Leicester City vs Newcastle United

King Power Stadium is the venue as in-form Leicester City and surprise package Newcastle United square off in a tasty-looking Premier League Boxing Day affair.

Leicester’s underwhelming Premier League campaign was gathering momentum before the World Cup break as Brendan Rodgers’ men won four of their last five league matches in the lead-up to the tournament (L1). Keen to pick up where they left off in November, the ‘Foxes’ know they cannot celebrate their mini-revival yet, especially with relegation-battling Nottingham Forest only four points behind. But having conceded a whopping 22 goals across the opening seven Premier League rounds this season, the visitors have shipped only three in their last eight, registering six clean sheets in the process. That’s significant because they’ve managed just one shutout across their last four top-flight duels against Newcastle (W2, L2). Worryingly, though, they’ve claimed just one win in their eight games played on Boxing Day (D1, L6) since returning to the Premier League in 2014.

Unlike their rivals, it’s been a phenomenal start to the season for Newcastle United as they went into the World Cup break third in the Premier League standings, an impressive 20 points better off than they were after 15 matches last season! Eddie Howe’s men have assembled an eye-catching five consecutive Premier League victories for the first time since 2014, establishing themselves as genuine top-four contenders in the most challenging league on the planet. However, since a 5-1 battering of Stoke City in 2013, the ‘Magpies’ have lost their last six league fixtures played on Boxing Day, casting doubt on their ability to perform during the festive period. Still, the visitors can draw inspiration from their promising run of three wins from their last four Premier League travels (D1) to turn their Boxing Day fortunes around.