Premier League season reaching the business end

Photograph from Flickr

As the calendar flicks over towards March, everyone involved in football starts to get that tingling feeling as the Premier League season starts to unfold. As managers start to feel the pressure, every game starts to take on greater significance.

Over the last twenty years the Premier League has seen many thrilling finishes, from West Brom's great escape when the last day saw four teams fight it out for one survival spot, to last year's stunning title victory for Manchester City over city rivals United on goal difference.

The title race looks unlikely to go down to the final day of the season this time around, but there is plenty for us football fans to get excited about over the coming weeks. The relegation battle is hotting up as plenty of teams struggle to pull away from the bottom three, while the fight for the coveted Champions League spots continues to intrigue. 

Champions League football for next season looks as though it will be decided on the final day of the campaign, as do the Europa League places. Nail-bitingly for some around the country, the fight against the drop also looks likely to continue well into May. 

What is certain about the coming two-and-a-half months of action, is that the 19 May will bring simultaneous excitement and drama. 

That Sunday will see the curtain drawn on the year's domestic football, with some potentially mouth-watering ties. Chelsea's clash against Everton at Stamford Bridge might prove vital in the race for the top four and a match that could hold equal importance in a different context may well be Aston Villa's trip to Wigan.

Before that much-anticipated day will be ten rounds of typically high-octane sport. 

Photograph from Flickr

Some of the romantics out there might believe that a title race to rival last season's may yet materialise after City's 2-0 win over Chelsea last week kept them 'just' 12 points behind United. Although they may be in love with the beautiful game, they can safely be seen to be deluded. There is absolutely no way that Red Devils manager Alex Ferguson will allow his side to let this one slip.

The race for second also looks to be over after City's Sunday win, and now that Chelsea have fallen behind Tottenham, they need to look over their shoulder at the clubs behind them on the hunt for a top four space. Having said that The Blues should be able to wrap up third place, especially considering that trips to the Britannia, Stamford Bridge, The Liberty Stadium and Anfield await Spurs, who  are also yet to host Arsenal and Man City. 

That especially tough run-in means that no Gareth Bale stunners will be able to prevent the chase for the Champions League going to the wire. Despite all their defensive woes Arsenal can still mount a serious threat to their not-so-friendly neighbours and this weekend's derby takes on added significance.

Liverpool have been readily laughed at by many, but they are a team that are well-equipped to throw those smiles back into people's faces and creep steadily up the table. Arch-rivals Everton are the most probable to feel the brunt of a red charge. 

The class and quality of their squad makes Swansea favourites to add to their League Cup triumph by winning the mid-table 'table', while West Brom have a tricky fixture list that could see them hit a bit of a wall after already reaching the magic '40-point mark'. A succession of long throws and elbows with some kicking (of a football) should see Pulis' Potters leapfrog their fellow Midlands club in the standings.

  Predicted final Premier League table:

	Team	P	GD	PTS
1	Manchester United	38	50	95
2	Manchester City	38	37	80
3	Chelsea	38	34	74
4	Tottenham Hotspur	38	17	68
5	Arsenal	38	29	67
6	Liverpool	38	31	66
7	Everton	38	10	64
8	Swansea City	38	3	48
9	Stoke City	38	-7	47
10	Southampton	38	-7	44
11	West Bromwich Albion	38	-7	44
12	Newcastle United	38	-9	44
13	Norwich City	38	-17	43
14	Sunderland	38	-11	39
15	West Ham United	38	-18	38
16	Fulham	38	-16	35
17	Wigan Athletic	38	-24	34
18	Queens Park Rangers	38	-27	31
19	Aston Villa	38	-41	30
20	Reading	38	-26	27

Out of the sides sitting relatively safe, but precariously placed, Southampton and Newcastle are the two that have shown enough to suggest they will pull away from danger with ease. On the flip-side, London outfits West Ham and Fulham could have some hairy moments yet.

The sides already destined for a dog-fight will struggle to creep away, but Wigan's expertise in scraping a couple of results together amidst the blossom of spring should be enough to condemn QPR, Reading and Aston Villa to the dreaded Championship.

So put up your feet, turn on the TV, grab a beer and enjoy watching the overpaid men run around (and fall over) until they have to stop when the weather gets too hot.

Make your own predictions here.

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E-Mail: asportinginsight@hotmail.co.uk