New Year’s Day football is supposed to be exciting, right? Well, someone forgot to tell the Premier League. January 1st, 2026 wrapped up Matchday 19 with three goalless draws and just two goals across four matches. If you missed the action, here is your complete recap of what went down.
Liverpool 0-0 Leeds
This was the shocker of the day. Liverpool were held to their first goalless Premier League draw in 117 matches, a streak dating back to October 2022. Leeds came to Anfield with a defensive game plan and executed it perfectly.
Arne Slot’s side dominated possession with 69% of the ball and had 18 shots compared to Leeds’ four. Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz both had good chances in the first half, but goalkeeper Lucas Perri kept everything out. Virgil van Dijk came close with a header from a corner that bounced just wide.
Leeds’ star striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin came off the bench for the final 20 minutes and thought he had scored the winner. His effort was ruled out for offside, sparing Liverpool’s blushes.
This was Leeds’ first clean sheet since August and extended their unbeaten run to six matches. Liverpool stay on 33 points while Leeds climb to 21 points and continue their push away from the relegation zone.
Crystal Palace 1-1 Fulham
The only match to produce goals on New Year’s Day came at Selhurst Park, where Crystal Palace and Fulham shared the spoils in an entertaining draw.
Jean-Philippe Mateta gave Palace the lead in the 39th minute. Nathaniel Clyne delivered a brilliant cross from the right side after beating Antonee Robinson with some fancy footwork. Mateta rose highest to head home his first goal from open play in eight games.
Palace looked set to start 2026 with a victory until veteran midfielder Tom Cairney had other ideas. The 34-year-old Fulham captain came off the bench and curled an absolute beauty into the bottom corner from outside the box. It was his first goal of the season and made him Fulham’s fifth-oldest Premier League goalscorer.
Both teams remain level on 26 points, sitting ninth and tenth in the table.
Sunderland 0-0 Manchester City
Nearly 47,000 fans packed into the Stadium of Light to watch Sunderland extend their unbeaten home record to 10 matches this season. The newly promoted side held Manchester City to a frustrating goalless draw.
City controlled possession as expected, keeping the ball for 68% of the match. But goalkeeper Robin Roefs was in excellent form, making several key saves to keep his clean sheet. The big positive for Pep Guardiola was the return of Rodri and Jeremy Doku from injury, both coming off the bench in the second half.
This result leaves City sitting four points behind leaders Arsenal at the halfway point of the season. Sunderland stay seventh on 29 points, continuing their impressive first campaign back in the top flight.
Brentford 0-0 Tottenham
Thomas Frank returned to the Gtech Community Stadium for the first time since leaving Brentford after seven years in charge. The Dane received a warm reception before kickoff as he applauded all four sides of the ground. After that, things went downhill quickly.
Kevin Schade thought he had given Brentford an early lead within five minutes. His tap-in was ruled out for offside, and the game never really came to life after that.
Spurs fans grew increasingly frustrated as the match wore on. Chants of “Boring, boring Tottenham” echoed around the stadium, and the away supporters booed the team off at both halftime and full time.
Frank now has seven clean sheets this season with Spurs, more than the six they managed in all of last season. But that will be little comfort given where they sit in the table. Tottenham are 12th on 26 points, one point behind Brentford who are now managed by Keith Andrews.
Brennan Johnson was absent from the Spurs squad ahead of his expected move to Crystal Palace for around 35 million pounds.
Missed Opportunities: How Did Nobody Score?
New Year’s Day was filled with moments that should have produced goals but somehow did not. Here are the biggest missed chances from a frustrating afternoon of football.
At Anfield, Liverpool created 1.96 expected goals worth of chances but could not convert any of them. Ekitike had a close-range header that he got completely wrong, sending the ball away from goal instead of towards it. Van Dijk’s header from a Szoboszlai corner looked destined for the net but bounced just wide of the post.
Selhurst Park saw the most drama in front of goal. Raul Jimenez rose between two Palace defenders and headed Antonee Robinson’s cross onto the post in the 58th minute. Minutes later, Maxence Lacroix saw his header tipped onto the crossbar by Bernd Leno. The rebound fell perfectly for the defender, but his second header struck teammate Marc Guehi in the face on the goal line. In stoppage time, Dean Henderson made a brilliant one-handed save to deny Timothy Castagne from close range. Then Joachim Andersen, the former Palace defender, blazed over from just six yards out when he should have won it for Fulham.
At the Stadium of Light, Josko Gvardiol came agonizingly close to breaking the deadlock late on. The defender flicked a cross onto the outside of the post from just 12 yards out, leaving City fans with their heads in their hands.
The Brentford and Spurs game was equally frustrating. Archie Gray’s goal-bound header was blocked by Nathan Collins, and Richarlison skied the rebound at the far post. Igor Thiago blazed over from close range for Brentford. In stoppage time, Richarlison had one final chance but fired his effort straight at goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher. Spurs captain Cristian Romero was also lucky to escape a potential red card for a last-man foul on Thiago, who was brought down when the defender missed his clearance and then handled the ball.
Fan Take: Crystal Palace vs Fulham Was the Match of the Day
If you only watched one game on New Year’s Day, I really hope it was Palace against Fulham. While everyone else was serving up goalless snoozefests, Selhurst Park delivered pure chaos.
This match had everything. Mateta finally ending his scoring drought with a thumping header. Jimenez rattling the post. Lacroix seeing his header pushed onto the crossbar, then watching his follow-up smack Guehi right in the face on the goal line. You cannot make this stuff up.
And then Tom Cairney happened. This man is 34 years old, came off the bench, and bent one into the corner like he was still in his prime. That goal had absolutely no right being that beautiful. Sometimes football just gives you a moment like that and you have to sit back and appreciate it.
The ending was wild too. Henderson pulling off a world-class save on Castagne. Andersen, who used to play for Palace, missing from six yards when it looked easier to score. Both sets of fans leaving with their hearts racing and their blood pressure through the roof.
While Liverpool were putting everyone to sleep at Anfield and Spurs fans were literally chanting about how boring their own team was, this London derby reminded us why we love this sport. Two goals, two posts, a face save on the goal line, and drama until the final whistle. That is proper football right there.
Full Matchday 19 Results
Here are all the results from Matchday 19, which ran from December 30th to January 1st:
- Burnley 1-3 Newcastle
- Chelsea 2-2 Bournemouth
- Nottingham Forest 0-2 Everton
- West Ham 2-2 Brighton
- Arsenal 4-1 Aston Villa
- Manchester United 1-1 Wolves
- Liverpool 0-0 Leeds
- Crystal Palace 1-1 Fulham
- Sunderland 0-0 Manchester City
- Brentford 0-0 Tottenham
Premier League Table After Matchday 19
Arsenal sit top of the table with 45 points after their dominant 4-1 win over Aston Villa. Manchester City are second on 41 points, while Villa drop to third on 39 points. Liverpool’s draw leaves them fourth on 33 points, now eight behind City and 12 behind the Gunners.
At the bottom, Wolves remain rooted to last place with just three points from 19 games. Burnley are 19th on 12 points, while West Ham sit 18th on 14 points after their draw with Brighton.
What’s Next?
Matchday 20 kicks off this weekend with some tasty fixtures. Liverpool travel to Fulham looking to bounce back from their frustrating draw. Tottenham host Sunderland at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, while Manchester City welcome Brighton to the Etihad.
The January transfer window is now open, so expect plenty of squad changes over the coming weeks. With half the season complete, the title race and relegation battle are both heating up nicely.
