Published on 5/21/2026
The English Premier League football season reaches its climax next Sunday, when all ten matches begin simultaneously in an exciting conclusion to the competition that resolves the battles for survival in the top flight and the remaining places qualifying for continental competitions.
Arsenal has already won the title, and will be joined in the Champions League next season by Manchester City, Manchester United, and Aston Villa.
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London’s struggle to avoid relegation
Attention is now turning to the last qualifying places for the continental competitions, and to the relegation struggle, which many did not expect at the beginning of the season to be between Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United.
The matter is very clear and simple, as one of the two London clubs will be relegated to the second division.
Tottenham currently occupies 17th place with 38 points, two points ahead of West Ham, which occupies 18th place, the first relegation place. There is only one scenario that would lead to Tottenham’s relegation, which is a defeat at home to Everton, in addition to a victory for West Ham at home to Leeds United.
Tottenham coach Roberto De Zerbe said, “When you are fighting to stay in the league, you have to stay in the competition until the last minute of the last match of the season. We have to maintain our focus. It is an important day for us. The most important thing is to maintain our pride, and to finish the season (head high)….”
It is indispensable for West Ham to win, and even that may not be enough, as the goal difference in favor of Tottenham puts West Ham’s fate in the hands of Everton in north London.
Who will participate in the continental championships?
On the other hand, there is a struggle for the last one or two places qualifying for the Champions League.
Liverpool is at the forefront of this race as it is the most prominent candidate to win the qualifying seat for the most prestigious European club tournament. One point against its guest, Brentford, is enough to secure fifth place.
Bournemouth, which secured its qualification to one of the European Championships with a 1-1 draw with Manchester City last Tuesday, is in sixth place, three points behind, but it is far behind Liverpool in goal difference.
Bournemouth’s rise was one of the highlights of the season. The team will visit Nottingham Forest after a series of 17 matches without defeat, and the consistency of its level has pushed it to sixth place and placed it strongly in the competition for places qualifying for the European Championships.
There may be competition in the final round for more than one place in the Champions League. After Aston Villa won the European League yesterday, Wednesday, a sixth English team may get the opportunity to participate in the most prominent European competition next season, but on the condition that Villa finishes fifth in the league.
In this scenario, Liverpool will have to win in the match that will be the last for the star Mohamed Salah with his team, and Aston Villa will lose to Manchester City, in what may be an emotional farewell for coach Pep Guardiola after a career full of championships with the club.
If Villa finishes the season in fourth place, the sixth-placed team will qualify for the Europa League.
Brighton & Hove Albion, which hosts Manchester United, has a realistic chance of grabbing sixth place, as it is three points behind Bournemouth, while Chelsea, Brentford and Sunderland are competing for a qualifying seat for the Europa League and the European Conference League.
