Premier League: Race for Survival

As the Premier League season draws to a close after yet another pulsating season, football fans are scrambling round for football tickets to watch their favourite teams before the final whistle blows on what has been another whirlwind campaign.

The Premier League title may already appear to have Manchester City’s name on it. However, the battle to stay in the league is wide open and far from over.

We take a look at the relegation candidates and evaluate their chances of survival with eight matches remaining before their fate is sealed. West Bromwich Albion look doomed but with only four points separating Swansea in 14th and Stoke City in 19th the stakes have never been higher.

The magic 40 point barrier is often depicted as the ‘holy grail’ in terms of survival for another season the English football’s top tier. However, looking at the remaining fixtures it looks like 37 points may be enough to guarantee clubs Premier League football for at least one more term.

Taking that into consideration, Everton (40 points) are staying up, Bournemouth and Watford (both 36 points) are probably there, and Brighton (34 points) are almost home and dry.

Mathematically, Newcastle United are far from safe with 32 points, but given they have the best goal difference in the bottom half, have some momentum and are the only candidate with a Champions League winning manager, they should survive.

West Brom’s season is spinning out of control faster than a stolen taxi, so take them out the equation and that leaves six clubs scrambling for four survival places.

Swansea City, 31 points

Swansea are the best placed of the group lying in 14th place but they will be nervously looking over their shoulders as the jaws of the Championship lurk precariously below. They are on a decent run of form and are still riding the new wave under Carlos Carvalhal.

However, they have some difficult fixtures to come, including Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea,. Despite this their other five matches are all winnable and the sooner they pull clear of the drop the better. Therefore, it’s essential they find a win either against West Brom or Everton to settle their nerves and take points against the likes of Southampton, Bournemouth and Stoke. 

Huddersfield Town, 31 points

Huddersfield are three points clear of the drop zone, yet they continue to slide further down the ladder with each passing week bereft of both confidence and momentum. David Wagner really needs a couple of results to halt their slump. Only Stoke have a worse goal difference than Huddersfield (-27) and it would be a shame to see them relegated after such a promising start to life in the top flight.

However, David Wagner appears as calm as ever, and he can rightly claim expectations have already been surpassed in their debut Premier League season. They have a game against Chelsea to come before finishing the season against Manchester City and Arsenal. Therefore, it is imperative that they accumulate points against the teams around them with ‘six pointers’ against Newcastle, Brighton, Watford and Everton. See if Huddersfield can survive for another season with football tickets available to buy online now.

Crystal Palace, 30 points

The Eagles has a nightmare start to the season with zero points from seven games under their former boss Frank De Boer. Roy Hodgson has since been tasked with reversing their fortunes and he has somewhat steamed the tide after it appeared to be heading coasting towards Championship football.

Hodgson has a wealth of experience in the Premier League which should serve them well for their run in. Their 2-0 victory at Huddersfield last weekend ended a run of seven games without a win, and crucially they now have their toughest fixtures behind them.

Next up, they have Liverpool at Selhurst Park with away trips to Bournemouth, Watford, Stoke and West Brom to come. Looking at their remaining fixtures, they should be safe, just. Buy Premier League Crystal Palace tickets now!

West Ham United, 30 points

Nobody would have thought West Ham United would find themselves in the midst of a relegation battle at Christmas. However, under David Moyes their form has nosedived and results have plummeted at an alarming rate.

The Hammers were sitting comfortably in January and ended the month in 12th place having gone four games unbeaten against West Brom, Huddersfield, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace. However, football can change in an instant and West Ham have only won once since.

Their disastrous 3-0 home defeat to Burnley at a toxic London Stadium was worrying, painting a picture of a club in crisis. The owners are under increasing pressure while David Moyes’ career at the top hangs in the balance.

He has taken his players away on a warm-weather training camp hoping to install some team spirit in Miami as they lick their wounds and prepare for a crunch match against Southampton.

West Ham still have some of their toughest fixtures to come and it will be home matches against Southampton, Stoke and Everton which will ultimately seal their fate. If they manage to snatch points off Manchester United, Chelsea, Manchester City or Leicester it will be a bonus -

Southampton, 28 points

The Saints were left with no choice but to part ways with Mauricio Pellegrino after only one win in seventeen games and they will be hoping that Mark Hughes is the man to steer them clear of relegation.

Southampton are the unpredictables in the relegation equation. The sacking of Mauricio Pellegrino could prove to be the catalyst for a resurgence and the early signs are that Mark Hughes will certainly bring something different to St Mary’s judging by their 2-0 victory in the FA Cup against Wigan Athletic.

It is clear that the manager’s biggest challenge will be coaxing goals from a goal-shy front-line. Charlie Austin is currently out injured and he remains the clubs top scorer this season with six goals in as many starts.

They are currently in the bottom three but they have the quality in the squad to turn their fortunes around. Away trips to West Ham and Arsenal are next for the Saints before home games against Chelsea, Bournemouth and Manchester City. Hughes has a tough job on his hands and he needs to install a much needed confidence boost sooner rather than later in the Premier League.

Stoke City, 27 points

It is a case of now or never for the Potters with only seven games remaining. There ‘must win’ game against Everton ended in a 2-1 defeat and with Arsenal and Tottenham after the international break they need points on the board.

Stoke are only three points from safety and the fixture list gives them an element of control over their destiny, with games against West Ham, Crystal Palace and that finale at Swansea. However, their goal difference is the worst in the league and realistically they need to win three of their remaining seven games to stay up.

Paul Lambert has had plenty of time to put together his survival plan but despite his enthusiasm, the results just haven’t materialised. Time is running out for Stoke if they want to extend their ten year stay in the Premier League.