Champions League race likely to go down to the wire for Newcastle

The race for European qualification will likely generate plenty of headlines as the 2024/25 Premier League season reaches the business end.

Liverpool and Arsenal are well-placed to grab two of the Champions League spots, but who will join them in the competition is as clear as mud.

The latest Premier League betting odds rate Manchester City as the team most likely to get the job done despite their inconsistent form this season.

The debate surrounding which Premier League teams will be in UEFA’s top club competition next season is further complicated by the number of places up for grabs.

Securing a top four place traditionally books a spot in the Champions League, but English football will likely be handed an additional berth for next season.

That opens the door for more clubs to force their way into contention, including Newcastle United. With ten games to play, they are firmly in the mix. Here are their remaining fixtures:

• April 2 – Brentford (H)
• April 7 – Leicester City (A)
• April 13 – Manchester United (H)
• April 16 – Crystal Palace (H)
• April 19 – Aston Villa (A)
• April 26 – Ipswich Town (H)
• May 3 – Brighton & Hove Albion (A)
• May 10 – Chelsea (H)
• May 18 – Arsenal (A)
• May 25 – Everton (H)

Using the Fantasy Premier League’s Fixture Difficulty Rating (FDR) system, Newcastle appear to have a relatively favourable set of matches to come.

Most of their games are against teams in the bottom half of the table. These include fixtures against relegation candidates Leicester and Ipswich.

By contrast, Chelsea and Fulham have the most difficult run-in, with at least half of their remaining fixtures against teams in the top half of the table.

Surprise package Nottingham Forest have the easiest run-in on paper and will fancy their chances of hanging on to a place in the top five.

While it is impossible to rule out any of the contenders at this stage, Newcastle’s main rivals for a top five finish will likely be Chelsea, Brighton and Villa.

The London outfit have a testing run-in which includes fixtures against Tottenham Hotspur (H), Liverpool (H) and Manchester United (H).

They also have to visit St James’ Park on May 10 for a fixture which could ultimately determine which one of them finishes in the top five.

Brighton have some tough fixtures scheduled included games against Villa (H), Palace (A), Liverpool (H) and Tottenham (A).

If the Magpies can avoid defeat when they visit the Amex Stadium on May 3, that could be enough to put Brighton out of the equation.

Although predicting how things will unfold is clouded by intangibles, there is a strong chance that Villa could be the biggest threat to Newcastle’s top five hopes.

Although they have to play several of the teams vying for European qualification, their squad depth could serve them well on the run-in.

They recruited extremely well during the winter transfer window and have the ability to cause problems for any team in the Premier League.

Newcastle are scheduled to visit Villa Park on April 19 for a fixture which could be even more decisive than the subsequent clash with Chelsea.

Eddie Howe’s side are unquestionably in the race to secure Champions League qualification, but they may not know their fate until the final home game against Everton has been played.