Manchester United’s defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers headlines the Premier League’s Boxing Day action so far, which has delivered mixed results for a few of England’s top sides.
Relegation-threatened Wolves booked themselves a spot above the drop zone with a win over United, with the game’s lone goal coming directly from a corner kick taken by Matheus Cunha in the 58th minute and Hwang Hee-chan adding a second in the 99th minute. The Red Devils were not helped by Bruno Fernandes’ second yellow card in the 47th minute but were fairly poor from start to finish, leaving them in 14th place as things stand.
Elsewhere in England, second-place Chelsea relinquished a one goal lead and lost 2-1 to Fulham, while Manchester City missed a penalty in a 1-1 draw with Everton that saw their poor run extend to just one win in their last 13 games. Additionally, Tottenham Hotspur registered a 1-0 defeat against this season’s surprise UEFA Champions League contender, Nottingham Forest.
As the Premier League’s latest batch of Boxing Day games plays out, here are grades for each of the teams in action.
Premier League Boxing Day scores
All times Eastern
- Manchester City 1, Everton 1
- Chelsea 1, Fulham 2
- Nottingham Forest 1, Tottenham Hotspur 0
- Newcastle United 3, Aston Villa 0
- Bournemouth 0, Crystal Palace 0
- Southampton 0, West Ham United 1
- Wolverhampton Wanderers 2, Manchester United 0
- Liverpool vs. Leicester, 3 p.m.
Manchester City vs. Everton grades
Manchester City: Even amidst the worst run of form of Pep Guardiola’s managerial career, one may have looked at Thursday’s game against 15th place Everton as a chance for City to reverse their fortunes. That chance came and went just like the other games in City’s poor run, wasting their 24 shots by putting just five on target and once again appearing out of ideas in every area of the pitch. For once, though, City actually had a chance to win the game on a silver platter with a second-half penalty and could not even capitalize there. They are undoubtedly in a rut, and the fact that Guardiola still has not found a solution to their problems is very concerning. Grade: D
Everton: The Toffees love a draw, sharing the spoils in five of their last seven games. One might argue that they should look for wins at a certain point, but they can be forgiven considering their last three games have come against Arsenal, Chelsea and City. They seem to have perfected the tactical stylings of manager Sean Dyche and successfully stymied City, down to Pickford’s big save with a penalty. They stand a chance of picking up the biggest result of the day, too, so it’s a job well done for Everton. Grade: B
Chelsea vs. Fulham grades
Chelsea: The Blues may have come into this one as the favorites, but they were outplayed by Fulham and paid the price for it by conceding two late goals. Palmer may have given them the lead with a 16th-minute strike, but they were unable to command the game after the fact and were arguably second-best in most categories. That includes their attack, which is amongst the Premier League’s best with 38 goals this season but was inconsistent on Boxing Day – they put eight of their 12 shots on target but were outdone by Fulham’s 14 shots and posted 0.9 fewer expected goals than the eventual winners. It’s unclear how serious Chelsea were as title contenders, but this loss will no doubt be a big hit to their chances. Grade: F
Fulham: The race for European berths is poised to be a competitive one this season in the Premier League, in large part because teams like Fulham are stringing together encouraging performances. Thursday’s performance was an example of just that – despite conceding an early goal, they slowly but surely clawed their way back into the game with Harry Wilson‘s 82nd-minute equalizer and Rodrigo Muniz‘s 95th-minute winner. They also outdid Chelsea’s impressive attack, outshooting the Blues 14 to 12 and generating 1.95 expected goals along the way. Grade: B
Nottingham Forest vs. Tottenham Hotspur grades
Nottingham Forest: On Thursday, Forest’s defense-first approach served them well yet again, successfully stifling Tottenham’s league-leading offense by limiting them to just four shots on goal from 13. It helps to take advantage of the opponent’s depleted defense just once to secure another valuable win, one that takes them third place and continues to solidify their status as lead contenders for a berth in next season’s edition of the Champions League. Grade: A
