Big leagues back and rolling
RESUMPTION TIME Premier League and Serie A gear up for June return; La Liga to kick-off with Sevilla-betis derby
As many suspended football leagues across the world attempt to resume their seasons in the midst of the novel coronavirus pandemic, two among the world’s biggest on Thursday announced plans to do so in June. While the Premier League is set to resume on June 17, provided things go according to plan, Italy’s Serie A will go ahead later that weekend after they got the green light from the government on Thursday.
England and Italy’s top leagues will follow Germany’s Bundesliga, which has already restarted, and Spain’s La Liga, to lift the season suspension and continue with the remaining games of the season this summer. After Thursday’s announcements, France’s Ligue 1 remains the only ‘Big Five’ domestic league in Europe to have announced a premature end to their season.
Given the scale of money involved, broadcast money in particular, it was only a matter of time some of Europe’s biggest leagues would try to resume seasons behind closed doors at the earliest opportunity. But while offfield financial matters have played a big role in these resumptions, what will be at stake on the field when the Premier League and Serie A resume?
LIVERPOOL’S DATE WITH DESTINY
Before the pandemic ground everything to halt, the story of the 2019-20 Premier League season was about Liverpool’s dominance. The Reds consistently steamrolled opposition and were just a maximum of six points away from clinching their first league title in 30 years.
Jurgen Klopp’s side, that won the Champions League last season, was on course to become the most dominant team ever in a single season of the Premier League. With 25 points more than secondplaced Manchester City, despite playing a game more than Pep Guardiola’s side, Liverpool are still on course to notch the biggest points tally in a Premier League campaign and also win the league by the biggest ever margin.
The Reds’ title chase and the reaction to their impending triumph in Merseyside will also be key to Premier League’s ‘Project Restart’. Following Thursday’s announcement, it has been reported in the British media that police authorities want some of the games – including those
involving Liverpool and City – to be moved to neutral grounds in order to avoid large public gatherings outside Anfield whenever the Reds seal the title.
The police’s demand could see
the Merseyside derby, Liverpool’s games against Crystal Palace and City, among other games, moved to neutral grounds. It’s only natural that Liverpool’s date with destiny this summer will
continue to be at the centre of the 2019-20 Premier League storyline. But there are a few other interesting stories developing lower down the table, most notably the race to the European tournaments and the relegation battle.
EUROPEAN PLACES AND RELEGATION
With Manchester City set to serve
a Champions League ban from next season, a fifth-place finish will be enough for other teams to secure a place in Europe’s elite competition in 2020-21.
As things stand, Liverpool lead the table with 82 points from 29 games. Scroll down however and the table starts getting congested. City, with 57 points from 28 games, are four points ahead of third-placed Leicester
City (29 games).
Leicester seem prime candidates to grab one of the Champions League places. But the fight for the remaining spots is tighter. Fourth-placed Chelsea (48 points) are three points ahead of Manchester United, who are a further two points ahead of Wolves and Sheffield United. Tottenham Hotspur (41 points) are ahead of ninth-placed Arsenal by only a point.
The Gunners themselves have Burnley and Palace a point behind them. Everton (37 points), the 12th-placed team, are also in contention for at least a Europa League spot. Of all the teams placed fourth to 12th, Sheffield and Arsenal have played a game less than the others.
On the other hand, the bottom six teams in the league are involved in a close battle for survival. Norwich, with 21 points, are in a spot of bother, but Aston Villa (25 points), Bournemouth (27 points), Watford (27 points), West Ham (27 points) and Brighton (29 points) are also in vulnerable territory. Villa have a game in hand, against Sheffield on June 17, and will hope to win that to climb out of the red zone before the weekend.
LAZIO’S OPPORTUNITY
In Italy, the initial epicentre of the pandemic in Europe, the Serie A was witnessing one of its most thrilling title races in many years before the season was suspended. Lazio (62 points), who last won the Serie A in 200, were on a 21-game unbeaten run in the league and only a point behind Cristiano Ronaldo’s Juventus who were chasing a ninth straight title.
Powered by Ciro Immobile’s 27 goals, Lazio remain serious title contenders as the league eyes resumption. With Antonio Conte’s Inter Milan (54 points) failing to keep up pace with Juventus, Italy’s top-flight looks to be a two-horse race. Inter can, however, close the gap with Juve to just six points if they win a remaining game in hand.
Atalanta (48 points) look prime candidates to take the other Champions League spot, although Roma are only three points behind. Roma, however, have played a game more.
As far as relegation is concerned, Brescia (16 points) and Spal (18 points) are unlikely to survive the drop. But at least six teams –Lecce, Genoa (25 points), Sampdoria (26 points), Torino (27 points), Udinese (28 points) and Fiorentina (30 points) need to avoid the remaining relegation spot.
T20 WORLD CUP