Ranking the Remaining Schedule Difficulty for Premier League's Top 6
With less than 10 matches to go, the Premier League title race and the jockeying for top-four positioning are coming to a head.
The title race between Manchester City and Liverpool has been a thrilling one, and it's still showing no sign of being resolved. Meanwhile, Tottenham, Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea are all vying for the two precious Champions League qualification spots, with two destined to be disappointed. Five points separate third-place Tottenham (61) from sixth-place Chelsea (56), with Man United (58) tenuously holding onto fourth over Arsenal (57) entering their matchup at the Emirates this weekend.
With head-to-head matchups at a premium, much will come down to each side's remaining fixture list. Here's the run-in for each of the top six, ranked in terms of its difficulty from hardest to easiest.
6. Arsenal
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Arsenal is doing an excellent job of continuing the pattern of Arsène Wenger's latter days at the club, bouncing up, down and around the top six throughout the campaign.
The Gunners have an uphill struggle ahead of them, though, with a brutal set of matches standing between them and qualification for next season's Champions League.
Don't be fooled by the lack of glamorous names in the list (bar Man United, that is), those away trips to Wolves, Everton and Watford are going to be grueling affairs for the Gunners, while a home clash against a notoriously stubborn Newcastle United side will be no picnic either.
The Run-In:
Opposition | Date |
Manchester United (H) | 10/03/2019 |
Wolverhampton Wanderers (A) | TBC |
Newcastle United (H) | 01/04/2019 |
Everton (A) | 07/04/2019 |
Watford (A) | 15/04/2019 |
Crystal Palace (H) | 20/04/2019 |
Leicester City (A) | 29/04/2019 |
Brighton & Hove Albion (H) | 04/05/2019 |
Burnley (A) | 12/05/2019 |
Easiest Match: Brighton & Hove Albion
Hardest Match: Manchester United
Difficulty Rating - 8.5/10
5. Chelsea
Chelsea has had a very turbulent season as well, with the players failing to adapt to new manager Maurizio Sarri's new footballing philosophy.
The 2016/17 champions have picked up their form a little of late, and recorded back-to-back wins against Tottenham and Fulham to boost their chances of a top-four finish.
The Blues have their next two Premier League matches at home, which is a bit of a treat, but they've also got some torrid away trips - including ones to Manchester United and Liverpool.
The Run-In:
Opposition | Date |
Wolverhampton Wanderers (H) | 10/03/2019 |
Everton (H) | 17/03/2019 |
Cardiff City (A) | 31/03/2019 |
West Ham United (H) | 08/04/2019 |
Liverpool (A) | 14/04/2019 |
Burnley (H) | 22/04/2019 |
Manchester United (A) | 28/04/2019 |
Watford (H) | 04/05/2019 |
Leicester City (A) | 12/05/2019 |
Easiest Match: Burnley
Hardest Match: Liverpool
Difficulty Rating - 8/10
4. Tottenham Hotspur
Even with talismanic striker Harry Kane out of the picture for over a month with injury, Spurs still had a crack at challenging for the league title. But, in true 'Spursian' style, they bottled it, with three losses on the bounce.
The title dream might be over for this season (Spurs are still alive in the Champions League), but next year they'll playing in their new stadium, and will ideally end their lackluster transfer policy to sign a host of new players that will help them compete more effectively in the 2019/2020 campaign.
Their run-in isn't as tough as their London rivals, but those visits to Liverpool and Manchester City could be nervy affairs.
The Run-In:
Opposition | Date |
Southampton (A) | 09/03/2019 |
Crystal Palace (H) | TBC |
Liverpool (A) | 31/03/2019 |
Brighton & Hove Albion (A) | 07/04/2019 |
Huddersfield Town (H) | 13/04/2019 |
Manchester City (A) | 20/04/2019 |
West Ham United (H) | 27/04/2019 |
Bournemouth (A) | 04/05/2019 |
Everton (H) | 12/05/2019 |
Easiest Match: Huddersfield Town
Hardest Match: Manchester City
Difficulty Rating - 7.5/10
3. Manchester United
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What a turnaround it's been for the Red Devils: José Mourinho had the club on track for mid-table mediocritybefore being given the boot just before Christmas following a dismal run of form.
Ole Gunnar Solskjær has rolled into town and brought back the club's trademark fighting spirit, and a top-four finish now absolutely looks to be in the cards.
Their run-in is not the easiest, though, with a potentially decisive visit to Arsenal up first, and the small matter of two back-to-back home matches against Manchester City and Chelsea.
The Run-In
Opposition | Date |
Arsenal (A) | 10/03/2019 |
Watford (H) | 16/03/2019 |
Wolverhampton Wanderers (A) | 30/03/2019 |
West Ham United (H) | 02/04/2019 |
Everton (A) | 13/04/2019 |
Manchester City (H) | 21/04/2019 |
Chelsea (H) | 28/04/2019 |
Huddersfield Town (A) | 04/05/2019 |
Cardiff City (H) | 12/05/2019 |
Easiest Match: Cardiff City
Hardest Match: Manchester City
Difficulty Rating - 7/10
2. Manchester City
OLI SCARFF/GettyImages
Back in December, the Citizens wobbled with back-to-back defeat against Leicester City and Crystal Palace.
Question were raised over their title-retaining credentials, but Pep Guardiola's team have been absolutely ruthless since the turn of the year, and are now a point clear at the top of the table.
The run-in isn't half bad either, with a trip to Old Trafford the most daunting of their fixtures, and a visit from Spurs also a potential banana skin.
The Run-in
Opposition | Date |
Watford (H) | 09/03/2019 |
Fulham (A) | 30/03/2019 |
Cardiff City (H) | 06/04/2019 |
Crystal Palace (A) | 14/04/2019 |
Tottenham Hotspur (H) | 20/04/2019 |
Manchester United (A) | 24/04/2019 |
Burnley (A) | 28/04/2019 |
Leicester City (H) | 04/05/2019 |
Brighton & Hove Albion (A) | 12/05/2019 |
Easiest Match: Cardiff City
Hardest Match: Manchester United
Difficulty Rating - 6/10
1. Liverpool
ANTHONY DEVLIN/GettyImages
Reds fans may see this as tempting fate. If anything, it's a compliment, and show just how strong Jürgen Klopp's side is looking. You can't argue though, that when looking at it logically, Liverpool has the easiest run-in.
The Reds are more than capable of humiliating Chelsea at Anfield in the same way Manchester City did at the Etihad, and they haven't got to travel to any of their fellow contenders' houses either.
Advantageous? Certainly. But no game in the Premier League is easy, and they could well drop more points to underwhelming opponents, as has been the trend recently.
The Run-In:
Opposition | Date |
Burnley (H) | 10/03/2019 |
Fulham (A) | 17/03/2019 |
Tottenham Hotspur (H) | 31/03/2019 |
Southampton (A) | 05/04/2019 |
Chelsea (H) | 14/04/2019 |
Cardiff City (A) | 21/04/2019 |
Huddersfield Town (H) | 26/04/2019 |
Newcastle United (A) | 04/05/2019 |
Wolverhampton Wanderers (H) | 12/05/2019 |
Easiest Match: Huddersfield Town
Hardest Match: Tottenham Hotspur
Difficulty Rating - 5/10
