Boxing Day is a sporting day like no other in Britain, with football and racing aplenty to stir the nation from a festive slumber of excess eating on Christmas Day.
There are eight Premier League games on Thursday alongside a full slate of games in the Championship, League One and League Two, while the Scottish Premiership chimes in with six fixtures including Hearts hosting Hibs in a lunchtime Edinburgh derby.
We have picked out our three best bets for the Boxing Day football bonanza.
GET £30 IN FREE BETS WITH TALKSPORT BET
Bet of the Day
Sheffield United and Burnley to draw – 2/1
First plays third in the Championship at Bramall Lane as Sheffield United welcome Burnley.
The second tier lacks a team showing the wherewithal to truly dominate this season, with the top four split by just five points after 22 games.
The Blades and the Clarets have played 44 Championship games combined and conceded a miserable tally of 20 goals. They sit in the top three but rank fifth and joint-seventh in terms of goals scored.
This clash could be attritional and they may well cancel each other out. A point each is a very plausible outcome.
Special of the Day
Over 3.5 Goals in Wolves vs Man Utd & Bruno Fernandes anytime scorer – 4/1
Wolves were 3-0 winners at Leicester on Sunday while Manchester United lost 0-3 to Bournemouth at Old Trafford for the second season running.
Portuguese managerial duo Vitor Pereira and Ruben Amorim are newbies in the Premier League and both have tough assignments in store, albeit with contrasting expectations.
Fourteen of Wolves’ last 15 games in league and cup have produced at least three goals, with eight of the last 14 going over the 3.5 goal benchmark.
United’s last eight games in all competitions have averaged four goals per-game. They were toothless on Sunday but Bruno Fernandes was about the best of the Red Devils’ lot and, with the captain on penalties and free-kicks duty, he always rates a likely goalscorer.
GET £30 IN FREE BETS WITH TALKSPORT BET
Long Shot of the Day
Trent Alexander-Arnold to score first vs Leicester – 18/1
Liverpool have topped the Premier League standings on Christmas Day seven times since the revamped league structure in 1992 but the Anfield side have only gone ahead and completed a title win once.
That, of course, was the 2019/20 season when the whole thing ended behind closed doors in July, Anfield morbidly empty as Jurgen Klopp and co ended a generational wait for the title.
That season, the Reds were 4-0 winners at Leicester on Boxing Day and they meet the Foxes again now, this time on Merseyside.
Trent Alexander-Arnold was on the scoresheet that evening, one of two goals for the England defender in the Premier League against Leicester.
The Reds full-back was brilliant as they scored six at Tottenham on Sunday, close to his very best as he attacked Spurs at will. He’s without a goal for his club this season but on form he’s surely going to collect one soon.
Boxing Day history might repeat itself, Arne Slot would love such a good omen, and Alexander-Arnold can be backed at a whopping 18/1 to score first or, for the less adventurous, a fair 4/1 in the anytime scorer market.
talkSPORT BET Offer
Bet £10 And Get £30 In Free Bets
T&Cs: 18+ New customers only. Opt in via mobile or app & bet £10+ on any football market at 2.00+ odds within 7 days. No Cash out. Get 6x £5 Free Bets on selected markets. Free bets expire in 7 days. T&Cs apply, see below. GambleAware.org | Please gamble responsibly
Check out all the best free bets and offers from talkSPORT and our partners
Odds correct at time of publish and subject to change*
18+ New customers only. Opt in & bet £10+ via mobile on any football market at 2.00+ odds within 7 days. No Cash out. Get 6x £5 Free Bets on selected markets. Free bets expire in 7 days. Card payments & Apple Pay only. T&Cs apply, see below. GambleAware.org | Please gamble responsibly
Remember to gamble responsibly
A responsible gambler is someone who:
- Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
- Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
- Never chase their losses
- Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressed
- GamCare – www.gamcare.org.uk
- Gamble Aware – www.gambleaware.org
For help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or go to www.gamstop.co.uk to be excluded from all UK-regulated gambling websites.
Commercial content notice: Taking one of the bookmaker offers featured in this article may result in a payment to talkSPORT. 18+. T&Cs apply. gambleaware.org