Thought this was a good time to do a promotion check in as well:

Current Championship standings (all teams have played 44 and have 2 matches remaining):

1. Wolverhampton Wanderers 98 points
2 Cardiff City 86 points
3 Fulham 85 points
4 Aston Villa 82 points
5 Middlesbrough 72 points
6 Derby County 71 points
7 Millwall 69 points
8 Brentford 68 points
9 Preston North End 67 points
10 Bristol City 66 points
11 Sheffield United 66 points

In case some aren't aware. Top 2 teams receive automatic spots in the EPL next year, with teams 3-6 going into a playoff for the final position. Wolverhampton have won the Championship and will be in next season's EPL. Cardiff and Fulham are fighting it out for the coveted second position, with Villa still in the hunt for it. 5 clubs are currently on the outside looking in, bust still really close, trying to get a spot in the top six and get into the playoff.

As for relegation from the Championship down to League One, here are the current standings:
19 Reading 43 points
20 Birmingham City 43 points
21 Bolton Wanderers 40 points
22 Barnsley 38 points
23 Burton Albion 38 points
24 Sunderland 34 points

So it looks like Sunderland will fall from the EPL down to League one in two years, with Barnsley and Burton Albion currently in the other two relegation spots, with a huge match this weekend between Burton Albion and Bolton.

Key Weekend games (promotion in bold and relegation in italics):
Friday:
Fulham v. Sunderland
Saturday:
Aston Villa v. Derby County
Burton Albion v. Bolton Wanderers
Barnsley v. Brentford
Hull City v. Cardiff
Nottingham Forest v. Bristol City
Sheffield United v. Preston North End
Wolverhampton v. Sheffield Wednesday
Reading v. Ipswich town
Queens Park Rangers v. Birmingham City
Middlesbrough v. Millwall

I meet with Ellis Short (Sunderland's owner) and his wife once a year and we usually end up talking about soccer and Sunderland. This year is gonna be super awkward.

Always sucks seeing teams relegated from the championship that were recently in the EPL. What a gut punch for their fans.

Anyone remember how good Leeds used to be in the late 90s and early 2000s? Growing up they had a ton of young exciting players like Harry Kewell, Lee Bowyer, and Woodgate. They were competing in champions league and were always top 6 in the table and then it just fell apart. Hell they even got relegated from the championship.

There was a guy in my old neighborhood who was a huge lifelong Sunderland fan. We'd run into each other while put walking the dogs and chat about soccer. As last spring wore on he wanted to talk less and less. You could tell it was taking a true emotional toll on him.

I'm glad I moved and won't run into Jerry anymore.

Quote:

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Always sucks seeing teams relegated from the championship that were recently in the EPL. What a gut punch for their fans.

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Yep. He seemed super optimistic that they would be able to bounce back and get back into the EPL. Complete opposite.

wangus12 said:

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Quote:

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Always sucks seeing teams relegated from the championship that were recently in the EPL. What a gut punch for their fans.

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Yep. He seemed super optimistic that they would be able to bounce back and get back into the EPL. Complete opposite.

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He must not have paid attention at all to his club the last 5 years. They were constantly fighting for their lives at the bottom of the table in the EPL, and always managed to barely stay up because somehow another team would out-fail them. They've been through 8 managers in less than 5 seasons. Sunderland is a dumpster fire, and it's been a long time in the making.

Didn't say I agreed with him.

OregonAggie said:

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Always sucks seeing teams relegated from the championship that were recently in the EPL. What a gut punch for their fans.

Anyone remember how good Leeds used to be in the late 90s and early 2000s? Growing up they had a ton of young exciting players like Harry Kewell, Lee Bowyer, and Woodgate. They were competing in champions league and were always top 6 in the table and then it just fell apart. Hell they even got relegated from the championship.

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Take it even further back, when Don Revie was the Leeds manager. Leeds were one of the best teams in Europe, not to mention England back in the late 60's-early 70's.

You look at teams in the Championship and a whole bunch of them have some skins on the wall. Nottingham Forest won the European Cup (what it was before it evolved into the Champions League) in '79 & '80. Ipswich has won the old First Division and the old UEFA Cup. It goes on and on.

