Ranking EVERY Premier League club by how hard their Christmas fixtures are… it’s bad news for Arsenal and Crystal Palace, while Man City enjoy the easiest run of festive games

• Crystal Palace have the most difficult run of Christmas games according to stats
• Manchester United face tough festive tests against Liverpool and Aston Villa
• Man City have dipped, but Gary Neville is WRONG to say they’re complacent – Listen to It’s All Kicking Off 

Every Premier League teams upcoming run of festive fixtures has been ranked by difficulty, and it’s not good news for Crystal Palace, Arsenal and Manchester United.

Opta’s supercomputer has been analysing the difficulty of each side’s next five top-flight matches and awarded a rating to each team in the division.

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal have one of the most difficult run of fixtures, while Premier League title rivals Manchester City can look forward to the easiest run of games.

Of course, no Premier League encounter is a comfortable affair, but with five matches in just 22 days, some teams will be hoping for less toiling on-pitch battles.

Crystal Palace have been given the most statistically difficult run of fixtures and a score of 93.1, with Roy Hodgson braced for clashes against Liverpool, Man City, Brighton, Chelsea, and Brentford.

Crystal Palace have been given the most statistically difficult run of festive fixtures

Mikel Arteta ‘s Arsenal will play Aston Villa, West Ham, Fulham, Brighton and Liverpool in their next five games

Manchester United will travel to Anfield before hosting Aston Villa at Old Trafford before Christmas

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The Eagles kick-start that run against Jurgen Klopp’s title-chasing Liverpool at Selhurst Park on Saturday, with the Reds themselves also set for battles against other top-half teams during the same period.

Liverpool have been ranked as having the 8th most difficult festive games, with Manchester United, Arsenal and Newcastle all set to make trips to Anfield.

Meanwhile, Arsenal have been given the second-highest opponent average rating of 91.2, with them also taking on Aston Villa, West Ham, Fulham and Brighton alongside playing Liverpool on December 23.

Manchester United have already played City, Arsenal, Chelsea and Newcastle this season, but will still have to go up against Liverpool and Aston Villa before the end of the year.

Erik ten Hag’s side will also host Bournemouth, while also travelling to West Ham and Nottingham Forest in their next five matches.

United bounced back to form with a recent 2-1 win over Chelsea at Old Trafford and are seeking to build further momentum against the Cherries this weekend.

Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side have been given the easiest run of Christmas fixtures by Opta’s difficulty rating

Mauricio Pochettino will be hoping his Chelsea side can recover from defeat against Man United to put on a run of strong performances before the end of the year

Vincent Kompany’s struggling Burnley will have to produce their best performances of the season during the upcoming run of matches as they bid to climb out of the Premier League relegation zone.

The Clarets have been awarded the third-highest rating of any team with a difficulty score of 90.5 by Opta as they take on three of the top eight teams in the division in the form of Brighton, Liverpool and Aston Villa.

Everton are currently three points above the relegation zone after their midweek win over Newcastle, but have tough tests to come in December against Chelsea, Tottenham and Man City.

Aston Villa supporters have reasons to be optimistic that they can keep up their push for a place in next season’s Champions League with the Gunners and Man United their most challenging festive games, while they must also play Brentford, Sheffield United and Burnley.

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.

It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.

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