With just over ten games remaining, Michael Owen weighs up the title race, the fight for Champions League spots and the clubs most at risk of relegation.
With just ten/eleven games to go, this week I want to take a look at how the Premier League table is shaping up.
This is the stage of the season where the pressure starts to crank up, and all clubs will be assessing whether they are likely to achieve their pre-season aims and aspirations.
Arsenal Tipped to go all the way
Right at the top of the table, we have Arsenal who having finished as runners-up in each of the last three seasons, are now under massive pressure to see the job through and finally claim the title of Premier League champions for the first time since 2004.
Lots of people are debating whether they can do it or whether Manchester City will go on one of their now customary winning runs and pip them at the post once again. In my opinion, this is going to be Arsenal’s season. They had a great win under enormous pressure in the North London derby last weekend; they have a big, almost fully fit squad and look very solid in all departments, especially at the back and I just can’t see them stumbling.
The Race for the Champions League
As far as Champions League places go, you’ve got Arsenal, Manchester City, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United all vying for what looks like five qualifying places this season, and I fancy that Chelsea could be the team to miss out.
They suffered a poor result against Burnley last week and for some reason they can’t seem to stop getting players sent off!
Beating the drop
Down at the other end of the table, the picture is certainly becoming clearer. Wolves have too much to do of course and they are undoubtedly going down, as are Burnley. That leaves just one place and this is where it gets very interesting. West Ham are actually in a good vein of form and I’m now beginning to look for signs of other teams who might replace them in the relegation zone. There is no obvious candidate but there are certainly a few to keep your eyes on.
Nottingham Forest have a really good squad but look as though they could be in the most danger of slipping through the trap door. Surely Tottenham will have enough to stay up. They have a good squad of talented players, a new manager and also a number of winnable games coming up, so I reckon they will eventually have enough to stay up.
The likes of Sunderland, Leeds, Brighton and Crystal Palace have probably already got enough points to ensure their safety although Palace are looking a little vulnerable at the minute. They’ve lost a number of keys players and the manager has already stated that he will be leaving at the end of the season, However, given the points they already have on the board it would take a pretty disastrous run of results for them to slip into the bottom three.
So, I’m going for a straight shootout between West Ham and Nottingham Forest to be the third team to be playing their football in the Championship next season.
So all in all, exciting times to come in the Premier League and as I say, I fancy Arsenal to finally get the job done this time around.
Michael Owen’s Matchday 28 Premier League Picks:
- Wolves 1-2 Aston Villa
- Bournemouth 2-1 Sunderland
- Burnley 0-1 Brentford
- Liverpool 3-1 West Ham United
- Newcastle United 1-0 Everton
- Leeds United 0-2 Manchester City
- Brighton 1-1 Nottingham Forest
- Fulham 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur
- Manchester United 3-1 Crystal Palace
- Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea
