Villa’s win changes the Champions League fight in England
Reading Time: 2min | Thu. 21.05.26. | 14:05
The last day of the Premier League will be very interesting
For Aston Villa fans, this is a dream season. They finally won a trophy after 30 years and will play in the Champions League next season! But for other clubs, this Europa League trophy will have repercussions. Aston Villa’s win over Freiburg moved the chains and the last round of the Premier League on Sunday will be even more interesting for clubs looking for European football next season. Due to England club’s success in UEFA competitions this year, the Premier League has been awarded a European Performance Spot (EPS) in the Champions League. This means an extra team will qualify for Europe’s elite club competition based on league position.
Aston Villa is currently fourth in the league but could drop to fifth in case they lose to Manchester City at the Etihad and Liverpool defeat Brentford. In this scenario, the team that finishes sixth in the Premier League will qualify for the Champions League, and if that happens to be the case, that team would be either Bournemouth or Brighton, depending on their results on the final day. But there is an option in which the sixth place would not be enough for the Champions League. If Bournemouth beat Forest, Liverpool lose at home to Brentford - and there is a six-goal swing - then Andoni Iraola's side will finish in fifth. In that scenario, Liverpool would miss out on the Champions League, as Villa would finish fourth, and the extra place would not move down.
It gets even trickier for the places in the Europa and Conference League. Since Manchester City won the FA Cup and they are going to the Champions League, the Europa League spot would be passed to the seventh-placed club, if Aston Villa finishes fifth, and the Conference League spot would go down to eighth. But, if Unai Emery’s team finishes fourth, the EPS would not be passed down, and instead, the top five in the Premier League would go into the Champions League. Sixth position would earn a Europa League spot and seventh would get their hands on a Conference League place – before any knock-on effect from the FA Cup. Got it?