“Boxing Day”, the controversial Premier League classic which will see Dibu Martínez’s Aston Villa and Mac Allister’s Liverpool chasing the top

The ball doesn’t stop rolling in England during the holidays and is especially present every December 26th with the emblematic Saint Stephen, which this year will serve to begin the 19th appointment of Premier League.

This is a British tradition, whose origins date back to the 19th century, in which families with greater purchasing power gave their employees the day off after working on Christmas Day and gave them a Christmas box (or Christmas box) to celebrate with your loved ones.

This December 26, 2023, the best gift will be for the fans who will be able to enjoy five matches of the English championship. Between them, Manchester United-Aston Villa (2.30pm, on Star+) e Burnley-Liverpool (17, ESPN), with Emiliano Dibu Martinez AND Alexis MacAllister -who is recovering from an injury and would only return in January- looks for their respective teams to reach the top of the table.

However, footballers seem not to agree with the idea of ​​playing on this date due to the high demands it entails. “We will be playing our third match in nine days. This demands a lot from you both mentally and physically,” reflects the experienced Dutch defender Virgil Van Dijk starter for Liverpool in all those games.

THE Rossi I will visit Burnley, in need of points to escape the red zone, and the stakes these days are very high given how exciting the fight at the top of the table is. I’m just one point behind the leader, Arsenalwith whom they drew 1-1 last Saturday.

Tied on 39 points with those led by Jurgen Klopp This Aston Villawho will visit Old Trafford against a Manchester United beaten after losing three of their last four matches and without scoring a goal in any of them.

All English teams deal with the overload of matches as best they can, including rotations of players and also managing the psychological aspect.

After losing 2-0 at West Ham United on Saturday, Manchester United manager, Erik Ten Hag, divided the post-match press conference in two: first five minutes to comment on the defeat and then another ten to talk about Tuesday’s match against Aston Villa. A scene as curious as it is surreal, a few minutes before the final whistle. A frenetic march.

THE Artillerymen From Mikel Arteta Meanwhile, they won’t play until Thursday, when they host sixth-placed West Ham United at the Emirates Stadium.

All English teams deal with the overload of matches as best they can, between player rotations and managing the psychological aspect. The diabolical pace of the matches means that the competition has almost no time to rest.

Between the Premier League, Europa League and League Cup, Liverpool will play eight games in Decemberbefore starting 2024 on January 1 vs Newcastle for the 20th matchday of the Premier League.

From 5 December until the match between West Ham and Brighton on 2 January, 58 matches will be played in 29 days.

After that the English championship will stop for two weeks, but that respite will be taken up by the third round of the FA Cup and the first leg of the semi-finals of the League Cup, so there will be no real break.

Likewise, the peculiarity of the British calendar of December and January, despite criticism, also finds fervent defenders.

“It’s the most special time of the year for me. You test yourself physically and mentally. You have never seen so many happy faces in a stadium as right now. “People are generally in a good mood,” the Belgian said. Vincent Companyhistoric Manchester City defender and current Burnley manager

The five Boxing Day games

• 09:30 Newcastle-Nottingham Forest

• 12:00 Bournemouth-Fulham

• 12:00 Sheffield United – Luton Town

• 2.30pm Burnley-Liverpool

• 5.00pm Manchester United-Aston Villa