EPL Final Match Preview
Title, Top Four, Relegation and Golden Boot Come Down to Last Day
EPL Title Comes Down to Wire in Fantastic Final Day
An unforgettable English Premier League season comes to an end on Sunday with a whole lot still at stake. The title race between Manchester City and Liverpool will come down to the EPL final match as a City win over Aston Villa will seal the deal. Meanwhile, Tottenham and Arsenal are still in a top four fight. Three clubs will attempt to avoid relegation and the golden boot race will also be settled. We’ll cover all the latest in a super championship Sunday.
Shades of 2012 as Title Comes Down to Final Day
Manchester City and Liverpool have been the best two clubs in Europe’s top five leagues this season from a points per game perspective, however, only one of them can win the Premier League title. Pep Guardiola’s relentless City side lead Jurgen Klopp’s Reds by just one point heading into the final match day Premier League.
City are massive favorites to take home the title, sitting at -700 odds, while Liverpool offer +450 odds. The Citizens are at somewhat of an advantage as their opponents, Aston Villa, play on Thursday. So, Guardiola’s men are two-goal favorites at home on Sunday.
Liverpool are still in pursuit of the first ever “true quadruple” of the Premier League, FA Cup, EFL Cup and Champions League. Unfortunately, the EPL title is currently out of their hands. All Liverpool can do is win vs Wolves on Sunday and hope for help from Aston Villa. The Reds are widely expected to do their part and are -550 favorites vs Wolves.
Spurs With Clear Advantage in Top Four Race
Arsenal went from overwhelming favorites to clinch the fourth and final Champions League place to massive underdogs in the span of just five days. Arsenal fell first to fellow top-four challengers Tottenham 3-0 in a high stakes North London Derby last Thursday. Then, they were battered by Newcastle 2-0 in a disappointing display on Monday.
It’s still mathematically possible for the Gunners to finish fourth but they sit two points behind Tottenham. The EPL fixtures odds are also against Mikel Arteta’s side. Arsenal’s +1800 odds to clinch fourth reflect little confidence that they’ll defeat Everton and Norwich will beat Tottenham on Sunday.
Even if Arsenal does their part, which they’re expected to at -200, Tottenham are -430 favorites vs already-relegated Norwich City. Spurs’ top four odds are listed at a whopping -4000 and they’ll realistically only need a draw to clinch the top four. That’s due to a superior goal difference over Arsenal and Spurs face a Norwich team who average well under a goal per game. Still, anything is possible.
Relegation Looms for One Unlucky Club
If the title and top four coming down to the final day wasn’t enough excitement for EPL fans, Burnley, Everton and Leeds United may all be playing for their Premier League lives on Sunday. As of Monday, Burnley were in the final relegation slot with Everton and Leeds just barely safe.
Everton and Burnley have a game in hand on Leeds and both play on Thursday afternoon. An Everton win over Crystal Palace would clinch safety but Burnley’s fate won’t be sealed until the EPL final match. Even if Burnley beat Aston Villa midweek they still may need a result Sunday.
All three clubs have tough matches on Sunday. Everton and Leeds will both head to London to face Arsenal and Brentford, respectively, while Burnley host a resurgent Newcastle.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Jesse Marsch’ Leeds United are -140 favorites to go down to the Championship. Meanwhile, Burnley sit at +160 and Everton are at +700. Leeds and Burnley have spent considerable time in the second tier over the last couple of decades but Everton haven’t been relegated since 1951. It’d be unprecedented for a club that’s spent half a billion pounds on players in the last six years to go down.
Golden Boot Decider
Midway through the season, a Mo Salah golden boot win looked more like an inevitability than anything else. The world class Egyptian winger found the back of the net 15 times in Liverpool’s first 19 matches but has scored just seven times since.
Now, Salah leads Tottenham’s Heung-Min Son by just one goal and Salah could sit out the EPL final match as a precautionary measure. That could open up the door for Son to catch or overtake him. Salah was substituted in Liverpool’s PK shootout victory over Chelsea in the FA Cup final due to a muscle injury and also missed Tuesday’s 2-1 win over Southampton.
Son has stepped up when Tottenham has needed him most, with eight goals in his last eight appearances. He scored the dagger in the North London Derby vs Arsenal and could be the man to fire them into the Champions League. If Son fails to score vs Norwich, Salah would be just the fourth player to win three EPL golden boots but a Son goal would mean he shares his first golden boot title. Even better, a brace would make him the scoring champion.
For EPL betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
