With the top two all but guaranteed a Champions League adventure next season, the final two spots are still entirely up for contention.
Manchester United and Newcastle are currently masters of their own destiny as they round up the top four with games in hand on the two teams directly below them, Tottenham and in-form Aston Villa, who are six and eight points shy respectively of the Magpies’ 59.
Brighton are in eighth, 10 points shy of Newcastle with two games in hand, and would find themselves in fifth and knocking on the door if they can use their additional fixtures to their advantage. Liverpool are just nine points short of qualification for the most elite club competition after a late surge including a 6-1 drubbing over Leeds.
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Newcastle beat top four rivals Spurs by the same scoreline on Sunday, a much-needed statement result coming off the back of the previous weekend’s defeat at Villa Park.
On Saturday Douglas Luiz rescued a point for the Villans late on away at Brentford, while five second-half goals at Anfield saw Liverpool triumphant over Nottingham Forest with the final score being 3-2. Manchester United and Brighton faced each-other in the FA Cup, meaning there was no league action for either.
With each side having less than ten to play, here is a closer look at the battle for that coveted top four spot.
Newcastle United
“That's the reaction we wanted and an incredible start. The crowd were incredible for us,” those the words of Eddie Howe after his side bounced back from an uncommon defeat at the hands of Aston Villa by running riot against Spurs.
There is no time for Newcastle to bask in their glory with the chasing pack looking to knock the Magpies from their nest in the top four. Howe’s side are in action again midweek for one of their three remaining away trips, all of which are against sides in the bottom half.
Newcastle head to Goodison Park on Thursday to face an Everton side who got the best of the Toon on Merseyside last year, with Alex Iwobi scoring the winner in 90+9. They also face a trip to the Toffees relegation rivals Leeds on May 13, and on the final day of the season a trip to the capital beckons, where mid-table Chelsea will be looking to put this campaign to forget behind them.
There are still four home fixtures for Newcastle, with the date for the Brighton game for the penultimate game at St. James Park set as May 18 following the Seagulls’ exit from the FA Cup. Four days later Newcastle will host Leicester, but they have league leaders Arsenal and Southampton to welcome before that.
Manchester United
The side in pole position to land one of the final two spots, Erik ten Hag’s side have competed on all fronts this season. With a Carabao Cup already in the cabinet, the Red Devils have a Manchester derby FA Cup final to contend with, they did crash out of the Europa League however with a loss over two legs against Sevilla in the quarter-finals.
With fixtures set to come thick and fast, United have lost centre-back pairing Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez through injury at a crucial point in their season. Varane is expected to be out for a few weeks, but ‘Licha’ will not feature again this season.
Varane may miss games against three of their rivals for the top four - all coming over the space of a week. Firstly, a trip to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Thursday, followed by an Aston Villa visit to Old Trafford, and finally another trip down south on a Thursday to play Brighton.
Picking up points in all three games, and denying their opponents the three in the process, would all but solidify United’s spot in the top four. Aside from those, they have two home fixtures, against Wolves and Fulham, and two away matches, against West Ham then Bournemouth.
The Cottagers will be looking for revenge for their FA Cup exit when they play at Old Trafford on the final day, with Aleksandar Mitrovic returning from his eight-game ban at the perfect time.
Tottenham
Three of Tottenham’s next four games come against sides who will be competing for the top four, two of them coming before the end of the month to round out a tricky week for a no doubt disheartened Spurs.
Following the rout on Sunday, it doesn't get easier for Cristian Stellini’s side with a Thursday night visit from Manchester United, followed by a journey to Anfield coming on the Sunday. They host near-neighbours Crystal Palace and Brentford either side of a trip to Villa Park on May 13.
The Brentford game will be Spurs’ last home game of the season as Elland Road is the venue for the final day. It may be all to play for for both sides, as Leeds continue to fight to stay in the Premier League.
Aston Villa
This would no doubt be the story of the season. Unai Emery has worked wonders to transform an Aston Villa side that seemed destined for an unremarkable season under Steven Gerrard into a genuine threat to the elite.
Speaking after their dominant win against Newcastle, Emery admitted it would be “very difficult” to finish in the top four, and some tough fixtures in their run-in prove his point.
There are trips to both Old Trafford and Anfield to contend with, as well as Spurs and Brighton - who they play on the final day. The Villans have already proven they can kill sides off in emphatic fashion, which will add confidence going into these fixtures for a side looking to extend their nine-game unbeaten run.
Looking to build from their 1-1 draw with Brentford, they face a visit from another side from the capital in Fulham on Tuesday. Villa will be on their travels on May 6 when two of the leagues most in-form sides will meet at the Molineux.
Brighton
The Seagulls are flying (pun intended) and playing some great football thanks to manager Roberto De Zerbi in a remarkable success story after losing three key players in Marc Cucurella, Yves Bissouma and Leandro Trossard.
Brighton exited the FA Cup on Sunday at the hands of top four rivals Manchester United, but De Zerbi said they have “belief for the run-in” following their victory over Chelsea in their last Premier League fixture.
Having played the least matches this season, with their 29 giving them two games in hand on Newcastle - who are 10 points ahead. This also sets up a frantic end to the season starting with a trip to Nottingham Forest on Wednesday, and the hosting of Wolves three days later.
Of their remaining seven games from there, Brighton have to play five of the sides above them.
Manchester United at home is their first port of call, as they look to avenge their FA Cup semi-final exit. They play at the AmEx again four days later when they host Everton.
Two of the toughest possible away fixtures will follow within four days of each-other. Firstly they travel to the Emirates for a super sunday clash, then they must make the trip north to St. James Park with a lot on the line.
Southampton at home follows shortly after as they will look to keep their bid to stay in the Premier League alive, before they host a side at the opposite end of the table in Manchester City. Finally, it’s Villa Park for Brighton on the last day of the season - a tough place to travel as Newcastle have learned.
Liverpool
Down but not out, Liverpool are an outside shout at entering the spots that would secure them a place in the competition they have won six times - but it won’t be easy.
Currently nine points behind Newcastle it would take a monumental effort from Jurgen Klopp’s side to finish in the top four. They do arguably have the ‘easiest’ remaining fixtures of all those on this list with only two of the top-four contenders remaining, and both at home as they host Spurs and Villa.
The lift of the Anfield atmosphere was on clear display in Liverpool’s 2-2 comeback against Arsenal and they have three other home games against Forest, Fulham and Brentford. On wednesday Liverpool travel to West Ham for one of three remaining away days, with journeys to Leicester and Southampton round out their season.
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