Numerous Premier League players could be sidelined on Boxing Day if they're shown a yellow card this weekend.
On Saturday, Aston Villa hosts Manchester City in the early kick-off before West Ham faces Brighton, Ipswich Town plays Newcastle United, and Brentford challenges Nottingham Forest. In the evening, Crystal Palace will look to exact their revenge on Arsenal after their mid-week defeat in the Carabao Cup quarter-final.
Then, on Sunday, Everton will lock horns with Chelsea, while Manchester United rival Bournemouth, Fulham host Southampton and Leicester City face Wolves. In the final match before Boxing Day, Tottenham Hotspur will play Liverpool.
As it stands, 38 players across the English top flight are walking a tightrope with four yellow cards to their name. Premier League rules state that players who receive a total of five cautions over the first 19 games will be given a one-match ban.
If a player is booked 10 times across the first 32 Premier League matches of the season, they will be suspended for two games. With domestic cup competitions underway, bookings picked up in the English top flight are not carried over to the Carabao Cup or FA Cup.
So, if either of the 38 players who are currently on four yellow cards are cautioned this weekend they'll be suspended for the Premier League clashes on December 26 and December 27. Arsenal have just one player at risk of missing their tie against Ipswich Town, being Gabriel Jesus, who netted a hat-trick on Wednesday night.
Chelsea have two players who could miss the West London Derby, with Robert Sanchez and Nicolas Jackson treading a fine line. Meanwhile, Micky van de Ven, who's currently nursing a hamstring injury, and Rodrigo Bentancur, who will miss the final game of his 7-match domestic ban this weekend, have incurred four yellow cards each.
The remaining players on four cautions in the Premier League are as follows: Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa), Lewis Cook (Bournemouth), Justin Kluivert (Bournemouth), Marcos Senesi (Bournemouth), Lewis Dunk (Brighton), Jan Paul van Hecke (Brighton), Jefferson Lerma (Crystal Palace), Michael Keane (Everton), Ashley Young (Everton) and Sam Morsy (Ipswich Town).
Jordan Ayew (Leicester City), Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City), Oliver Skipp (Leicester City), Jamie Vardy (Leicester City), Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool), Ibrahima Konate (Liverpool), Darwin Nunez (Liverpool), Bernardo Silva (Manchester City), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Fabian Schar (Newcastle United), Sandro Tonali (Newcastle United).
Nicolas DomÃnguez (Nottingham Forest), Neco Williams (Nottingham Forest), Ryan Yates (Nottingham Forest), Adam Armstrong (Southampton), Mateus Fernandes (Southampton), Adam Lallana (Southampton), Edson Alvarez (West Ham), Lucas Paqueta (West Ham), Guido Rodriguez (West Ham), Carlos Soler (West Ham), Tomas Soucek (West Ham), Rayan Ait-Nouri (Wolves), Toti Gomes (Wolves), Mario Lemina (Wolves).
On Boxing Day, the Premier League fixtures are as follows: Manchester City vs Everton, Bournemouth vs Crystal Palace, Chelsea vs Fulham, Newcastle United vs Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest vs Tottenham Hotspur, Southampton vs West Ham, Wolves vs Manchester United and Liverpool vs Leicester City.
Then, on December 27, there's: Brighton vs Brentford and Arsenal vs Ipswich Town. Each of the aforementioned matches over the festive period can be lived streamed on Amazon Prime Video.
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Chelsea flag prior the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Leg One match between Chelsea FC and Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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