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There’s a ridiculous state of affairs the place Manchester United end sixth within the Premier League and nonetheless qualify for the Champions League subsequent season, however it’s reliant upon the membership’s former supervisor – David Moyes.
West Ham are at present by the quarter-finals of the Europa League, the place they are going to face Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen. The primary leg is about to happen in Germany on April 11 with the reverse fixture on the London Stadium per week later.
Moyes’ facet are additionally seventh within the Premier League desk, three factors behind United. They play Newcastle within the early kick-off tomorrow afternoon and, in the event that they win by a adequate margin, will leapfrog Erik ten Hag’s males into sixth on goal-difference.
Separate to this, UEFA – European soccer’s governing physique – have launched a brand new rule this yr which sees the most effective performing leagues obtain one in every of two additional qualification spots for subsequent season’s Champions League.
The progress of Manchester Metropolis and Arsenal into the quarter-finals of this yr’s competitors, and Liverpool becoming a member of West Ham in the identical stage of the Europa League, in addition to Aston Villa within the Europa Convention League, means this can be very possible England will obtain one in every of these additional spots.
This adjustments the ‘prime 4 race’ – as is customary for the Premier League’s greatest golf equipment each season – into the ‘prime 5 race’, with Fifth place adequate to qualify for the Champions League. And that is the one purpose, realistically, why United retain hope of gaining back-to-back {qualifications} into the competitors underneath Ten Hag.
Following an abysmal season ravaged by harm and underperformance, United are at present sixth within the desk with a objective distinction of zero.
They’re six factors behind Fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur and 9 factors off Aston Villa in 4th, with a a lot worse goal-difference than each of those sides, primarily including an additional level to every hole.
With solely ten video games to go, the prospect of gaining ten extra factors than Villa earlier than the top of the season feels most unlikely. Clawing again seven factors on Spurs, who’ve a harder run-in than United and have ‘bottlejob’ inscribed into their DNA as a membership, is a extra affordable ambition.
But, in a fairly weird sequence of occasions, United might not even want to leap a spot within the desk to get into the Champions League.
UEFA laws dictates that United may stay in sixth place and nonetheless qualify; it might merely require West Ham to win the Europa League, whereas ending in Fifth themselves, and no different English workforce win a European trophy.
If Moyes’ facet had been to tug off this unlikely feat, it might imply six English groups qualifying for the Champions League subsequent season. It’s because the mixture of Fifth place and a profitable Europa League marketing campaign would give West Ham two separate avenues into the Champions League, that means their qualification by league place would as a substitute fall to the subsequent eligible candidate – the workforce in sixth place e.g. Erik ten Hag and his bandy of merry males.
Although if West Ham had been to realize their finish of the cut price and, say, Aston Villa win the Convention League, this might take away sixth place as a qualification spot as per UEFA pointers.
So whereas it might come a decade later than he would have preferred, Moyes can nonetheless obtain Champions League qualification for Manchester United as a supervisor. Go on David!
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