For Alan Shearer Christmas was a special time as a player, and not just because he scored so many goals during the festive period.
As with the Premier League’s all-time goal rankings, Shearer stands head and shoulders above any other player for scoring in matches between 26 December and 4 January.
The 23 goals he netted in this period are five ahead of the next-best scorer, Robbie Fowler.
Most PL goals 26 Dec to 4 Jan
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Alan Shearer | 23 |
| Robbie Fowler | 18 |
| Dimitar Berbatov | 17 |
| Jermain Defoe | 17 |
| Andrew Cole | 15 |
| Frank Lampard | 15 |
| Steven Gerrard | 15 |
Christmas joy
"For me as a player, I absolutely loved playing over the Christmas period," he says.
"I wasn't a big one for training. I'm not saying I didn't enjoy training but I much preferred playing in the games.
"I loved the atmosphere and the way the games came thick and fast.
'Important time'
"If you get a good result and you score, you want to get out straightaway and play again.
"If you get a poor result it's exactly the same thing, you want to get out and rectify it.
"It's an important time. There's [up to] 12 points to play for and that can make all the difference."
Boxing Day special
Shearer particularly enjoyed Boxing Day, where his eight goals scored on this day are one behind the record of nine set by Fowler.
"When you're driving to the ground, whether that's in your own car or on the team bus, it just seemed a bit more of a party atmosphere," he says.
"Everyone seemed up for it. There was a little bit of a different atmosphere. There was huge excitement and I enjoyed it all."