Enner Valencia is setting his sights on a first Everton goal on Boxing Day when they face Premier League champions Leicester, after breaking into the Toffees’ team.

The summer loan signing from West Ham has had to bide his time and work hard to impress Ronald Koeman before being able to partner Romelu Lukaku in attack.

Valencia arrived in England two years ago after an impressive World Cup, but, despite flashes of brilliance, he failed to consistently hit the mark at West Ham.

Koeman initially signed him as a backup for Lukaku but the forward has shown enough quality to earn a run in the side.

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And now the Ecuadorian is targeting goals after an energetic Merseyside derby display against Liverpool.

“I have waited for my chance and now I have started two games,” he said.

“The manager said to me ‘work hard in training and you will get your chance to play. I am waiting for my first goal with Everton, I hope it can come in the next game against Leicester.

“Hopefully I can play more games in this busy time over Christmas,

“I really want to be a part of the team and hopefully there will be a lot of rotation with players coming in and out. Hopefully I can play my part.”

Alvaro Negredo was thrilled he could finally put practice into action in Middlesbrough’s 3-0 win against Swansea last week and hopes he can now push on and rediscover his best form.

The Spaniard joined the club from Valencia last season and struggled initially, scoring just one goal in his first 12 games.

But his upturn in form, which has seen him score four goals in four games, has helped Aitor Karanka’s men claim six points this month already.

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“I was obviously really happy to score two and get a couple for the team,” he said. “Now it’s about working more for better results.

“It’s what we’d worked on in training. The cross coming in was really good [from Adam Clayton] and we’d worked on that leading up to the game.

“I had practiced that touch and it was very important for the team to get that victory.”

The 31-year-old is now keen to help his side push on in a tough Christmas period, which sees them play Burnley, Manchester United and Leicester.

“It’s a different position but I think my experience can be good for the team. We’ve got a very good team spirit in the dressing room and I’m happy for everyone.

“With more goals comes more confidence. Strikers need goals and my mentality is always to score goals. It hasn’t been possible in other games to score goals and now I’m very happy.”

After three games in a week, Sunderland defender Donald Love admits his side owe a debt of gratitude to the Black Cats medical staff.

After defeats to Swansea and Chelsea, David Moyes’ side bounced back to beat Watford last weekend and climb to 18th in the table.

They only sit one point off Crystal Palace outside the drop zone and former Manchester United defender Love insists the squad are fighting fit and targeting more success in the busy Christmas period.

“Credit to the medical staff because we got the players back,” Love said.

“The lads have played three 90 minutes in the space of a week and I think I was one of the only ones with cramp at the end which was a bit embarrassing.

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“The lads did well though and got through the game with no serious injuries.

“It’s great to be back and help the lads to their second Premier League clean sheet of the season. We defended well from the front with Jermain (Defoe) and all the lads worked together.

“It’s beginning to come together.”

Crystal Palace midfielder Joe Ledley is confident the Eagles can return to winning ways after their slump down the Premier League table.

Palace’s 1-0 defeat to Chelsea on Saturday was their eighth loss in ten Premier League matches, and Alan Pardew’s men are now 17th, one point and place above the drop zone.

The Eagles face a tricky trip to Watford on Boxing Day, with Walter Mazzarri’s side looking to avoid a third league loss on the spin after defeats at the hands of Manchester City and Sunderland.

However, Welshman Ledley is adamant Palace will turn their poor run of form around sooner rather than later.

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“I thought we competed very well, but again it’s a defeat and we need to just start winning,” he said.

“We are playing good football and we just need to turn that in to wins. At the end of the day points are the most important thing. I believe and the players believe that’s it’s hopefully going to change soon.

“We all know we need to obviously get points, it’s not rocket science,” he said.

“We’re down there and we need to get wins and I’m sure we’ll turn it around. We’ve got the players and the manager to do that.

“We’re going through that stage where it is going to be difficult against the top teams but we just need to keep doing what we’re doing and regroup and hopefully get the win.”

Arsenal defender Gabriel has vowed to remain focused on the upcoming festive schedule, saying he will “leave the party for later”.

The Brazilian stopper, 26, says he has comes to terms with English football’s busy series of fixtures over Christmas.

While acknowledging the shift is hugely different from the celebrations in his homeland, the defender is under no illusion about the importance of keeping his eye on the game during the flurry of upcoming matches.

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Arsenal host West Bromwich Albion on Boxing Day, before another Emirates Stadium clash with struggling Crystal Palace on New Year’s Day.

This is followed by a trip to Bournemouth on January 3, before an FA Cup Third Round tie with Preston North End, four days later.

“When I moved to Europe, I already knew that England was the only country where you keep playing during the festive period,” Gabriel said.

“When I played in Spain, I got a few days off to enjoy with my family. But not here. There’s no pause, it’s all about working.

“We players can’t think about partying, we only focus on our job. We are focused on what we have to do.

“Brazilians are used to celebrating the festive season, it is strange.