Today made this relegation battle a little more interesting.

-Stoke have to win out to have a chance.
-Southampton got a hard fought win to keep their hopes alive but need more wins.
-Swansea has their future in their own hands even after they lose to Chelsea today.
-West Ham have a horrible schedule to end the year and they still need points
-Huddersfield also has a tough schedule to end the year so they aren't safe.

Every weekend is a helluva show at the bottom of the table!

Keep fighting West Brom

Well, well, well. The relegation battle is now fully on! We had a weekend where all three of the clubs in the relegation spots claimed points, two of them wins, and the clubs ahead all lost. With some key matches between relegation battling clubs headed our way we are in for a great finish!

Weekend Results:

Liverpool 0-0 Stoke City- Stoke went into Anfield needing a result, and they got it with a hard faught draw. Salah came into the game as league's leading scorer and was a goal from setting a mark for the most in a 38-match season but was shut out at Anfield for the first time since Boxing Day. It appeared Salah would get his 32nd goal of the season when he was sent through in the sixth minute, but his chipped finish went wide. Stoke defended well to restrict Liverpool to half-chances after the break and they almost grabbed a winner at the end through Ryan Shawcross, who poked wide. The point lifts Stoke to 30 points, three from Swansea City in 17th, with only two matches to play.

Crystal Palace 5-0 Leicester- Crystal Palace took a huge step towards safety with a 5-0 win over Leicester City at Selhurst Park. There were five different goalscorers as back-to-back home wins for the first time in a year lift the Eagles up to 11th. Zaha opened the scoring with a high shot on 17 minutes, and McArthur, who assisted the opening goal, doubled the lead before half-time in a role reversal with Zaha. Leicester then had Marc Albrighton handed a straight red card for fouling Zaha when through on goal and conceded three late goals. Palace are now six points clear of the bottom three and will say goodbye to the relegation battle.

Huddersfield 0-2 Everton- Cenk Tosun and Idrissa Gueye scored either side of half-time as Everton increased the pressure on Huddersfield Town with a 2-0 win at the John Smith's Stadium. Tosun put Everton ahead in the 39th minute, shooting low from Theo Walcott's pass.Gueye sealed the win in the 77th minute from the edge of the area after Leighton Baines had laid the ball off to him.Huddersfield lacked a clinical touch to bring themselves back into the match. Huddersfield are now three points above the relegation zone with a very difficult set of games remaining.

Newcastle 0-1 West Bromwich Albion- The gif shown above is perfect for West Brom, as they coninue to battle against death. West Bromwich Albion's revival under Darren Moore continued with a win at Newcastle United. Matt Phillips scored the only goal in the 29th minute when he slotted in a pass from Jake Livermore. Newcastle hit back and Kenedy shot against a post after a one-two with Ayoze Perez, before Ben Foster brilliantly tipped away Dwight Gayle's header. Eight points from four matches under Darren Moore move West Brom to within five points of 17th-placed Swansea City.

Southampton 2-1 AFC Bournemouth- Dusan Tadic was the hero as Southampton claimed their first victory in nine Premier League matches, beating AFC Bournemouth at St Mary's Stadium. After a nervous start Saints took the lead when Mario Lemina fed Tadic, who slotted past Asmir Begovic. AFC Bournemouth went into half-time level when Joshua King converted a corner at the far post. Southampton restored their lead as Tadic robbed Steve Cook and advanced to score on 54 minutes. Alex McCarthy had to make two great late saves for Mark Hughes's side to secure the win that takes them to 32 points. They move to only one point behind Swansea City, who are 17th.

Swansea 0-1 Chelsea- Cesc Fabregas scored the only goal after just four minutes to earn a third consecutive away victory for Chelsea and deepen Swansea's relegation fears. The Spaniard curled his 50th Premier League goal past Lukasz Fabianski after being played in by Eden Hazard. Swansea's best chances came when Andre Ayew headed over on 48 minutes and then curled a shot wide on 75 minutes. Tom Carroll also shot just wide in the last minute. Swansea are 17th, just a point above the relegation zone with three matches remaining.

