Just as it’s difficult to predict who will win the Premier League race this year, it’s going to be even harder to pick which three clubs will be relegated. After watching all of the teams play, none of them look like relegation candidates.
Sure, one week ago Spurs looked like relegation certainties, but with Harry Houdini in charge, the likelihood of them escaping the drop has increased significantly. Newcastle has regained their form and look destined to climb the table under the tutelage of Joe Kinnear. Even Bolton, the club that so many people love to hate, are playing relatively decent football and getting results.
The battle of the bottom of the Premier League is already much closer this season than it was last year after the same number of games had been played. Here’s how the bottom half of the league table looked twelve months ago on October 28, 2007:
12. Reading 13 pts
13. Birmingham, 11 pts
14. Fulham, 9 pts
15. Sunderland, 9 pts
16. Wigan, 8 pts
17. Middlesbrough, 8 pts
18. Spurs, 7 pts
19. Bolton, 6 pts
20. Derby, 6 pts
And here’s how it looks as of today:
12. Stoke, 13 pts
13. Blackburn, 13 pts
14. Newcastle, 12 pts
15. Sunderland, 12 pts
16. Fulham, 11 pts
17. Wigan, 11 pts
18. Bolton, 11 pts
19. West Brom, 11 pts
20. Spurs, 9 pts
As you can see, Spurs have already won more points than the bottom five clubs from this time last year. Plus, it’s hard to believe, but Spurs have more points now than they did 12 months ago.
One more point to consider. Last year, 7 points separated last place to 12th position. This time, the gap is only four points.
So the teams at the bottom this season have earned more points than before and the race is closer. Even a club such as West Bromwich Albion, who have been the least impressive of the three promoted teams, has shown that it can play football and has been incredibly lucky at times such as when they outplayed Hull but still lost 3-0, and last weekend when they let in a last minute equalizer against Blackburn. The one thing that West Brom is missing is a giant win over a big Premier League club. Hull and Stoke have done it. Now it’s time for WBA to do the same.
If you look at the list above of the nine teams in the bottom half of the table, each of them have impressed on different occasions throughout the season so far, and none of them — right now — deserve to go down.
At this rate, it makes you wonder how many teams will be trying to avoid relegation on the last day of the season.
Which Premier League clubs do you think will get relegated this season?
Newcastle is off to the Have-A-Coke-And-A-Smile league.
Newcastle and Spurs are now starting their surge to the midtable. They will both stay up. I think West Brom will go down, and Bolton is currently too weak of a club to stay up and I think will be the first ones relegated. Third guess is hard to call. If Stoke or Fulham stay up, it will be a fight to the end that keeps them up. I see Wigan in the relegation picture up until the final month or week. I'm still not sure. It's sooo hard to call this year.
Amazing that Newcastle went from bottom to 14th in the table with just the one win yesterday. It will be an interesting year at the top and at the bottom this year – when the whole lower half of the table could be in and out of the relegation zone all season – not because they're clearly poor (as it was last year with Derby) but because all the teams are capable of pulling out a win, punishing the teams that have even a 1- or 2-match dip in form.
West Brom, Bolton and I think Wigan or Stoke. I think Hull stays up.
4 points currently separate 7th(Everton) from 19th(West Brom) and West Brom has a better goal difference. It's so tight right now. Very few teams are playing consistently good football. January is when the table starts to really reflect the quality or lack of quality of the teams.
Exactly. The bottom half is so close this year that it will come down to whoever can string together wins during the late winter months.
I'll go West Brom & Bolton, don't think they'll score enough goals over the course of the season for me. And the third one is a little tricky but it won't be Hull. Possibly Sunderland if they play like they did against Chelsea too often, very poor!
Spurs are going to stay up to good to go down and if we do stay up harry knows the team now so he will give us the boost to either get into the champions league or even get 2nd,3rd,4th in premier league
I think west Brom Newcastle and either wigan or bolton Stoke are amazing at Home so i can’t really say them