WATCH: Sky Sports pundits share their Christmas stories
Friday 23 December 2016 10:57, UK
While Christmas is a great time for football fans it's a busy one for players, who face a frantic fixture list.
But in between the crunch clashes, they try to make time to celebrate, too - and we have asked Sky Sports pundits to share their memories of playing during the festive period.
From Niall Quinn setting fire to his kitchen when he tried to cook a turkey to Matt Le Tissier having one too many but still netting the winner on Boxing Day, they have some great stories to tell.
So hit play on the video above to hear their tales - including Paul Merson playing with a hangover at Luton Town, Jamie Redknapp rooming with Neil 'Razor' Ruddock and Alan Smith tearing himself away from Only Fools and Horses to go training.
Then sit back and enjoy a cracking line-up of football on Sky Sports. Here's what's coming up...
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- England in charge as South Africa bowled out for 281 LIVE!
Saturday December 24 - Thursday December 29
Celtic will be aiming to relax in the festivities by winning their Christmas Eve trip to Hamilton in what is the final televised game before Boxing Day's fixture frenzy.
Let the turkey settle in the stomach while enjoying four Premier League games in four days, starting with Crystal Palace's visit to Watford, while Klopp will be counting on his players to have kept the Christmas parties sensible when Liverpool welcome Stoke City on December 27.
Premier League: Watford v Crystal Palace (December 26), Hull v Manchester City (December 26), Liverpool v Stoke (December 27), Southampton v Tottenham (December 28), Hull v Everton (December 30)
EFL: Newcastle v Sheffield Wednesday (December 26), Brighton v QPR (December 27), Derby v Birmingham (December 27), Aston Villa v Leeds (December 29)
SPFL: Hamilton v Celtic (December 24)
Friday December 30 - Thursday January 5
What better way to see out 2016 than with the fiercest rivalry in Scottish football? Rangers welcome Celtic to Ibrox on New Year's Eve looking to overturn the 5-1 hammering they received in September, before six Premier League games in the first four days of 2017 help to nurse those hangovers.
Spurs host Chelsea - with their London rivals having dashed all hopes of the Premier League title at the end of last season - while Manchester United and Jose Mourinho will be hoping for fresh beginnings in 2017 when they head to the London Stadium to take on West Ham.
Premier League: Watford v Tottenham (January 1), Arsenal v Crystal Palace (January 1), Middlesbrough v Leicester (January 2), West Ham v Manchester United (January 2), Bournemouth v Arsenal (January 3), Tottenham v Chelsea (January 4)
EFL: Brentford v Norwich (December 31), Blackburn v Newcastle (January 2), Doncaster v Portsmouth (January 5)
SPFL: Rangers v Celtic (December 31)
Subscribe here to watch all the games live on Sky over the festive period.
