Liverpool, buoyed by their handsome 4-1 win over Stoke City on Tuesday, have a tough task to keep their second place in the standings as they clash against third-placed Manchester City at Anfield this evening.
Reds boss Juergen Klopp reckons his team is better prepared for the Yuletide demands than last year.
The German told reporters his team is “ready to fight” through an intensive schedule and also believes that results at this particular stage of the campaign can define the team’s potential for the title challenge.
The comfortable victory over Stoke was a great boost for Liverpool but they need to maintain the pressure on Chelsea to stay in the race.
Last season, Liverpool’s festive period saw them beating Leicester and Sunderland within four days, but then struggled for pace in their next fixture against West Ham and lost 2-0.
At City, Pep Guardiola says he has not lost faith with John Stones and will not be tempted to sign another central defender in January.
Stones was dropped to the bench earlier this month following City’s 4-2 defeat at Leicester but he was back in the side for the 3-0 win over Hull City even though he did not last long following an injury in the opening half.
Guardiola told reporters he thinks that the gap between top and small clubs in the Premier League is narrow unlike Spain and Germany where he managed title-challenging clubs previously in his career.
League leaders Chelsea, who tamed Bournemouth 3-0 in their last match to stay six points clear of Liverpool, entertain Stoke City at Stamford Bridge this afternoon.
Striker Michy Batshuayi, having arrived from Marseille for a huge fee of £33.2 million in the summer, has found first-team football hard to come by with all his appearances so far coming from the bench.
Tomorrow, Arsenal play Crystal Palace, now managed by Sam Allardyce, at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners, nine points behind Chelsea in fourth place, laboured to beat West Brom 1-0 on Monday while Allardyce earned his first point for the Eagles when his new side drew 1-1 away at Watford.
On Wednesday, Tottenham came from behind to beat 10-man Southampton 4-1 at St Mary’s Stadium. Tomorrow they play away at Watford, seeking another win to keep their chase for a top-four position alive.
Tottenham are unlikely to be busy in January but manager Mauricio Pochettino believes any deals are again likely to emerge very late in the winter transfer window.
At Old Trafford, Manchester United start favourites to chalk up another win as they play 15th-placed Middlesbrough, having beaten the other north-east club, Sunderland, at the same venue.
United have not given up hope of winning the Premier League title this season despite falling 13 points off the pace with Chelsea.
With 21 matches remaining, playmaker Henrikh Mkhitaryan said his team-mates are still dreaming of silverware.
“My wishes are for the team to have the best year possible – for Manchester United, for the players and for the fans,” he was quoted as saying at the end of the match against Sunderland on Boxing Day.
“I hope we have an amazing season and fight for all the titles. Hopefully, in 2017, we can win some trophies. But United are a long way behind the leaders at the moment.”
Meanwhile, troubled Leicester City square up to West Ham at the King Power Stadium looking to lift their domestic season after falling to 16th place and three points outside the drop zone.
Boss Claudio Ranieri is confident the champions can achieve their goals this season.
After a spirited comeback at Stoke City, with Leonardo Ulloa and Daniel Amartey striking late for 10-man Leicester, Ranieri said his side was entering a ‘key time’ of their season.
Yet on Monday they went down 2-0 to Everton at home to concede their ninth defeat from 18 matches.
Premier League
Burnley-Sunderland
Chelsea-Stoke City
Leicester-West Ham
Liverpool-Man. City - 18:30
Man. United-M’Boro
Southampton-West Brom
Swansea-Bournemouth
Tomorrow:
Arsenal-Crystal Palace - 17:00
Watford-Tottenham - 14:30
The Championship
Barnsley-Birmingham
Brentford-Norwich - 18:30
Derby County-Wigan Athletic
Huddersfield-Blackburn - 13:30
Preston-Sheffield Wed.
Wolves-Queens Park Rangers
League One
Bolton Wanderers-Scunthorpe
Bradford-Bury
Bristol Rovers-Wimbledon
Fleetwood-Oldham
Oxford-Walsall
Peterborough-Coventry
Sheff. Utd-Northampton - 14:00
Southend-Charlton - 14:00
League Two
Crewe-Accrington
Grimsby-Blackpool
L. Orient-Cambridge - 14:00
Luton Town-Barnet
Mansfield-Doncaster - 13:15
Newport-Exeter City
Notts County-Carlisle
Plymouth-Crawley
Stevenage-Colchester
Scottish Premiership
Dundee-St Johnstone - 15:00
Hamilton-Motherwell - 14:00
Partick-Kilmarnock - 15:00
Rangers-Celtic - 13:15
Ross County-Inverness
Scottish Championship
Dumbarton-Dundee Utd - 14:30
Falkirk-Hibernian - 13:30
Queen of South-Ayr - 15:00
St Mirren-Greenock Morton
League One
East Fife-Livingston - 15:00
Queen’s Park-Stranraer
Stenhousemuir-Alloa - 14:00
League Two
Berwick-Edinburgh City
Clyde-Annan
Stirling-Cowdenbeath - 15:00
Note: Kick-off 16.00 unless stated