The festive fixtures are well and truly under way! A brilliant fortnight of football kicked off with Liverpool beating Wolves, opening up a four-point gap at the top of the Premier League.
Manchester City’s shock defeat to Crystal Palace means Jurgen Klopp’s side has some breathing space at the summit, while Tottenham’s 6-2 hammering of Everton moves them to two points behind City.
Chelsea’s home defeat to Leicester sees them drift five points away from third place. Arsenal moved level on points with the Blues thanks to a battling victory over Burnley.
Manchester United produced a thrilling performance in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first match in charge of the club, sweeping aside relegation-threatened Cardiff.
Losses for Everton, West Ham and Brighton sees them all in the bottom half of the table. But Southampton’s second win in a row moves them three points away from the relegation zone.
Fulham and Huddersfield sit at the bottom of the table, with goal difference the only thing separating the two sides.
But who gave their fans an early Christmas present and who crumbled under the pressure? Here are our winners and losers.
WINNERS
Virgil van Dijk – Liverpool
The centre-back was colossal at the heart of the Liverpool defence against a very tough Wolves attack.
The Netherlands international fought for everything and even made his presence count at the other end of the pitch, volleying home Liverpool’s second goal of the evening.
It’s clear to see how much his presence lifts the entire team, and although Mohamed Salah got a goal and assist, Van Dijk was the standout player for the Reds.
David Brooks – Bournemouth
The Welshman has been a revelation for the Cherries this season and he was in fine form once again as his brace helped Eddie Howe’s side to a crucial victory over Brighton.
His first was a brilliant solo effort, rifling the ball into the bottom corner from outside the box, while the second was a clever flicked header that looped into the net.
Brooks has such confidence for a young player and in this sort of form, it’s hard to see him out of Bournemouth’s starting line-up.
Son Heung-min – Tottenham Hotspur
Son was undoubtedly the star man of the weekend’s action as he scored twice and assisted twice in Spurs’ 6-2 victory at Goodison Park.
The South Korean’s pace and trickery was simply too much to handle for the Everton defenders and he’s now taken his league goals tally up to five.
In this sort of form, Son is one of the best players in the league and Mauricio Pochettino may opt to continue using him in a free roam position.
LOSERS
Fabian Balbuena – West Ham United
The Paraguay international definitely had an afternoon to forget. His late lunging challenge on Roberto Pereyra resulted in a Watford penalty and in the same challenge, he managed to pick up a knee injury.
To add more salt to his wounds, the centre-back was shown a yellow card for the tackle before being substituted.
Woe upon woe for the West Ham centre-back, who is now doubtful to face Southampton on Thursday night.
Lewis Dunk – Brighton
Dunk has been one of Brighton’s most reliable players this season, but he lost control of himself against Bournemouth.
He can count himself as desperately unlucky as he picked up a yellow card for a challenge which was in fact made by team-mate Yves Bissouma, before picking up a second yellow for a late tackle.
He will now miss the Seagulls’ clash with Arsenal on Boxing Day.
Jordan Pickford – Everton
The Englishman endured a torrid afternoon against Spurs as he conceded six times.
The first was arguable his fault as he came rushing out of his box, only to collide into team-mate Kurt Zouma, allowing Son to expertly curl the ball into the empty net.
He can also count himself lucky after he escaped punishment for a very late lunge on fellow Englishman Dele Alli. Time for Pickford to dust himself down and put in a good performance against Burnley.
