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How the Premier League relegation battle is shaping up

By on March 24, 2015

15th and 16th: Hull City and Aston Villa
Points: 28, 28
Odds of going down: 3/1, 9/2
All Aston Villa need is a few goals to avoid the drop, but with eight goals and three wins in their past four matches — almost half of their season total in both respects — they have looked the steady the ship. In Hull’s case, however, their inconsistent form has been harder to solve, though as long as the occasional win keeps coming in they are likely to stay up.

17th: Sunderland
Points: 26
Odds of going down: 6/4
Ever since the first day of the season Sunderland have been dropping, and are yet to hit rock bottom. Although Jermain Defoe joined in January to bolster their attack, but with just one goal in their past six matches in all competitions the Black Cats are clawing to slow their rapid descent, with to no avail. Gus Poyet was sacked just days ago, but replacement Dick Advocaat has a long way to go to steady the ship, or at least start shipping in goals as the drop looms larger and larger each passing day.

18th: Burnley
Points: 25
Odds of going down: 8/11
Burnley didn’t win until game week eleven this season, but their fortunes have been up from there. The Clarets have drawn Manchester United and Manchester City, and recently beaten City 1-0. Although they are back down in the drop, if they can come away with one or two points from a tough run of fixtures against Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, and Everton, they have a good chance of beating Sunderland to safety — or at least dropping slower. Burnley remain the biggest hope for the Premier League’s three newly-promoted clubs.

19th: QPR
Points: 22
Odds of going down: 1/9
Ah, the ongoing roller coaster at Loftus Road; this time, Harry Redknapp “quit” before he could be sacked after a poor run if form in the league and cups. QPR hit rock-bottom mid-January with a seven-match winless streak, also crashing out of the FA Cup after a 3-0 home loss to Sheffield United. Les Ferdinand has stepped in as a replacement but has done little to change QPR’s fortunes, without a win in five matches.

QPR legend Ferdinand is supposed to be leading a “recruitment revolution” at the club, but very well may have slashed funds to work with if his team can’t stop conceding goals — the Hoops have allowed five more goals than any other side in the Premier League so far this season.

20th: Leicester City
Points: 20
Odds of going down: 2/9
Ever since beating Manchester Unites 5-3 at Old Trafford in September, the Foxes’ have not looked the same. They embarked upon a thirteen-match winless streak afterwards and currently sit seven points from safety. Not all hope has been cast away yet, though: Nigel Pearson’s side have put in fantastic performances earning draws and Liverpool and Everton and a win at Tottenham Hotspur. However, those results stand alone among a myriad of losses.

Indeed, Leicester have only one four times so far this season. Neither their defense nor attack are glaringly poor, but the club aren’t showing any signs of a winning mentality. Safety will be an upwards battle for the Foxes, if not foregone.

Photo credit: Alexander P Kapp on geography.co.uk

About Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, founder of Football Every Day, lives and breaths football from the West Coast of the United States in California. Aside from founding Football Every Day in January of 2013, Alex has also launched his own journalism career and hopes to help others do the same with FBED. He covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a beat reporter for QuakesTalk.com and his work has also been featured in the BBC's Match of the Day Magazine.