Who has the best New Year's Day record in the Premier League?

Typically, the festive period in the footballing sphere doesn't conclude with the Boxing Day fixtures.

Premier League matches are spread out over the days that succeed the festivities, with the vast majority of us barely having any knowledge of what day it is and when normality will resume. The relentless barrage of football is great, though.

The celebration of a new year then brings about fresh hope. For us, it might be the motivation we need to stop eating a bargain bucket a week, but for Premier League sides a new year could be the ignition for a change in fortunes.

Winning the calendar year opener is always a great feeling, and several sides have made a habit of doing so over the years. Here's a look at the Premier League teams with the best (and worst) records on New Year's Day.

Which Premier League team has the best New Year's Day record?

The two north London clubs lead the way on New Year's Day. Both Arsenal and Tottenham have accumulated 31 points on this day in the Premier League calendar over the years. However, the Gunners have played one more New Year's Day game, which would technically mean that the Lilywhites boast the best record. Spurs have won ten of their 15 New Year's Day games, drawing once and losing four times.

Manchester United and Manchester City have identical New Year's Day records and are the next most productive Premier League outfits. The Manchester rivals have each accumulated 27 points through 13 games.

Liverpool have notched the fifth-most New Year's Day points with 23 from 12 games, while Chelsea have notched 22 from 11. Newcastle also have a good record (18 points from ten games), as do Aston Villa (19 from 11).

It's also worth noting that several sides including Leeds, Coventry, Sheffield Wednesday, Nottingham Forest, Derby, and Portsmouth have never been beaten on New Year's Day. However, these teams have never played more than five times on this day in Premier League history, with the vast majority playing no more than twice.

Premier League New Year's Day fixtures 2023

New Year's Day falls on a Sunday this time around meaning that Premier League supporters won't be treated to a full round of fixtures which has often been the case in the seasons gone by.

A typical weekend's schedule of Premier League action will ensue, with two games being played on a New Year's Day special Super Sunday to kickstart 2023.

First up, Antonio Conte's Tottenham host Unai Emery's Aston Villa as both sides look to respond from dropping points on Boxing Day. Then, Chelsea visit the City Ground to take on Nottingham Forest. The Blues were winless in their previous five league outings before they beat AFC Bournemouth 2-0 on Tuesday evening. Forest, meanwhile, were convincingly beaten 3-0 at Old Trafford on their return to Premier League action.

Premier League New Year's Day TV schedule

All kick-off times GMT*

14:00 - Tottenham vs Aston Villa (Sky Sports)
16:30 - Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea (Sky Sports)

Which Premier League team has the worst New Year's Day record?

A number of teams in Premier League history have never claimed victory on New Year's Day, but there are two sides that stand out in regards to boasting particularly awful records on this day in the calendar.

Crystal Palace have played seven New Year's Day fixtures without winning (three draws and four defeats), while Everton have accumulated just eight points from 16 games. No team has played more games on New Year's Day than the Toffees (Arsenal have also played 16), yet they've only won twice and have lost 12 times.

Birmingham City also lost all four of their New Year's Day fixtures during their various spells in the top flight.

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