West Ham 1-4 Manchester City- Raheem Sterling provided three assists as champions Manchester City throttled West Ham United at London Stadium. The winger passed to Leroy Sane, whose long-range effort deflected off Patrice Evra for the 13th-minute opener. Fourteen minutes later, Man City rscored again, courtesy of an own goal by their former defender, Pablo Zabaleta. Aaron Cresswell pulled a goal back for West Ham with a free-kick shortly before half-time. But Sterling superbly teed up Gabriel Jesus on 53 minutes before cutting back for Fernandinho to make it 4-1 on 64 minutes, leaving City one short of Chelsea's PL-high 103 goals in the 2009/10 season. West Ham remain 15th, three points above the relegation zone.

Current Table:
15 West Ham United 35 GP, 35 points
16 Huddersfield Town 35 GP, 35 points
17 Swansea City 35 GP, 33 points
18 Southampton 35 GP, 32 points
19 Stoke City 36 GP, 30 points
20 West Bromwich Albion 36 GP, 28 points

Big Weekend in the relegation battle. The EPL season only has two more weekends of matches, plus quite a few mid week games this coming week, so clubs have either 3 or 2 matches remaining. This weekend will set the table for what could be a very dramatic final week in the relegation battle. Brighton, Watford, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace are all still technically relegation eligible, but these 6 clubs are the primary focus for now. If something freaky happens this weekend then we can add clubs if needed, but it looks like the three relegation spots will be occupied by some combination of these six clubs.

Current Table:
15 West Ham United 35 GP, 35 points
16 Huddersfield Town 35 GP, 35 points
17 Swansea City 35 GP, 33 points
18 Southampton 35 GP, 32 points
19 Stoke City 36 GP, 30 points
20 West Bromwich Albion 36 GP, 28 points

Key Weekend Relegation Matches:

Saturday

Stoke City v. Crystal Palace (6:30am, bet365 Stadium, NBCSN)- Stoke is one of two clubs in the relegation battle with just 2 matches remaining. They trail 17th Swansea by 3 points and Swansea have a game in hand. So to call this game a must win for the Potters is an understatement. The club must claim 6 points from their remaining two matches and get to 36 points if they are to have any real hope at staying in the EPL. Stoke City have won only two of their nine Premier League meetings with Crystal Palace. But they were both at home, in their first such meeting (2-1 in August 2013) and their most recent encounter at bet365 Stadium (1-0 in February 2017). Crystal Palace have won six of their nine PL matches against the Potters (D1 L2); against no side have they won more in the competition. Palace won 2-1 at Selhurst Park back when the clubs met in November.

Bournemouth v. Swansea (9am, Vitality Stadium, NBCSN)- Swansea have been on a downward spiral as of late and have seen their lead over the last 3 vanish. Now with just one point separating the Swans from relegation the club desperately needs to pick up a point against the Cherries.It won't be easy however, as AFC Bournemouth are unbeaten in their five Premier League meetings with Swansea City (W3 D2), keeping a clean sheet in each of the last three (W2 D1). The Cherries have only faced Leicester City (six times) more often without defeat in the Premier League than they have Swansea (five). Swansea are winless in six Premier League matches (D3 L3), failing to score on four occasions in that run. The clubs drew 0-0 in November at Liberty Stadium.

Leicester v. West Ham (9am, King Power Stadium, NBC Gold)- Oh, West Ham, what are you doing still flirting with relegation? In what seems like an annual spring event, the Hammers again find themselves on the fringes of the relegation battle. With three matches to play, the club is a win away from assuring themselves safety, but finding that elusive last win will be the issue. It may not come on Saturday when the club travels to the Midlands, as Leicester City are unbeaten in their last six Premier League meetings with West Ham United (W4 D2), since a 0-2 loss at the Boleyn Ground in December 2014. The Foxes have lost three of their last four PL matches (D1); more than they had in their previous 10 in the competition (W4 D4 L2). West Ham have scored in each of their last 10 away PL matches. They last had a longer run in the top flight in December 1966, with 14 matches. Marko Arnautovic has been directly involved in eight goals in his last seven away PL matches for West Ham, producing five goals and three assists.The clubs drew 1-1 in November at London Stadium.

