The 2021-2022 Premier League season is going to the wire with the title, European qualification and relegation to be decided on the final day tomorrow. That means it is all set up to be one of the most exciting ever final days. You can expect an afternoon full of twists and turns and a lot of desperate football being played. At the top of the league defending champions Manchester City go into the last round of matches one point ahead of Liverpool. Tottenham and Arsenal can still qualify for the Champions League. There’s also the Europa League and Europa Conference League spots to be decided while at the bottom of the table Norwich City and Watford are already relegated and will be joined by either Leeds United or Burnley. Gulf News experts discuss the upcoming action.
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00:00Tomorrow is exciting, it is going to be exciting because not only it's about fighting for the title, it's about relegation, it's about Champions League spot, it's about also nowadays a Europa League spot.
00:11Hello and welcome to Golf News, kicking back the chat show which is all about football. Right then, the 2021-2022 Premier League season is down to its final 90 minutes and there are still several key issues to be resolved in what promises to be, it's going to be a dramatic bunch of fixtures tomorrow.
00:40There's going to be so many highs and lows, I think we can all expect that. As we know, Man City and Liverpool are in the hunt for the title with Jürgen Klopp's team still going for that incredible quadruple.
00:54They've won the FA Cup, they've won the Carabao Cup, if they can win the Premier League and then the Champions League the following weekend, that will be absolutely amazing if they can manage to do that.
01:05So the title race is still to be decided, the European qualifications have to be decided, we've got places for the Europa League and the Conference League and don't forget down at the bottom of the table we have Leeds United and Burnley battling to avoid that last relegation spot.
01:23But one of those two teams is going to be joining Norwich and Watford playing in the Championship next season and there's the Golden Boot Award as well to discuss. So lots to talk about with one final round of fixtures to go, like I said there's going to be hundreds of ups and downs.
01:40Joining me to talk about the action coming up is Sahil Sajjan. Sahil, how excited are you about the final day tomorrow?
01:48Tomorrow is exciting, it is going to be exciting because not only it's about fighting for the title, it's about relegation, it's about Champions League spot, it's about also now a Europa League spot. So there are many, many different aspects that people are fighting for.
02:03It's going to be so exciting, there are going to be some people who are going to be disheartened, some people are going to be excited for their teams, but it's going to be so fun.
02:12Alright, it's true, it's going to be so many ups and downs. What I love about the final day of the season, Sahil, is you don't want to show the Premier League table as it stands. So while the matches are going on, let's say if Liverpool's winning and Man City's losing, then as it stands, Liverpool's top of the table.
02:28Similarly, if Leeds are beating Brentford and Burnley's losing against Newcastle, then Leeds are out of that relegation space and Burnley are the ones going down. So it changes a lot, there's going to be so much change and there's going to be a lot of excitement.
02:42Let's go through game by game then, starting with the big one, Liverpool against Wolves. Remember Liverpool's win against Southampton on Tuesday was impressive because they did it with nine changes to that team after they played in the FA Cup, which they beat Chelsea in the final.
02:59So Klopp had made a lot of changes, he was under a lot of pressure because obviously that team selection wasn't the normal team that we've all seen. Loads of changes, he only retained two people in that team, the goalkeeper, Alisson, and the centre-half, Kounate. But they ground out a win, even though they were losing 1-0, they came back to win 2-1. It was such a big result for them.
03:19But now, Sahil, they're playing against Wolves at Anfield, they absolutely have to win. They just have to win because the goal difference won't come into it anymore. The city's goal difference is far superior. So what Liverpool have to do is ensure that they first of all win at Anfield tomorrow. Can they do it? What do you think, Sahil, what's the score going to be tomorrow?
03:41I mean, of course, I'm going to back Liverpool to win. They're going to give their 100%. You see that match against Southampton, I don't know, Jurgen Klopp made nine changes in a match which they needed to win, they were desperate. And they still won. That shows that the mentality in that Liverpool camp is so good. Even though they played, let's say, this is their second team, we have to say that's the second team which he played. And still with that mentality, they won.
04:05Minamino had not started a full season in the Premier League. He gets his first assist, bang, he scores a beauty against his ex-club Southampton. Then, out of nowhere, Matip, who has been arguably one of Liverpool's best players with Van Dijk, Konate. That shows that Liverpool have such an unbelievable squad depth. Even Harvey Elliott started that game. If you remember in the start of the season, Harvey Elliott was unbelievable until he got injured against Leeds.
