Yahoo Sport 
Race for the Champions League: Who’ll miss out?
It seemed like a foregone conclusion before 2017 was even over; Manchester City are the 2017-18 Premier League champions.
And although half of the league’s fanciful battle for survival now appears to be the race to watch this season, the fact that City’s dominance means there are just three Champions League spots left for the rest of the ‘big six’ grows more interesting by the week.
Arsenal’s dim chances of a top-four finish were all-but ended by Pep Guardiola’s flying Blues in a second 3-0 beating in five days on Thursday night at the Emirates Stadium; that leaves Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea in the anticipated fight.
READ MORE: Chelsea ‘want Lampard to be their next manager’
READ MORE: Neville Exclusive: I know who should be next Man United boss
READ MORE: Gossip – Liverpool and United ‘chase Wanyama’, Spurs ‘target’ Reus
With just 10 fixtures to go until the campaign is finalised and summer begins, it’s time to take a closer look at the clubs vying to claim the three remaining spots and what lies ahead in each side’s action-packed schedule.
2nd – Manchester United (59pts, +33 goal difference)
Crystal Palace (A)
Liverpool (H)
Swansea City (H)
Manchester City (A)
West Bromwich Albion (H)
AFC Bournemouth (A)
Arsenal (H)
Brighton & Hove Albion (H)
Watford (H)
West Ham United (A) – TBC
Manchester United are currently in the best position of the lot going into the run-in but have notable matches at home to Liverpool and Arsenal, as well as a trip to the Etihad Stadium for the 176th Manchester derby.
If Manchester City win their four games prior to that huge bout, a victory on the day would secure the Premier League title against their city rivals which should act as more motivation for the Red Devils.
The other seven clashes are against bottom-half-of-the-table opposition though, and José Mourinho will be confident of his side getting a near-maximum 21 available points from those outings.
It’s likely that United’s chances of finishing second depend on how they get on in those three head-to-head matches. However, there certainly are potential banana skins which will need focus – on top of the latter stages of the Champions League and FA Cup.
PREDICTED FINISH: 3RD (82pts)
3rd – Liverpool (57pts, +33)
Newcastle United (H)
Manchester United (A)
Watford (H)
Crystal Palace (A)
Everton (A)
AFC Bournemouth (H)
West Bromwich Albion (A)
Stoke City (H)
Chelsea (A)
Brighton & Hove Albion (H)
Based on how Liverpool are looking at the moment, the form of Sadio Mané, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah, and their favourable run-in, Jürgen Klopp’s side should be considered favourites for runners-up.
That belief will only be strengthened if they can achieve a first win at Old Trafford since March 2014, because after that, the only game that you wouldn’t consider the Reds favourites for is the visit to Stamford Bridge in the penultimate outing of the campaign.
Half of their final 10 league games will be played in front of the antagonistic crowd at Anfield, a place where Liverpool are very rarely toppled, and even the away days at Crystal Palace and West Bromwich Albion won’t strike fear into the hearts of the squad.
It’s expected that the gap between second and fifth could only be by a few points, never mind between second and third, so the clash with North West foes Manchester United could very well determine which of the two win the trophy for best ‘second level’ team in the top flight.
PREDICTED FINISH: 2ND (83pts)
4th – Tottenham Hotspur (55pts, +29)
Huddersfield Town (H)
AFC Bournemouth (A)
Chelsea (A)
Stoke City (A)
Manchester City (H)
Brighton & Hove Albion (A)
Watford (H)
West Bromwich Albion (A)
Leicester City (H)
Newcastle United (H) – TBC
Tottenham Hotspur will be looking to take 15/15 points from their final five home matches this season, although one is against runaway leaders City, on the back of squashing the ‘Wembley curse’ in fine fashion with a tremendous record at the national stadium this term.
The London derby against Chelsea in a few weeks’ time could be a game-changer, in terms of momentum and league position, because victory in that one could put Mauricio Pochettino’s men 11 points clear of the Blues.
It’s a must-win scenario when relegation battlers Huddersfield Town travel to London on Saturday to start the final phase on a positive note, but then all focus must turn to three tricky consecutive away fixtures amidst a Champions League second-leg versus Juventus.
Harry Kane and Co. should have what it takes to hold onto their current position and retain their place in the most elite club competition in world football, but the white side of London against the blue for the final spot could be a prolonged battle worth keeping tabs on.
PREDICTED FINISH: 4TH (80pts)
5th – Chelsea (53pts, +25)
Manchester City (A)
Crystal Palace (H)
Tottenham Hotspur (H)
West Ham United (H)
Southampton (A)
Huddersfield Town (H)
Swansea City (A)
Liverpool (H)
Newcastle United (A)
Burnley (A) – TBC
With the daunting task of a trip to the home of champions-elect Manchester City coming up this weekend, probable defeat in that one will leave the current title holders five points outside the top four with nine games to go – so you can see why they’re the outsiders.
On top of that, a potentially season-defining match with Spurs is on the cards just a couple of weeks later, before free-scoring Liverpool are in town for the penultimate match of the 2017-18 season – Chelsea’s fate may already have been sealed by then though.
A poor start to 2018 has seen Antonio Conte’s champions fall to shock defeats, including 3-0 at home to Bournemouth and 4-1 away at Watford, and they were dealt another blow last time out, wasting a lead to lose at the hands of Manchester United and former Blues boss Jose Mourinho.
If Chelsea are to creep into the top four, they’ll have to make use of the favourable home games remaining and if any team is going to squander their place, it would most likely be Spurs – beating them is a must, though.
PREDICTED FINISH: 5TH (76pts)
Let the drama commence!
