Online Reporter
IF this weekend is anything to go by, the Premier League relegation scrap is set to take a series of twists and turns before the end of May.
Tottenham dropped into the bottom three for the first time in more than a decade after West Ham smashed bottom dwellers Wolves 4-0 on Friday night.
Spurs, hoping to benefit from a new manager bounce following the appointment of Roberto De Zerbi, visited Sunderland in the hopes of climbing out of the drop zone.
However, Nordi Mukiele’s deflected strike condemned the north London club to back-to-back league defeats, and continued a winless run dating back to December 28, while also confirming they would finish the weekend in the relegation zone.
Nottingham Forest picked up an important point of their own by earning a draw against Aston Villa, while Leeds — who are three points above Spurs and winless since February — take on heated rivals Manchester United on Monday.
After Leeds’ game on Monday, there will be six games for each club to save themselves from the drop to the Championship.
Spurs kick off that run by hosting European hopefuls Brighton, with Leeds taking on Wolves, Forest facing Burnley and West Ham travelling to south London for a derby against Crystal Palace.
Nuno Espirito Santo‘s Irons then host Everton, another team hunting a spot in Europe next season, while Spurs, Leeds and Forest travel to Wolves, Bournemouth and Sunderland respectively.
Depending on how Forest perform against Porto in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final on April 16, Vitor Pereira’s side may still need to contend with European football.
Likewise, Leeds have an FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea to consider on April 26, potentially leaving them less fresh than their relegation rivals.
The season then rolls around into May, with Leeds facing Burnley to start the month off.
Spurs visit Champions League hopefuls Aston Villa on May 2, the same day as West Ham head to west London to take on Brentford before Forest then also travel to Chelsea.
In a huge relegation six-pointer, Spurs will take on Leeds at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on May 11.
That weekend will also see Forest face the Magpies and West Ham visit league leaders Arsenal at the Emirates — in what could be a pivotal game for the title race.
Tottenham’s final two games don’t get any easier, with an away trip to Chelsea before a final day against the Toffees.
Daniel Farke’s Whites are in a similar predicament, with a clash against Brighton and then a crunch away game at West Ham, whose penultimate game is a long-trip up to Newcastle — which could relegate one of them.
Forest have an away day to Old Trafford on their penultimate day before hosting Bournemouth on the season finale.
Relegation for any of these clubs would be disastrous, and there is far from any guarantee of instant promotion back to the top flight after a season in the Championship.
The only certainty at this stage is that with just three points separating them, they will all need to fight tooth and nail to preserve their Premier League status. — Sun
