The battle to remain in the English top flight will be the major drama as the 2022–23 Premier League season comes to a close on Sunday.
While the top four has been established, there are still several European spots up for grabs. Two of Leeds, Leicester, or Everton will join Southampton in slipping to the Championship.
There will also be some heartfelt and possibly some less heartfelt farewells for the managers who will be leaving at the end of the current campaign.
BBC Sport examines the key developments for what should be an exciting final day. For supporters of Leicester, Leeds, and Everton who are waiting to learn which division their team will play in next season, this will have felt like a long and anxious week.
Southampton, who are currently last in the standings, already knows that they will play in the Championship in 2023–24, and Leeds, who are currently 19th and two points from safety, appear to be the most likely candidates to follow them.
Sam Allardyce’s team, who host Tottenham, needs to win and pick up three crucial points. In an effort to motivate his team, the former Bolton manager recently hired Leeds greats Gary McAllister, Eddie Gray, and Gordon Strachan.
The history of the football club and the fact that they experienced great success here are at the heart of the matter, according to Allardyce.
“We need to change our mindset so we can deliver. It’s crucial to hear from many perspectives on their work at this football team and their admiration for it.Timothy Castagne’s incredible stop from Nick Pope in Monday’s scoreless draw against Newcastle may have given Leicester the upper hand moving into Sunday in the relegation battle.
They currently have to defeat West Ham at home in their final match in order to have a chance of staying in the division.
Dean Smith, the manager of Leicester, stated, “We have to win the game and not look at the Everton result until after the game.”
“We must perform our duties and monitor the results. If we do our part, we can turn on others to assist us, but we must be careful to focus on what we are doing.
If the 2015–16 Premier League champions earn three points, Everton, who will play Bournemouth at Goodison Park, can only be relegated with a victory.
Even though Everton is in the best position, a draw would not be beneficial if Leicester wins because their goal differential is six goals poorer than Leicester’s.
Sean Dyche, the manager of the Toffees, said, “The fact is we should be under pressure because that is what we want from this squad, that’s the demand of being at Everton Football Club, and I’ve learnt that very quickly.
“Every game should be a stressful occasion, not just the last game of the season,” said one professional footballer.
There is not much separating the only three teams who may still be eliminated from the Premier League, so expect lots of twists and turns on the last day.
How expensive is dropping out of the Premier League?
Being relegated to the second tier of English football is expensive because clubs must deal with a significant decrease in the amount of broadcast revenue they earn.
Dr. Dan Plumley, principal lecturer in sport finance at Sheffield Hallam, told BBC Sport that it “wipes £60m off the revenue line overnight.”
“This is the difference between the season-long guaranteed EPL television payment and the first year of post-relegation parachute payments.
“The latest recent revenue figures for 2022 were £181.0 million for Everton, £189.2 million for Leeds United, and £214.6 million for Leicester City. That number would suffer significantly with relegation.
“The most recent of the three to have been in the Championship (Leeds) earned £54.2m in that year (2020), highlighting the enormity of the revenue gap between the leagues.”
Is there anything else left to gain?
After beating Chelsea on Thursday to clinch a top-four finish, Manchester United has secured its place in the Champions League.
Regardless of what happens on the final day, Liverpool will also finish fifth and Brighton sixth, meaning they will play in the Europa League – a magnificent accomplishment for the Seagulls but a result that will disappoint the Reds.
A spot in the Europa Conference League play-off round will be secured by finishing seventh this season.
Aston Villa now has that berth; they play host to Brighton on Sunday. However, Tottenham (on the road against Leeds) and Brentford (at home against Manchester City) are also vying for it with the appropriate outcome in their respective season finales.
Final day goodbyes
The final time some clubs will see their present manager in the dugout will be on Sunday.
Roy Hodgson is about to wrap up a highly successful return to his boyhood club at Crystal Palace. The Eagles were in danger of getting drawn into a relegation battle when the 75-year-old was reappointed on March 22. However, three straight victories in his first three games propelled them out of peril.
Although it is officially his final game in charge, the former England manager may yet be persuaded to continue on for the next campaign if they defeat Nottingham Forest at home on the penultimate day to give him six victories in his last ten games.
The end of Chelsea’s underwhelming campaign will be welcomed by their supporters, and it will also signal the exit of club legend Frank Lampard after his second stint as manager. Mauricio Pochettino, a former manager of the Spurs, has agreed to take over as Blues manager this summer.
The contracts of the managers of the three clubs currently in the relegation zone expire at the conclusion of the current campaign.
Ruben Selles will leave Southampton this summer as the Saints look to a new beginning for a reconstruction, but whether Allardyce or Smith are successful in avoiding the drop will probably determine their fates.
The future of Julen Lopetegui is said to be dubious due to the financial circumstances of the club, so Wolves supporters will be hopeful that Sunday’s game at Arsenal won’t be the last time they see the Spaniard in their dugout.Ruben Neves, the captain of Wolves since 2017, appears to be making his farewell appearance for the team after declaring his desire to play in the Champions League.
The final day of the season against Fulham will be devoid of strain for Manchester United supporters because Champions League football has already been locked up.
But it might be David de Gea’s final game in goal.
The 32-year-old is nearing the end of his current contract as he won the Golden Glove award for maintaining the most clean sheets in the Premier League this season.
Although United’s manager Erik ten Hag is hoping the Spaniard would agree to a new deal, it is unclear whether he will still be the team’s top choice for the upcoming campaign.
Ten Hag predicted that they will meet because “I think we want him to stay and he wants to stay.”
