Premier League preview and fixtures, Week 38: A final day without much drama
The final day of last season was one of the most memorable in recent years. Unless you’re a fan of Spurs or Arsenal, there’s unlikely to be much of a repeat this time around.
Stamford Bridge; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
This will be the final game with their respective clubs for each of these managers, and it's probably fair to say that the send-off Rafa Benitez receives will be a bit different than that of David Moyes last week. The (reasonable) worst case scenario for Chelsea would be a slide to 4th place, while Everton won't be moving off of 6th; there's more at stake than in a lot of other of this weekend's game, but not by much.
Pick: Chelsea, 2-1
Anfield; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
Liverpool will be 7th, QPR will be playing next season in the Championship. In a weekend full of pointless games, this might be the most pointless of all.
Pick: Liverpool, 2-0
Etihad Stadium; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
City’s got 2nd all sewn up, but Norwich is a part of that great mass of clubs in the middle that could finish anywhere between 10th and 17th. That’s certainly less exciting than a final day relegation battle, but the difference in prize money between those two positions is £5.3m. Not bad a day’s work.
Pick: Man City, 3-1
St. James’ Park; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
Look at that, it's a game with actual implications! Arsenal will keep their streak of Champions League qualifications alive with a win, but with Spurs just a point behind they're depending on Sunderland with any other result. Depending on Sunderland is a really bad position to be in.
Pick: Arsenal, 2-0
St. Mary’s Stadium; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
Another “shuffling the deck” kind of game, with two solidly mid-table sides doing battle to see where exactly they end up. That’s not the kind of thing neutrals are likely to care about, but there aren’t many of those that don’t like to see Stoke lose.
Pick: Draw, 1-1
Swansea City vs. Fulham
Liberty Stadium; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
Fulham is another club in the “who knows” zone, but Swansea could potentially find themselves moving into 8th. Wow! Exciting stuff, there.
Pick: Swansea, 2-1
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Sunderland
White Hart Lane; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
And there’s the other game that matters. Unless they can manage to erase a 15 goal deficit between themselves and Arsenal, Spurs must win to qualify for the Champions League. They also must depend on Newcastle to get a result against the Gunners, and depending on Newcastle is a really bad position to be in.
Pick: Spurs, 2-0
The Hawthorns; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
Sir Alex Ferguson got his Old Trafford send-off last weekend, but this is actually the end. This is honest-to-god the last time Sir Alex will be on the sideline as the manager of Manchester United. There are a lot of ways to feel about that, and the majority of them are completely reasonable, but I think that pretty much everyone can agree that it's really, really weird.
Pick: United, 2-0
Upton Park; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
Reading was picked by many to go right back down before the start of the season, and though they did mount a bit of a charge at the start of the new year, those predictions have looked pretty solid all season long. And yet, they're still more entertaining than anything involving Sam Allardyce.
Pick: Draw, 1-1
DW Stadium; 16:00 GMT/11:00 AM ET
Until the start of the second half on Tuesday, it looked like this game could provide some of the final day drama that so many love. Wigan was level with Arsenal at the break, and a pretty convincing case could be made that they'd been the better side. And then the Latics hit the wall, the Gunners poured it on, and Wigan's unlikely run in the Premier League came to its end. If Roberto Martinez finally moves on--which seems all but a given at this point--it really will be the end of an era. Winning an FA Cup isn't too bad of a way to go out.
Pick: Draw, 2-2
More in Soccer:
See More:
