The Battle To Avoid Relegation
As we enter the final third of the Premier League season, the plotlines at both ends of the table are currently being written. At one end, we have what is now becoming a three horse race to win the title.
While at the other, it is the battle to avoid relegation to the EFL Championship. A battle that has perhaps already claimed two victims in the shape of Fulham and Huddersfield, as the pair begin to find themselves cast adrift from the teams around them.
That statement might not make for particularly good reading when it comes to Fulham, but you do get the feeling that they are going to have to perform one of the Premier League’s greatest ever escapes if they are to stay up this season.
While for Huddersfield, they are bottom of the table without a win in 13 league matches and more importantly they are 14 points from safety. For them it is just a case of getting this campaign over and done with, before having a crack at promotion from the Championship next time around.
That leaves us with no fewer than six clubs who are doing their very best to not be the side who finishes the season in 18th and in turn occupies the last of the three relegation spots that will have to be filled.
The unwanted berth of 18th is currently filled by Southampton and although the level of performances has certainly improved under Ralph Hasenhuttl, the progress has not been fast enough.
It is fair to say that the Saints have made small steps since the former RB Leipzig manager took charge, then again it is also fair to say that they also need to start making giant strides if they are to avoid the drop.
While it is another South Coast club that could well find themselves in the most danger, Brighton have not won any of their last six league outings and for a club that was once viewed as safely in mid-table, they now find themselves dragged into the relegation dogfight.
They’ve been leapfrogged in the table by a Crystal Palace side that have finally managed to land a striker that they’ve desperately been looking for and in Michy Batshuyai among their ranks, you get the feeling they now have the firepower to steer clear of the bottom three.
While Burnley’s season has certainly turned the corner, they’ve picked up 12 points from the last 18 on offer and after their Europa League exploits almost ruined their campaign, things look to be on an even keel at Turf Moor once again.
Newcastle have the potential to pull out an impressive result here and there, you just have to look at the recent win over Manchester City for proof of that. However, could a chronic lack of investment turn out to be their undoing.
While after the recent tragic events connected to Cardiff, it is almost as if Neil Warnock and his players have now been galvanised for the final few months of the season. With a clear objective in mind, it could be the difference between them staying up and going down.
The race for the title always gets the most focus, but it is the relegation battle which always creates the most tension. Something that although great if you are a neutral, is torture for any fan of the clubs that are unfold. Just who will be the team that loses this particular battle?
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