04:31So that shows that the Liverpool mentality, like nine changes in a must-win game, it shows that he has guts and he's not scared. And now against Wolves, I'm backing them to win, no matter what. As much as I love the Wolves team, they've had some impressive results. Bruno Large is a fantastic manager, his formations are always good, but I'm backing Liverpool to win for sure.
04:53Me too. I can't see anything else. There's just so much at stake for this game. And also they're going to be having their big guns are going to be coming back. Van Dijk should be playing tomorrow, Mo Salah should be back, Sadio Mane, Henderson obviously is going to start, Alexanderson, Robertson. I think it's going to be a full team to choose from. Diaz as well. So, yeah, I can't see anything else but a big Liverpool win. Wolves, like you say, have been really good this season. I think they've been one of the most impressive teams. I love how they play the football on the front foot.
05:22Very attacking. But if you just look at the last two games against Norwich, they were awful. And against Man City, they were heavily beaten. So I think it clearly seems mentally they've switched off after having quite a good season. But yeah, like you say, I think also a Liverpool to win. I think a big Liverpool win. I'm going to say 3-0. What do you think the score is going to be tomorrow, Sal?
05:42I mean, see, it won't be easy because there's pressure on Liverpool also because, you know, they have to win. But Wolves have nothing to lose. They're just going to go at it. So, you know, the pressure is on Liverpool, but I'm going to back them for a 2-1 or 2-0.
05:56OK, so that means Liverpool have done their job on their side at Anfield. Now, the other one, the other big one is Man City playing at the Etihad at home against Aston Villa. Now, we've talked about this before, Sahil. I got a sneaky feeling that just based on the last couple of performances that we've seen from Man City, not playing terribly bad, but clearly not playing like they were earlier on in the season.
06:25And they look to be stuttering at the worst possible time. I mean, we just, you know, talking about the last match against West Ham. At halftime, they found themselves 2-0 down and they were lucky to come back to draw two all. OK, they missed a penalty. Mahrez missed a late penalty. They could have won that match 3-2. And I think the title race would have been over then. The points difference would have been too much.
06:47But on the other hand, West Ham kept creating chances and they kept, you know, going at them. So if Aston Villa do a similar thing and, you know, play, you know, in their faces, get at them, harass them, harry them, don't let them settle. You know, we could be in for a very exciting last game tour. And obviously with the Steven Gerrard link, him being a Liverpool legend. I mean, he would love it more than anyone to stop City.
07:14I don't think they'll win, but I think that they can get a draw tomorrow. I'm going to go for a draw. What do you think is going to happen tomorrow?
07:20You see, Imran, you said like Man City have not been like the same since the start of the season. I would disagree with you on that part. Like if you see the last five games, they've scored 4-4-4 goals only against a game against West Ham. If you see like their back four wasn't the strongest.
07:36You know, Fernandinho had a terrible game and they have to start him at centre-back because Diaz is not available. Laporte didn't have the best game. Zinchenko didn't have the best game. João Cancelo was okay. They're missing Walker, they're missing Diaz. You can clearly see it. John Stones is a massive part of Pep Guardiola's team. So they're missing them.
07:55But I think Man City should pull it off. I mean, they have the De Bruyne's, the Bernardo Silva's. These players are not a joke. Jack really stepped up for Man City when they needed him the most and scored a beautiful goal against West Ham. So okay, yes, I back Liverpool to win, but I'm going to back Man City to win.
08:13I know Steven Gerrard wants to beat Man City so badly. You know, he's not had a good past when he was the one who slipped and let Man City win the title in 2013. But this time, yes, he'll be looking for revenge. Like even though I'm not playing, but I can definitely not allow Man City to win. So for sure, that's the mentality in Steven Gerrard's head, but I'm going to back Man City. Come on, this team of Man City is filled with superstars and they create chances like anything.
08:42They've both been so good again this season, Liverpool and Man City. They're so far ahead of everybody else in the Premier League. They're miles ahead and it's going to be very interesting, very exciting. Obviously, as you know, Sahil, there's going to be two trophies. The original trophy is going to be at the Etihad. So in case Man City win the title, they'll have their celebrations with the trophy.
09:04But Anfield is going to be a replica. So if Liverpool do pull it off, there's going to be celebrations there. It's going to be absolutely fascinating. Like you say, yeah, City have been playing good. They've scored lots of goals, but I just keep going back to that last game with the fact that they had a few defensive frailties. It's all to play for. One point difference, anything can happen. As we know, football is one of those games where literally anything can happen.
09:29So you're going City, I'm going to go Liverpool. We'll see what happens about the title race. Let's focus a little bit now on the Champions League because that's also still to be decided. Chelsea have already got the third place. And so the fourth spot is between Arsenal and Tottenham.
