Barclays Premier League - Who Will Finish In The Top 4?

Just 2-3 weeks ago it was all set in stone; United were firing on all (well, most) cylinders and would certainly finish in the top 4, and Liverpool were disappointing, lacking goals, and would be lucky to finish 5th, with Spurs and Southampton breathing down their necks. Oh, how football can change so quickly!

Having lost their last 3 games, United are now just 4 points ahead of 5th placed Liverpool, with three games remaining of the 2014-15 season, having been 8 points ahead after the 4-2 victory over City at Old Trafford.

It's fair to say, United are still some way off where they want to be, having struggled in away games this season, with just 5 league wins from 17 on the road. De Gea has been key to them this season, and they'll hope they can keep hold of him in the transfer window.

Falcao and Di Maria haven't really worked out this season, but I'm a big fan of giving players a chance, and that means more than one season, their first in the English Premier League. They are people at the end of the day, and moving to new countries, everyday stresses and constant media attraction, can have an impact, and can take time to adjust to.

The summer transfer window will certainly be interesting to watch for United fans, especially with rumours surrounding De Gea, Bale, Dempay, and Hummels, to name a few. 

LVG's side have a couple of tough games to end the season, but you fully expect them to pick up the points to finish in that fourth spot.
First up is an away trip to Crystal Palace, who, like United, have lost their last 3 Premier League games, with defeats against West Brom, Hull and Chelsea, after winning 4 consecutive games before that.
Both teams have won 4 and lost 3 in their last 7 league games. Despite scoring 12 goals in those 7 league games, United have failed to find the net in the last 3, which is no surprise when Rooney has to cover in midfield.
Again, similarly, Palace have scored 11 goals in the last 7 games, but have also failed to score in the last 3. But I can't use the Rooney excuse here........I could use the no Falcao or Van Persie excuse though...

Next for United will be the welcome (albeit not very warm) of Arsenal to Old Trafford, the toughest of the 3 remaining games, and the last home game of the season for Van Gaal's team, and hopefully it should be an entertaining one!

Arsene Wenger's side hasn't lost in the league since February, when losing to Spurs at White Hart Lane, and have won 9 of the 10 played since, averaging 2.1 goals a game, and conceding a total of just 6.

United's final game of the season is the trip to relegation fighting Hull City, which again, may not be the easiest games, especially if Steve Bruce's team are still playing to stay up!

Hull managed to grab two vital victories in a row, beating Palace away, and Liverpool in front of their own fans, before defeat to Arsenal most recently. Those two wins boosted their chances of survival significantly, but they still have a lot to do, with remaining games against Burnley and Spurs, before the final game of the season.


As it stands, United need 5 points from the last 3 games to guarantee that top 4 spot, but will also have confidence knowing Liverpool still have two tough away games against Chelsea and Stoke to play, so 4 points should be enough, and should be more-than achievable!

Brendan Rogers' men have struggled for goals at times this season in the Premier League, as the signings of Lambert and Balotelli haven't really worked out, and there main man, Danial Sturridge, constantly injured.

It says it all when your top league scorers are midfielders, with Sterling 7, Gerrard 7, Henderson 6, and Coutinho 5. Rickie Lambert and Markovic have double the amount of League goals of Balotelli this season, with 2 each.

They can't keep replying on Sturridge, and now Sterling, and they have to buy a quality striker in the Summer, to finally replace Suarez, plus a bit extra! 

Liverpool did manage to go unbeaten in the league from the end of December through to the middle of March, with 10 wins from 13 games. Since that run, they have only won 2 of 6 league games, and failed to score in 2 of the last 3.

The Reds face Chelsea next at Stamford Bridge, with Liverpool most probably hoping Chelsea players have been partying quite heavily this week, and won't be as organised (or boring as some call it ;)  ) as usual.

Their next game comes from Anfield, as they host Crystal Palace, before ending the season with an away trip to Stoke. 


Also hoping for the chance of European football next season, and sitting just
below Liverpool (61 points), are Tottenham (58 points), and Southampton (57 points).

Spurs' season got off to a great start with 2 wins and clean sheets in their opening 2 games, before being brought back down to earth, with a 3-0 home loss to Liverpool. They struggled for 2-3 months, until November-December, when they got back-to-back wins on a couple of occasions, for the first time since that opening weekend, and thrashed Chelsea 5-3 on New Years Day.

Pochettino's men have struggled defensively in the league, having conceded 50 goals in 35 games, much higher than the teams around them, and worse than the likes of Palace, West Brom and Hull City.

The stand-out performer, of course, is Harry Kane, who's currently on 20 league goals for the season, from just 25 starts (6 sub), and 2 goals behind current leader Sergio Aguero on 22 (from 27 starts - 3 sub).
Other key players in Tottenham's side come from midfielders Christian Eriksen and Nacer Chadli, who both have 10 league goals apiece, while Chadli has 5 assists, to Eriksen's 2.

With remaining fixtures away to Stoke and Everton, with Hull at home between, it's not going to be easy for Spurs, but they have a chance of fifth, especially if Liverpool drop points to Chelsea and Stoke.


The side just a point behind Spurs in 7th, and arguably the stand-out performers in the league this season, Southampton, who many had tipped for relegation before the start of the season, having lost their manager, and most of their key players from the previous season.

The Saints have the second best defensive record in the league, conceding 28 goals in 35 games so far, just behind Chelsea, with 27 goals against. Fraser Forster, who I'm a keen admirer of (excuse the cliche), has played 30 of the 35 games, keeping 11 clean sheets.

Despite great starts to the season from Pelle and Tadic in particular, both have gone a little quiet in the second half, although 11 goals in 34 starts for Pelle, in your debut season in the Premier League isn't all that bad, and he is some force in the air.

Sadio Mane has been another impressive player for The Saints this season, and has contributed 7 goals and 2 assists in 21 starts, after signing from RB Salzburg for just under £12 million in the summer.

Southampton finish the season with games against Leicester away, Villa at St Mary's, and then the final game, away to Manchester City. Three tough games, considering Leicester's current form, Villa's, and Benteke's renewed belief under Tim Sherwood, and Manchester City being Manchester City. 


For me, personally, I don't think there'll be much change to the table as it currently stands, apart from I believe Arsenal will overtake City to take second place, with their game in hand and currently level points. The rest will stay as it is in my opinion, with United taking fourth, and Liverpool just snatching fifth from Spurs. 

Ronald Koeman has had an excellent season with Southampton, and they do deserve the chance to play in Europe, I just don't think they'll manage it this time, but it will be interesting to see if they can improve next season.