While the
Bundesliga is on Winter break, the English take the opposite approach. Each club in Premier League soccer will play
four times across 15 days as the Premier League program ramps up over
Christmas. Nearly every English Premier League team is in action on Boxing
Day as well as two Scottish teams and two Italian teams, playing in the Coppa
Italia.
There aren't any outstanding
matches on tap in this season's Boxing Day slate. Several games, though, will affect the race
for the top four. At present, Manchester City is on top, followed by Manchester
United, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham, and Arsenal.
Spurs, Chelsea,
Manchester United and Liverpool are all at home on Tuesday, and anything but
three points would be a disappointment for those top four contenders.
Manchester United is in second with 42 points, but Tottenham, Chelsea,
Liverpool and Arsenal are all within eight points.
The title race is
far less dramatic. Matching the outstanding performance of Barcelona in Spain, Manchester
City is a staggering 13 points clear of Manchester United in the Premier League
as of Christmas Day, a remarkable lead considering just 19 matches have been
played. Whatever the
outcome of Tuesday's games, some teams will gain points on Man City, at least
temporarily, as they do not play again until Wednesday.
In Italy, where
Boxing Day is not observed, Lazio will play
host to Fiorentina on Tuesday evening at the Olympic Stadium.
The teams are fairly evenly matched in their last five games, so this
competition should be fierce.
