Newcastle the worst Champions League contender as clear qualification favourites emerge
Newcastle have a miserable record in the Champions League contenders mini-table and Aston Villa are one of two clubs who should have the biggest say.
Despite this being an obviously rubbish and predictable Premier League season, there is a fine race for Champions League qualification brewing between two members of the collapsed Big Six and seven sides who were promoted from the Championship within the last eight years.
The 13-point gap between 3rd and 11th is smaller than the 15 points which separate leaders Liverpool from second-placed Arsenal in the Premier League table. Only ten points separate Chelsea in 4th from Crystal Palace, who have a game in hand, in 12th.
So the remaining matches between the Champions League contenders could be the most important of all – each team has at least four such six-pointers left – and that bodes better for some than others, looking at a mini-table of those results so far.
Every team from 3rd to 10th barring Carabao winners Newcastle is also in at least one other competition, adding an element of plate-spinning jeopardy to what is already an intriguing sprint finish.
Brentford will decide everything, basically.
The Champions League contenders mini-table
1) Fulham – 22 points/2 points per game (P11 W7 D1 L3 F21 A16)
Beat Newcastle (3-1 and 2-1), Nottingham Forest (1-0 and 2-1), Brentford (2-1), Brighton (3-1) and Chelsea (2-1).
Drew with Bournemouth (2-2).
Lost to Manchester City (3-2), Aston Villa (3-1) and Brighton (2-1).
Champions League six-pointers remaining:
Bournemouth (a) – April 12
Chelsea (h) – April 19
Aston Villa (a) – May 3
Brentford (a) – May 18
Manchester City (h) – May 25
Other competitions
FA Cup quarter-finals – Crystal Palace (h) on March 29.
Do they play Southampton again?
Oh yes. April 26 (a).
2) Aston Villa – 17 points/1.7 points per game (P10 W5 D2 L3 F15 A15)
Beat Fulham (3-1), Brentford (3-1 and 1-0), Manchester City (2-1) and Chelsea (2-1).
Drew with Bournemouth (1-1) and Brighton (2-2).
Lost to Chelsea (3-0), Nottingham Forest (2-1) and Newcastle (3-0).
Champions League six-pointers remaining:
Brighton (a) – April 1
Nottingham Forest (h) – April 5
Newcastle (h) – April 19
Manchester City (a) – April 26
Fulham (h) – May 3
Bournemouth (a) – May 10
Other competitions
Champions League quarter-finals – Paris Saint-Germain on April 9 (a) and April 15 (h).
FA Cup quarter-finals – Preston (a) on March 30.
Do they play Southampton again?
They pop up to St Mary’s on April 12. The Champions League quarter-final first legs are the prior midweek so it could be ultimate test of a curse they have already teased a solution to.
But Unai Emery may well have f***ed it already.
3) Brighton – 22 points/1.69 points per game (P13 W6 D4 L3 F21 A24)
Beat Bournemouth (2-1 and 2-1), Newcastle (1-0), Manchester City (2-1), Chelsea (3-0) and Fulham (2-1).
Drew with Nottingham Forest (2-2), Brentford (0-0), Aston Villa (2-2) and Manchester City (2-2).
Lost to Chelsea (4-2), Fulham (3-1) and Nottingham Forest (7-0).
Champions League six-pointers remaining:
Aston Villa (h) – April 1
Brentford (a) – April 19
Newcastle (h) – May 3
Other competitions
FA Cup quarter-finals – Nottingham Forest (h) on March 29.
Do they play Southampton again?
In a real blow to their hopes, no.
4) Manchester City – 21 points/1.62 points per game (P13 W6 D3 L4 F25 A16)
Beat Chelsea (2-0 and 3-1), Brentford (2-1), Fulham (3-2), Nottingham Forest (3-0) and Newcastle (4-0).
Drew with Newcastle (1-1), Brentford (2-2) and Brighton (2-2).
Lost to Bournemouth (2-1), Brighton (2-1), Aston Villa (2-1) and Nottingham Forest (1-0).
Champions League six-pointers remaining:
Aston Villa (h) – April 26
Bournemouth (h) – May 18
Fulham (a) – May 25
Other competitions
FA Cup quarter-finals – Bournemouth (a) on March 30.