Tottenham Hotspur: In a game of a well-performing defense and the Premier League’s best attack, the latter ended up losing and it adds another layer of concern in a season of inconsistency for Spurs. The one that generally works for Ange Postecoglou’s side, on good days and bad ones, is their attack but they will probably be unhappy with the fact that they played Forest evenly on expected goals. Add to that Djed Spence‘s second yellow card in the 94th minute, this was a Boxing Day to forget for Spurs. Grade: D
Newcastle United vs. Aston Villa grades
Newcastle United: The hosts were already the better side by the time Aston Villa’s Jhon Duran picked up a straight red card in the 32nd minute, but Newcastle United made sure not to waste the additional advantage. They end Boxing Day with one of the more lopsided victories of the holiday as a result, bolstering their own case as a potential participant in next season’s Champions League competition. Grade: A
Aston Villa: It feels like just about everything went wrong for Aston Villa, who were already down a goal two minutes in and then played the final hour down a player. They were unable to manage more than four shots and a single attempt on target as a result, though much of that will be attributed to the impact of Duran’s red card. Thursday’s game might be an outlier in terms of their performance, but the fact that they have now slipped down to ninth place is a worrying sign. Grade: F
Bournemouth vs. Crystal Palace grades
Bournemouth: Fresh off a 3-0 win over Manchester United, Bournemouth had opportunities to score but were unable to find the back of the net on Thursday. They were arguably wasteful, putting up 18 shots but mustering just 1.33 expected goals and taking only four shots on goal. It may have been two points missed for the Cherries, who are in the hunt for European competition and currently sit in sixth place, but it does not feel like a record scratch for their strong season so far. Grade: C
Crystal Palace: To some degree, Crystal Palace held their own against an impressive Bournemouth team but still offered nothing to write home about despite picking up a point on Boxing Day. It might just be a valuable point for Palace, who are currently three points above the relegation zone, but a team that close to the drop generally means they frequently leave something to be desired in their performances. That was the case for Palace on Thursday, for sure. Grade: C
Southampton vs. West Ham United grades
Southampton: Even without Russell Martin, Southampton did not abandon their attack-minded approach on Thursday and edged out the opponents in shots and expected goals. That said, the Saints will be very disappointed by the fact that they did not actually manage to turn 17 shots and 1.86 expected goals into an actual goal, leaving some valuable points on the table and doing little to climb out of last place. Grade: F
West Ham United: A win is a win, perhaps, but West Ham did not cover themselves in glory by barely beating the Premier League’s worst team. They managed just two shots on target against the league’s most porous defense and as mentioned, lost most of the attacking battles to the Saints. The Hammers are still locked into that tight midtable that includes Tottenham and Manchester United, but even if they are just 10 points away from the top four, Julen Lopetegui’s side did not do much to convince them they can rise up the table. Grade: D
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs. Manchester United grades
Wolverhampton Wanderers: It may not have been the most entertaining performance, but Wolves came out on top in an evenly contested game against United and picked up a valuable three points along the way. Whether this is just part of a new manager bounce under Vítor Pereira or a sign of more to come is yet to be decided, but gritty wins are the trademark of a team that’s eager to get out of the relegation battle, so a 17th place spot at the end of Boxing Day will suit them just fine. Grade: B-
Manchester United: Every game seems to be a reminder of United’s shortcomings these days, no matter the context. United should be good enough to beat a relegation-threatened side but in the midst of another season of lows, Thursday’s defeat comes as little surprise. Though Cunha may have surprised many by scoring an olimpico, the fact that United conceded off a set piece is not surprising since it was the 18th time an opponent scored from a set piece in 2024. It was not the only issue for the visitors, though – they did not manage more than seven shots and mustered just 0.78 expected goals. Adding in Fernandes’ second yellow in the 47th minute, it was another bad day for United in a way that is becoming their trademark. Grade: F
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