With the Premier League season entering its final three months, just six points stand between the bottom of the table and the eight teams above.
A couple of good results could ease relegation fears but a poor run of form for any of those clubs could see them deep in the mire, with little hope of getting out.
So who is most at risk of dropping down to the Championship? Here are the runners and riders from a competition no club wants to win come May 28.
12. Crystal Palace
Points: 27
Goal difference: -11
Form: LDDDL
Next six league games: Man City (H)*, Brighton (A), Arsenal (A), Leicester (H), Leeds (A), Southampton (A)
It has already been a difficult season for Crystal Palace seeing rivals Brighton aiming for a European place while they languish in the middle of the table.
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But as the saying goes: it could be worse. And it might be heading in that direction for Patrick Vieira’s side.
Image: Crystal Palace are without a win in 2023
Palace are without a league victory in nine matches and last tasted a win in 2022.
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You feel that Palace’s relegation fate will be decided in April – when they only play teams named in this list. Win most of them and the Eagles will be safe. Lose a few, and it won’t just be a gentle glance over the shoulder.
‘Palace being dragged into relegation scrap’
Clinton Morrison on Soccer Saturday:
“I’ve said before I don’t think Crystal Palace will be relegated, and I stand by that.
“But they are being dragged into the fight to avoid the drop, especially after the result against Villa [1-0 defeat on Saturday] and the way the game went.
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Crystal Palace manager Patrick Vieira believes that the only thing that separated his team’s performance from Aston Villa was their own goal by Joachim Andersen.
“Other teams in and around Palace are winning football matches which is making things difficult.
“The next three games Palace play are against Man City at home and then Brighton and Arsenal away. They are tough games.
“Palace are just not winning football matches and that will be a huge disappointment for Patrick Vieira.”
13. Wolves
Points: 27
Goal difference: -16
Form: WLDLW
Next six league games: Newcastle (A)*, Leeds (H), Nottingham Forest (A), Chelsea (H), Brentford (H), Leicester (A)
* Live on Sky Sports
Julen Lopetegui gave Wolves a post-World Cup lift after the Molineux club ended the first part of the season at the foot of the table.
But Wolves’ recent form has been inconsistent; quite simply, you don’t know which version of Lopetegui’s side will appear each week.
Will it be the side that beats Tottenham or loses at Anfield? The one that recovers with 10 men at Southampton or loses at home to Bournemouth?
The bonus for Wolves is they have a lot of matches coming up either against the teams around them or at home. Even then, there would have to be a major drop off in form for Wolves to fall back into the relegation mix.
Image: Wolves' form has improved under Julen Lopetegui
Analysis: Back three helps Wolves against Spurs
Sky Sports’ Adam Bate:
Wolves were desperately poor in the first half against Tottenham, not only failing to register a single shot on goal but not even having a touch inside the opposition penalty area. They could easily have found themselves behind and the mood at Molineux would have been very different.
But Julen Lopetegui helped to turn the game around by switching to a new formation – the old formation for Wolves. They finished the game in a back three with Jonny at wing-back and Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho in midfield. Raul Jimenez and Adama Traore combined for the goal.
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Highlights from Wolves’ match against Tottenham in the Premier League.
Maybe the muscle memory kicked in for players who had enjoyed better days here under Nuno Espirito Santo. It was the brightest performance that Jimenez has put in at Molineux this season, with the anniversary of the last Premier League goal by a Wolves striker falling next week.
“Raul played a fantastic match,” said Lopetegui. “Sometimes we analyse forwards only on goals, but they have a lot of things to offer.” That scoring problem is still there for Wolves. But thanks to their enterprising manager, they appear capable of finding ways around it to stay in the Premier League.
14. Nottingham Forest
Points: 26
Goal difference: -24
Form (most recent first): WLDLD
Next six league games: Tottenham (A), Newcastle (H), Wolves (H), Leeds (A), Aston Villa (A), Man Utd (H)*
* Live on Sky Sports
All of the talk about Nottingham Forest surrounded the players they brought in. Now it’s more about who they don’t have available.
