🎥 Top 10 Christmas Crackers: The best ever Boxing Day matches | OneFootball

What would Christmas be without quality time with your family, presents round the tree and getting to ignore all that 24 hours later to watch a load of football?

It’s a tradition that goes back a 65 years and it’s without doubt the best bit about Christmas.

But what are the greatest ever Boxing Day matches in Premier League history?

In no particular order, here’s our pick.

Chelsea 4-4 Aston Villa, 2007

You may be stuffed full of turkey, but there’s no such thing as too many goals when it comes to Boxing Day football.

This was an absolute belter back in the Chelsea heyday, with Michael Ballack running things from midfield and Gareth Barry rescuing a point for Villa late on.

Aston Villa 2-2 Arsenal, 2008

There’s just something about Villa and Boxing Day.

This was another classic from around that same period with Arsenal going into an early lead before Zat Knight scored a late equaliser for the Midlands outfit.

The game is remembered though for this amazing clearance from Bacary Sagna.

Manchester United 4-3 Newcastle, 2012

Sir Alex Ferguson’s last ever Boxing Day fixture as Manchester United boss was a fitting one.

Coming back from behind three times, Javier Hernandez won it right at the death for the eventual champions.

Charlton 4-2 Chelsea, 2003

Not the kind of Christmas present Roman Abramovich would have been expecting.

He bought Chelsea that season and his first Boxing Day as Blues owner saw Alan Curbishley’s men shock their west London rivals.

Even Jason Euell got on the scoresheet at the Valley that day.

Sheffiled Wednesday 3-3 Manchester United

Going way back to the very first Premier League Boxing Day.

United were guilty of indulging in too much turkey the day before and went into the break 3-0 down.

But a Brian McClair hat-trick ensured that the Red Devils went across the Pennines with a point.

Manchester City 5-1 Hull, 2008

Not a game that will be remembered for anything that happened on the pitch.

The reason it’s on this list is purely because of Phil Brown’s decision to not go into the away dressing room at half-time – but stay on the pitch and give his team talk there.

You won’t be surprised to learn that Brown was last seen managing Swindon in League Two.

Coventry 3-2 Arsenal, 1999

Oh the glory days, when Coventry were a genuinely massive Premier League club and Arsenal were sponsored by Dreamcast.

An almost implausibly young Robbie Keane inspired Cov to their last ever win over the Gunners on Boxing Day 1999 and it was never as good for them again.

Bolton 4-3 Newcastle, 2002

Jay Jay Okocha. Alan Shearer. Big Sam. The Reebok. England international Michael Ricketts.

Inject this directly into my Christmasy veins.

Hull 2-3 Manchester United, 2013

There’s just something about Manchester United and late goals on Boxing Day.

2-0 down to newly-promoted Hull inside 15 minutes, David Moyes was on the brink of the sack before Chris Smalling, Wayne Rooney and a James Chester own goal saved his blushes.

We all know what happened three months later though.

1963

And no Boxing Day run down would be truly complete without mentioning what happened in 1963.

Admittedly this is a tad out of our remit and not strictly Premier League-based, but get a load of these results.

That’s a total of 66 goals in 10 games.

God knows what was in the egg nog that year.