The Premier League season of 2020/2021 will be remembered for many years to come. This bizzare year has seen nationwide lockdowns, the previous dominating champions struggling to make Champions League and overall miss-matched table positionings. The relegation scrap has also been one that peaks the interest of even those who are neutrals to the survival fight. Sheffield United who finished 9th last season have seen the departure of their longterm manager, Chris Wilder, as they sit dead bottom of the league with what looks like no hope for survival. It is also fair to say West Brom are not too far ahead either, with only a slightly higher chance of catching up to Premier League safety with 9 points to make up.
However, the distance between 18th place and a Premier league place is not too unobtainable and could possibly result in a do-or-die final day battle. Let’s look through the 3 teams that have much to worry about as we approach the end of the footballing calendar.
Fulham
After this weekend’s 3-1 defeat to a weakened Aston Villa, it is a stark reminder of why they are currently sitting in 18th place as odds on favourites to go down over others in this list. Despite going on a fairly impressive run including taking points from the likes Spurs, Everton and Liverpool this season, playing entertaining football along the way, Fulham have seen their efforts fall short in more winnable games. With the lowest squad value out of the relegation scrap at £200million, most saw them as relegation fodder before a ball was even kicked. With Scott Parker at the helm, he has given hope to Fulham fans that the doubters can be proved wrong and that dream is still going strong. Regularly praised for an entertaining style of play and proving to be difficult for even the larger teams to defeat, Fulham’s players are full of fight and desire to graft for an unexpected survival finish, one that reflects their fans current mindset. The positive outlook and ‘little guy’ label could be exactly what is needed to win a relegation scrap.
With vast doubts over other teams, more consistent performances from top players like Ademola Lookman, Harrison Reed and Alphonse Areola, along with a more friendly remaining fixtures list, Fulham are far from finished. The fear is whether the more inherent skill and quality of the more established Premier League teams at the bottom of the table be too much for the plucky underdogs to battle through?
Newcastle
Fulham`s most likely rivals for survival is their opponent for the final match of the season. The team that has been synonymous with turmoil. Whether it is a careless owner, a clueless manager or a classless squad, Newcastle United look to be staring down the barrel of relegation despite currently sitting above Fulham in 17th place. Gaining 10 points and a -20 goal difference is simply not good enough for a club that has the resources and big names that Newcastle have. The £40million Joelinton, the £21million Miguel Almiron and £20million Callum Wilson should surely be enough for mid table mediocrity? Well many fingers have been pointed at who is to blame as to what is happening at Newcastle. The majority of those are aimed directly at manager Steve Bruce, due to largely considered poor tactics, and mis-managment of players within the squad. Key instances of this include Joelinton, a record signing centre forward, now instead being often placed on the right wing. Other instances can include a training ground bust up with midfielder Matt Ritchie, where the player accused Bruce of being ‘a coward’. It is evident as to why 95% of Newcastle fans declared their desire to see Steve Bruce leave, according to a poll from The Chronicle.
But is this passionate rejection of Steve Bruce covering up for failing from both higher up and those that should be performing at their professional standard week in and week out on a football field? Who is really to blame for Newcastle`s current state? To put it bluntly, players, manager and owner should all be covering their faces in embarrassment.
However, it would take a lot longer than a couple of paragraphs to outline all the key details of the failings in the North Eastern city with many more factors to consider other than simply ‘poor tactics’. Amongst all the doom however, is a glimmer of hope, after Newcastle managed to gain a point off of a Champions league chasing Tottenham Hotspur, on the same day Fulham gave away a one goal lead against Villa this weekend. Could this be the catalyst needed to overtake Fulham`s promising performances in the dying embers of the season and keep one of England’s largest fan bases in the Premier League?
Brighton
With a bit more of a comfortable distance from the relegation zone, there shouldn’t be too much for Brighton to worry about. Being 6 points away from the drop with a much better goal difference gives Brighton front row tickets to watch Fulham and Newcastle go head to head. However, in such a turbulent season, stranger things have happened making the final few games nerve racking for most Brighton fans. As already stated, Fulham`s performances have been improving over the year and are showing real grit and fight,with a determination to stay in the top flight. A club with Newcastle`s potential could also be in a position to turn around their dreaded form and ‘switch it on’, with them showing hints of this against teams such as Spurs and Everton.
A 6 point gap does not seem as friendly, as all it takes is a win each for the other two competitors next weekend and suddenly Brighton are in the same position Newcastle are in now. This only gets scarier when some of their top players such as Tariq Lamptey, Adam Webster and Solly March are out injured, the pressure from many good performances resulting in 0 points may cause Brighton to crumble at the last hurdle as other teams around them galvanise. Although this is the most unlikely scenario out of the three, the possible danger is still quite clear.
The Angry Spectator 