Manchester City’s Champions League reprieve has added another layer of intrigue to the top-four race.
Originally, it had looked as though fifth-place would be enough to secure Champions League football after City were given a two-year ban from Uefa in February.
However, CAS’s decision to overturn it means that only a place in the top four will do for the clutch of clubs jostling for position in the league table.
With the stakes set high, the pressure appeared to get the better of the main candidates over the weekend as Chelsea and Leicester City both lost while Manchester United succumbed to a 96th-minute equaliser against Southampton.
Chelsea bounced back from their Bramall Lane debacle to swat Norwich City aside on Monday night and although they are in pole position to reach the promised land, it is a long way from being a closed deal.
As the campaign edges towards a dramatic climax, here are the various top four permutations.
Chelsea
Frank Lampard admitted that Chelsea’s performance against a Norwich side which had haemorrhaged four goals to West Ham a few days beforehand was “nervy” and insisted they must improve.
It might not have been as emphatic as many anticipated but Olivier Giroud’s match-winning goal could prove crucial considering Chelsea’s final two games are against Liverpool and Wolves.
Should Chelsea take a minimum of four points from those matches, they will be assured a place in next season’s Champions League.
Remaining fixtures: Liverpool (a), Wolves (h)
Leicester City
After thrashing Newcastle United 3-0 on New Year’s Day, Leicester City were sitting pretty in second place, nine points ahead of Chelsea in fourth and 14 in front of Manchester United in fifth.
Brendan Rodgers’ side looked all but assured of qualifying for the Champions League for only the second time, but their form has taken a dramatic downturn in 2020.
The Foxes need to rediscover their winning mentality quickly if they are to avoid a calamitous collapse and three wins from an admittedly difficult run of fixtures, would do the trick.
Remaining fixtures: Sheffield United (h), Tottenham (a), Manchester United (h)
Manchester United
Manchester United flew out of the blocks after the Premier League’s restart with an exhilarating front four powering their charge to the Champions League places.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side were playing with the swagger and confidence rarely seen in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson before Southampton let the air out of their balloon on Monday night.
Similarly to Leicester, United will secure their place in the Champions League with three wins. That final day fixture between the clubs at the King Power could be a winner-takes-all clash.
Remaining fixtures: Crystal Palace (a), West Ham (h), Leicester City (a)
Wolves
Wolves propelled themselves into top-four contention by winning three consecutive matches after the restart before suffering back-to-back defeats to Arsenal and Sheffield United.
In both of those losses, Wolves looked every inch a team whose 2019-20 season started 12 months ago, but they managed to galvanise themselves during Sunday’s comprehensive 3-0 win over Everton.
If Wolves are to have any hope of clinching Champions League football, they will need to win all their games while relying on their rivals to slip up.
Remaining fixtures: Burnley (a), Crystal Palace (h), Chelsea (a)
Sheffield United
Sheffield United’s mojo looked to have vanished post-restart as they failed to win their first four fixtures back.
However, they have responded superbly, recording wins over Tottenham, Wolves and Chelsea and a draw with in-form Burnley over their past four matches to revitalise their European ambitions.
Similarly to Wolves, the Blades will have to be faultless in their remaining games and rely on others to drop points to stand a chance, but the fact they are even in the conversation at this stage is testament to their achievements.
Remaining fixtures: Leicester City (a), Everton (h), Southampton (a)
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