West Bromwich Albion v. Tottenham Hotspur (9am, The Hawthorns, CNBC)- Another match, another must win the West Brom, as the club continues to stave off relegation. The club has won 2 and drawn 2 in their last 4 to somehow keep its slim hopes of safety alive. With only two matches to play and trailing 17th place Swansea by 5 points, the club has to win out for any hope of safety. Tottenham Hotspur are unbeaten in their last seven Premier League visits to The Hawthorns (W3 D4), since a 0-2 loss in December 2008. West Bromwich Albion's only two home Premier League wins over Spurs have been in seasons in which they have been relegated (2005/06 and 2008/09). The two clubs drew 1-1 in November at Wembley, a good result for the Baggies, but it won't be enough this Saturday.

Everton v. Southampton (11:30am, Goodison Park, NBC)- Southampton look to keep up their current form and find a way out of the bottom 3 when they travel to Liverpool and take on Everton. Everton have lost only one of their 18 previous Premier League home matches against Southampton (W13 D4), a 0-2 defeat in November 1997.The Toffees have the chance to win three consecutive PL matches for the first time since January 2017, while Saints are looking to secure back-to-back victories for the first time since April 2017.
Everton have won their final league match at Goodison Park in nine of the last 11 seasons, losing against Manchester City in 2013/14 and Tottenham Hotspur in 2014/15. Southampton are aiming for their first league double over Everton since 1997/98. They won this season's reverse fixture 4-1 in November.

Sunday

Manchester City v. Huddersfield Town (7:30 am, Etihad Stadium, NBCSN). Huddersfield begin a brutal stretch of final matches, as the Terriers make the short trip to Manchester to take on Manchester City.If Manchester City win it will be their 31st win of the season and take them to 96 points, both of which will be records for a single team in a Premier League campaign. Huddersfield Town lost their only previous visit to Etihad Stadium in any competition, a 1-5 defeat in an FA Cup fifth round replay last season despite taking the lead. Huddersfield need to find another win to secure a spot for next season in the EPL, but their last three matches are away at City, away to Chelsea and home against Arsenal, in what will be Arsene Wenger's final match managing Arsenal.

Should be a great weekend!

Thanks Aston!!

And Stoke are officially relegated. Lost 2-1 to Palace.

Not only lost but choked it away.

West Brom scores in stoppage time against Tottenham!!!!

1-0!

They still have life!

Hell yeah West Brom

The fans probably hugged/cried again on Foster's goal save. That was close

They pretty much need a miracle now:
1. A draw between Southampton and Swansea City on Tues
2. Beat Crystal Palace next Sunday while making up a 5 goal diffential with Southampton

Huge point for Huddersfield at Manchester City today.

In the Championship Cardiff draw while Fulham lose so Cardiff secure automatic promotion and Fulham enter the playoff.

It was a great weekend for the EPL relegation watch, lots of drama and anxiety. As a result we will have an absolutely massive game tomorrow. So let's dive into the results and then what we can look forward to with the midweek games.

Weekend Results:

Stoke City 1-2 Crystal Palace. A devastating result for Stoke ends their devastating season with relegation to the Championship next season. Patrick van Aanholt scored a late winner as Crystal Palace earned a 2-1 come-from-behind victory over Stoke City, a result which relegates the Potters from the Premier League.
Xherdan Shaqiri put Stoke ahead on 43 minutes at bet365 Stadium. His well-taken free-kick went in off a slight deflection. But Palace drew level with 22 minutes to go when James McArthur finished into the far corner after a smart counter-attack. Van Aanholt completed the turnaround that sealed Stoke's fate after Wilfried Zaha's through-ball was diverted into his path by Ryan Shawcross. The Potters are bottom, after West Bromwich Albion's win over Tottenham Hotspur, and three points from safety with one match to play, and with no way of moving above both Southampton and Swansea City, since those two will meet Tuesday.

Bournemouth 1-0 Swansea. Swansea City are now level with Southampton, tied for the dreaded 18th place in relegation zone after losing 1-0 to Bournemouth at Vitality Stadium. The Swans had a number of first-half chances and almost took the lead on 12 minutes but Mike van der Hoorn's shot was saved by the legs of Asmir Begovic. But the hosts struck when Andrew Surman rolled a free-kick to Ryan Fraser who found the top right corner in the 37th minute. Callum Wilson might have extended the Cherries' lead with five minutes remaining but Lukasz Fabianski turned his shot over. Swansea have 33 points and are level with Southampton with two matches remaining.

Leicester 0-2 West Ham. West Ham United got a massive three points and pulled further away from the relegation zone with a 2-0 victory over Leicester City at King Power Stadium. Marko Arnautovic almost gave the Hammers the lead on 34 minutes when his left-footed volley hit the crossbar and bounced clear. However, the Austrian turned provider a minute later, as he pulled the ball back for Joao Mario to find the net from 12 yards. Mark Noble doubled the visitors' advantage on 64 minutes, when he returned a half-cleared corner with a 25-yard volley that flew in off the post. Victory moves West Ham on to 38 points, five more than 18th-placed Swansea. Because Swansea and Southampton play on Tuesday, both cannot get to 38 points, so West Ham are assured of safety and are out of the relegation battle.

West Bromwich Albion 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur. West Bromwich Albion kept alive their hopes of a dramatic escape from relegation with a last-gasp 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur. Jake Livermore got the winner at The Hawthorns in the second minute of stoppage time to lift the Baggies to 19th, two points behind 17th-placed Swansea City who lost at AFC Bournemouth. In the first half, Ben Foster saved well from Victor Wanyama and Harry Kane, who nearly scored an own goal after the break. Knowing only a win would prevent them from going down, West Brom went on the front foot and were rewarded. In a goalmouth scramble from a corner, Livermore pounced to extend Darren Moore's unbeaten run as caretaker manager to five matches.

Everton 1-1 Southampton. Southampton's battle against relegation suffered a setback after Tom Davies scored a late stoppage-time goal to earn Everton a 1-1 draw at Goodison Park. Nathan Redmond's header looked to have secured Southampton their first PL win at Everton in 21 years and one that would have lifted them two points clear of the bottom three. But Everton fought back when Davies's shot through a crowd of players deflected in off Wesley Hoedt. Visiting defender Maya Yoshida was dismissed for a second bookable offence on 85 minutes and, following a fine Alex McCarthy save from Leighton Baines's free-kick, Davies produced his dramatic equaliser. The draw means Southampton are only above 18th-placed Swansea City, whom they visit on Tuesday, on goal difference, while West Bromwich Albion, two points further back, live to fight another day.

Manchester City 0-0 Huddersfield Town. Huddersfield Town became the first team to stop Manchester City scoring at home in the league this season as they held firm for a precious point towards their battle for safety.
The champions were hoping to mark the day they lifted the Premier League Trophy with victory and a record for points in a Premier League season and goals but to no avail. Huddersfield started brightly, with Alex Pritchard's long-range effort tipped wide by Ederson, who also denied a later scoring chance on a one-on-one with the City goalkeeper. Kevin De Bruyne fired wide before the break, and City camped in Huddersfield's half for much of the second period, but the Terriers held on and claimed their much needed point. The draw sends Huddersfield three points clear of the relegation zone.

Current Table:
15 West Ham United 36 GP, 38 points
16 Huddersfield Town 36 GP, 36 points -29 GD
17 Southampton 36 GP, 33 points -19 GD
18 Swansea City 36 GP, 33 points -26 GD
19 West Bromwich Albion 37 GP, 31 points -23 GD
20 Stoke City 37 GP, 30 points (relegated)

Remaining games for teams in relegation battle:

15. West Ham-Manchester United (Thursday), Everton (Sunday). The Hammers are now assured of EPL football for next season, so they can enjoy their last two matches at home.

16. Huddersfield Town- @ Chelsea (Wed), Home to Arsenal (Sunday). Given that Swansea and Southampton play one another, 38 points assures Huddersfield safety, while 37 will be good enough if the two teams do not tie tomorrow night. Huddersfield did the unthinkable taking a point at Manchester City, but will need to try and repeat the feat Wednesday as they will take on a motivated Chelsea squad still seeking a Champions League spot for next season. Playing Arsenal in Wenger's last match will be no walk in the park either, as the Gunners will want their boss to go out with a win. Huddersfield's poor goal differential means they will likely need to finish ahead of their competitors on points to stay up.

17. Southampton- @ Swansea (Tuesday), Home to Manchester City (Sunday). Southampton have pulled themselves out of the bottom three and are ahead of Swansea on goal differential. Tomorrow's game versus Swansea if the relegation match of the year. A win will not assure safety, but it would go a long way in the battle. Southampton really needs to try and claim 3 points at Swansea, with an ominous final game with the champions looming.

18. Swansea- Southampton (Tuesday), Stoke (Sunday). Swansea have it all in front of them, with two games at home against fellow relegation battlers. The Swans have gone winless since March 3 (0W-4L-3D) and that run of bad form has them now sitting in the bottom 3, behind Southampton on goal differential. Will be interesting to see how they approach tomorrow's game, as a draw would leave the clubs level, and Southampton have the much more difficult final match. But a draw, due to goal differential, would place Swansea in a position of counting on others to help them stave off relegation.

19. West Brom Albion- @ Crystal Palace (Sunday). The Baggies have made an incredible run, going 3W-0L-2D over their last 5, including wins over Manchester United and Tottenham. Somehow they have stayed in the relegation battle, but now they are really down to their last hopes. The club must pass both Swansea and Southampton, and only have one game remaining. So to avoid relegation the Baggies must hope for a draw tomorrow between Southampton and Swansea, and then hope both teams lose on Sunday, while beating Palace themselves by enough goals to make up a four point goal differential on Southampton. Full marks to the club for the way they have battled, but looks like they are going to come up a bit short.

20. Stoke City- @ Swansea (Sunday). The Potters were officially relegated over the weekend, but how they play on Sunday could go a long way in determining who plays in the Championship with them next year.

Final Standings from other divisions

Championship
1 Wolverhampton Wanderers 99 points (promoted)
2 Cardiff City 90 points (promoted)
3 Fulham 88 points (playoff- 1 seed)
4 Aston Villa 83 points (playoff- 2 seed)
5 Middlesbrough 76 points (playoff- 3 seed)
6 Derby County 75 points (playoff 4 seed)

Upcoming Playoff matches:
Friday- Derby County v. Fulham
Saturday- Middlesbrough v. Aston Villa

Monday, May 14- Fulham v. Derby County
Tuesday, May 15- Aston Villa v. Middlesbrough

Winners of two home and home matches will play for final promotion spot Sunday, May 20 at Wembley.

Relegated Clubs (to League One):
22. Barnsley 41 points
23 Burton Albion 41 points
24 Sunderland 37 points

Bolton Wanderers passed both Barnsley and Burton Albion on the final dat with a 3-2 win over Nottingham Forest.

League One
1 Wigan Athletic 98 points (promoted)
2 Blackburn Rovers 96 points (promoted)
3 Shrewsbury Town 87 points (playoff-1 seed)
4 Rotherham United 79 points (playoff- 2 seed)
5 S****horpe United 74 points (playoff-3 seed)
6 Charlton Athletic 71 points (playoff-4 seed)

Upcoming Playoff matches:
Thursday: Charlton Athletic v. Shrewsbury Town
Saturday: S****horpe United v. Rotherham United

Sunday: Shrewsbury Town v. Charlton Athletic
Wednesday, May 16: Rotherham United v. S****horpe United

Winners of two home and home semifinals will play a one game final at Wembley for final promotion spot to Championship.

Relegated to League Two:
21 Oldham Athletic 50 points
22 Northampton Town 47 points
23 MK Dons 45 points
24 Bury 36 points
Rochdale won on the last day to pass Oldham Athletic for the final safety position.

League Two
1 Accrington Stanley 93 points (promoted to League One)
2 Luton Town 88 points (promoted to League One)
3 Wycombe Wanderers 84 points (promoted to League One)
4 Exeter City 80 points (playoff 1 seed)
5 Notts County 77 points (playoff 2 seed)
6 Coventry City 75 points (playoff 3 seed)
7 Lincoln City 75 points (playoff 4 seed)

Upcoming playoff games
Saturday: Lincoln City v. Exeter City
Saturday: Coventry City v. Notts County

Thursday May 17: Exeter City v. Lincoln City
Friday May 18: Notts County v. Coventry City

Winners of two home and home semifinals will play a one game final at Wembley for final promotion spot to League One.

