⚽ Premier League 2025/2026 Discussion Thread ⚽

[Roseline492]

After Newcastle got the win today they have got ahead of Manchester City. And they still have 1 match in hand at the same time.  A really good advantage there.  

With this performance honestly I also believe their chance for the 4th place is higher than Chelsea and Manchester City both. Eddie Howe is doing a pretty good job and deserves to be a part of Newcastle for more years.

Among the seven clubs on the top Newcastle United is the only club that has won Liverpool this season, even the ones fierce enough hasn't win Liverpool but the Newcastle United, I'm convinced one point might not be the only difference with City because Manchester United doesn't usually battle Newcastle United much, so that would be four points for Newcastle against City, imagine how argument was on another team whom has made a long line and another has just boarded and at the same time also getting the club in question more lower. However the solution to Manchester United could be players, let assume Jackson from Chelsea and two others with the same performance but different positions, could be better than this.
 

[knowngunman]

While Chelsea and Manchester City are gifting the 4th position to themselves, there is a new threat risen right behind: Aston Villa.    They are currently on a winning streak of 3 games and only 1 point behind Manchester City.

Emery is such a competitive manager though. He is doing the best he can and I started to believe like they might have a go at the Champions League once again.    Instead of Chelsea or Manchester City... Aston Villa's current form deserves it more than those 2 teams honestly.

Aston Villa? What about Crystal Palace?

From the look of things, I don't really think either Chelsea or Manchester City would make the top four at the end of this season if they both continue with their inconsistent performance. Chelsea is now lucky to be ahead of Crystal Palace with goal advantage but they now have equal points while Crystal Palace has less game. If they play their outstanding game and win, they'll automatically move Chelsea out of fourth position.

The fight for top four and five is becoming more interesting than we imagine between Chelsea, City, Crystal Palace and Aston Villa. I'm yet to check their remaining fixtures to see which team have more difficult games remaining but regardless, I'm not too confident for Chelsea to be in competition with them.

[mamesso]

The standings after the last matches...



After Newcastle got the win today they have got ahead of Manchester City. And they still have 1 match in hand at the same time.  A really good advantage there.  

With this performance honestly I also believe their chance for the 4th place is higher than Chelsea and Manchester City both. Eddie Howe is doing a pretty good job and deserves to be a part of Newcastle for more years.

The competition for 4th position is still very competitive because Chelsea and Newcastle have both collected 53 points, but Newcastle chances of entering the top four are very big because there is still one match left. Man City and Aston Villa also still have a chance, at this time it is very difficult to say who will finish in fourth place because the possibility of a change of position is still very large.
Meanwhile, Southampton experienced a different fate this season, they became the first team to be relegated after losing to Tottenham 3-1.

IMG SOURCE: SAI

[Velvet78]

Newcastle have two games in hand and their opponents are easy, so most likely Newcastle "now" have 54-56 points, it turns out that Chelsea and City are fighting for 5th place rather than 4th. Thank God Aston Villa are nearby and they can completely deprive City of a ticket to the Champions League. If I believed in justice this would not be a question at all (look at Forrest and Everton last season) but unfortunately any outcome of that case is possible.

Oh, right. I forgot that Newcastle had such advantage. Thanks for the reminder. Last night they destroyed Leicester and took the 5th position already. The same points with Chelsea at the same time...

Still one more game in hand like you said so they are currently the most likely team to join the Champions League among them. 

Aston Villa? What about Crystal Palace?

Crystal Palace? Are you sure you are keeping up with the Premier League man?    It is Newcastle not Crystal Palace.

[Inwestour]

The only trophy left for Liverpool this season is just the premier league, i don’t really know what happened to them after losing to PSG, since they were removed from the Champions league, Liverpool performance has dropped, and if not that the point difference between Liverpool and Arsenal is already much, they might have find it difficult to win even the premier league, but with the points difference, and the matches left, Arsenal is not really have hope.

I was thinking Liverpool will win more than a trophy this season, but it’s surprising that they were sent out of the Champions League the same week Newcastle defeated them in the FA cup final. I was expecting Liverpool to win the FA CUP, and the premier league, even if they won’t be able to win the Champions league, but Newcastle defeated them in the FA cup final which is really a bad one for Liverpool.

This is a good achievement in any case, but they shouldn't relax too early, they need to finish the job and win the matches they have left so as not to leave the decision until the last rounds. Yes, these defeats seem to have affected them, but they shouldn't stop after that. I understand that they were confident that they could become the best in all tournaments this season, but the Champions League has never been an easy tournament and one defeat is not able to break the real champions.

