MY ACCOUNT
It’s gone down to the wire at both ends of the table as football fans up and down the land get set for a tense final day of the 2021-22 Premier League season.
City to make no mistake
Eight times in the history of the Premier League has there been a last-day shootout for the title and on each of those eight occasions, the side who started the day top, finished it there.
Manchester City can now make that nine.
Liverpool fans would love old boy Steven Gerrard to inspire his Aston Villa side to do something special at the Etihad, but the Villans have not won any of their last 16 away games at that day’s league leaders and they have lost six in a row against City.
Gerrard famously slipped up as a Liverpool player to cost the Reds a league title but City won’t be slipping up against Villa.
No formality for Reds
All Jurgen Klopp’s Reds can do is apply some pressure but that might not be a formality at home to Wolves.
The stats say this is a home-win banker — Liverpool have won each of their last 10 Premier League showdowns with Wolves — yet tiredness has crept in at Anfield while there is the small matter of a Champions League final on the horizon.
Liverpool have made hard work of most of their recent matches — even a Southampton side who had downed tools gave them trouble on Tuesday night.
And Klopp needs to decide if he wants to take risks with Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk after injuries.
The visitors could well cover the handicap in a tighter match than home fans would want.
Old boy Howe to upset Clarets
Burnley were all smiles after their point at Villa which hoisted them out of the bottom three — but former manager Eddie Howe can change the mood at Turf Moor.
Burnley win and they are safe — any other result and they are going to need help from Brentford against Leeds.
And it’s quite possible they will need help from London because Newcastle just don’t look like losing at the moment.
It’s five wins in seven for the Toon — the two defeats came against Liverpool and City — and they have the whiff of a top-half finish in their nostrils, something which seemed unthinkable when Howe inherited the squad in the autumn.
Leeds face final sting from the Bees
It’ll be tense at Turf Moor and equally tense at the Brentford Community Stadium where Leeds’ fate is set to be sealed.
Any forward steps the Leeds board banked on by swapping Marcelo Bielsa for Jesse Marsch simply haven’t happened — they’ve mustered just two points out of a possible 15 at exactly the wrong time.
And there’s absolutely no reason to expect they’ll get any change from a buoyant Brentford, who have won seven out of their last 10 and are finishing the season on fire with Christian Eriksen at the helm.
Canaries no match for flying Spurs
It’s not just the title and relegation to be decided on the final day, as fourth place and a Champions League return is also up for grabs.
It’s in Tottenham’s hands — they just need a draw at Norwich — and the way they are playing they should be certainties at Carrow Road.
Pop them in a double with Arsenal (the one team who can leapfrog Antonio Conte’s men) because they should be able to take care of Everton, who surely haven’t stopped partying since Thursday.
