The Premier League’s Boxing Day schedule begins with Manchester City vs Everton at the Etihad at lunchtime.
As fans have come to expect, the festive calendar is a brutal challenge for teams as the games come thick and fast over the winter period. With cup competitions, Europe, and Premier League football throughout November and December, sides must dig deep to find results.
Manchester City are struggling badly heading into the festive games. It’s one win in 11 games across all competitions for the Citizens after a derby defeat to Manchester United on December 15th.
Everton fans, on the other hand, will have some dread at this fixture. The Toffees have failed to win in the last 15 meetings between the teams, losing 13 of those games – a run that started in August 2017. However, City are arguably looking the most vulnerable they have ever been since that run began.
The Toffees fans’ will also be optimistic because of the team’s improved form in the last few weeks. Everton have four clean sheets in their last five games, including a battling goalless draw at Arsenal last time out.
The last time the teams met, Erling Haaland was on target twice in a 2-0 win at the Etihad. Haaland has struggled for form in recent weeks but remains the joint-leading scorer in the Premier League with 13 goals.
As both managers ready their tactics for the clash, we have outlined the matchday ticket information that you need to get ready to witness it. We also have team news from both camps as well as our predictions on how each team will line up for the game and the final scoreline after 90 minutes.
Match tickets
The Etihad Stadium will play host to this Premier League clash on Boxing Day. Manchester City vs Everton tickets are on sale on official channels and partner platforms of both Manchester City and Everton, as well as those of the Premier League, for fans to buy. Early sign-ups will increase your chances of getting a seat. Non-local fans and tourists can get their tickets on various ticket resale platforms, which will help them bypass the ticket balloting system of the official channels places on non-registered and non-local fans.
The match is the first of the 2024 Boxing Day fixtures (26th December 2024) and will kick off at 12:30pm GMT.
Team news
Manchester City have been unable to put out a consistent side due to persistent injuries and long-term absentees. Rodri’s season-ending ACL issue has been well-documented, while Oscar Bobb will not return until 2025. The likes of John Stones, Nathan Ake, Ruben Dias and Kevin De Bruyne have also failed to show their best level due to fitness issues.
Everton are edging closer to a full complement of options. Armando Broja and Youssef Chermiti are stepping up their recovieres to improve Sean Dyche’s attacking options, while Tim Iroegbunam and James Garner also also getting closer to first-team returns.
Predicted lineups
Manchester City: Ederson; Lewis, Stones, Dias Gvardiol; De Bruyne, Gundogan; Silva, Foden, Doku, Haaland.
Everton: Pickford; Young, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Doucoure, Mangala, Gueye; McNeil, Ndiaye; Calvert-Lewin.
Prediction
Predicting when Manchester City will come out of this rut has been difficult. There have been few signs of their old level of late, but Everton have been a favourite opponent for the Blues in recent campaigns.
Manchester City 2 – 0 Everton.
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