[Versatile_choice]

Newcastle really played Leicester like people that are ready and willing to qualify for champions league next season which for now is looking like a possible case

Yeah, I totally agree with you on that fact. Because their previous performance proves that they want to be in the list of those teams that will be qualified for champions league next season, because their performance in yesterdays match was as if they're playing with a team from other division. it was not as if they're playing with team that is from the same division with them, because thier performance yesterday was like when a superior team is playing with weaker teams. and of course, so far as this season is concerned is obvious that newcastle happens to be one of the superior team in premier league this season.

[Oluwa-btc]

After Newcastle got the win today they have got ahead of Manchester City. And they still have 1 match in hand at the same time.  A really good advantage there.  

With this performance honestly I also believe their chance for the 4th place is higher than Chelsea and Manchester City both. Eddie Howe is doing a pretty good job and deserves to be a part of Newcastle for more years.

Good thing they could win with how poor Leicester City have been throughout this season and also since they signed Ruud van Nistelrooy.  I think they gave too much time before they sacked Cooper. The race to to0 4 is competitive and I love it. Its seven weeks to go and the relegation zone already clarified. Any of you find the img below mind blowing??!

[Stable090]

I was pissed at Chelsea for drawing that match we had more opportunities and deserved the winning, twenty shots with five on target is enough to win but they couldn't find the net, if only our players played their roles more accurately then the whole points would've been ours but sadly we shared points with Brentford.

If I will blame anyone for Chelsea getting a draw in the match, then I will be blaming Enzo Maresca, I was just surprise to see Maresca bench some players in the first half of the match, cucurella, Jackson, palmer, and Neto were all on bench in the first half of the match, then who are the players that Enzo Maresca was thinking will score for Chelsea? Was he thinking Nkunku will score?

Chelsea played poorly in the first half of the match, I was even thinking they will lose the match, because they had just 4 shots in the first half of the match with just 1 shot on target. Chelsea performance improved when Enzo Maresca made some substitutions in the second half of the match, but even with that they couldn’t secure any goal in the match. Enzo should have just started his normal squad in the match, I don’t even know what Enzo Maresca was trying in the match.

[X-ray]

The standings after the last matches...



After Newcastle got the win today they have got ahead of Manchester City. And they still have 1 match in hand at the same time.  A really good advantage there.  

With this performance honestly I also believe their chance for the 4th place is higher than Chelsea and Manchester City both. Eddie Howe is doing a pretty good job and deserves to be a part of Newcastle for more years.

Newcastle is in the safe zone now. They have very big chance to play in UCL once again. They may be placed at fifth, but PL is having very big chance to secure additional spot. They can target to finish at the fourth or fifth position to be eligible for additional UCL spot.

It has to be a very easy job consider they have Chelsea, Man City, and Villa to compete with. They need only consistently winning the rest of game, and UCL spot is theirs.

Their fixtures are relatively easy, and can farm three points easily without any doubt. I've been missing them to competing in UCL, and they can make it happen soon.

[emrecemsan]

Newcastle is in the safe zone now. They have very big chance to play in UCL once again. They may be placed at fifth, but PL is having very big chance to secure additional spot. They can target to finish at the fourth or fifth position to be eligible for additional UCL spot.

It has to be a very easy job consider they have Chelsea, Man City, and Villa to compete with. They need only consistently winning the rest of game, and UCL spot is theirs.

Their fixtures are relatively easy, and can farm three points easily without any doubt. I've been missing them to competing in UCL, and they can make it happen soon.

Beating Leicester was practically the easiest work for Newcastle.    But I'm not trying to overshadow their work done so far of course. Honestly Newcastle and Aston Villa both are doing much better than Chelsea - Manchester City to qualify for the CL.

There are still tough matches left in Newcastle's fixture:

- Aston Villa (A)
- Brighton (A)
- Chelsea (H)
- Arsenal (A)

Yes, I've added Brighton also there. They beat Newcastle twice this season. One in the PL and the other in the FA Cup...

[Joca97]

Newcastle is in the safe zone now. They have very big chance to play in UCL once again. They may be placed at fifth, but PL is having very big chance to secure additional spot. They can target to finish at the fourth or fifth position to be eligible for additional UCL spot.

It has to be a very easy job consider they have Chelsea, Man City, and Villa to compete with. They need only consistently winning the rest of game, and UCL spot is theirs.

Their fixtures are relatively easy, and can farm three points easily without any doubt. I've been missing them to competing in UCL, and they can make it happen soon.

Beating Leicester was practically the easiest work for Newcastle.    But I'm not trying to overshadow their work done so far of course. Honestly Newcastle and Aston Villa both are doing much better than Chelsea - Manchester City to qualify for the CL.

