The race for Europe gifts the Premier League run-in a quiet chaos
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Southampton’s relegation from the Premier League was confirmed on Sunday, with a record seven games remaining. Wolves beat Ipswich, so there is now a 12-point gap between the bottom three and the rest: Ipswich and Leicester look doomed.The gap at the top, meanwhile, remains a seemingly unassailable 11 points. Leaders Liverpool lost at Fulham but, with Arsenal only drawing at Everton, it didn’t really matter.In terms of the league, all that really remains to be decided is who finishes in the top five and so qualifies for the Champions League. That may not be the stuff of legend, but it’s not nothing. The race for a spot in European competition has provided plenty of drama in the past, notably in 2004 when Chelsea beat Liverpool on the final day to qualify for the Champions League; the following month they were bought by Roman Abramovich. But for Jesper Grønkjær’s winner that day, the course of their history might have been very different.Premier League: 10 talking points from the weeken...