Enough with the weather already. England's protracted deep freeze led to the postponement of two more Premier League games, with Blackpool affected at Bloomfield Road for a third time this season. And all three matches have been biggies -- against Manchester United, Tottenham and Liverpool.
Thankfully, seven matches went ahead on Sunday. Predictably, Manchester United cruised past Sunderland to stay unbeaten atop the division.
Here are five things we learned.
1. The Red Devils love Boxing Day
Manchester United traditionally excels after Christmas. Sunday's performance against Sunderland at Old Trafford suggests more is on the way.
Dimitar Berbatov scored twice -- one tally might ultimately be ruled an own goal because Berbatov's shot took a wicked deflection off Anton Ferdinand -- in a convincing 2-0 victory. The brooding Bulgarian, who leads the EPL with 13 goals, even had time to share a laugh with boss Alex Ferguson after being substituted. Berbatov's strike partner, Wayne Rooney, didn't find the back of the net, but his link-up play with Berbatov impressed. And Brazilian midfielder Anderson, fresh off signing a new contract, put in another good shift.
All told, Manchester United has won 14 of its past 15 Boxing Day fixtures. The lone blip? At Middlesbrough in 2002.
2. It's better to be lucky than good
West Ham needed a bit of good fortune to finally win away from Upton Park, and the Hammers got it at Fulham in a relegation battle. Leading 1-0 and outplaying West Ham in the first half, Fulham midfielder Dickson Etuhu inadvertently redirected Freddie Sears' poor cross into the path of West Ham striker Carlton Cole. He happily pounced to make it 1-1.
The entire complexion of the game changed.
West Ham grew in confidence and prevailed 3-1 -- it could have been a bigger margin -- to earn three points on the road for the first time since opening day of the 2009-10 campaign. West Ham escaped last place to take some heat off manager Avram Grant, while Fulham sank into the relegation zone to increase the pressure on Mark Hughes.
3. City must keep Tevez happy
Does Carlos Tevez get special treatment at Manchester City? Of course. We all know it.
He's allowed to fly back to his native Argentina almost whenever he wants, for one. Tevez also acted like a spoiled brat this month when he put in, then withdrew, a transfer request and got substituted against Bolton in the dying minutes of a 1-0 win. And he still can't speak much English despite being in the U.K. since 2006.
But City's long-suffering fans won't care about any of that if the energetic forward leads The Citizens past United in the title race. Tevez, again, was City's hero, scoring twice in a 3-1 win over Newcastle to increase his league tally to 12 goals.
Although City was far from dominant, surviving a second-half onslaught, it got the win -- and three points -- to take sole possession of second place, two points behind United. That's the good news for City fans. The bad news: The Red Devils have two games in hand.
4. Spurs are a must-watch
Can Tottenham ever play a boring match? Harry Redknapp's players seem hell-bent on turning each game into an epic drama.
On Sunday, Spurs were involved in another thriller at Villa Park, winning 2-1 despite playing a man down for about an hour because of a ridiculous send-off. Pint-sized striker Jermain Defoe saw red for leading with his arm in an aerial challenge with Villa's towering defender, James Collins. Referee Martin Atkinson got it wrong. Earlier in the match, he decided not to award a penalty when Tottenham's error-prone goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes tangled with Emile Heskey in the box. He probably got that call right, but it could have gone either way.
Spurs scored one of the best goals of the season in the second half on a breathtaking counterattack. Sizzling winger Gareth Bale ran more than half the field before passing to Aaron Lennon, who then fed Dutchman Rafael van der Vaart. His neat finish -- all touch and placement -- was his second goal of the game, making it 2-0.
What a pickup Van der Vaart has been for Tottenham this season.
In the dying minutes, Redknapp quarreled with Villa sub Robert Pires. You didn't have to be an expert in lip reading to know what was on Redknapp's mind. Of course, the two have a history. Remember Pires' dive in the box a few years ago when Redknapp led Portsmouth? And on Sunday, it appeared that Pires went down quite easily as he raced along the sideline right in front of the Spurs' boss.
Not long after that, Villa keeper Brad Friedel admonished teammate and fellow American Eric Lichaj when he tried to relieve Luka Modric's cramp. Lichaj had a good game at right back, keeping Bale in check most of the time. He also had a chance to score the equalizer near the end of the match, only to hit the ball into the side netting.
Rarely a dull moment in Redknapp's world, Spurs held on to win yet another enthralling encounter.
5. Carroll is a keeper
Not to be too harsh on Berbatov, but his past seven goals have come against clubs that are hopeless on the road -- Sunderland and Blackburn. Only one of his 13 goals overall came away from Old Trafford, at Everton. Newcastle's Andy Carroll, meanwhile, is doing it against the elite. Carroll's goal against City means he's netted against four of the current top six teams: City, Arsenal, Chelsea and Bolton. Plus, let's not forget Liverpool.
Sunday's assist was provided by Joey Barton, who's having a fine season himself.
Monday promises to bring more excitement, as Arsenal battles Chelsea. Both teams need a lift. Chelsea hasn't won in the past five league outings, and Arsenal is coming off a demoralizing 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford. Once dominant against the Blues, Arsenal has lost its past five versus the west Londoners.