There are still tough matches left in Newcastle's fixture:

- Aston Villa (A)
- Brighton (A)
- Chelsea (H)
- Arsenal (A)

Yes, I've added Brighton also there. They beat Newcastle twice this season. One in the PL and the other in the FA Cup...

With how the hard their upcoming fixtures are i dont think Newcastle will able to get that champions league spot. With the win against Leicester they got huge points in that battle. But three away game to win against hard opponents is really hard. They are playing well but i doubt they can win at least 3.

[ILuckyGuyI]

The only trophy left for Liverpool this season is just the premier league, i don’t really know what happened to them after losing to PSG, since they were removed from the Champions league, Liverpool performance has dropped, and if not that the point difference between Liverpool and Arsenal is already much, they might have find it difficult to win even the premier league, but with the points difference, and the matches left, Arsenal is not really have hope.

I was thinking Liverpool will win more than a trophy this season, but it’s surprising that they were sent out of the Champions League the same week Newcastle defeated them in the FA cup final. I was expecting Liverpool to win the FA CUP, and the premier league, even if they won’t be able to win the Champions league, but Newcastle defeated them in the FA cup final which is really a bad one for Liverpool.

You aren't alone about thinking like that. I also thought Liverpool would do double or even treble this season. Because it was like Arne Slot changed the club significantly. They were playing amazingly but I'm afraid it didn't last too long... 

At least they aren't finishing the season without a trophy. It's even one of the best they can achieve, PL trophy. A good start for him anyway as a result. He did this without making signings much also. That's an important point. This summer he'd be allowed to reshape the squad so we'll see what it brings...

[X-ray]

Newcastle is in the safe zone now. They have very big chance to play in UCL once again. They may be placed at fifth, but PL is having very big chance to secure additional spot. They can target to finish at the fourth or fifth position to be eligible for additional UCL spot.

It has to be a very easy job consider they have Chelsea, Man City, and Villa to compete with. They need only consistently winning the rest of game, and UCL spot is theirs.

Their fixtures are relatively easy, and can farm three points easily without any doubt. I've been missing them to competing in UCL, and they can make it happen soon.

Beating Leicester was practically the easiest work for Newcastle.    But I'm not trying to overshadow their work done so far of course. Honestly Newcastle and Aston Villa both are doing much better than Chelsea - Manchester City to qualify for the CL.

There are still tough matches left in Newcastle's fixture:

- Aston Villa (A)
- Brighton (A)
- Chelsea (H)
- Arsenal (A)

Yes, I've added Brighton also there. They beat Newcastle twice this season. One in the PL and the other in the FA Cup...

In my knowledge, Aston Villa and Chelsea games are winable game for Newcastle. I often see them destroyed Villa, and remember Chelsea is also regressed so hard like a mid table team now. Let's break it down.

They have MU, Ipswich, Villa and Chelsea as the winable fixtures to come. I take Brighton and Arsenal as their hardest fixtures, though don't rule out their chance to win these fixtures. As long as they can farm three points from at least 4 teams aboev, and i believe they can secure UCL spot.

[Black Mbaye]

The standings after the last matches...



After Newcastle got the win today they have got ahead of Manchester City. And they still have 1 match in hand at the same time.  A really good advantage there.  

With this performance honestly I also believe their chance for the 4th place is higher than Chelsea and Manchester City both. Eddie Howe is doing a pretty good job and deserves to be a part of Newcastle for more years.

Newcastle really played Leicester like people that are ready and willing to qualify for champions league next season which for now is looking like a possible case because they still have one outstanding match to play but the problem is I haven't check the team they are playing against to see the possiblity and chances of winning the match and topping Chelsea with 3 points and if they should win that match all they need from now is consistency else they will still displace them because there is so much competition in this top four.

Newcastle United really want to be in the Champions League. They have shown us that in most of the games they have played and I am one of those who think they should be in the Champions League. They have played one game less than Chelsea at the moment and have the same number of points as Chelsea. If they complete the missing game and win it, they will be three points ahead of Chelsea. This will put them ahead in the Champions League race. If they want to be in the Champions League next year, they need to show extra performance in the remaining games.

[Antotena]

This is a good achievement in any case, but they shouldn't relax too early, they need to finish the job and win the matches they have left so as not to leave the decision until the last rounds. Yes, these defeats seem to have affected them, but they shouldn't stop after that. I understand that they were confident that they could become the best in all tournaments this season, but the Champions League has never been an easy tournament and one defeat is not able to break the real champions.

