The English Premier League just keeps serving up the early festive treats, with another gift-wrapped set of fixtures this December weekend across the country.
Fans of the EPL have a hat-trick of derbies all with teams flying high in the table involved, while there’s also plenty to be going at as the scrap for top flight survival begins to take shape.
It’s the Merseyside derby between Everton and league leaders Liverpool that kicks off the weekend on Saturday lunchtime.
The Reds make the short trip across Stanley Park to play a league match at Goodison Park for the final time – and they do so seven points clear at the top thanks to a searing run of form, while the Toffees also picked up a rare win in midweek to pull away from the drop zone.
All eyes are on London on Sunday, meanwhile, with a pair of capital city derbies to light up the afternoon.
Chelsea go to Tottenham with the pressure all on their hosts and under-siege boss Ange Postecoglou, who faced a showdown with Spurs fans after their sixth loss of the campaign on Thursday left them tenth in the Premier League standings.
It’s all clicking for the Blues, though, with three wins on the bounce leaving them second and the nearest challengers to Liverpool at the top of the tree.
Their contest follows the fascinating clash between Fulham and Arsenal at Craven Cottage.
Mikel Arteta’s Gunners are right back in form and third in the table but they’re not alone, with the Cottagers sixth and going thoroughly well themselves.
Monday night’s game between West Ham and Wolves has a ring of the Santa sack race about it.
Both Julen Lopetegui and Gary O’Neil are really under the cosh with both firmly in the wrong half of the table and having lost back-to-back EPL games coming into their crunch contest at the London Stadium.
The Saturday evening kick off between Manchester United and Nottingham Forest will play a key part in the top half shake-up come the end of the weekend.
New Red Devils boss Ruben Amorim tasted defeat – at Arsenal – for the first time in the EPL in the week to leave them languishing in 13th, but their Old Trafford visitors have lost three of their last four to slip back into the pack after a fantastic start.
Manchester City beat Forest in midweek to pick up a first victory in five astonishing Premier League attempts.
Pep Guardiola’s rocking reigning champions have to back it up with another three points at lowly Crystal Palace to stand any realistic chance of remaining in the title race this time around.
Aston Villa also returned to form on home turf on Wednesday and a repeat performance is surely on the cards when sorry Southampton head to Villa Park.
The Saints are rock bottom with just five points since promotion back from the Championship, while the Villans are intent on reigniting their Uefa Champions League qualification push.
Newcastle are two points back from Unai Emery’s side as they go to Brentford, who themselves are above the Magpies on goal difference slap-bang in the middle of the EPL table.
Eddie Howe’s Tynesiders are once again three without a win, while the Bees were the Villa Park victims in their last assignment.
Elsewhere on Sunday, Ruud van Nistelrooy attempts to make it two from two when his Leicester side face the challenge of Brighton at the King Power Stadium.
The Seagulls are flying high in fifth but two without a league win, while stopping the rot in the East Midlands helped the Foxes to four points clear of the relegation zone.
It’s promoted Ipswich who hold that horrible position just below the dotted line, as they go up against Bournemouth at Portman Road.
The Cherries stunned Spurs at the Vitality Stadium to record back-to-back victories for Andoni Iraola and crack back into the top half, making them a tricky proposition indeed in Suffolk.
Fixtures and results
Latest table
All latest EPL Predictions
Everton v Liverpool
| Result prediction | Liverpool to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / Liverpool to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | Mohamed Salah(Liverpool) |
Aston Villa v Southampton
| Result prediction | draw |
| Over/Under prediction | under 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Aston Villa / draw |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | n/a |
Brentford v Newcastle United
| Result prediction | Brentford to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Brentford / Brentford to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | Y. Wissa(Brentford) K. Schade(Brentford) A. Isak(Newcastle United) |
Crystal Palace v Manchester City
| Result prediction | draw |
| Over/Under prediction | under 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / draw |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | n/a |
Manchester United v Nottingham Forest
| Result prediction | Manchester United to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Manchester United / Manchester United to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | Bruno Fernandes(Manchester United) M. Rashford(Manchester United) |
Fulham v Arsenal
| Result prediction | draw |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Arsenal / draw |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | A. Iwobi(Fulham) H. Wilson(Fulham) |
Ipswich Town v AFC Bournemouth
| Result prediction | AFC Bournemouth to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | AFC Bournemouth / AFC Bournemouth to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | J. Kluivert(AFC Bournemouth) |
Leicester City v Brighton & Hove Albion
| Result prediction | draw |
| Over/Under prediction | under 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / draw |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | n/a |
Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea
| Result prediction | draw |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | Chelsea / draw |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | J. Maddison(Tottenham Hotspur) D. Solanke(Tottenham Hotspur) B. Johnson(Tottenham Hotspur) |
West Ham United v Wolverhampton Wanderers
| Result prediction | Wolverhampton Wanderers to win |
| Over/Under prediction | over 2.5 goals |
| HT / FT prediction | draw / Wolverhampton Wanderers to win |
| Team to Score prediction | both teams |
| Anytime Goalscorer prediction | J. Larsen(Wolverhampton Wanderers) Matheus Cunha(Wolverhampton Wanderers) |