The traditional Boxing Day fixtures brought plenty of Premier League talking points with three English giants in action and all winning.
Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United were under the spotlight on Monday, as all three were hopeful of picking up wins for different reasons.
While the Gunners were desperate to bounce back after back-to-back losses, Chelsea were out to set a club record with 12 consecutive league wins while United wanted to make it four wins on the bounce as their comeback continues.
Olivier Giroud rescued Arsene Wenger’s side with a late winner against West Bromwich Albion, but it was captain Laurent Koscielny who deserves the plaudits for another commanding display.
Laurent Koscielny's game by numbers vs. West Brom:
100% tackles won
90% pass accuracy
5 interceptions
5 clearancesSolid as ever ? pic.twitter.com/546SV07txB
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) December 26, 2016
The French international is a rock at the back for the Gunners and he’ll need to step up and deliver consistently between now and the end of the season to play his part in helping them establish themselves as genuine title contenders.
With 100 percent of his tackles won and a 90 percent pass accuracy, he’s hugely important in both facets of the game and was in sublime form on Monday.
Elsewhere, Manchester United’s form continues to take an obvious upswing whenever Michael Carrick is involved as the Red Devils have yet to lose this season when the veteran midfielder has played (WWWWWWDWWDWWWW).
In that run, United have scored 35 goals and conceded just 10 and it shows just how important he remains for Jose Mourinho’s side.
Meanwhile, Chelsea continue to show no sign of slowing down with Antonio Conte’s switch to a 3-4-3 system paying massive dividends.
The Blues have won all 12 games since changing shape, scoring 28 goals in the process and keeping 10 clean sheets as they continue to set the pace at the top of the table.
It looks as though it will take something special to deny Chelsea this season, but Conte will know that they can’t afford to slip up as their rivals remain hot on their trail with the focus switching to Liverpool and Tottenham in the remaining fixtures.