Those people pressuring Liverpool need to understand that you don't have to be everywhere to be a better team. Manchester City was there like every other teams, there was a season they won only the Premier League and never won anything after, there was another season they won Premier League and Champions league and there was a season they lost FA Cup despite been hot to Manchester United, so I think we all need to chill down on Liverpool performance.

The only problem I have with this there setback is how well prepared Salah has been this season, he has done well to get every nomination of good personal award including Balon D'or but with this, I'm not sure if he is going to win it. In some aspects, it's possible if we look at the last season criteria but he would have had an edge and more advantages over other players if he has stay firm in other league but it's what it's, you can't always get what you want.

[pawel7777]

Man City declared their interest in acquiring Lamine Yamal, a 17 year old star of Barcelona:

https://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/manchester-city-transfer-news-man-city-in-historic-offer-for-lamine-yamal-report-signings-rumours-gossip-paper-talk-fcb-deco-jorges-mendes-neymar-lionel-messi-pep-guardiola-mcfc

Media reports they are ready to pocket out €275 million, making it the world's most expensive transfer. Yamal has a release clause of €1bn in his current contract.
If that's true, I don't think Barcelona would be able to resist such offer and will probably go with it, unless Yamal is not interested in moving to England.

[bitgolden]

Newcastle doesn't really feel like a big opponent at the moment. While they may have some tough games left, they are not really looking to do much neither, I do not expect much from them. Not on big games, not on small games, they do not feel like a great team in any of the games.

If they finish even lower than right now, I would not be shocked, and they are not really deserving of any UEFA next season neither, not with the way they played this season so far. If they could make that work somehow, then that would be the real shocker. I am sure that Newcastle will let their fans down again, and they will not be doing anything great, if they do then I would be shocked and I would admit that I was wrong about them.

[Juicyhome]

Man City declared their interest in acquiring Lamine Yamal, a 17 year old star of Barcelona:

https://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/manchester-city-transfer-news-man-city-in-historic-offer-for-lamine-yamal-report-signings-rumours-gossip-paper-talk-fcb-deco-jorges-mendes-neymar-lionel-messi-pep-guardiola-mcfc

Media reports they are ready to pocket out €275 million, making it the world's most expensive transfer. Yamal has a release clause of €1bn in his current contract.
If that's true, I don't think Barcelona would be able to resist such offer and will probably go with it, unless Yamal is not interested in moving to England.

Barcelona won't even think of selling Yamal and I don't  think Yamal will even play in the premier league at this age, he can't survive there. This is deal is dead on arrival it won't work and Manchester City will not break the bank to get him next season.

Yamal is used to Barcelona system he will stay just like Messi , let's not stress on this news. Because it won't happen so soon.

[YOSHIE]

Yamal is used to Barcelona system he will stay just like Messi , let's not stress on this news. Because it won't happen so soon.

I agree with you that will not happen in the near future, a statement from Lamine Yamal to Barcelona.

No, Barcelona did not want to sell Lamine Yamal, but instead wanted to extend his contract.

Explanation
• Barcelona rejected the offer of 250 million euros for Yamal in the summer of 2024.
• Barcelona wants to secure Yamal's future because the performance of this young player exceeds expectations.
• Barcelona plans to extend Yamal's contract until June 2030.
• Yamal himself has stated that he will soon sign a new contract with Barcelona.
• Yamal considers Barcelona as a club in his life and hopes to renew his contract with them.
• Barcelona never intends to sell its best players, including Yamal.
• Barcelona applies a financial model that prevents excessive escalation of contracts.
• Yamal is considered the successor to Lionel Messi thanks to similar style of play. He developed rapidly into an important player for Barcelona for the past year.

source: Barcelona's Lamine Yamal confirms he will sign new contract

I think Yamal still knows himself from who raised him to become a soccer star like now, Barcelona is still his small home, not interested in the offer of Manchester City.

[Pandu Geddon]

Newcastle doesn't really feel like a big opponent at the moment. While they may have some tough games left, they are not really looking to do much neither, I do not expect much from them. Not on big games, not on small games, they do not feel like a great team in any of the games.

If they finish even lower than right now, I would not be shocked, and they are not really deserving of any UEFA next season neither, not with the way they played this season so far. If they could make that work somehow, then that would be the real shocker. I am sure that Newcastle will let their fans down again, and they will not be doing anything great, if they do then I would be shocked and I would admit that I was wrong about them.

Newcastle's situation this season is not good, as well as what they showed last season. This season to be in the European zone, they have to compete with Chelsea, Man City, and Aston Villa who have a small points difference.
In the last few matches, Newcastle has actually been quite good. The last three matches managed to get wins and everything will depend on their performance to finish this season.
At least this season Newcastle beat Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final.