Forest made 30 acquisitions this season as they made their long-awaited Premier League return, but now have a growing injury list of eight players. That includes key spine players such as Dean Henderson, Scott McKenna and Taiwo Awoniyi.
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FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from the Premier League match between Nottingham Forest and Everton.
But there are plenty of positives at the City Ground and Forest are worthy frontrunners in the bid to stay up. Firstly, their home form has been excellent and they have not lost in front of their own fans since September, with the likes of Liverpool and Manchester City failing to come away with three points there.
Then there’s the attacking quality of Brennan Johnson and Morgan Gibbs-White. Whenever those two players combine at their best, Forest tend to avoid defeat.
Should both of these positive plus points continue, then Forest won’t have any issues come the end of May.
Cooper: Johnson making an impact for us now
Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper on Brennan Johnson:
“He’s doing really well – he’s a young player playing in the Premier League for the first time. He’s starting to establish himself at the level, but he plays in a position where we want him to create and score goals.
Image: Brennan Johnson celebrates after scoring Nottingham Forest's equaliser against Everton
“He’s becoming a real threat now in Premier League games. He did that at the Championship level and it took a little bit of time in the Premier League, like all of us did.
“I won’t say too much because he’s got a long way to go and I want him to play well next week and the week after, but he’s having a positive impact for us and I hope he keeps it going.”
15. Leicester City
Points: 24
Goal difference: -7
Form (most recent first): WWLLL
Next six league games: Chelsea (H), Brentford (A), Crystal Palace (A), Aston Villa (H), Bournemouth (H), Man City (A)*
* Live on Sky Sports
Leicester thought they had turned a corner. Back-to-back victories over Aston Villa and Tottenham, scoring eight goals in the process, looked to have earned Brendan Rodgers a bit more time at the King Power to turn the season around.
But the Foxes are back to square one. Three defeats on the bounce have put Leicester right back in the relegation question. All three of those games saw the Foxes fail to score, even though they stayed in the game.
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Highlights from Southampton’s match against Leicester in the Premier League.
Leicester certainly have the players and the personalities to stay up, but the 2016 league champions have languished near the bottom all season. They need to turn a corner and do it properly.
Analysis: Maddison key for survival hopes
Sky Sports’ Dan Sansom:
Leicester’s hopes of staying clear of the relegation zone and enjoying a comfortable end to the season rest on James Maddison.
The 26-year-old’s influence on the Foxes cannot be underestimated. They have taken just one point from a possible 18 without Maddison since the World Cup, so to see him return to the starting line-up against Southampton after recovering from illness was a huge boost for Rodgers.
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Brendan Rodgers says similar positive performances will save his Leicester side from relegation.
Maddison could not prevent his side from suffering defeat on the south coast, but Rodgers described the midfielder’s performance as “outstanding”. The England international was a constant threat throughout and had his team-mates been able to finish one of the four chances he created, it could have been a very different story.
Maddison has been hampered by knee injuries since November, but Leicester will hope he is now primed to help lead them away from danger in the final few months of the season. Their top-flight status could depend on it.
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16. West Ham
Points: 23
Goal difference: -10
Form: DDLWL
Next six league games: Aston Villa (H), Southampton (H)*, Newcastle (H)*, Fulham (A), Arsenal (H)*, Bournemouth (A)
* Live on Sky Sports
David Moyes asked whether his West Ham side were up for the relegation fight after they lost at Tottenham in February.
Since then, the Hammers have undergone two 4-0 results – one positive, one negative. They put four past Nottingham Forest in a sensational goalscoring burst in the second half.
Image: West Ham were beaten 4-0 at Brighton
But then the worrying signs appeared again as they were humbled by the same scoreline at Brighton.
