Premier League teams with toughest schedule remaining, and EPL clubs with easiest fixtures list

With the World Cup now in the rearview mirror, Premier League teams are hoping to hit the ground running as the second half of the English top flight season gets underway.

The restart comes smack in the middle of the holiday season, with the first slate of matches set for Boxing Day. After that, there are matches all around the turn of the calendar year, as the Premier League rings in 2023. There will be a total of 30 matches in 11 days through January 5.

Arsenal look set to be the Premier League leaders at the start of the new year with their lead over defending champions Manchester City. Newcastle have been one of the surprise packages, while the three promoted sides have not been pushovers. Leicester City have rebounded after their early struggles, but Wolves find themselves in the relegation zone.

However, some will have it easier than others when the league schedule resumes for the five months remaining in the 2022/23 season from December 26 through May 28. Here's a look at which teams have the easiest and toughest run-ins.

MORE: Updated list of the Premier League's top scorers

Toughest, easiest holiday schedule in Premier League

Through Matchweeks 17, 18, and 19, which begin on Boxing Day and run through January 5, Premier League teams will bring themselves back up to speed in a major way after the World Cup break.

The typically congested holiday schedule will see some teams forced to play without players who made deep runs into the World Cup and required a rest, while others will be at full strength after weeks of rest.

Nottingham Forest, already battling the drop, are looking a two matches against teams desperate for points at the top of the table: Manchester United and Chelsea. Meanwhile, Aston Villa sees matches against Liverpool on Boxing Day and Tottenham on New Year's Day.

Leeds United are given games against champions Manchester City, Newcastle, and West Ham during their holiday run. Arsenal will be made to work to maintain their top spot, with games against West Ham, Brighton, and Newcastle over their three-game span.

The easiest holiday schedule is unquestionably at the hands of Manchester United, who enjoy a three-game run against all relegation candidates of Nottingham Forest, Wolves, and Bournemouth, following their Carabao Cup win over Burnley. 

Fulham, who surprised many when they finished in the top half of the table before the World Cup break, will look to continue their positive run with teams below them in Crystal Palace, struggling Southampton, and Leicester City. 

MORE: Complete Premier League Boxing Day schedule

Toughest, easiest winter schedule in Premier League

Once the holiday run is complete, teams across the Premier League table will face a defining stretch of games across January and February.

Even if they should gain ground on Arsenal over the holiday season, Manchester City will have to earn their place atop the Premier League come January. Their tough 2023 start sees games against Chelsea, Manchester United, Tottenham twice, and Arsenal before Champions League play restarts in late February.

Their title competitors Arsenal also have a brutal run to start the 2023 calendar year. They play seventh-placed Brighton on New Year's Eve, followed by games against Newcastle, Tottenham, and Manchester United to finish out January, and then the big matchup against Man City in mid-February.

Crystal Palace may have a shout for hardest January as well, given a run of games against Tottenham, Chelsea, Newcastle, and Man United as they head into February. Tack on a Boxing Day match against surprise side Fulham as well, and that's a rough start to the second half.

Fulham's soft holiday restart comes at a high price, as they are then slammed with a brutal four-game stretch against Chelsea, Newcastle, Tottenham and again Chelsea through January and into February. After a somewhat softer holiday schedule, Tottenham are given a five-game stretch against Crystal Palace, Arsenal, Man City, Fulham, and Man City again that bleeds into February.

Southampton, meanwhile, have a defining stretch that sees the Saints with a great chance to pull themselves out of the drop. They start January with a game against relegation foes Nottingham Forest, and then next play Everton, Aston Villa, Brentford, and Wolves. In February, after a game against Chelsea, they are back to matches against Leeds United and Leicester City. If they don't get points through January and February, it's hard to see the Saints avoid the drop.

West Ham are another side that have important games on the horizon. After a tough Boxing Day match against first-place Arsenal, they have a run of matches against Brentford, Leeds, Wolves, and Everton before January closes out. That is followed by a three-game stretch in February that includes Newcastle, Chelsea, and Tottenham, so points through the start of 2023 will be critical for the Hammers, who teeter just above the relegation zone.

However, the softest January schedule is easily with Aston Villa. After the tough pair of holiday matches, they play Wolves, Leeds, Southampton, and Leicester City in a stretch that could also be critical for Unai Emery as he begins the first real run of games in charge.

Premier League TV channels, live streams 2022/23

UK: Matches are carried across Sky Sports and BT Sport streaming and TV platforms, with select matches on Amazon Prime.

USA: Select matches are televised on USA Network (English) and Telemundo or Universo (Spanish), and all three channels can be streamed on fuboTV. The rest of the matches are streamed on NBC platform Peacock for subscribers.

Canada: Every Premier League game streams live and on demand exclusively via fuboTV.

Australia: Fans in Australia can stream matches live and on demand on Optus Sport. 

India: Star Sports network has the rights to show Premier League matches in India. As well as an English broadcast on Star Sports Select, select matches will be available via regional feeds on Star Sports 3 (in Bengali, English, Kannada, Malayalam), Star Sports 1 (Bangla) and Star Sports 1 (Tamil).