Fanfare – a Premier League Christmas wrap-up

I confidently predicted a title challenge and even a win, but Manchester City’s ruthless form has raised nerves across the league. Reuniting Gabriel and William Saliba is vital, as defensive solidity underpins everything. Greater attacking fluidity is also needed to maintain momentum. The festive schedule will be demanding, but if navigated successfully, we remain well placed. Squad depth will be crucial during this period. Leandro Trossard has been a standout, thriving on increased competition after speculation over his future. His response mirrors Gabriel Martinelli’s, with both players pushing standards higher.

League prediction: Still first, Christmas will be demanding, but get through that and we can be in a good position to win the title.

Player to watch: Trossard has impressed, thriving on competition, like Martinelli. The squad depth will be crucial.

Akhil Vyas, Arsenal Supporters’ Trust

The xG hipsters may tell you otherwise, but this Aston Villa team means business. No, the performances aren’t always breath-taking, but there is fight, balance and togetherness in this group of players. Goals are flying in from all angles, with a healthy spread among the squad both at home and in Europe. If injuries can be minimised and Ollie Watkins can regain some of his vigour, then a Champions League return is on the cards. If our new president of football operations, Roberto Olabe, can also sprinkle some magic dust in January then the sky is the limit this season.

League prediction: Fourth.

Player to watch: Matty Cash.

Armen Mirzoian, My Old Man Said podcast

It’s been a season of two halves so far. We had an absolutely outstanding start, but a run of eight games without a win, not helped by injuries, suspensions, and a dip in form from Justin Kluivert, Evanilson and Antoine Semenyo has hit our early hopes of European success. It was never going to be easy replacing the backline, and clearly the new defenders we’ve acquired are taking time to bed in. But we’ve also badly missed the energy, knowhow and contributions from last year’s player of the season, Ryan Christie, for much of the season. We’re still optimistic that we can turn it round and finish strongly. In Andoni Iraola, we trust… he just needs to sign that contract extension. Please.

League prediction: 12th

Player to watch: Eli Junior Kroupi – he’s been a superb finisher, and long may that continue.

Jeff Hayward, Back of the Net – The AFC Bournemouth Fan channel

Awesome at home. Awful away. Keith Andrews’s biggest challenge of the many facing him as a rookie head coach is just how to win on the road consistently. Over-caution is punished when picking three centre-backs but “going for it” is rewarded in style. Liverpool, Villa, Manchester United and Newcastle were all soundly beaten at home.

Igor Thiago has only Erling Haaland ahead of him in the leading scorers’ chart while Jordan Henderson is purring like a kitten. If Keith can work out how to get the ball wide as well as directed through the middle, this team could really show his beloved character and personality.

League prediction: I called ninth at the start. If the Bees work out how to win away, that’ll be bang on.

Player to watch: Jordan Henderson. We knew he was good but he’s been beyond wonderful. The old saying about age being just a number has never been truer.

Nick Bruzon

Our season so far has been of consistent inconsistency, though the mid-pack in the Premier League this year is wide open with many teams are struggling to find consistency. We know there are better levels within our squad, we just have to find that week in week out. If we do, Europe will come.

League prediction: Seventh.

Player to watch: Yasin Ayari has been quietly our best midfield this season as Carlos Baleba has fallen well below standards.

Joe Sayers, Albion Obsessed podcast

The manager Scott Parker talks a lot about fine margins and he’s right to do so. It’s not that Burnley have been bad this season –it’s just that the problem is that we just haven’t been quite good enough. The Premier League is ruthless, and in this regard, the table doesn’t lie: 11 points from 17 games puts us on course for relegation, especially with Leeds, West Ham and Nottingham Forest finding patches of form.

Some of the team have been decent – Zian Flemming, Jaidon Anthony and Josh Cullen come to mind – but our play has been flat and we are too fragile at the back. I’ve heard more than one supporter whisper a comment that captures the mood: “Maybe things are more fun in the Championship.”

League prediction: 17th, because it’s too early to give up hope.

Player to watch: Loum Tchaouna, if he can replicate his Leeds stunner a dozen times.

Xavier Greenwood

Chelsea are on track for their targets of top four and cup runs, but regular inconsistencies against deep-block set-ups and recent Enzo Maresca comments seemingly aimed at the club hierarchy around a lack of support and protection threaten to derail the season. There is apparently tension between Maresca and co-owner Behdad Egbhali surrounding the model, rotation policy and match debriefs.

