The Premier League has the possibility securing seven places under some circumstances in the next season’s UEFA Champions League, Yankee Scores reports.
The Premier League has booked a fifth place in the next season’s UEFA Champions League.
After Arsenal’s 1-0 triumph against Sporting in the first leg of the quarter-finals, it is enough for Premier League to take fifth place to qualify for the Champions League.
The Path to Six Champions League Qualifiers
This makes it the second consecutive year that the Premier League has obtained an additional spot. It is maintaining its position atop the European Performance Table. At present, Liverpool is ranked fifth in the Premier League, but they have only one point advantage over the sixth-placed Chelsea.
However, there is still hope for England to get more Champions League qualifiers for next season. In case Aston Villa, who is presently ranked fourth, wins the Europa League while finishing outside the top four, England will have six teams in the prestigious European competition.
The same situation applies to Liverpool in the Champions League. If either club clinches a European title and finishes fifth, then sixth place gets the Champions League ticket. Otherwise, if both clubs win a European title and finish fifth and sixth, seventh place gets into the Champions League.
Nottingham Forest might make it to the next season’s Champions League via the Europa League route.
How to get seven spots
There exists a reasonable possibility of there being seven English sides, comprising almost 20 percent of the league stage teams.
For that matter, Liverpool needs to secure the Champions League title this season and also manage to finish within the top five ranks in the Premier League. Due to the vacated slot because of the club’s Champions League qualification, this additional slot will, theoretically, filter down to the sixth-placed side.
Provided Aston Villa occupies that sixth position and manages to clinch the Europa League title, which is a probable eventuality according to the Opta ratings, they will secure automatic qualification for the Champions League. In such a case, it would be the seventh-placed team that will leapfrog into the competition, making up seven English sides in all.
