Football resumes its tradition and routine with the Premier League and its 'Boxing Day'

One in four Premier League footballers was in Qatar in the last month.

Of the 134 who attended the World Cup there is hardly one who does not return and it is not just anyone: Cristiano Ronaldo.

Others are expected in the Islands, even though the return to routine is complicated when you settle in heaven.

"He is walking around Buenos Aires and I understand it, but he has to accept that the Premier is starting again," coach Erik Ten Hag shot at Lisandro Martínez, center-back for the Argentine team... and for Manchester United.

In Spain, the League returns on the 29th, one day after that in Portugal or France, the Italian Serie A will restart on January 4, the 6th is scheduled in the Netherlands and the Bundesliga does not return until January 20, but the Premier hurries: there is no World Cup that goes over

, football heritage with deep roots.

December 26 is the great day of football in England, the date on which in 1860 Sheffield and Hallam played the first match of which there are records.

The festive atmosphere of

is paid for by the tradition of a day in which the commercial spaces are packed and the British give themselves to gifts and donations.

That is where football also enters as a sacrosanct activity.

The ritual pointed out for years that it was the day on which many parents introduced their children to the mystique of going to the stands of a soccer field.

The festive atmosphere was also completed with unforgettable days because, for reasons beyond tactical,

used to bring exciting matches truffled with wins.

Cristiano Ronaldo as a substitute in a match between Manchester United and Tottenham at Old Trafford on December 19. CRAIG BROUGH (REUTERS)

Everything appears nuanced in contemporary football, which admits an autumn World Cup in the desert.

“Things have been a bit different in the last month,” admits Mikel Arteta, the Arsenal manager.

7 of the 20 teams have held rallies outside the country, the vast majority in the Arabian peninsula, but they have not stopped generating news.

While CR dynamited United, City renewed Guardiola until 2025 and Liverpool, whose American owners are negotiating the sale of their shareholding package with various gangs, announced the departure next summer of its sports director, Julian Ward.

In sports they do not raise their heads at Anfield: Luis Díaz has undergone surgery and will be out until spring.

"A slap in the face", defines Jürgen Klopp, 15 points behind the head of the table.

At United, ranked fifth, three points behind Tottenham, who has played one more game, they admit that the goal is to enter the next Champions League.

It does not seem that the Spurs, where it is not clear that Antonio Conte is going to continue leading the project beyond June, aspire to more either.

The coach calls for reinforcements because Richarlison returned injured from the World Cup and will be out for a month.

Tottenham opens the return of the competition with an uncomfortable visit to Brentford on Monday noon, a day in which Newcastle also returns, surprising third place that goes to Leicester, and also Liverpool, sixth in the table and who awaits Emery and his revived Villa.

But the spotlight on

will be on the Emirates.

Leaders Arsenal host West Ham United without Gabriel Jesus, who underwent surgery on his right knee after an injury with Brazil.

"A big blow, but the season presents us with challenges and if we want to be at the top, we must overcome them," concludes Arteta, who is now three years in charge of a team that is looking towards the title and for which he is looking for reinforcements.

"We cannot afford to ignore transfer windows and we are looking for a player who will have an immediate impact on the team," describes the coach, who leads the only Premier League team in which nine players have already played more than 1,000 minutes. , but anticipates the importance of a deeper rotation for what is to come.

The solidity of Arsenal, with duels over the next month against West Ham, Brighton, Newcastle, Tottenham and Manchester United, will mark their options to dethrone City, which five points behind is still the great favourite.

City returns on Wednesday with a trip to Leeds and faces a heavier schedule, alive as it is in the League Cup, where Arsenal has already fallen, or in the FA Cup, in which fortune provided him with a cross with Chelsea while the

face the modest Oxford.

But the battle for the title or to shine in Europe is not the only story to complete in the Premier.

The competition returns with the bottom Wolves and Julen Lopetegui at the controls against another historic player in trouble, Everton.

back

, long awaited by the fans although some protagonists, usually from the other side of the Channel, periodically dare to criticize.

A couple of years ago, Simon Jordan, former owner of Crystal Palace and a popular guy in England for his participation in television talk shows, summarized the point of view of many.

“Get out there and play those damn games for that crowd that respects tradition and wants to see them on these dates.

That's why you charge what you charge.

Anyone who doesn't see it like this should pinch themselves to realize that if it weren't for football, half the people in this industry would be serving hamburgers."

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