Or, more accurately, Team of the Festive Season. It's four matches for the price of one as we look back at the Christmas and New Year action.

How it works

We tot up the marks out of 10 awarded in five national newspapers - Sun, Mirror, Mail, Times and Guardian (or at least those who bothered to give ratings) - to reach a total out of 50. The top player in each position will be rewarded with a spot in the team of the week, while the worst scorers will be named and shamed in our Flops XI. In this festive special, the mark is an average from the four match days.

Team of the Festive Season (minimum three starts since December 22nd)

A successful period for Aston Villa and Manchester City is reflected with five players from those three clubs, including City's makeshift midfielder Vedran Corluka (pictured) who is the Player of the Festive Season. Perhaps more surprising is the inclusion of two men from inconsistent Reading and Blackburn sides. Fernando Torres was the star of a mixed Christmas for Liverpool.

Brad Friedel (Blackburn) - 33.8 average

Olof Mellberg (Aston Villa) - 33.2

Martin Laursen (Aston Villa) - 35.7

Richard Dunne (Manchester City) - 36.1

Joleon Lescott (Everton) - 35.9

David Bentley (Blackburn) - 36.2

Stephen Hunt (Reading) - 36.2

Vedran Corluka (Manchester City) - 36.9

Martin Petrov (Manchester City) - 36.6

Fernando Torres (Liverpool) - 35.4

Dave Kitson (Reading) - 36.0

Flops of the Festive Season

Look, no Derby players! The Rams might not have picked up many points but win credit for their improved performances. Alex Hleb's inclusion shows how his form has dipped, while Ibrahima Sonko and Diomansy Kamara were the worst of a bad bunch.

Craig Gordon (Sunderland) - 28.3

Brett Emerton (Blackburn) - 27.8

Ryan Nelsen (Blackburn) - 26.4

Ibrahima Sonko (Reading) - 25.9

Hermann Hreidarsson (Portsmouth) - 26.9

Fredrik Ljungberg (West Ham) - 26.4

Dwight Yorke (Sunderland) - 27.5

Alexander Hleb (Arsenal) - 27.7

Shaun Maloney (Aston Villa) - 27.6

Alan Smith (Newcastle) - 27.2

Diomansy Kamara (Fulham) - 25.7

Team of the Season (minimum 11 starts)

Martin Laursen's winner against Tottenham has propelled him into the Team of the Season at the expense of Arsenal's Kolo Toure. However his Aston Villa team-mate Ashley Young is out on a technicality. He is now considered a midfielder and makes way for Carlos Tevez.

Robert Green (West Ham) - 33.5

Steve Finnan (Liverpool) - 32.1

Sol Campbell (Portsmouth) - 34.3

Martin Laursen (Aston Villa) - 33.7

Joleon Lescott (Everton) - 33.87

Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester Utd) - 34.7

Francesc Fabregas (Arsenal) - 34.9

Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) - 34.9

Mikel Arteta (Everton) - 34.8

Wayne Rooney (Manchester Utd) - 35.6

Carlos Tevez (Manchester Utd) - 33.9

Flops of the Season

Farewell, Steve Howard. The Derby man's departure to Leicester City means a stalwart is out of the team. It is an all-new strike partnership, with Michael Chopra and Jeremie Aliadiere stinking out their respective joints.

Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough) - 29.7

Andy Griffin (Derby) - 26.4

Ibrahima Sonko (Reading) - 27.0

Claude Davis (Derby) - 27.1

Jay McEveley (Derby) - 27.1

Craig Fagan (Derby) - 27.6

Brynjar Gunnarsson (Reading) - 27.7

Alan Smith (Newcastle) - 28.3

Eddie Lewis (Derby) - 27.2

Michael Chopra (Sunderland) - 28.3

Jeremie Aliadiere (Middlesbrough) - 28.4

Alex Chick / Eurosport