December is here, one of the most intense and exciting periods of any Premier League season. This year this rings true more than ever with the title rise as close as it ever has been.
The three title contenders Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City will be playing up to eight games in the final month of the year, which is a huge commitment with very high stakes for them and their players.
Moving forward, I will be discussing City, Arsenal and Liverpool, as when it comes to the champions of England, it will most likely be one of these three teams come May. Because of this, I will not be speaking of the chances of teams such as the likes of Tottenham, Man United, Newcastle or Aston Villa.
But when the silverware is handed out in 2024, just how will December results end up being?
Well, in this past week, Liverpool chief Jurgen Klopp discussed that the results of the coming month are absolutely crucial:
“Nothing is decided in December. No trophies are handed out and no league positions are determined.
But because there are so many games in such a short space of time, you can put yourself in a really good position to attack the rest of the season or otherwise.”
Klopp is correct in his determination that you can’t win the Premier League in December, but makes a great point in the major impact in any future success.
Liverpool play Arsenal and Manchester United over the festive period, which are games many fans will highly anticipate due to the stakes at play. Arsenal also have some tricky looking contests with Brighton and Aston Villa.
Arsenal, for their part, won’t be getting carried away. Last year they were five points clear at Christmas and were caught and overtaken by Manchester City.
Mikel Arteta states that all his side can do in December is to try to do their best, but he has also been quick to point out the impact the fans can have and how crucial they will be to the team.
“The fans play every single ball with us and when there’s that connection, it’s really powerful.”
The reigning champions – City have a somewhat fascinating fixture list. Their rivals would argue it is somewhat easier in terms of their Premier League campaign. However, the real fascination comes from the fact they are also playing in the Club World Championship in Saudi Arabia this month, as Pep Guardiola’s side look to become World champions for the very first time.
Indeed, Guardiola is seemingly looking forward to the New Year ahead of Christmas.
“December is so tight. We have the Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia. January is more relaxed,” the City box recently said.
The 2023 Christmas schedule is destined to be a frantic and captivating period for football. There is no denying the clear fact it will be crucial to determining the cup winners – particularly for Arsenal, Liverpool and City.
We know we will keep a keen eye out on these three teams throughout the Christmas period for some exciting games and cup-determining results.
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By Graeme Bailey
