Premier League – The Race for a Top Four Finish

England has left Europe.

Or at least the Premier League sides have. With Monaco narrowly making it past the Gunners, and Joe Hart only barely keeping Manchester City in the same timezone as an imperious Barcelona side, the English sides had precious little to boast about. Chelsea had earlier crashed out at the hands of PSG, who progressed thanks to the away goals rule and despite only drawing the Blues over both legs.

Have the English sides lost their edge? Or is the Barclays Premier League markedly inferior to the other big leagues? Or have the English always flattered to deceive, with Chelsea being the only exception to the rule over these past seasons?

In any case, with the European distraction now firmly out of the picture, the English sides get to settle down for the final push in the Premier League. Chelsea look to be firmly in the driver’s seat, with a potential gulf of 9 points between them and the second-placed Manchester City. Unless Chelsea lose further steam and concede more ground, the excitement of the remaining months will be centered almost exclusively on the race for a top 4 finish. A few games will go on to define which sides will make it to Europe, and who the also-rans will be.

Liverpool v Manchester United (Sun, Mar 22)

A blow hot-blow cold Red Devils’ side turned up the heat to vanquish perennial pretenders to the throne, Tottenham Hotspur, last week. A clinical 3-0 dismantling of Pochettino’s men showed United were capable of raising their game on a big occassion. They will need all of that inspiration again as they take on the most improved side on this half of the Premier League season. Liverpool have scored more points in 2015 than any other side, and have also scored more points against the top 10 sides than any of the other sides hoping to end with a flourish.

Without Gerrard and di Maria, both sides will be minus some leadership and creativity, but Liverpool’s preferred 3-4-2-1 formation is likely to pose the more troubling questions for United. If the Red Devils are to put the Kop on ice, they will have to take advantage of Liverpool’s only Achilles heel – the wingbacks. Both Markovic and Moreno have failed to set the field alight, and while they’ve been safe bets, they are begging to be tested and shown up in a big game.

Manchester United will have to rely on Rooney and Fellaini as their primary attacking threats, as Falcao, van Persie and di Maria watch from the sidelines. With Jonny Evans also sitting this game out, van Gaal will be under the greater pressure as he seeks to prove the victory over the Spurs was not a flash in the pan.

Newcastle v Arsenal (Sat, Mar 21)

With Arsene Wenger making public his wish Arsenal has been knocked out sooner from the Champions League, you’re left wondering what such an ignominious exit could do for a Gunners side that looked like it was improving. The Toons, the Gunners’ next opponents, are left trying to finish in the top 10 and, if wrecking Wenger’s top four plans are what it takes to see them achieve it, then that’s precisely what they will seek to do.

But Newcastle are clearly the weaker side, if not in talent then certainly on form, as they seek to shake the tag of playing with flip flops. Losing 3-0 to Everton meant they are currently on the slide, and should have been easy pickings for a Gunners side on the ascendancy. But with Arsenal’s sudden sense of deflation, and the possibility that Newcastle have finally hit rock bottom, things could be ripe for a turnaround.

A point for Newcastle would be celebrated at Tyneside, but would strike a hammer blow to Arsenal’s top four dreams.

Manchester City v West Brom (Sat, Mar 21) | Hull v Chelsea (Sun, Mar 22)

The defending champions, and the leaders both take on considerably weaker sides in should-win games. Manchester City need to stay within striking distance of the Blues, and keep the rest of the pack from nipping at their heels. City will be relieved that the energy-sapping European games are no longer on the horizon, while Chelsea too can now turn towards the Premier League with renewed dedication.

Unless one of these sides shoots themselves in the foot, this is likely to be an uneventful weekend for both sides, and Pellegrini will be looking forward to Chelsea’s bigger upcoming games for some good fortune. The wildcard in this weekend would be Chelsea’s surprising move to publish their allegations of some biased refereeing on the club’s website. Whether that forces the referees to take a more lenient view of the Blues’ protests, or rally around the FA flag, remains to be seen.