Forget the mushy Christmas movies and reality shows, if you cannot get to the Stade Marcel-Michelin on Sunday night then find a comfy sofa, commandeer the tv remote and tune in to what promises to be one of the great rugby matches of the season: Clermont against Toulouse.

This is Le Grand Choc as Top 14 leaders Clermont, the immoveable object, play host to second-placed Toulouse, the seemingly unstoppable force.

Toulouse, after a few years in the doldrums, are back to their bristling best, a threat in Europe where they top their Champions Cup pool with four wins from four, and a growing force at home where they have won their last five Top 14 matches. 

It's a run of nine games over three months without defeat which leaves them just three points behind Clermont going into round 12 with the Christmas number one spot at stake in Sunday's game.

"We are not surprised, it was always a team in waiting," said Clermont coach Franck Azema. 

"They changed things around a few seasons back, it has taken some time but they believe in the way they play and in their spirit which is unique to them. They have rediscovered their style."

Toulouse have the best away form in the Top 14 with wins at Grenoble, Perpignan and Pau as well as a draw at Lyon.

Clermont, though, are made of different stuff. Like Toulouse they have been invincible in Europe this season, albeit in the lesser Challenge Cup, and they are on an eight-match unbeaten run. 

Azema's team are also unbeaten at home in the Top 14 and that could be Toulouse's great stumbling block. 

Their last win at Clermont was back in 2002 since when numerous Toulouse sides, some of them among the greatest the club has produced, have returned home without a win. 

For the viewer in the comfy sofa, it promises to be a treat as they are the two best attacking sides in France, each of them averaging more than three tries per game.