Fans get into the Christmas spirit

There were some raised eyebrows 感到诧异 at the outcome of Arsenal v Portsmouth, when the Gunners failed to score and the 0-0 result meant that they failed to reclaim 重夺 their number one position in the table 排名榜.

No Crisis  I prefer to be in front, but with one point difference that is not that big a deal.   Arsene Wenger, Arsenal Manager

Arsenal boss, Arsene Wenger, insisted he was unconcerned saying:

"I prefer to be in front, but with one point difference that is not that big a deal 并非大事. We have only lost one game so you will have problems to convince me that we are in a crisis 危机."

If something is not a "big deal", it means it is not very important.

Not Daft  I know it's not good enough, so it doesn't take much for them to work out it's not good enough. They are not daft.   Sam Allardyce, Newcastle Manager

Further up North there was also disappointment for Newcastle United fans at Wigan, although the 1-0 score did not come as a surprise.

Newcastle manager, Sam Allardyce’s future looks increasingly in doubt 莫测. He somewhat controversially 有争议的 blamed his players saying:

"I know it's not good enough, so it doesn't take much for them to work out it's not good enough. They are not daft. The level of form the players have dropped to is unacceptable."

"Daft" is another word for stupid. The "level of form" means the standard, which in this case has dropped 下降, or got worse.

The most exciting match of the day was probably the goal-tastic 频频进球的 Chelsea v Aston Villa with 4 goals apiece 各得一分. Villa played an amazing match and were 2-0 up when Chelsea was awarded a penalty.

Dubious Penalty?  We were playing brilliantly. We deserved to be 2-0 in front but the penalty was really dubious and it's a major point in the game.   Martin O'Neill, Aston Villa Manager

Villa manager, Martin O’Neill, was unhappy with the referee’s decision to award the penalty, which he thinks turned the game in Chelsea’s favour 使比赛有利于切尔西.

"We were playing brilliantly. We deserved to be 2-0 in front but the penalty was really dubious 蹊跷的（困惑的） and it's a major point in the game."

Probably the most predictable win of the day was Manchester United’s 4-0 away 客场的 victory against Sunderland. Star players Ronaldo and Rooney were in complete control of the match, scoring 3 of the 4 goals between them.

Out-classed  It is never nice to lose. We are disappointed but United's class told in the end.   Roy Keane, Sunderland manager

Sunderland manager Roy Keane was disappointed but acknowledged 承认 his rival’s superiority:

"It is never nice to lose. We are disappointed but United's class 顶级的 told in the end."

Man United’s win means they are one point clear 一分领先 of Arsenal at the top of the table. Fans will be watching both teams play games on Saturday to see if Arsenal snatches the lead away 夺走领头的位置.