Which Premier League team will qualify for the Champions League?
With only 12 matches left this season, the current top 6 teams will be fighting for the Champions League spots, namely Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham.
Manchester United are 12 points clear of defending champions and second-placed Manchester City, and could possibly become champions if they manage to win at least 7 out of their last 12 PL games.
So, the remaining 5 teams will battle for next 3 places. Let’s analyse each team’s fixtures:
Arsenal:
Yet another struggling season for Wenger’s boys, as they are out in Capital One Cup and the EPL. They are still in the Champions League and the FA Cup. They have to face Blackburn in the FA Cup quarterfinals this weekend, and German giants Bayern Munich in the round of 16 first leg on Feb 19th.
Their current form is good, with the signing of Nacho Monreal, and the form of Walcott and Wilshere all helping the team perform well.
The Gunners have to play Tottenham away, and Everton and Manchester United at home, out of the the top six teams.
Possible Results:
A draw against the Spurs and United, and a win against Everton. 5 points in 3 games.
Chelsea:
They are out of the Capital One Cup, Premier League and Champions League. However, they are still in contention for the Europa League and FA Cup titles. They will face Sparta Prague in the round of 32 of the Europa League, and play the pre-quarters return leg against Brentford in the FA Cup. Torres is yet to find his form, while winter signing Ba continues to impress.
Chelsea will play Manchester City and United away, and Tottenham and Everton at home.
Possible Results:
A loss at Old Trafford, a win against Everton and draws with City and Spurs. A total of 5 points out of the 12 on offer.
Everton:
The Toffees have no Capital One Cup, no PL and no European participation. They are still in the FA Cup, and will face Oldham Athletic in Round 5. Their form is not very impressive, and will have to fight harder if they want a CL spot. They lack in the squad depth, which is the main reason for their regular decline in the final part of the season.
Everton will play Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham away, and Manchester City at home.
Possible Results:
They are expected to lose against each of those teams. So, they will get 0/12 points.
Manchester City:
They have exited all the major competitions except the FA Cup. They will face Leeds United in the FA Cup quarters. Their performances this season have been in no way comparable to last season’s. They have a better squad with good depth on the bench,but have lost against mid-table teams, thereby hurting their title chances. City still have an outside chance of wining the Premier League, but need a miracle for that to happen.
Manchester City will play Chelsea at the Etihad Stadium, and Everton, Manchester United and Tottenham away.
Possible Results:
A win against Merseyside team Everton, draws against the London teams, and a loss against their arch-rivals. So 5/12 points.
Tottenham:
Last season they managed to finish fourth, but unfortunately could not qualify for the Europe’s elite competition. They are currently fourth in the table, just 4 points ahead of their local rivals, while at the same time last season they were 10 points ahead, but still finished behind Arsenal. They are playing Lyon in the Europa League Round of 32 tie.
Tottenham will play Arsenal, Manchester City and Everton at home, and Chelsea away.
Possible Results:
A win against City and draws against the others, to make a total of 6/12 points.
After playing these games,the table would be:
Teams |
Matches Played |
Points |
Position |
| Arsenal | 29 | 49 | 5 |
| Chelsea | 30 | 54 | 3/4 |
| Everton | 30 | 42 | 6 |
| Manchester City | 30 | 58 | 2 |
| Spurs | 30 | 54 | 4/3 |