The 34 players who are one booking away from a Boxing Day ban including stars from Chelsea, Arsenal & more

There are many benefits to being a Premier League footballer such as excellent wages, sponsorship deals, top training facilities and for most stars doing a job that they love.

But one of the few downsides to being a top-flight star is the sacrifices off the pitch and these are particularly prevalent in the Christmas period when many players are forced to watch what they eat and drink or leave their family festivities early to lace up their boots and travel to an away fixture.

The stars will be set for a bumper week of action and there are a host of important games for the likes of Chelsea, West Ham, Arsenal, Tottenham and many more , however, for some, that temptation could lead to them to try and get a few days off. 

Overall there are 34 players at risk of being suspended and if they are to receive one more booking before Christmas it will allow them a day of rest during the period around Boxing Day.

Of course in reality, these are professional footballers we are talking about, and they will definitely not be getting booked on purpose.

Should a player receive five bookings before the halfway point of the season (19 games) they receive a one-game ban. The card tallies reset after the festive fixtures, meaning a couple more games with extra discipline will allow players on four cards to avoid a one game suspension. 

With that in mind we take a look at all 34 players who are at risk of a suspension, including those from all the London clubs. (statistics courtesy of TalkSport)

Players who are at risk of a suspension on Boxing Day

• Anel Ahmedhodzic (Sheffield United)

• Rayan Ait-Nouri (Wolves)

• Kristoffer Ajer (Brentford)

• Joachim Andersen (Crystal Palace)

• Joelinton (Newcastle)

• Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace)

• Jayden Bogle (Sheffield United)

• Matty Cash (Aston Villa)

• Vladimir Coufal (West Ham)

• Abdoulaye Doucoure (Everton)

• Jhon Duran (Aston Villa)

• Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea)

• Saman Ghoddos (Brentford)

• Billy Gilmour (Brighton)

• Gustavo Hamer (Sheffield United)

• Kai Havertz (Arsenal)

• Hwang Hee-Chan (Wolves)

• Issa Kabore (Luton Town)

• Jamaal Lascelles (Newcastle)

• Sean Longstaff (Newcastle)

• Orel Mangala (Nottingham Forest)

• John McGinn (Aston Villa)

• Kaoru Mitoma (Brighton)

• Darwin Nunez (Liverpool)

• William Osula (Sheffield United)

• Cole Palmer (Chelsea)

• Antonee Robinson (Fulham)

• Cristian Romero (Tottenham)

• Ibrahim Sangare (Nottingham Forest)

• Pape Sarr (Tottenham)

• Marcos Senesi (AFC Bournemouth)

• Raheem Sterling (Chelsea)

• Joel Ward (Crystal Palace)

• Ashley Young (Everton)