Mikel Arteta isn’t pleased with Arsenal’s festive fixture checklist – does his criticism have some advantage?
After the Gunners performed Brentford on Wednesday night, they have to journey to Aston Villa on Saturday for a 12:30 GMT kick-off. It’s a actually fast turnaround.
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Arteta believes the Villa fixture ought to have been scheduled for Sunday to supply further relaxation.
Sadly for Arteta, solely groups who’re away in Europe on a Wednesday night time can choose out of that Saturday lunchtime TV slot, so his complaints will fall on deaf ears.
December is notoriously busy for Premier League golf equipment, with a midweek spherical of matches, the festive programme, European fixtures and the Carabo Cup quarter-finals.
So who has probably the most arduous run of fixtures within the five-week interval via to the primary weekend of January?
1. Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace want ends in the ultimate two Convention League video games to go immediately via to the final 16 [Getty Images]
December is tough sufficient on groups within the Convention League. It’s even worse in case you do properly within the EFL Cup, as Crystal Palace are about to find.
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The ultimate two rounds of the Convention League are performed on consecutive Thursdays with Palace away to Shelbourne on 11 December and at dwelling to Finnish facet KuPS seven days later.
However that is solely a part of the story for Palace, fifth within the Premier League. They face 11 video games, six of them away, within the 36-day interval between 30 November and 4 January. Their longest relaxation interval is 5 days, the worst schedule of all golf equipment.
Palace have an EFL Cup quarter-final tie at Arsenal to play, a sport initially scheduled for the midweek of the KuPS fixture.
It has been pushed to Tuesday, 23 December and as a part of the rejig, Palace’s sport with Leeds was introduced ahead 24 hours to Saturday, 20 December.
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They now should play KuPS and Leeds inside 48 hours, earlier than their cup tie with Arsenal.
Over a gruelling five-week interval, they are going to have performed Manchester United, Manchester Metropolis, Arsenal, Tottenham and Newcastle.
2. Chelsea
The schedule isn’t fairly so troubling for Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca, however it’s powerful.
Chelsea have 10 video games to play, and 6 of them are away.
Having misplaced at Leeds on Wednesday, they go to Bournemouth at 15:00 GMT this Saturday.
Chelsea have a tough away sport within the Champions League too, dealing with Atalanta, subsequent Tuesday.
They do get a full week off between their go to to Newcastle on 20 December and a house sport in opposition to Aston Villa on 27 December.
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It additionally helps that they’ve two dwelling matches after Christmas, in opposition to Villa and Bournemouth. Plus, their EFL Cup quarter-final is away to League One membership Cardiff Metropolis.
3. Newcastle United
Newcastle United even have 10 video games, 5 at dwelling and 5 away.
Their job is made harder by an away Champions League fixture in Germany in opposition to Bayer Leverkusen subsequent Wednesday. They do get an additional day’s relaxation earlier than making the quick journey to Sunderland within the Premier League on Sunday, 14 December.
Newcastle are the one membership apart from Palace to not get a full week off in some unspecified time in the future on this interval.
The six days between a house sport in opposition to Chelsea and an away day at Manchester United on 26 December is their longest relaxation. They usually have two away video games after Christmas. No less than their EFL Cup tie is at dwelling to Fulham.
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4. Arsenal
Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal even have an equal break up of 5 at dwelling and 5 away.
Arsenal and Aston Villa, their opponents on Saturday, each performed on Wednesday night time, and have European away video games subsequent week. The Gunners are at Membership Brugge, with Villa visiting FC Basel.
Arsenal may also play Wednesday-Saturday subsequent week however face Wolves the next Saturday at 20:00 GMT.
With their EFL Cup quarter-final rescheduled, Arsenal get the midweek of 15 December off, slightly than the one which leads into Christmas.
They’ve two dwelling video games (in opposition to Brighton and Villa) popping out of it however have a shorter relaxation interval of the groups to play 10 or extra video games with Bournemouth away on Saturday, 3 January.
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5. Manchester Metropolis
Pep Guardiola’s group have 5 dwelling video games and 5 on the highway too.
Metropolis face the tough Champions League journey to Actual Madrid subsequent Wednesday however, like Newcastle, do not return to Premier League motion till the Sunday after they go to Palace.
Their EFL Cup sport is at dwelling to Brentford.
Whereas Metropolis get every week off at Christmas, they return to motion with two away fixtures, at Nottingham Forest and Sunderland, however with an additional day’s relaxation in between.
6. Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest have 9 video games with 5 away.
They journey to the Netherlands to play FC Utrecht within the Europa League on Thursday, 11 December. Off the again of that there’s a dwelling sport in opposition to Tottenham on the Sunday.
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Forest have solely three days between their Christmas video games at dwelling to Manchester Metropolis and Everton.
7. Liverpool
Arne Slot’s Liverpool even have 5 away matches from 9 video games.
Journeys to Leeds on Saturday and Inter Milan subsequent Tuesday are adopted by a house match with Brighton on the next Saturday.
Liverpool then play one sport in a two-week interval, and have each Christmas video games at dwelling (Wolves, Leeds). Additionally they have two further days’ relaxation in comparison with some groups.
8. Aston Villa
Aston Villa have 5 of their 9 fixtures at dwelling.
The actual unfavorable is a brief three-day turnaround after Christmas, with powerful video games away at Chelsea and at dwelling to Arsenal.
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However with no EFL Cup quarter-final to be involved with, there’s a interval of 1 match in 13 days.
9. Tottenham Hotspur
In a quirk of the fixture checklist, Tottenham are the one one of many 9 English golf equipment in Europe to be at dwelling subsequent week.
It is a beneficial sport for Spurs too, at dwelling to winless Slavia Prague.
Thomas Frank’s group have a interval of 1 sport in two weeks, and whereas they’ve back-to-back away video games after Christmas (in opposition to Palace and Brentford) they’re each in London with an additional day’s relaxation.
10. Brentford, Fulham
Brentford and Fulham are the 2 golf equipment who’ve EFL Cup commitments, however aren’t in Europe.
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Each are away and so they have a really related unfold of league fixtures too.
12. Bournemouth, Brighton, Everton and Wolves
The remaining 9 golf equipment solely have the Premier League to fret about, so fixture congestion is of no actual concern.
Bournemouth, Brighton, Everton and Wolves have it barely worse than the others, with away video games on 27 December and 30 December.
16. Leeds
Leeds have an additional day between two away fixtures over Christmas, however each are away – at Sunderland and Liverpool.
17. Sunderland
Sunderland have a great unfold of video games, with 4 days from their dwelling match in opposition to Leeds on Sunday, 28 December to internet hosting Manchester Metropolis on Thursday, 1 January.
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There are not any cup video games in any respect, however they’ve already needed to play Liverpool, and should nonetheless face Manchester Metropolis (twice), Newcastle and Tottenham.
18. Burnley, West Ham
Burnley and West Ham every have a three-day hole between video games over Christmas however they’re dwelling fixtures.
20. Manchester United
In concept, it appears to be like to have fallen into place for the proper December for Manchester United.
They do not need to play in Europe, or the EFL Cup, and so they have a near-perfect unfold of fixtures.
After subsequent Monday they play twice in 18 days, and over Christmas play Friday-Tuesday-Sunday.
Their quick-fire double-header is in opposition to rock-bottom Wolves.
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