09:45And Arsenal are playing Everton, my boys, who managed to secure their Premier League safety against Crystal Palace. So Everton have literally now got nothing to play for. And I think I've got a funny feeling that Arsenal could score quite a few goals against us. I think the Everton team probably were partying, I think, quite late into the night on Thursday. So I don't think there's much, there's not been much training going on. I'm not even too sure who's going to be able to play, what the first level is going to be.
10:12But with Arsenal, Arteta knows nothing but a win against Everton on the final day. He has to get that. They've had a couple of dodgy results. They lost against Newcastle 2-0. And they lost the big one, the North London derby against Tottenham 3-0. So they've lost their last two. They're in fourth place right now. They need to win. I think they're going to win. What do you think is going to happen against Arsenal and Everton?
10:36I'm going to disagree with you on this again, Imran. Because I'm going to back Everton to win. You know, you said that they have, like, you see they have secured safety and you see they've partied all night. But, you know, Arsenal will be the team more under pressure. Because Everton now, they have secured safety. They have now nothing to lose. They're just going to go out there and have fun and they're going to play their free-flowing football. So I'm going to back Everton to beat Arsenal. They've done it already earlier this season, if you remember, with Damari Gray.
11:02So why not back Everton? Because they have nothing to lose. They've done their job. They've secured safety. I mean, they should not feel so happy. You know, this is a team, Everton, which should not be playing to secure safety. They should be coming at least top 10. But they're going to come out with nothing to lose and they're going to just go with their free-flowing football. Arsenal, in fact, are going to be the team under pressure because they're already two points behind. And if you see the other fixture, Tottenham are playing a much easier side.
11:29So I think pressure is all over Arte Tasman.
11:59I think they've conceded something like 80 goals this season. So I think if Kane and Son have got their scoring boots on, I think they could be getting quite a few goals. But then regardless of what Arsenal-Everton happens, if Tottenham win or draw, because I think their goal difference is a lot better than Arsenal's. If Tottenham just get a better result there, then the Champions League spot is theirs. I think Tottenham are going to win. And I think Arsenal are also going to win. But I think Tottenham's goal difference will see them through. What do you think about Tottenham and Norwich?
12:29I mean, if Tottenham win and Arsenal win, still Tottenham go through on points. So definitely I'm going to back Tottenham. Unfortunately, Norwich have had a horrendous season, though I remember only Norwich playing two good matches in the season. And they didn't win any of those two matches. Those two matches were against Man Utd, one in the Norwich and one at Old Trafford. So they've had a very poor season. And I think Tottenham should win 4-5-0.
12:55Like you said, Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son. Son is one of the finest players I've ever seen in our generation. And I think Tottenham are definitely going to clinch it. And they will get the top four, as Antonio Conte has made an unbelievable difference.
13:10He really has. Wow. You know, since they lost to Drew against Burnley earlier this year, you remember his press conference? It was a bizarre press conference. He was saying, maybe I'm not the right manager. Maybe I should leave. After that, literally they have flicked a switch and they are playing.
13:26I just want to say one thing. You're saying a statement like Antonio Conte saying, I'm not the right manager. If you remember, this is a guy who won Inter Milan the title and left for no reason. So you don't blame the guy for saying such things.
13:40I think whatever he did, he had the right spark. It really got the Tottenham team playing properly again. Clearly, they don't want to lose such a good manager. So they're really playing for him. In fact, Tottenham have been playing some really good football ever since that Burnley slip-up. They've really tightened up. They're playing really attractive, attacking football.
13:59And like you say, Son is one of the best players in the Premier League. And I just think he's going to score maybe two or three goals tomorrow. I think they're going to be too good for Norwich. And yep, looks like fourth spot got to go to Tottenham. And that leaves Arsenal playing in the Europa League in the fifth spot, if that's where they finish.
14:18And also, looks like Man United are also fighting for that sixth spot for the Europa League. Your boys have got Crystal Palace tomorrow. And it looks like Eric Tan Haag is going to be watching the game at Selhurst Park. So he's going to be there up close and personal, getting to know what the players are like, what the team is like, how they're playing. Do you think him being in the stands tomorrow, Saheel, is going to have an effect on how Man United play tomorrow?
14:41Absolutely not. It's going to have zero effect because, you see, now Man United are playing Crystal Palace tomorrow. It's going to be tough. But you see, most of the players are leaving. If you look at the squad, the starting 18, you'll see six, seven players are already out on their way, leaving the club. So it's not going to make a difference if Eric Tan Haag is there or not. Man United just have to look for a win.