Relegated to Non-League Football:
23 Barnet 46 points
24 Chesterfield 38 points

Morecambe drew 0-0 with Coventry City on the last day to assure themselves safety on goal differential over Barnet. Forest Green Rovers, who famously were promoted to League football for the first time last season, becoming one the smallest club ever to reach league football, will stay in league football for at least one more season, finishing 21st on 47 points.

Love MK Dona falling to League 2 and below Wimbledon. I'm not sure why I side so strongly for AFC Wimbledon when I've never seen a match, or know anything about either team other than the relocation fiasco.

The Southhampton - Swansea match is today at 1:45! It's a virtual relegation playoff between the 17th and 18th placed teams.

I'm hoping for a tie. That still leaves WBA, SOU and SWA And then If Chelsea beats Huddersfield tomorrow not only is Huddersfield still in the mix, Chelsea, LP and Tottenham are all vying for top 4. That will give some real meaning to Sunday.

Epic game in the relegation battle today! This could be the match of this year's Relegation Watch, as two teams tied for 17th face one another in the penultimate match of the season for both clubs.

Swansea City v. Southampton (1:45, Liberty Stadium, NBCSN)- Neither club can be officially relegated today, but this match will go a long way in determining who is relegated and who is not. Three clubs fates hang in the balance. Swansea City have won just two of their 11 Premier League meetings with Southampton, drawing three and losing six. They have not scored in seven of those matches.The last time Swansea started a Premier League match in the relegation zone, on 3 March, they beat West Ham United 4-1. Six of Southampton's last 10 away Premier League victories have been against sides starting that day in the bottom three. The clubs last played on opening day of the season, drawing 0-0 at St. Mary's Stadium.

Defender Kyle Naughton is hoping to shake off an illness and feature for Swansea City, but Leroy Fer (Achilles), Wilfried Bony and Kyle Bartley (both knee) are out. For Southampton Maya Yoshida is suspended after his red card at Everton. Mario Lemina (hamstring) is a doubt.

What each result means:

-Swansea win: A win by the Swans would see them pass Southampton for 17th place and be three points up on Southampton with one match to play. With a match remaining against Stoke at home, while Southampton will play champions Manchester City, the Swans would be in a good spot to avoid relegation. A Swansea win would officially relegate West Bromwich Albion.

-Southampton win: With a goal differential lead of 7 over Swansea, a win today wouldn't guarantee Southampton a promotion spot, but it would mean that Swansea would have to overcome a goal differential of at least 8 on the final match day. A Southampton win would officially relegate West Bromwich Albion.

-A draw: Fans of West Brom will be cheering for a draw today, as that is the only result which will see their clubs hopes of avoiding relegation survive for another day. With a draw West Brom would be 3 points behind both Swansea and Southampton, and would need a win on the final day, while both Swansea and Southampton would need to lose. Conversely, Huddersfield is rooting for anything but a draw, as a draw and then wins by both Swansea and Southampton on the last match day could see Huddersfield relegated.

Lots of permutations for today's game. Will be interesting to see how the clubs come out.

What's the logic in having relegation playoff games instead of just going with end of season standings? Is it just a revenue/hype generation thing?

jeffk said:

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What's the logic in having relegation playoff games instead of just going with end of season standings? Is it just a revenue/hype generation thing?

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Money talks loudest, but they're also interesting, aren't they? Look at all the interest in today's game which is similar to a playoff.

Same reason you have wildcards in Baseball and football. Make races more interesting for a greater number of teams. The fact that the 9th place team might still have a glimmer of hope of getting promoted with three weeks to go keeps everyone engaged and buying tickets and tuning in.

0-0 HT

SOU up 1-0 at 77'.

1-0 Final, Southampton win!

West Brom Relegated.

Huddersfield is square in the crosshairs finishing with Chelsea and Arsenal. 3 points up but the bad GD.

Yeah, Huddersfield really need to find a way to squeeze out one more point. If not, GD will kill them.