The other interesting part of their context is their Europa Conference League campaign, which starts in March at the last-16 stage. Would Hammers fans accept 17th place and winning that competition?
Rice: Brighton loss demoralising
West Ham captain Declan Rice conceded it felt “demoralising” to have been “played off the pitch” by Brighton in their 4-0 defeat on Saturday.
Rice said: “We were beaten by a better team. Brighton played us off the pitch and made life difficult. But that wasn’t a performance that was acceptable. Days like today you have to apologise to the fans as we’ve let the fans and the club down.
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Declan Rice was in a despondent mood after West Ham’s 4-0 defeat to Brighton and apologised to the London club’s fans for a demoralising performance.
“I’m hurting. The lads are hurting. We thought we’d turned a corner as we’ve been playing better, winning 4-0 and then playing well in the cup. But this is a setback.
“I’d never step on the pitch and allow the opposition to have more passion than me and it’s the same for the others. We’re wearing the shirt of West Ham and the one thing that matters is fighting for the badge.
“Maybe it didn’t look like we did as we lost 4-0 but I can assure you we tried as best as we could but we were beaten by the better team.”
17. Leeds
Points: 22
Goal difference: -11
Form: DLLWL
Next six league games: Brighton (H), Wolves (A), Arsenal (A), Nottingham Forest (H), Crystal Palace (H), Liverpool (H)*
* Live on Sky Sports
After finally finding a successor to Jesse Marsch at the umpteenth attempt, Javi Gracia provided Leeds with a minor ‘new manager bounce’ by beating Southampton.
But an FA Cup exit to Fulham and defeat at Graham Potter’s Chelsea has put a pin in that balloon of positivity.
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Highlights from Chelsea’s match against Leeds in the Premier League.
April looks to be a pretty vital month for Gracia’s side, with home matches against Nottingham Forest, Crystal Palace and Leicester along with a trip to Bournemouth on the agenda.
But what situation will Leeds be in by the time those games come around?
Gracia: Leeds need to finish off chances
Leeds manager Javi Gracia says his attacking players need to be better at finishing off chances in the wake of their 1-0 loss at Chelsea.
“The big problem is not creating chances. We need to improve the effectiveness to finish better, to be more clinical,” he said. “The opponent had two or three clear chances but they scored one and we weren’t able to.
“During the week in the FA Cup, we created 16 shots and had more clear chances, and didn’t concede the chances we conceded today. It’s something we have to improve.
“The goals are not only about the strikers, all the team has to collaborate in scoring.”
18. Everton
Points: 22
Goal difference: -19
Form: LWLLD
Next six league games: Brentford (H), Chelsea (A)*, Tottenham (H)*, Man United (A), Fulham (A), Crystal Palace (A)
* Live on Sky Sports
Sean Dyche came into Goodison Park and immediately won fans over with back-to-back home wins against Arsenal and Leeds.
But Everton’s problems on the road cost Frank Lampard and Rafa Benitez their jobs in the blue half of Merseyside. Dyche has come in and seen his side ship eight goals in his three away days at Everton – at Liverpool, Arsenal and Nottingham Forest.
Image: Everton have been excellent at home but fruitless away
A fired-up Goodison Park can be Everton’s 12th man – it was last season in their successful survival bid – and if the Toffees are to stay up, you can expect the six games that remain at home will be where they can gather most of the points required.
Analysis: Calvert-Lewin return needed in survival push
Sky Sports’ Ben Grounds:
Everton’s current desperation to score goals is completely of their own making. Years of mismanagement has placed greater reliance on a talisman who has barely been fit.
How Everton could do with a fully fit and firing Dominic Calvert-Lewin, scorer of 21 goals under Carlo Ancelotti two seasons ago. Since then, it has been one setback after another.
It was in dispatching a penalty against Brighton in August 2021 that the striker’s injury problems first arose. It was the third successive game in which Calvert-Lewin had scored, helping Everton sit joint-top of the table.