15:03Forget Eric Tan Haag. He might be in the stands. But Ralf Rennick has to come up with a win because it's not going to be easy at all. Crystal Palace, if you saw the way they played the first half against Everton, they just crushed Everton. But God knows how Everton came back. Frank Lampard did some magic. He brought on Mr. Dele Alli and he made the difference. But Crystal Palace are a dangerous team. If you see Marguerite, Tarek Mitchell, Zaha, the man in form. So it's not going to be easy for Man United.
15:30But I'm just hoping they just somehow pull off a victory. It's not going to be easy at all, though. It's going to be tough.
15:35Don't forget, Sahil, they've got a fantastic front two in IU and Mateta. Those two are really good up front. You know, you've got a big guy, you've got a small guy, the little guy. They can definitely pose a threat. But I still think this being the last game of the season for United with the Europa League, if you don't win this, you're going to be playing in the Conference League, which is going to be awful for Man United.
15:56So they have to go all out to win this one. It's going to be a big one. Obviously, your last match was against Brighton, wasn't it? You lost pretty bad against Brighton. So a lot to prove. But against Palace, tough team. But I still think United should sign off with a win. I think they're going to win too. Now, what's your score prediction for tomorrow?
16:13I'm just going to go with a very disappointing 1-0 victory. They're going to play on the back foot from the sub because Man United this season, the mentality has been terrible. They play with pressure. They just don't play as a unit. So it's going to be tough. But they have to win 1-0 at least.
16:30And obviously, chasing Man United for that last spot is West Ham, who have had another really good, solid season under David Moyes. They did great last season as well. They did superb again this season. For a long time, West Ham were trying to get into the Champions League. I think they were fourth beginning of the year. They've tailed off a little bit, but to their credit, they're still up there trying to secure the Europa League spot.
16:52They're playing Brighton tomorrow. So, I mean, that's a tough game. You know, Graham Potter has turned Brighton into a pretty decent footballing team. They can finish eighth, which is going to be their highest ever Premier League finish if they win tomorrow. But I've got a feeling, that's a hard one to call actually, West Ham and Brighton. I'm going to go with a West Ham win. What do you think is going to happen there?
17:13I'm going to go for a Brighton win. Not because I support Man United or anything, but Brighton's recent form has shown they beat Arsenal. They beat Arsenal, I think, 2-1. They beat Tottenham 1-0. They beat Man United 4-0. So they're a team in form. So it's going to be tough for West Ham. I mean, West Ham have got Declan Rice, the star man. But still, I'm going to brag about Brighton. They've done well in the past few matches and surely they should beat West Ham.
17:43Do you think Graham Potter is going to hang around at Brighton? I think he's done quite well there for the last couple of seasons. Do you think a bigger job is in line for him?
17:51Yes, I agree with you. Yes, there is a bigger job in line for him. I mean, he's done an unbelievable job at Brighton. He's a fantastic manager. You know, I've seen some of the matches. I see how he handles his team. He's a calm guy. He doesn't get so hyper. But yeah, definitely I can agree with you on that.
18:07There might be a bigger job on him. I remember some people saying he could be the man for Man United quite a while back in February or something. I remember seeing these rumours. He's a fantastic manager. Who knows, there might be something else in the future for him.
18:21Yeah, I think definitely it looks like it'll be a big loss for Brighton if he does leave them. If he stays, that'll be good for them. You can see them, again, being a really good, solid outfit next season. Not struggling, not like the Burnleys at Leeds and Watford and Norwich of the league. But again, I think they're going to be in that sort of top ten sort of position and that'll be great for them.
18:43Let's focus now on the relegation battle. Obviously we know Norwich have gone, Watford have gone. And now there's one place left between it's either going to be Leeds or it's going to be Burnley playing in the Championship next season. It's a tough game for Leeds tomorrow. They've got Brentford away. And like we've discussed many times before, Brentford have been really good this season. Thomas Frank has got them playing really well.
19:07When you look at the team, apart from Ericsson, there's no big name in that team. Obviously now we've got to know players like Ivan Toni, who's going to be hard to keep actually this summer. There's going to be a lot of teams out there who could do with a player like Toni up front. But against Leeds, I think Brentford are going to sign off their season with a home win and that means Leeds will be relegated. What do you think is going to happen between Brentford and Leeds, Hale?
19:31Like you said, I'm going to back Brentford. Leeds are not stronger than Brentford, I think, because what you said, Leeds don't have these big names. We've got to know them now. But definitely Thomas Frank has got the best out of the team. And I think I'm going to back Brentford to clinch this and I think Leeds are going to go down.
