The battle for the top four slots in the English Premier League could go to the wire. There will be around five teams fighting to join league champions Manchester City, Liverpool, and Chelsea in the European Champions League next season. Arsenal are currently at number four, three points above London rivals Tottenham. Then there is Manchester United, West Ham, and Wolves, who are all separated by 5 points, and will be looking to finish strongly to book a place in next season’s Champions league.
Manchester United host 10th-placed Leicester City on Sunday, and will be looking at Cristiano Ronaldo and co to take maximum points at Old Trafford.
Arsenal
Arsenal had a disastrous start to the season, losing their first three games and had their worst start in 67 years. With Mikel Arteta under fire, they were rooted to the bottom of the Premier League, but the Spaniard has guided them to a miraculous turnaround at the Emirates Stadium.
On Saturday, the Gunners won their 10th Premier League game in 13 with a 1-0 victory against Aston Villa, consolidating fourth position and strengthening their grip on Champions League qualifying. In that 13-game span, Arsenal has only allowed eight goals.
Manchester United
As things stand, only six points separate fourth-placed Arsenal and eighth-placed Tottenham, setting up an exciting contest to qualify for the Champions League next season with Asian Vwin sports bookie predictions.
The 4-1 derby loss to Manchester City worried both performance and outcome, raising concerns about the team’s cohesiveness and spirit.
The defeat hampered United’s chances of finishing in the top four, and manager Ralf Rangnick made it clear they needed to beat Tottenham to keep their Champions League qualifying ambitions alive.
United achieved exactly that, with hat-trick hero Ronaldo leading the way in a 3-2 victory under the floodlights at Old Trafford.
United hosted Leicester on Sunday in a match that could reshape the league table, and ultimately determine their place in the UCL slots.
Tottenham
Tottenham manager Antonio Conte has called on Harry Kane, Heung-Min Son, and Hugo Lloris to do their best to help them qualify for the Champions League.
Spurs are outsiders in the top four battle after losing to Manchester United last weekend, leaving them six points behind fourth-placed Arsenal, who have a game in hand.
Conte’s side will almost certainly need to win nearly all of their remaining games to return to Europe’s top level tournament, and the Italian knows he needs his big players to produce ahead of West Ham’s visit on Sunday.
West Ham United
West Ham enjoyed an amazing start to the season. The Hammers were soaring high under David Moyes and looked like genuine title contenders. Despite wins against Liverpool and Chelsea at home, they had a wobble in November with back-to-back defeats to Wolves and Man City, followed by defeats to Arsenal and Southampton in December.
They rebounded admirably, though with victories over Watford, Crystal Palace, and Norwich. However, after losing to Manchester United on January 22, they lost their grip on fourth in a weekend in which Arsenal and Tottenham both lost.
They got back on track with a narrow win over Watford, but draws against Leicester and Newcastle saw their top-four bid falter until they capped out February with a crucial three points against fellow European rivals Wolves at home.