The recent reports suggesting that Manchester City could move for Maresca in the summer to replace Pep Guardiola will upset many Blues fans who must feel that the ownership’s preach for stability, process and building may once again come up short.

League prediction: Fourth.

Player to watch: Malo Gusto – he has contributed four goals and assists, only topped among defenders by Crystal Palace wing-back Daniel Muñoz.

Max Fretwell, @MaxLondonsFirst on X

This season has been a long one already, for the fans as well as the players. Europe has proved to be a great ride so far, but the extra games mean that the small squad is being whittled down by exhaustion and injury. Still, fifth in the league, playing good football and still in both cups (for now) means that the Oliver Glasner train is still rolling ahead at full steam (for now).

League prediction: Eighth, around the same as pre-season but the small squad may prove a problem!

Player to watch: Daichi Kamada – after a slow start last season, the Japanese has gone from bit-part player to one of the most consistent performers in the team.

Sam Hesketh, Winging It podcast

This has been a season where Evertonian emotions and our ambitions for the campaign seem to fluctuate from month to month — sometimes week to week. Thanks to the performances of players like Jack Grealish and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, some big away results in December, and the congested nature of the Premier League, Everton have flirted with the European places at times only to be slapped down by the reality of a painfully shallow squad. Ultimately, the key to whether the Toffees can finish in the top half may well be whether they can address key positions in the January window.

League prediction: Ninth still seems achievable but hopeful of higher.

Player to watch: Michael Keane was much-maligned and very close to leaving the club last summer but, having signed a year-long contract extension, he has performed far above expectations, which has been massive.

Lyndon Lloyd, Evertonia.com

Late signings, numerous injuries and lack of striker options have led to us struggling so far. Losing three vital players – Calvin Bassey, Alex Iwobi and Samuel Chukwueze – to Afcon won’t help, nor will Marco Silva holding out on signing a new contract. Our home form has been better than our away form but we’re starting to pick up points on the road like we did against Burnley, where we broke our Turf Moor curse. We have some vital matches against teams around us who have come up. We need to find consistency and spend money in January to ensure we stay clear of relegation.

League prediction: So far we haven’t been good enough to finish in the top half. We’re probably looking about 15th now.

Player to watch: Our Super Eagle, Samuel Chukwueze, is flying high. He’s a ball-carrying winger with astounding skills. He has created an impressive number of goals and assists (two and four).

Jack and Loz, jackandloz.com

Chaotic, exhausting and occasionally brilliant, Leeds’s return to the Premier League has been everything that we expected and more. This side already look far more streetwise than last time round, tougher without the ball and less naive in key moments, even if self-sabotage still lurks. Elland Road has carried the team through spells where performances dipped, once again proving its value at this level. The margins are unforgiving and the league punishes every mistake, but Leeds have shown enough resilience, structure and fight to suggest that survival is genuinely achievable.

League prediction: 16th – flirting with danger, but enough quality and fight to scrape clear before May.

Player to watch: Gabriel Gudmundsson. He’s been a revelation on the left.

James, Leeds, That! podcast

This season has, for various mitigating reasons, stunned fans. Liverpool look unrecognisable; so much so that Arne Slot is facing a level of scrutiny reminiscent of Claudio Ranieri. But Liverpool can be better, should be better, are better. A cool night at San Siro shone light down this dark tunnel. And now the question remains as to what shape the club will be in by the time we emerge on the other side. There’s a small part of me that believes this Liverpool side can still yet salvage a title push, but we can’t afford another slip-up.

League prediction: Third. It’s been a really tough season, but they’ve got far too much quality available to drop out of the top four.

Player to watch: No one expected Dominik Szoboszlai to be the only Liverpool player you could consistently hang your hat on, but he’s been phenomenally reliable this season.

Farrell Keeling, Empire of the Kop

Thoughts so far – I’m happy; City are currently well positioned in all competitions. Granted, we’ve suffered a few frustrating losses already this season, but a new City team are undoubtedly starting to take form. The big guns have started firing (Erling Haaland, Phil Foden and Rúben Dias) and other key players have begun to emerge (e.g. Rayan Cherki, Nico González, Jérémy Doku, Nico O’Reilly).

League prediction: First.

Player to watch: Nico González – it was clear that we’d signed a solid player last season. But he’s been ridiculously good this campaign. Not miles off Rodri levels, which is about the highest praise I could give him.

Lloyd Scragg, ninetythreetwenty.com

Chaotic, frantic, and demonstrating a Jekyll-and-Hyde persona befitting a side who finished 15th last season, that is the Manchester United we see today. Although frustration is rampant among the fanbase, with much of it warranted, the underlying metrics highlight some green shoots. Defensive frailties are concerning though. Heading into a precarious period without a trio of our Afcon stars, the capabilities of this squad, and several fringe players, will be tested. Still, the attacking performance that we witnessed against Bournemouth was as close to a United display as we have seen in some time. We must believe.

League prediction: I predicted fifth during the pre-season, and I will stick with that.

Player to watch: Mason Mount has been superb. While I wouldn’t class this as a surprise, many would.

Shaun Connolly, editor-in-chief, Theatre of Red

After four magnificent years under Eddie Howe, cracks are emerging. Shocking away form and poor game management have been fixtures for us this season. Yoane Wissa’s return gives us a fresh striker option, but it remains to be seen how the team adjust as a new formation may be the way forward. Overall we approach the new year more in trepidation than with hope. The crowd is very firmly behind the manager and team who have given us so many great times, but this season feels transitional and I wonder if the best approach may be to throw everything at the cups and hope our status as modern day trophy winners persists.

League prediction: Somewhere between seventh and 14th. Our away form means that we’re not getting Europe. A downgrade on my initial expectations but you have to be real.

Player to watch: Anthony Elanga, who seemed such a good fit, looks lost and has offered little.

Jamie Smith, The Mag

A start littered with storm, chaos and a notably terrible decision has ushered in calmer waters in the shape of Sean Dyche. For a team on its third manager of the season not to be in the relegation zone feels like a strange success, and that means there is actually some reason for optimism as we enter 2026. Dyche has never had a squad this good to work with and so far he is using it well – far better than Ange Postecoglou ever looked able to do amid an ill-fated stint. Mid-table domestic finish and a deep run in the Europa League? Yes please.

League prediction: I’ll say 14th as 13th is bad luck.

Player to watch: Omari Hutchinson.

Matt Davies

It’s great to be the team perceived as “the story of the season” by pundits. The profile of summer signings gave us hope but didn’t suggest we’d be as good as we’ve been. Afcon might hit us hard, but we expected it to.

A satisfying thing about our season so far is the amount we are written off and dismissed by fans of other clubs. These players aren’t plucky underdogs; they are at a good level and have been well recruited.

The club feel alive, with players, staff and fans all plugged into what’s happening. And a derby win to boot.

League prediction: 11th.

Player to watch: Dan Ballard – thought he would be able to step up to the Premier League, but not to the excellent level that he’s been playing at.

Stephen Goldsmith, Wise Men Say

The jury is still out on Thomas Frank. Stability was the brief, uncertainty has been the reality. Out of the League Cup, drifting in the Champions League, and marooned in mid-table, Spurs look like a team searching for an identity that they haven’t yet earned. City away remains the lone flicker of joy - a reminder of what might be there - but too often we’re cautious without being coherent, defensive while being vulnerable. This feels like a season being endured rather than one to be built upon.

League prediction: 10th. Familiar, faintly depressing.

Player to watch: Randal Kolo Muani. Felt underwhelming as a signing but has buckets of ability.

Sean, Talking THFC

As a kid I dreamed of having a season ticket at Upton Park. Now the football and atmosphere leave me sticking to away games. Jarrod Bowen is a shining light every week, and Freddie Potts has provided a boost by showing the composure that our midfield has lacked since losing Declan Rice. Signings like Niclas Füllkrug and Callum Wilson scream of the reactive, scattergun approach that the board have shown in the market for years, while improper scouting has put us here. We let players run themselves into the ground and miss the opportunity to challenge for Europe like Villa are. Each game feels like rinse and repeat, jumping from alternating styles of manager with no defined plan. Nuno Espírito Santo, to his credit, has added some solidity.

League prediction: 16th.

Player to watch: Soungoutou Magassa.

Jonny Taylor

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone/Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone/Silence the pianos and with muffled drum/

Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come

The words of W. H. Auden’s Funeral Blues couldn’t feel truer for Wolves fans this season. “Hyper-relegation” is coming. It is tough on Rob Edwards, a true Wolves man who took a risk leaving Middlesborough to come back to Molineux. But, listen, mistakes have been made l, and changes of personnel across the board won’t make much of a difference now. The Premier League has been nice. Time to start all over again.

League prediction: 20th.

Player to watch: Mateus Mané, let’s go.

James Bird, editor-in-chief at Mundial

Photograph by Julian Finney/Getty Images