Do they play Southampton again?
Absolutely. May 10 (a).
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5) Chelsea – 17 points/1.42 points per game (P12 W5 D2 L5 F18 A19)
Beat Bournemouth (1-0), Brighton (4-2), Newcastle (2-1), Aston Villa (3-0) and Brentford (2-1).
Drew with Nottingham Forest (1-1) and Bournemouth (2-2).
Lost to Manchester City (2-0 and 3-1), Fulham (2-1), Brighton (3-0) and Aston Villa (2-1).
Champions League six-pointers remaining:
Brentford (a) – April 5
Fulham (a) – April 19
Newcastle (a) – May 10
Nottingham Forest (a) – May 25
Other competitions
Conference League quarter-finals – Legia Warszawa on April 10 (a) and April 17 (h).
Do they play Southampton again?
They do not. Or Leicester. It’s so over.
6) Nottingham Forest – 15 points/1.15 point per game (P13 W4 D3 L6 F21 A23)
Beat Aston Villa (2-1), Brentford (2-0), Brighton (7-0) and Manchester City (1-0).
Drew with Bournemouth (1-1), Brighton (2-2) and Chelsea (1-1).
Lost to Fulham (1-0 and 2-1), Newcastle (3-1 and 4-3), Manchester City (3-0) and Bournemouth (5-0).
Champions League six-pointers remaining:
Aston Villa (a) – April 5
Brentford (h) – April 26
Chelsea (h) – May 25
Other competitions
FA Cup quarter-finals – Brighton (a) on March 29.
Do they play Southampton again?
Nope. Ipswich (a) and Leicester (h) to come, mind. And Manchester United and Spurs.
7) Bournemouth – 14 points/1.08 points per game (P13 W3 D5 L5 F23 A19)
Beat Manchester City (2-1), Newcastle (4-1) and Nottingham Forest (5-0).
Drew with Nottingham Forest (1-1), Newcastle (1-1), Aston Villa (1-1), Fulham (2-2) and Chelsea (2-2).
Lost to Brighton (2-1 and 2-1), Chelsea (1-0) and Brentford (3-2 and 2-1).
Champions League six-pointers remaining:
Fulham (h) – April 12
Aston Villa (h) – May 10
Manchester City (a) – May 18
Other competitions
FA Cup quarter-finals – Manchester City (h) on March 30.
Do they play Southampton again?
Nope, those six points have already been cashed in.
8) Brentford – 11 points/1 point per game (P10 W3 D2 L6 F15 A19)
Beat Bournemouth (3-2 and 2-1) and Newcastle (4-2).
Drew with Brighton (0-0) and Manchester City (2-2).
Lost to Manchester City (2-1), Fulham (2-1), Aston Villa (3-1 and 1-0), Chelsea (2-1) and Nottingham Forest (2-0).
Champions League six-pointers remaining:
Newcastle (a) – April 2
Chelsea (h) – April 5
Brighton (h) – April 19
Nottingham Forest (a) – April 26
Fulham (h) – May 18
Other competitions
None. All focus is on the Champions League for Thomas Frank and the lads.
Do they play Southampton again?
They do not. Nor Leicester, taking a full 12 points from that sorry pair. The fixture computer has done them in.
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9) Newcastle – 11 points/0.92 points per game (P12 W3 D2 L7 F18 A26)
Beat Nottingham Forest (3-1 and 4-3) and Aston Villa (3-0).
Drew with Bournemouth (1-1) and Manchester City (1-1).
Lost to Fulham (3-1 and 2-1), Brighton (1-0), Chelsea (2-1), Brentford (4-2), Bournemouth (4-1) and Manchester City (4-0).
Champions League six-pointers remaining:
Brentford (h) – April 2
Aston Villa (a) – April 19
Brighton (a) – May 3
Chelsea (h) – May 10
Other competitions
Carabao Cup final – Liverpool on March 16.
FA Cup fifth round – Brighton (h) on March 2.
Do they play Southampton again?
No. Newcastle made hard work of picking up those six points but collect them they eventually did.