Premier League: What should you watch out for on the final day? -BBC
Last updated on .From the section Premier League
The 2022-2023 Premier League season comes to an end on Sunday and the battle to stay in England’s top flight will be the main drama.
Two from Leeds, Leicester or Everton will drop down to the Championship alongside Southampton and while the top four has been determined, some European places are yet to be decided.
There will also be a loving, if not a fond farewell to the managers who will leave at the end of the season.
BBC Sport takes a look at what to look out for for what promises to be an exciting final day.
Battle at the bottom
This will have been a long and nervous week for fans of Leicester, Leeds and Everton as they wait to find out which division their side will play in next season.
At the bottom of the table, Southampton already know Championship football will be theirs in 2023/24, and Leeds look most likely to join them as they sit 19th, two points off safety.
Nothing short of a win and three crucial points are enough for Sam Allardyce’s side to entertain Tottenham. The ex-Bolton boss recently enlisted Leeds legends Gary McAllister, Eddie Gray and Gordon Strachan to help inspire his players.
“It’s about how important Leeds are and what it meant to them – the history of the football club and the fact that they’ve had very successful times here,” said Allardyce.
“It’s about improving our mentality to perform. Another voice speaking about what they’ve done at this football club and how much they love the club is really important.”
Leicester could have entered Sunday in the strongest position in the relegation battle if Nick Pope made a great save from Timothy Castagne in Monday’s game. goalless draw at Newcastle.
As it stands, they also need to win their last game at home against West Ham to have any chance of staying afloat.
“We have to win the game and look at Everton’s result after the game,” said Leicester boss Dean Smith.
“We have to do our job and see where it takes us. When we do our part, we look to other people to help us, but we have to make sure we focus on what we’re doing.”
Should the 2015/16 Premier League champions take three points, only a win for Everton, who host Bournemouth at Goodison Park, would see them relegated.
Everton’s goal difference is six worse than Leicester’s, so although they are in the strongest position, a draw wouldn’t be good if the Foxes win.
“The fact is we have to be under pressure because that’s what we want from this group, that’s the demand of being at Everton Football Club and I learned that very quickly,” said Toffees boss Sean Dyche.
“Every game should be a pressured opportunity and that’s because that’s being a professional footballer, not just the last game of the season.”
With Premier League safety on the line and so few between the only three sides left to go down, expect a lot of twists and turns on the final day.
How expensive is relegation from the Premier League?
Falling back to the second tier of English football is a costly experience as clubs face a huge shortfall in the amount they receive from television payments.
“It wipes £60 million off the revenue line overnight,” Dr Dan Plumley, senior lecturer in sports finance at Sheffield Hallam, told BBC Sport.
“This is the difference between the guaranteed EPL television payment per season and the first year of parachute payments after relegation.
“The most recent turnover figures available in 2022 were £181.0m (Everton), £189.2m (Leeds United) and £214.6m (Leicester City). Relegation would significantly reduce that figure.
“The most recent of the three to have been in the Championship (Leeds) earned £54.2 million in that year (2020), highlighting the sheer size of the revenue gap between the leagues.”
Anything else to play for?
The Champions League places are then sorted Manchester United defeated Chelsea on Thursday to seal a spot in the top four.
Liverpool will also finish fifth and Brighton sixth regardless of what happens on the final day, meaning Europa League football is theirs – a fantastic achievement for the Seagulls, but an outcome that will be disappointing for the Reds.
With seventh place this season, a place in the play-off round of the Europa Conference League is secured.
That position is currently held by Aston Villa, who host Brighton on Sunday, but Tottenham (away to Leeds) and Brentford (home to Manchester City) are both in contention to wrest that spot from Villa with the right result in their season. finals.
Last day goodbye
For some clubs, Sunday is the last time they see their current manager in the dugout.
At Crystal Palace, Roy Hodgson is about to sign a hugely successful return to his boyhood club. The 75-year-old was reappointed on March 22 and the Eagles were in danger of being sucked into a relegation battle, but three straight wins in his first three games put them out of trouble.
A victory at home to Nottingham Forest on the final day would bring six wins from his 10 appearances and although it is officially his last game in charge, the former England manager could still be tempted to stay on next season.
Chelsea fans will be pleased to see the back end of a campaign in which they have seriously underperformed and it also marks the departure of club legend Frank Lampard after the end of his second spell as manager. Ex-Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino made an appointment to take charge of the Blues from this summer.
All three clubs in the relegation zone currently have managers whose contracts expire at the end of the current season.
It has already been confirmed that Ruben Selles will leave Southampton this summer as the Saints look to a fresh start for a rebuild, but Allardyce and Smith’s future will likely depend on whether they manage to avoid the fall.
Wolves fans will hope Sunday’s game at Arsenal won’t be the last time they see Julen Lopetegui in their dugout, with the Spaniard’s future assumed to be uncertain due to the club’s financial situation.
However, it appears that Wolves captain Ruben Neves will make his last appearance for the club where he has played since 2017. wants to play Champions League football.
With Champions League football already secured, Manchester United fans can look forward to an unpressurized final day of the season against Fulham.
But it could be a farewell for goalkeeper David de Gea.
The 32-year-old, who won the Golden Glove for keeping the most Premier League clean sheets this season, approaches the final month of his current contract.
Manager Erik ten Hag is hopeful he will sign a new contract, but it is unclear whether the Spaniard will remain United’s first choice next season.
“I think we want him to stay and he wants to stay, so I think we will find each other,” said Ten Hag.
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