Football writer Ben Bloom assesses the final day of the Premier League season and what's at stake for clubs, players and managers.
With the title and relegation already settled, the Premier League concludes on Sunday without concern for those at the extreme ends of the table. But fear not – there is plenty at stake in between.
The battle for the three remaining UEFA Champions League places promises to go down to the wire, while Brighton & Hove Albion and Brentford both have their eyes on an eighth-place finish that may yet yield European football.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
37 | +34 | 71 |
| 3 |
Man City
MCI
|
37 | +26 | 68 |
| 4 |
Newcastle
NEW
|
37 | +22 | 66 |
| 5 |
Chelsea
CHE
|
37 | +20 | 66 |
| 6 |
Aston Villa
AVL
|
37 | +9 | 66 |
| 7 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
37 | +13 | 65 |
| 8 |
Brighton
BHA
|
37 | +4 | 58 |
| 9 |
Brentford
BRE
|
37 | +9 | 55 |
Elsewhere, there are many individual awards and club records still to be determined.
In fact, there's something to play for in EVERY match!
Here is everything to watch out for on the final day of the Premier League season.
Top-five battle
The biggest talking point heading into the last round of fixtures is who will join Liverpool, Arsenal, and UEFA Europa League winners Tottenham Hotspur in securing UEFA Champions League football next season.
Three spots remain up for grabs, with Manchester City, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest separated by just three points in a titanic battle to claim them.
With a two-point buffer above the chasing pack and possessing a superior goal difference to all, Man City know a point at Craven Cottage could be enough to guarantee their Champions League place.
Newcastle and Chelsea also know victory will assure them a top-five finish, with Aston Villa’s vastly inferior goal difference almost impossible for Unai Emery’s side to overturn.
Currently occupying sixth and seventh position, it is Villa and Forest who have most to fear, knowing that wins may not be enough if those above them also triumph.
In the biggest final-day showdown, Forest could feasibly beat Chelsea and neither of those two clubs finish in the top five. Whoever ends the season in sixth will earn a UEFA Europa League spot, while seventh could also get a Europa League place.
Race for eighth
It is not only the top seven clubs with their sights set on Europe, but Brighton and Brentford as well.
If Chelsea win next week’s UEFA Conference League final against Real Betis – thus earning a Europa League spot – their finishing position in the Premier League will directly influence whoever finishes eighth.
Should Chelsea finish seventh, or finish sixth with Newcastle in seventh, and then win the Conference League, the remaining Conference League place would transfer to the eighth-placed team.
That is currently Brighton, who possess a three-point lead over Brentford. A point for Fabian Hurzeler’s side at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday will secure eighth, but if they lose and Brentford win at Wolverhampton Wanderers, Thomas Frank’s team will climb above them.
Either way, both Brighton and Brentford need Chelsea to be victorious in the Conference League final.
Final positions and merit payments
Even the vast majority of clubs whose fate is already sealed have something to play for on the final day.
Of the 20 top-flight sides, only Liverpool (1st), Everton (13th), and Southampton (20th) cannot move position depending on Sunday’s results.
While much of the Premier League’s distribution of broadcast and central commercial revenues to clubs is split equally, there is also the added incentive of merit payments depending on where a club finishes in the table.
Essentially, the higher a club is, the greater the payment they receive from the Premier League’s central payments.
Liverpool, for example, are set to receive 20 times the basic merit payment, while the club that finishes second will get 19 times, and so on.
Last year, each additional place was worth in the region of £2.8million in merit payments.
Golden awards
The end of the season means it is time to hand out the Premier League’s three Golden awards: Golden Boot for top goalscorer, Playmaker for most assists, and Golden Glove for the goalkeeper with the most clean sheets.
With five goals and six assists more than any other player, Mohamed Salah looks firmly on track to win the first two of those awards, replicating his achievements in 2021/22 when he won the Playmaker award and shared the Golden Boot with Son Heung-min.
In fact, Salah would become the first player to complete the double on two occasions, with Andrew Cole (34 goals, 13 assists in 1993/94), Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (18 goals, 13 assists in 1998/99) and Harry Kane (23 goals, 14 assists in 2020/21) the only other players to do so once.
Salah would also move alongside Thierry Henry with a record four Golden Boot wins.
The content for the Golden Glove is much closer, with David Raya and Matz Sels both on 13 clean sheets heading into a final day that has Arsenal travelling to Southampton and Forest hosting Chelsea.
Individual records
Both have been on the cards for some time, but Salah is still within touching distance of breaking two all-time Premier League records.
Currently sat on 18 assists, Salah is two away from matching the record of 20 in one Premier League season, jointly held by Henry in 2002/03 and Kevin De Bruyne in 2019/20.
Should he manage that, he would also set a new record for goal involvements. The Liverpool man has 46 (28 goals, 18 assists), which is one below the record of 47 set in 42-match seasons by Cole in 1993/94 and Alan Shearer in 1994/95.
However, Salah has managed just one goal and one assist in his last eight Premier League matches, despite attempting 21 shots and creating 18 chances in that time.
Club records
In addition to the individual marks that could be broken, several clubs are on the brink of breaking new ground.
Bournemouth, Fulham and Crystal Palace have already set new club records for Premier League points, which they could extend further on the final day.
Having gone past their previous best tally with their current 53 points, Bournemouth could match their highest finish of ninth set in 2016/17. They would need to beat Leicester City and hope other results go their way.
Victory last weekend set a new Fulham club record of 54 points, although they are unable to replicate their best seventh-place finish from 2008/09.
FA Cup winners Crystal Palace are on an unprecedented 52 points. Victory at Liverpool on the final day could potentially (although a big goal difference swing is required) see them climb as high as ninth and better their 10th-place finish from last year.
If Brentford maintain ninth spot, they will equal their highest-ever finish from 2022/23, while they could yet go one better and climb into eighth. The latter scenario could bring European football to the club for the first time.
Other things to look out for
Even if they lose against Brighton, Spurs – who sit 17th with a +2 goal difference – could break the record for the lowest position any team has ever finished a Premier League season with a positive goal difference. The record is held by Man City, who finished 16th in 2003/04 with a +1 goal difference.
Defeat for Spurs would make them the first side in top-flight history to lose 22 games in a 38-game season and not be relegated.
If Southampton lose to Arsenal, they would become the first side to suffer 30 defeats in a single Premier League season.
Southampton and Ipswich Town, who are hosting West Ham United, need to win on Sunday to avoid sharing Sunderland (2005/06) and Derby County (2007/08)'s record for the lowest number of home victories (one) in a Premier League season.
Victory for Man City against Fulham would extend what is already the longest winning run for one English league side against another. City have won their last 17 meetings with Fulham in all competitions.
Should Fulham come from behind at half-time to win, they would set a new Premier League record for doing so six times this season.
If Liverpool score at least twice against Palace, they will match Man Utd (in 1956/57) and Spurs (in 1960/61) in scoring multiple goals a record 32 times in a top-flight season.
Man Utd’s top scorer in the Premier League this season is Bruno Fernandes with eight goals, while Arsenal’s highest goalscorers are Kai Havertz (nine), Gabriel Martinelli (eight) and Leandro Trossard (eight). Neither club has ever ended a Premier League campaign without a single player reaching double figures.
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe is hoping to become the fifth Englishman to lead his team to two or more top-four finishes, along with Kevin Keegan (1993/94, 1995/96), Roy Evans (1994/95, 1995/96, 1996/97, 1997/98), Bobby Robson (2001/02, 2002/03) and Harry Redknapp (2009/10, 2011/12).