Two home wins over Arsenal and Leeds in February acted as a momentum builder but simultaneously highlighted the issues at play as Everton seek to create something sustainable moving forward.
Both goals were scored by defenders. If Everton are to stay up this season, can they truthfully rely on such unlikely goalscorers? The board’s failure to provide adequate offensive cover is now coming back to haunt them.
There have been signs of improvement under Dyche – an increase in average touches and passes into the opposition box – but the new manager has inherited an old problem his predecessor Frank Lampard was unable to solve, where the absence of a killer finisher is undermining any significant progress.
19.Southampton
Points: 21
Goal difference: -21
Form: LLWLW
Next six league games: Man Utd (A)*, Brentford (H), Tottenham (H), West Ham (A)*, Man City (A)*, Crystal Palace (H)
* Live on Sky Sports
After finally removing the unpopular – and quite frankly entertaining – Nathan Jones as manager, Southampton have found some positive stability in Ruben Selles.
Image: Ruben Selles is Southampton's manager until the end of the season
The young manager has brought about victories against Chelsea and Leicester – but that defeat at Leeds saw some similar traits to what got Ralph Hasenhuttl and then Jones the sack.
The Saints’ upcoming fixtures do not look positive, with both Manchester clubs and a game with Tottenham on the horizon.
But there are also matches against relegation rivals West Ham and Crystal Palace too. Victory in both not only helps the Saints’ causes but drags the other two teams right into the mix.
Selles: Our dressing room good enough to stay up
Southampton manager Ruben Selles speaking before their 1-0 win over Leicester:
“We have to re-check our standards in everything that we do. We are learning and we are learning together, so that is our challenge. We have high standards.
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Ruben Selles says the win against Leicester that moved his Southampton side off the bottom of the table is a turning point in their season.
“The team and the dressing room is alive. In my situation I have to think about how I can help them and I will try to always keep in mind but something new always pops up every day, whether it’s for the good or bad.
“You just need belief and we have to learn from every game. I still think the dressing room is good enough to stay in the Premier League.”
20. Bournemouth
Points: 21
Goal difference: -27
Form: LDWLL
Next six league games: Liverpool (H), Aston Villa (A), Fulham (H), Brighton (H), Leicester (A), Tottenham (A)
Bournemouth are currently propping up the Premier League table – with Gary O’Neil’s side having the worst record out of any top-flight side since the World Cup – the period where the current Cherries manager was made permanent successor to Scott Parker.
The south coast club have won just once in their last 10 league matches, scoring just six goals in that time. Pressure is mounting on O’Neil to deliver, with some of that pressure coming from his own supporters.
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FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from the Premier League match between Arsenal and Bournemouth.
Their recent performances have, however, been better than their form suggests. A draw at home to Newcastle was backed up by victory at Wolves, while they were seconds away from a draw at Arsenal before Reiss Nelson’s dramatic late winner.
There will come a point, however, where O’Neil has to start turning those performances into wins.
Analysis: Quick kick-offs could be Cherries’ thing
Sky Sports’ Sam Blitz:
Nine seconds – blink and you’ll miss it. Those who cut it a little fine to the Emirates Stadium on Saturday certainly did.
Bournemouth stunned the Emirates with an astonishing kick-off routine devised by Gary O’Neil and his staff just two days earlier on the training ground.
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Bournemouth’s Philip Billing scored the second quickest goal in Premier League history after just nine seconds to stun Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
It’s not the first time we’ve seen a kick-off routine from the Cherries. Dominic Solanke scored from a similar type of routine against Fulham in December 2021.
It just goes to show the lengths teams at the bottom will go to get an edge – and it could be what Bournemouth need to boost their survival hopes.
Southampton have James Ward-Prowse’s free-kick prowess, Everton have the Sean Dyche aura, Leeds have the cauldron of Elland Road.
The teams around them have something quirky about them – why can’t Bournemouth let this be theirs?
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Sourse: skysports.com
