool have the easiest run up to the festive period with three winnable home games against Norwich, West Ham and Cardiff City. Liverpool fans though would be the first to tell you that, in the past, these are the games where they have unexpectedly dropped points. Similarly, Chelsea’s fixtures also appear at first glance to be fairly kind, but having only taken one point from Newcastle and West Brom, nothing can be taken for granted. The last Premiership game before the festivities at Arsenal though promises to be a Christmas cracker.

Before that, Arsenal travel to Manchester City in what will be a huge test of their title aspirations. City at the Etihad are a very different proposition to the away version where they have lost four times, and trips to West Brom and Southampton could prove more than a little troublesome for a side lacking confidence on the road.

Tottenham’s next two could be pivotal to their challenge. A trip to Manchester City is followed by Manchester United’s visit to White Hart Lane. Tottenham currently lie seventh and can ill afford any more home slip-ups to the likes of West Ham and Newcastle if they are to maintain a challenge into the New Year.

United have not been convincing, but, partly due to the failings of the others, remain very much in touch. Their trip to Tottenham is followed by a home game with Everton, while they also visit Cardiff and Villa. In years gone by those two away fixtures would almost certainly have yielded six points, but they still appear vulnerable, and the loss of Michael Carrick for a few weeks will not help their cause.

Reading back on my musings, I appear, perhaps unwittingly, to have made a case for and against just about all of the top eight, and that is very much how it appears at the moment. All the above Clubs have undoubted quality, but have also shown weakness and vulnerability, sometimes when you least expect it. But isn’t that what makes the Premiership so predictably unpredictable? Expect the unexpected and you won’t be far wrong in this topsy-turvy season.

ARSENAL

Southampton (H)

Cardiff (A)

Hull City (H)

Everton (H)

Man City (A)

Chelsea (H)

LIVERPOOL
Everton (A)
Hull City (A)
Norwich (H)
West Ham (H)
Tottenham (A)
Cardiff (H)

CHELSEA
West Ham (A)
Southampton (H)
Sunderland (A)
Stoke City (A)
C.Palace (H)
Arsenal (A)

SOUTHAMPTON
Arsenal (A)
Chelsea (A)
A. Villa (H)
Man City (H)
Newcastle (A)
Tottenham (H)

MAN UNITED

Cardiff (A)

Tottenham (A)

Everton (H)

Newcastle (H)

A.Villa (A)

West Ham (H)

EVERTON
Liverpool (H)

Stoke City (H)

Man United (A)
Arsenal (A)

Fulham (H)
Swansea (A)

TOTTENHAM
Man City (A)
Man United (H)
Fulham (A)
Sunderland (A)
Liverpool (H)
Southampton (A)

MAN CITY
Tottenham (H)
Swansea (H)
West Brom (A)
Southampton (A)
Arsenal (H)
Fulham (A)

ROBERT WAKE

15 November 2013