“It’s indeed unusual for us. But I’ve already put this new reality in my head and I’m focused on my job. Let’s leave the party for later.”

French youth international Lys Mousset insists he is happy at Bournemouth, despite quotes to the contrary appearing in the press on Tuesday.

The striker signed from Le Havre in the summer and has made just two Premier League appearances for the Cherries so far, and had a further two run outs in the EFL Cup.

On Monday Mousset told a French newspaper that he feels sidelined, and that if he wanted to be third, fourth, or even fifth choice striker then he could have signed for one of the north London sides.

However, Mousset and Bournemouth have acted quickly to dispel any sense of unrest and the 20-year-old has now declared himself happy with life at the Vitality Stadium.

“I am very happy at AFC Bournemouth and have a lot of respect for the manager, Eddie Howe,” the French under-20 international said.

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“I am a young player, I am still developing and learning and this is the best place for me to do that.

“I only joined Bournemouth in the summer and this is just the start of the journey here for me.

“I am training hard every day and I am ready to take my chance when it comes.”

Ryan Mason insists he will do whatever it takes to reclaim his central midfield berth at Hull City after missing each of the Tigers’ last three games.

Mason joined Mike Phelan’s side in the summer from Tottenham Hotspur for a club-record fee, helping his new side win their first two games of the season.

However, Mason’s form dipped along with Hull’s – and the Yorkshire side have won just one Premier League since.

The 25-year-old was dropped for Hull’s 3-3 draw with Crystal Palace and 3-0 loss to Spurs, before missing Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to West Ham through injury, but is desperate to prove himself in the busy festive period.

“I know I have not started the last couple of games but from my point of view I want to get back in there and be in the centre midfield spot,” said Mason.

“I have put a lot of pressure on myself personally to justify a lot of things this season and I think the best places for my abilities to come through comes in centre midfield.

“We have had injuries and I have been stuck on the left wing for four or five games but I am best in the centre. I want to fight for a centre midfield place and get stuck in again, starting games.”

Xherdan Shaqiri bears no grudge towards Pep Guardiola and respects his coaching style, despite the Catalan coach casting him aside at Bayern Munich.

Stoke’s Shaqiri was signed for Bayern by Jupp Heynckes and won the treble but found himself featuring less regularly after Guardiola arrived.

Guardiola soon began restructuring and the Swiss international eventually joined Inter Milan before signing with Stoke.

And the midfielder denied he had any issues with the Spanish coach’s methods, insisting he thoroughly enjoyed the Bayern training sessions under his stewardship.

“My situation changed under Pep Guardiola, but I never had any problems with him,” said Shaqiri.

“Unfortunately, I had some injury problems. But I got unhappy because I played a lot of games before and had my say in the treble season.

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“But then players came from the bench before me even though they had a lower standing within the team.

“This was disappointing of course, though I’d say I never feared competition and wanted to show the coach why he was wrong.

“His (Guardiola’s) training was special, detailed and pretty demanding – but absolutely ace. We did everything with the ball.

“With Heynckes during preparation, we would run like scared rabbits three times a day. But that was so everyone was 100 percent fit.”

Alvaro Negredo is targeting more goals for Middlesbrough after admitting he initially got frustrated by his lack of success in finding the back of the net.

The striker, on loan from Valencia, scored twice in Boro’s 3-0 win over Swansea City at the weekend to take him to four goals in the last four games.

After struggling to find his feet with Manchester City in his first stint in the Premier League, the Spaniard has now had a hand in five of Boro’s last eight league goals.

“Yes, I am more confident now than I was since I came here. Now I just want to score some more,” he said.

“Strikers always want goals and goals and more goals and that mentality for me is the same. I want to score goals and when I don’t, I get frustrated. Now it’s better because I am scoring again.”

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And Negredo insists he’s very happy at his temporary club and is confident the players have enough quality to avoid relegation.

“There is a very good dressing room here with a lot of qualities and experience, good people – and happy people after that win,” he added.

“If you have plenty of experience in there then that should help a team like Middlesbrough to achieve what it wants to.

“And I am happy at Middlesbrough. I have always been happy since I moved here. My football is getting better as well because it takes time to adapt.”

Despite his best efforts, Laurent Koscielny appears to have failed in his attempt to get compatriot Antoine Griezmann to consider a move to Arsenal.

French centre-back Koscielny, who has been with the Gunners since 2010, has apparently been doing his best sales pitch to persuade Griezmann to swap Madrid for London.

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The latter is a man in demand of late, with his performances for Atletico Madrid and France seeing him finish third in the 2016 Ballon d’Or Award behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

But while both Arsenal and Manchester United have been linked with the forward, the 25-year-old insists a move is not on the cards for him.

“For Arsenal, he [Koscielny] speaks to me about them often,” Griezmann told France Football.

“But I feel good at Madrid. I do not want to leave. I feel calm here. The little one [his baby daughter] has just arrived, I am playing matches, I feel good.

“Sorry, I am going to stay. But Arsenal is a wonderful team. They play great with the ball.”