Liverpool (left) and Chelsea still have to give their all in the final round - Photo: REUTERS
Even though the championship race is over, the tournament still features many thrilling races that go down to the wire.
Many variables are at play in the race for a European Cup spot.
In the top group, there are up to six teams fiercely competing for each spot in next season's European cup competitions. These are Liverpool, currently ranked 5th with 59 points. Following them, from 6th to 10th place, are Bournemouth (56 points), Brighton (53 points), Chelsea (52 points), Brentford (52 points), and Sunderland (51 points).
If the current standings remain unchanged after the final round, Liverpool will secure the fifth Champions League spot in English football. Bournemouth and Brighton will qualify for the Europa League, while Chelsea will go on to play in the Conference League.
But a special scenario – one with a not-so-small possibility – could occur in the final round. That is, Liverpool beat Brentford to reach 62 points and would overtake Aston Villa (also with 62 points but with a worse goal difference) if the latter lose to Man City. In this case, Liverpool would move up to 4th place, pushing Aston Villa down to 5th.
Since Aston Villa had already secured a Champions League spot by winning the Europa League, if they dropped to fifth place, the Champions League spot would be given to the sixth-placed team. This result opens up an extremely fierce race between Bournemouth and Brighton.
Despite being 3 points behind their rivals, Brighton have a better goal difference, so if they win, Brighton will still take Bournemouth's 6th place position, thus securing a Champions League spot if Bournemouth loses.
Even without this situation, Brighton still need a win to secure their Europa League spot because the chasing pack – Chelsea, Brentford, and Sunderland – could easily take their place.
For Liverpool, a Champions League spot is completely within reach for Arne Slot's team. Liverpool currently lead Bournemouth by 3 points and have a significantly better goal difference (+10 compared to +4). However, it's also possible that Bournemouth could win convincingly in the final round (against Nottingham Forest, who have no motivation left) while Liverpool lose by a large margin to Brentford.
Overall, the race for European qualification is incredibly fierce, with six teams facing overlapping fates.
Dramatic relegation battle
At the bottom of the table, the relegation battle between Tottenham and West Ham is attracting even more attention. Tottenham currently have 38 points and a goal difference of -10, while West Ham have 36 points and a goal difference of -10.
The difference is -22.
Thanks to their superior goal difference, Tottenham will only be relegated if they lose to Everton and West Ham beat Leeds in the final round. Although this possibility is not very high, Tottenham fans are still on edge ahead of the final matchday.
Because both teams' opponents have lost their motivation, the matches will be very unpredictable. Theoretically, playing against a team without motivation should be easier. But precisely because they no longer have the drive to play, both Everton and Leeds could play an attacking style of football that carries many risks.
Tottenham will approach the match with the intention of playing for a draw – a result that would be just enough to guarantee their survival in the league. Playing at home will further give De Zerbi's team an advantage. Meanwhile, in the other match being played at the same time, West Ham only have one option left: to attack in order to secure all three points against Leeds, while simultaneously hoping Everton will "lend a hand" in their fight for survival.
Tottenham's biggest obstacle remains their disastrously patched-up squad. Despite Maddison's return, manager De Zerbi is still missing a total of seven players due to injury. This includes captain Romero, in-form full-back Spence, and attacking stars Kulusevski, Kudus, Simons... Solanke's participation is also uncertain.
With such a makeshift squad, Tottenham still faces a significant risk of defeat.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/cho-doi-gi-o-vong-cuoi-premier-league-20260524002731016.htm
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