Chelsea new hope in their quest for Champions League status has now received a boost with six Premier League teams still eligible to qualify for Europe’s premier cup competition.
Following a 3-1 home loss to a significantly changed Nottingham Forest team on Monday—the Blues’ sixth straight Premier League loss—their chances of placing in the top five are mathematically eliminated.
Liverpool and Aston Villa are strong favourites to complete the top five, while Arsenal, Manchester City, and Manchester United have all guaranteed their place at Europe’s top table for the upcoming campaign.
England is expected to top UEFA’s European Performance Spots (EPS) for the second consecutive season, and the best five clubs in the Premier League will be guaranteed Champions League football next season.
The two leagues with the best overall record in their three European competitions each season are given extra spots in the Champions League by EPS.
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According to the Evening Standard, a backdoor path to the Champions League could also be awarded for sixth place.
As of now, Bournemouth are six points behind fifth-place Aston Villa, one point ahead of Brentford, and two points ahead of Brighton in the Premier League standings.
Chelsea are now in ninth place, four points behind sixth place, and they are serious contenders to overtake their opponents in the season’s last three games.
However, there is still hope, and it all depends on Aston Villa winning the Europa League and placing fifth.
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Villa defeated Forest on Thursday to advance to the Europa League final, where winners are automatically eligible for the Champions League.
The qualification spots remain unchanged if Villa win the Europa League and finish in fourth place or higher. Villa would advance to the Champions League both by winning the Europa League and by finishing in the Premier League.
However, if Villa win the Europa League and rank in the fifth EPS-awarded spot, they will advance to the Champions League as Europa League winners, and the EPS spot will go to the team behind them in sixth-place. Bournemouth’s current position.
With Brentford and Brighton ahead of them in the standings, Chelsea are by no means certain to finish sixth given their recent performance.
In all likelihood, Calum McFarlane’s team need to win their next three games—away at Liverpool, home at Tottenham, and away at Sunderland on the last day—and hope that the three teams drop points in least two of their three teams matches.
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