Key talking points ahead of the Premier League weekend | OneFootball

Key talking points ahead of the Premier League weekend, featuring Liverpool’s imminent coronation, Chelsea’s Champions League hopes and farewell to a Leicester legend.

Chelsea still alive in the top-five race – but run-in is a real test

Pedro Neto’s last-gasp goal has kept Chelsea alive in the race for Champions League football, as Enzo Maresca’s inconsistent side snatched the points at Fulham last weekend. It seems a long time ago that Chelsea had the chance to go top of the table in mid-December, with the Blues winning just six of 17 league games since.

It was Everton who halted that five-game winning run and the Toffees travel to Stamford Bridge this weekend looking to put the brakes on the Blues again.

Chelsea are just two points outside the top five but a much-improved Everton kickstart the toughest of run-ins. With Liverpool (H), Newcastle (A), Manchester United (H) and Nottingham Forest (A) to conclude the campaign, Chelsea will have to secure Champions League qualification the hard way.

Ipswich look well-equipped to bounce back

It’s been a miserable season for the promoted teams who are all heading straight back down. Only an unforeseen miracle can prevent Ipswich Town from joining Leicester and Southampton in the Championship next season.

All three promoted teams went straight back down last season for the first time in 26 years but it has happened again in 2024/25. The growing gulf between the top two divisions is a huge concern, a harsh reality that Ipswich have discovered. Last summer, The Tractor Boys had a net spend of £107.6m. with the bulk of that investment spent on players who had starred in the second tier.

Jack Clarke, Omari Hutchinson, Sammie Szmodics, Jacob Greaves and Liam Delap all arrived, though it’s perhaps only the latter who looks guaranteed to earn a second shot in the top flight. That said, it’s a core that can ensure Ipswich bounce back next season.

Can Southampton avoid unwanted history?

Speaking of sorry seasons…

Southampton’s relegation from the Premier League arrived in record time, as the Saints became the first team to drop down with as many as seven games to spare. Since then, their ambitions have been to avoid an unwanted record.

Derby County’s infamous 11-point total has hung over Southampton like a dark cloud, an all-time Premier League low the struggling Saints looked unlikely to eclipse. Recent draws with Crystal Palace and West Ham have seen Southampton reach the 11-point mark, with one more point needed to avoid being remembered as the joint-worst Premier League team ever.

It’s a low bar – but at least it’s something to play for.

Leicester legend begins farewell tour

The word legend is thrown around too often in football but there’s no doubt that Jamie Vardy is deserving of such status at Leicester.

Vardy announced on Thursday that he will leave Leicester at the end of the season, bringing an end to an unforgettable 13-year spell. Vardy has scored 198 goals in 495 games for the club, with the Foxes forward an irreplaceable part of their greatest triumphs.

The 38-year-old was FWA Footballer of the Year as Leicester won a stunning Premier League title in 2016. That season, he scored in a record-breaking 11 consecutive league games.

In 2019/20, he won the Premier League’s Golden Boot, becoming just the second Leicester player after Gary Lineker to lead England’s top flight for goals. Two seasons later, he lifted Leicester’s first-ever FA Cup at Wembley.

Vardy was not a footballer destined for the top. Famously, he was signed from non-league and did not make his top-flight debut until the age of 27.

He departs the King Power Stadium – and perhaps the Premier League – with 143 goals to date, more than players including Didier Drogba, Dwight Yorke, Jimmy Floyd Hasslebaink and Robbie Keane.

Leicester have had little to celebrate this season but it’s time to celebrate a club icon.

Anfield awaits coronation

Liverpool are almost there. One point will be enough to crown the Reds champions, sealing just a second title success since 1990.

Liverpool’s 2019/20 title triumph under Jurgen Klopp came in record-breaking fashion, but the absence of fans for the celebrations diminished the spectacle. It was the monkey off the back, no doubt, but the potential party this weekend has been 35 years in the making.

Slot’s side host a Tottenham team whose focus is on Europe, while the North Londoners have been poor travellers all season. Spurs have lost 10 of their 16 away games in the Premier League and were thrashed 4-0 on their last visit to Merseyside in February.

An Anfield eruption is expected at the full-time whistle.

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