We have arrived at the final week of the 2017/18 Premier League season and ten matches will be played concurrently at midnight on Sunday, Australian time.
With Manchester City crowned champions, there is still plenty at stake for the clubs seeking survival and the last Champions League berth.
Burnley will look to cap a smart campaign in style when they host Bournemouth on the final day of the season.
The Clarets have remained in touch with the top six all season and regardless of this result, will finish seventh in overall standings. They were absolutely flogged by Arsenal last week, but that really was an anomaly an in otherwise competitive campaign which has delivered fourteen wins and eleven draws.
Bournemouth have also been decent throughout much of the 2017/18 season and will finish comfortably clear of the drop zone. A 1-0 win over Swansea City may have gone a long way towards sealing the fate of the Welsh side last weekend, and that result also ended a three-game losing streak for the Cherries.
Burnley are a class above Bournemouth and they can finish with a win.
The Hammers and Toffees will end their respective campaigns in London early on Monday morning. Neither club has enjoyed their best season on record, but both have done enough to secure another year in England’s top league and pride is the only thing on the line.
Up until last week, relegation was still a real concern for West Ham but their experience shined through at the appropriate moment and a classy win over Leicester City ensured passage through to 2018/19.
Everton were extremely slow from the blocks, but they’ve continued to warm to the task all season and will finish within the top ten. They are undefeated through their five most-recent fixtures but will start outsiders on the road.
West Ham have been pretty unconvincing all season and Everton can finish on top.
There’s still plenty on the line for Tottenham when they host Leicester City on the final day of the season.
With Chelsea hot on their heels, a win for Spurs in this match would ensure a berth in next season’s Champions League, while relegating last season’s champions to a Europa League campaign. Given that Chelsea has the easier run to the line, this is a must-win for the North London club.
Leicester have restored a bit of pride in their jersey this season will look to close out their campaign with a win. Several outstanding performances and results have delivered a top ten finish and they have a quality base from which to build in 2018/19.
Spurs have been a cut above most clubs again this season and with everything to play for, they can secure one last win.
Southampton will finish their season with the extremely difficult task of overcoming champions Manchester City.
Luckily for the Saints, they have probably done enough to escape the drop this season because this is simply going to be a bridge too far.
City have broken records all season and there is a case to be made for this squad to sit amongst the best that the Premier League has ever seen. They won the league with more than a month to play and by winning this game, can become the first team finish on 100 competition points.
The result of this match seems pretty clear cut, and that is a comfortable Manchester City win.
Huddersfield have survived by the skin of their teeth and will end their season at home against Arsenal.
The Terriers were outstanding throughout the early stages of the season but as is often the case with minnow clubs, they have been brought back down to earth and are lucky to have beaten demotion. They secured a potentially vital point against Manchester City last week, but face a huge task in ending their season with a win against a ‘Big 4’ club.
By their standards, Arsenal have not been great this season but clearly they have been a class above Huddersfield. They will finish sixth in overall standings and have little to play for. Amazingly, they have the worst away record of any English league club in 2018 and that does give the Terriers a glimmer of hope.
It is extremely difficult seeing the Terriers beating a team of Arsenal’s calibre on the final day of the season.
Betting suggests that the most one-sided match on the final day of the Premier League will take place at Anfield, when Liverpool hosts Brighton.
The Reds have re-captured some of their previously feared reputation and while that has ultimately resulted in an appearance in the Champions League final, its also led to a top four finish in the EPL. Mo Salah has been the league’s best player and will look to cap his season with a couple more goals against Brighton.
The Seagulls are another club who have just managed to hold onto their Premier League status and will look to build into a more consistent side in 2018/19. Aussie shot stopper Mat Ryan has been a shining light for the club and has been instrumental in many of their positive performances and results.
Liverpool should just win and they can keep the Seagulls goalless in the process.
Chelsea will have one final attempt at finishing in the top four when they travel to Newcastle on the final day of the season.
Its been a largely disappointing campaign for the reigning champions and ultimately it could mean missing the Champions League, and a big re-build of their player and coaching ranks. They have still been better than most of the league, but by their lofty standards this has certainly been one campaign to forget.
Newcastle have been in competitive form since Christmas and they are on track for a top ten finish, despite having started the season slowly. To be fair, their form has been a little shaky the last couple of weeks, but they look like a club that has zoned out after already doing enough to survive.
Chelsea probably win this game and win well. It would not surprise to see a goal fest on the final day of the season.
Manchester United will close their campaign against Watford in front of the Old Trafford faithful early on Monday morning.
With the exception of their crosstown rivals, United have been the benchmark for the rest of the league this season and as something of a consolation, they have gotten the better of old foes Liverpool in the race to second following an exciting season-long tussle.
Watford were one of the league’s better ‘small’ clubs through the early stages of this Premier League campaign, but they haven’t really gone on with the job in 2018. Regardless, they’ve earned another season in the top tier and a clean slate from which to work.
United win this match and win well.
It doesn’t look like anything but a consolation win is on the line when Swansea City and Stoke City contest their final Premier League games respectively in Wales.
Both clubs are set to be relegated and it will end two particularly disappointing campaigns for teams that looked good enough to finish in the top ten, on paper.
If Swansea score plenty of goals and Southampton concede plenty, then there is still a mathematical chance that they can survive relegation. The Swans have the lowest goals for tally in the entire league this season though and realistically, survival isn’t going to happen.
Crystal Palace will host West Bromwich Albion in the Baggies’ final Premier League appearance for the foreseeable future.
West Brom have been anchored to the bottom of the table all season, but they continued to give themselves a glimmer of hope by finding form through the last five weeks of the competition. That flame was finally distinguished last week though and demotion is confirmed.
Palace fought away from the drop zone effectively and they have earned themselves another season in the top league. Wilfried Zaha has been on fire for the Eagles recently and is the league’s Player Of The Month for his recent heroics.
Regardless of their fate, the Baggies have been good recently and they can end their season with a win at odds.