With Chelsea romping to a fifth Premier League title before the Easter bunny has even laid his chocolate eggs (look, Easter mythology just doesn’t make sense okay) it may be tempting to believe that the 2016/17 season is petering to a premature damp squib. Thank goodness then for a captivating Champions League battle that genuinely has all the elements to be the most enthralling and fiercely fought scrap since qualification spots for the holy land of moolah was extended to four.
The hook comes down to basic mathematics – that six into four simply doesn’t go – but what is particularly intriguing on this occasion is not contemplating the rewards of triumph (as last year when the prospect of seeing Leicester pit their wits against Europe’s elite made everybody Foxes fans from January onwards) but rather the consequences of missing out.
Should Arsenal finish outside the top four will that facilitate Arsene Wenger’s departure from the Emirates and herald a brand new era in north London? Should Manchester United ‘settle’ for the Europa League once again will they be able to attract the Griezmann levels of superstar Mourinho insists is needed to challenge for the very top? And what effect would missing out have on Liverpool? It is difficult to imagine phase two of Klopp’s reformation significantly progressing with further consolation signings.
Should Chelsea avoid a disastrous Devon Loch stumble, their title win will amount of a day’s worth of headlines and clips of David Luiz beaming beneath his Sideshow wig. For whoever falls short of Champions League qualification in the weeks ahead there could be years of serious, perpetuating ramifications.
Which makes this season’s run-in dramatic in itself, but what really elevates the next seven weeks to unmissable status is that Arsenal, Spurs, City and United all have each other to face in box-office winner-take-all clashes. Liverpool, crucially, do not. For them besting relegation strugglers is the key to securing a golden ticket to Madrid or Munich next term. For the others it is kill or be killed.
April 2nd Arsenal v Manchester City
Defeat for the Gunners this Sunday will leave them eleven points adrift of their third placed rivals and exacerbate a spiralling crisis they can ill-afford to prolong. Undoubtedly then all of the pressure rests with the home side but in their favour lies City’s woeful record at Highbury and the Emirates that has resulted in just one win in the top flight since 1975.
Another ace up their sleeve is that Olivier Giroud and Theo Walcott clearly enjoy scoring against the Blues with four apiece from previous encounters.
April 27th Manchester City v Manchester United
The corresponding fixture in early September shone every spotlight on Pep vs Jose but now circumstances have overtaken any fascination we may have in individual contests.
Its rescheduling due to cup commitments makes this a rarity of a Manchester derby in that it kicks off – in every sense of the phrase – tantalisingly close to the season’s finale. The last time this happened it was City who needed the three points the most in order to keep their title bid on track. Now conceivably it could be the visitors desperate to avoid a draw, a situation that is anathema to Mourinho when preparing for such heavyweight clashes.
April 30th Tottenham v Arsenal
In all likelihood, with just two games remaining after this colossal North London dust-up, Spurs will have already guaranteed their top four place. With less likelihood they may even still be in contention for a miraculous late title grab.
For the Gunners a thunderous local affair is the last thing they will want with so much on the line, namely the very real prospect of missing out on a Champions League spot for the first time since 1996. It could even be Spurs who hammer in the final nail.
May 7th Arsenal v Manchester United
Even when viewing this fixture in isolation it whets the taste-buds, evoking bizarre score-lines and bucketloads of controversy.
Such antipathy and ingrained rivalry will have to be put aside here though as City and Liverpool’s home fixtures to Crystal Palace and Southampton respectively this weekend could well mean that a victory at all costs is necessary. It will have the added, significant bonus of putting a major peer onto the canvas for a full year.
May 13th Tottenham v Manchester United
On its penultimate weekend the Premier League hosts a potential firecracker at the Lane that could – and should – define both the league title and top four placings. Thanks fixtures makers. For once you’ve come through for us.