Premier League fans brace yourselves - one of the most exciting periods of the season is about to get under way.
This weekend’s round of fixtures marks the start of a hectic spell of 90 matches in just 45 days from Saturday 23 November to Monday 6 January, leaving supporters in line for an action-packed treat.
There will be at least one Premier League match on offer for fans on more than half of the days (25) during this eagerly anticipated section of the season, while in six of the nine Matchweeks, there will be matches on three successive days.
Four times, on 2, 6, 28 and 31 December, supporters will only have a one-day wait without a match, and the longest gap between matches for fans is only four days, which will happen just twice.
Meanwhile, fans will be able to fill their days with hours of football on multiple occasions due to staggered kick-offs.
The traditional Boxing Day programme on 26 December will be the busiest, when eight matches are spread across four different kick-off slots - 12:30 GMT, 15:00 GMT, 17:30 GMT and 20:00 GMT.
The first fixture, Manchester City v Everton, kicks off at 12.30 GMT and the last, Liverpool v Leicester City, starts at 20.00 GMT, meaning almost 10 hours of top-flight football for fans to feast on.
There are also bumper seven-match fixture lists scheduled on Saturday 23 November and Saturday 4 January.
On the way during the six-week stretch are some mouthwatering match-ups. Here, football writer Adrian Kajumba picks some of the key matches and days to look out for.
Leicester v Chelsea
The fun gets under way when the season resumes with Chelsea’s lunchtime trip to Leicester, a game that will see Blues head coach Enzo Maresca make his first return to the club he led to the Championship title and promotion last season.
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Man City v Spurs
Almost a year ago these two sides served up a 3-3 classic at the Etihad Stadium and another exciting encounter is in prospect, with both teams needing to bounce back after pre-international break defeats at Brighton & Hove Albion for Man City and at home to Ipswich Town for Spurs.
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Ipswich v Man Utd
Premier League and Manchester United fans will get a first look at the division’s newest head coach Ruben Amorim, and some of his plans at Portman Road. It is a potentially tricky start against an Ipswich side led by former Man Utd coach Kieran McKenna and buoyed by securing their first league win last time out at Spurs.
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Liverpool v Man City
Their tussles have been key to the destiny of the Premier League title in the recent past and could regain that level of importance again this season after Arne Slot’s Liverpool and Pep Guardiola’s Man City emerged as the early-season front-runners.
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A full midweek round
This first midweek round of fixtures in 2024/25 is full of eye-catching games spread across three days. Ipswich v Crystal Palace could be crucial at the bottom of the table on Tuesday 3 December, old foes Arsenal and Manchester United meet, along with Newcastle United and Liverpool, on Wednesday 4 December, before Spurs visit AFC Bournemouth on Thursday 5 December in what will be former Cherries striker Dominic Solanke’s first return to Vitality Stadium.
Everton v Liverpool
Less than 48 hours after Matchweek 14 ends, Matchweek 15 begins with an iconic fixture - the Merseyside derby. The last one at Goodison Park will be a first taste of the special occasion for Slot, who will be hoping to avoid a repeat of his predecessor Jurgen Klopp’s 2-0 defeat at Everton last season.
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London derbies
If this produces anything like the chaos and drama of last season’s meeting - Chelsea’s 4-1 win against Spurs’ nine men and ultra-high defensive line - a treat is in store. Earlier in the day, Arsenal travel to Fulham in another London derby, with Cottagers midfielder Emile Smith Rowe facing his former club for the first time among the sub plots.
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Man City v Man Utd
As if it wasn't a big enough fixture already, the managerial battle between Amorim and Guardiola adds further spice to the season’s first Manchester derby. Amorim’s penultimate game in charge of Sporting Lisbon in early November saw him outwit Guardiola in the UEFA Champions League, a 4-1 defeat the Spaniard has an immediate opportunity to avenge.
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Final matches before Christmas
The festive football begins with an exciting set of 10 matches split evenly over two days in the last round of games before Christmas. It kicks off on Saturday lunchtime, with Aston Villa v Man City - one of only three Premier League matches lost by Guardiola’s side last season - and ends with Spurs hosting Liverpool on Sunday afternoon.
Boxing Day
A day to savour for Premier League fans - almost 10 hours of near non-stop, Boxing Day action, which begins with Man City v Everton and finishes with Liverpool v Leicester. A west London derby between Chelsea and Fulham and Wolverhampton Wanderers v Man Utd, a 4-3 thriller won by the visitors last season, are also among the eight fixtures.
Final matches of 2024
There is a triple-header of intriguing-looking fixtures to finish off the Premier League year - Villa v Brighton, Ipswich v Chelsea and Man Utd v Newcastle.
Brentford v Arsenal
Hosting Arsenal will always bring back fond memories for Brentford, who beat the Gunners 2-0 on their Premier League debut at the start of the 2021/22 season. The fixture has a prime slot again, this time kicking off 2025.
End of the festive fixtures
The Premier League will go out with a bang before the next brief pause in top-flight action, due to the FA Cup third round, with the festive period culminating with some blockbuster match-ups, including Spurs v Newcastle and Brighton v Arsenal on Saturday 4 January, before Liverpool v Man Utd the following day.