19:52Because they've had a very poor season, unfortunately, for Marcel Bielsa, Jesse March. He's not done the best. He's been OK. You don't expect Jesse March to make a huge impact. He's done his best. So I think Brentford can edge it. But anything can happen. And if Leeds get relegated, then say bye-bye to Calvin Phillips.
20:14Yeah, not just him. A lot of players, for sure. He's been superb. He's been really good for them. So yeah, they could be losing a lot of their players. And if they do that, then it could be another 10, 12 years since they were last promoted to the Premier League. So it could be another long time before we see Leeds come back. Because once you get relegated, coming back up from the championship, it's very, very hard.
20:38Yeah, there's a lot of good teams out there. So it's not a given that if you go down that you're going to come back up straight away. So we both think Leeds are going to go down. That means Burnley have got to be safe again, this time without Sean Dyche being there. It's unfair how they treat the poor guy. He's been so good for them. But credit to Mike Jackson. He came in and he sort of steadied the ship, got a few wins. They're playing Newcastle tomorrow, who can finish I think 10th if they win.
21:05Newcastle, a very interesting prospect, isn't it, Sahil, with the new owners coming from Saudi? This summer, there's going to be a lot of money for them to spend. What do you think Newcastle can achieve next season?
21:17I think they can do well. You see, new owners came in, everything. Eddie Howie came in. But see, when you get a transfer budget, you have to use it properly. Newcastle were struggling. They won the relegation battle halfway the year. In 2021, they won a relegation battle.
21:35So even though if Eddie Howie had got a budget, he utilised it well. He signed some good players. Bruno Guimaraes, Dan Byrne. Unbelievable signing. I think that's the finest signing. Dan Byrne is not a big name. They signed him from Brighton. They took him. And he has been unbelievable. Trippier started so well. Unfortunately, he got injured, but now he's back again.
21:54So more signings, they're going to go. Chris Wood, he scored a few, two, three goals. He's also not a bad signing. So I mean, Eddie Howie used that transfer budget brilliantly. And he got the best out of the players. He brought them. He completely took them out of the relegation battle. So credit to him. And what I see for them next year, it's a top 10 for sure. Top 10.
22:15Yeah, I think I agree with that. Top 10 for sure. Eddie Howie has done a superb job. It's just going to be very interesting. The kind of names that they're going to be linked with now coming into the transfer window when it opens up. When the summer transfer window is going to be open, there's going to be obviously that silly season. A lot of those links are just fake news and you can't believe everything that you read. But with the transfer budget and with the spending power that they're now going to have.
22:38You know, Newcastle could be the team that breaks into the top five, maybe even next season if they get the transfers right, if they get the right players in. And you never know, you know, they could be the surprise package next season. So that's Burnley gone. Then we say Leeds are going to be gone, Burnley going to be safe.
22:59The other thing to talk about now is the golden boot. This is very interesting now because Mo Salah, he's got what, 22 goals this season. He's top of the pile right now. But the player that we both spoke about just earlier, Tottenham's Son, he's got 21 goals. And now if you look at the fixtures, obviously on paper, Tottenham have got the easier game against Norwich. I can see, like we've just said, Tottenham should score, you know, it could be five or six tomorrow. It could be a lot of goals.
23:26And I think Son could be amongst those goals, whereas Liverpool have got the home game against Wolves. It's a tougher game, but with only one goal separating these two guys. Hey, also Ronaldo, your boy Ronaldo's on 18 goals. He could also, you know, if he has a great last game of the season tomorrow, that golden boot award is very much wide open. Who do you think is going to win it?
23:47See, as much as I love Mo Salah, I love Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo's on 18, Salah's on 22. I wish Ronaldo would win it, but it's unrealistic. Four goals in a final game. I mean, it's Ronaldo, so I'm not going to say unrealistic. It can happen. But my heart says I want Jumain Son to win it, man. This guy, he is the finest player in the Premier League. Like, Tottenham are lucky to have such a player in their squad.
24:14And I hope he wins it. But I think, yeah, I think Son, I'm waiting, hoping for Son to win it. That's all I can say. I hope he wins it. You know, he was sad when he was taken off earlier in one game. So he deserves it.
24:27It's going to be a very interesting and fascinating end of the season tomorrow. There's going to be, like we've said, so many ups and downs. Everything is still to play for. The title race, the Champions League race, the Europa League race, the relegation battle and the Golden Goal award as well. Plenty to play for. That's all for today, guys. We'll be back for another edition of Golf News kicking back. In the meantime, head to golfnews.com for the latest news, reviews and videos. And we'll see you again soon. Thanks, Sahil.
24:57Golf News