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This comment hits a little too close to home personally. The holiday season is always prioritizing the beautiful game, fir trees second.
This can be a difficult time for soccer fans. Can we manage to maintain the required focus on our club while displaying suitable excitement for presents, holiday meals, and family events...? We'll give it a damned good try! Apologies, could you repeat that...?
Man Utd Target Neves and Gallagher
Erik ten Hag's side is looking for a midfielder. This can’t be good news for the young talent… with two ex-English top-flight players are on the radar of Ruben Amorim’s side.
Newcastle v Chelsea Fixture Analysis
Newcastle v Chelsea at 12.30pm is a great way to start the day’s action. The Magpies occupy 12th place while Chelsea sit fourth. Only six points lies between them, with the Magpies’ formidable home record likely to make it tough for Chelsea.
The home side could be hindered, though, due to a lengthy list of current defensive absentees. The full-back has added to a host of sidelined players in the medical room, with Lewis Hall also a doubt.
Despite this, and despite Maresca claiming he was “falling more in love with [his players” recently, it's unwise to predict Chelsea strolling to victory on Tyneside. Will the coach decide on a regular forward line? The wingers were substitutes during the midweek cup tie to score and look like contenders for a starting spot.
Forecasting results like Newcastle v Chelsea this season has proven exceptionally tough.
Debate Over Elite Footballers
Observations show considerable debate in the comments about the Guardian’s Top 100 players… these things are always subjective, naturally. An indisputable fact is Ousmane Dembélé’s place at the very summit.
Key Weekend Storylines
Major plotlines this weekend include: From pressure on Scott Parker at Burnley, to Wolves’ long search for a win, to calls for Dominic Calvert-Lewin to feature in Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup plans, everything is covered.
Weekend Football Recap
For those who didn't see there was drama in the all-Welsh Friday night Championship clash. The shot-stopper handed victory to Swansea with a last-minute error when he dropped Ben Cabango’s header right into the path of Adam Idah. Idah had the simplest of task to tap home for the decisive goal.
An early Christmas present from the Arsenal academy graduate, incidentally, and local supremacy go to the Swans.
The manager guided his team to a draw ending a poor run, although he said the 1-1 draw at Crewe was disappointing given the home side had 10 men for the majority. In the fourth tier, Cambridge United jumped into the playoff spots thanks to a victory against Accrington Stanley and Cheltenham picked up a 2-1 win away at Barrow.
Northampton cruised beyond AFC Wimbledon 3-1 in League One.
Over in Germany, the battle of the Borussias went Dortmund's way, with a late Beier goal to defeat Gladbach after Julian Brandt struck early on.
Preamble
Hello everyone and welcome to another matchday live blog. Saturday is here so that can only mean one thing – buildup! And we can safely call it a packed schedule with no less than eight Premier League games, kicking off with the early kick-off, heading into the four 3pm kick-offs, Tottenham v Liverpool at 5.30pm, and concluding with two late matches: the Merseyside and London clashes (UK time).
There is also a complete card of games in the Scottish Premiership, Championship, League One and League Two, plus lower down the pyramids along with European action. It's a feast.
As always with matchday lives, we welcome your interaction, so let me know your forecasts, reflections on the year now that it’s coming to an end, or your plans for a football-filled day. Should be fun!
