EPL: 5 talking points as Premier League ends on Sunday

The English Premier League, EPL, enters its final day (38th match day) this weekend with the expectation of more drama.

The final Premier League matches will take place on Sunday evening across England, and the matches will be played simultaneously.

Manchester City are already crowned champions of England, while the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Newcastle United all booked their place in next season’s Champions League after securing a top-four spot.

Liverpool and Brighton booked their place in the Europa League after confirming their position as 5th and 6th, respectively.

Southampton have already been relegated from the league as they finish in 20th position.

But there are still a lot of talking points as the 2022/23 Premier League season ends on Sunday.

1. Battle for Europa Conference League qualifiers:
Who between Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur and Brentford will take the ticket for the Europa Conference League?

Aston Villa have 58 points, Tottenham have 57 points and Brentford have 56 points after 37 matches.

Aston Villa will face Brighton, Tottenham will tackle Leeds United and Brentford will face Champions Manchester City.

Among the three teams, Aston Villa stands a better chance of collecting the Europa Conference League ticket should they win their game against Brighton.

Tottenham must win their game against Leeds and be hoping Aston Villa loses against Brighton to qualify for the competition.

Brentford, on the other hand, will have to win their game against City and hope both Aston Villa and Tottenham lose their matches.

2. Relegation survival battle:
Who will survive relegation between Everton, Leicester City and Leeds United?
Everton currently sits in the 17th position with two points above the relegation zone.

The Toffees have 33 points, while Leicester City are in 19th position with 31 points and Leeds United occupy the 19th position with 31 points after 37 games. Two out of the three teams will have to join Southampton to relegate to the Championship.

However, Everton need to beat Bournemouth on Sunday at Goodison Park to survive relegation.

Leicester City and Leeds United also need three points when they face West Ham United and Tottenham, respectively, to stand any chances of avoiding relegation but will hope Everton loses against Bournemouth.

3. Will Manchester City’s dominance continue next season under Pep Guardiola?
Who can challenge Manchester City for the Premier League title next season?

Pep Guardiola’s side have already lifted the Premier League title for this season last week.

They won the title race against Arsenal. Their only strong challenger this season was Arsenal.

However, will the likes of Manchester United, Newcastle, Liverpool and Chelsea beat Man City to the title next season?

Only time will tell, as Guardiola’s men have won the English top-flight league five times in the last six years.

4. Can Erling Haaland add to his goals tally?

Haaland is currently the top scorer in the Premier League this season, with 36 goals from 33 Premier League matches.

The Norwegian currently holds the title for the top scorer in a season in the history of the Premier League.

However, will Haaland extend his goal tally when Man City face Brentford in an away tie on Sunday? Man City fans will be eager to see their talismanic striker score at least two more goals to wrap up the season.

5. Frank Lampard’s managerial career under scrutiny as big work awaits Mauricio Pochettino at Chelsea:

Will Lampard ever manage another Premier League club in the future? Lampard’s time as Chelsea’s caretaker manager was a disaster. The Englishman has won 1 out of his ten matches in charge of the team. Lampard will lead Chelsea to face Newcastle United on Sunday in what would be his last game in charge of the team as Pochettino will take over as the new permanent manager at the end of the season.

It is yet to be seen if Lampard will get another managerial job in the Premier League after his awful time as Chelsea’s interim coach