It’s a good omen in English football. If you’re team’s top of the pile while you tuck into your Christmas turkey, you stand a pretty good chance of winning the Premier League the following summer.
In fact, it’s happened in 15 of the last 30 seasons since the new version of the top flight kicked off in 1992 – but of course not every team is able to maintain their stranglehold on the league crown after surging to the top at the half way point.
As it stands, Manchester City lead the standings on 44 points as we go into Christmas Day, the first time they’ve done so since 2018 after three years of Liverpool topping the charts.
But what happened to the rest of the teams who led the table on Christmas Day? Did they hold on for glory or capitulate towards the end of the season? Sportsmail dives into the archives to take a look.
Manchester City lead the Premier League table on Christmas Day, but what happened to previous teams who led the pack on the half way point?
1992-93 – NORWICH CITY
FINAL POSITION: 3RD
Back in the 1992-93 season – the Premier League’s inaugural campaign – the Canaries were leading contenders for relegation but sprang a shock by going eight points clear at the top of the table on Christmas.
Norwich were leading the pack with 39 points from 20 games – inlcuding 12 wins and five defeats – but the problems were put on display after letting in as many as they had scored and going into Christmas Day with a goal difference of zero. They were eventually caught by Aston Villa, who finished second, and Manchester United – who won their first title under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Their season was surprise for many who had tipped them for the drop but they still qualified for Europe – even though their efforts were only enough for a UEFA Cup spot back in the day.
1993-94 – MANCHESTER UNITED
FINAL POSITION: 1ST
It was back to back Premier League titles for the Red Devils and Sir Alex as Andy Cole’s 34 goals fired them to the top flight crown once again.
They…
Source : dailymail
