1) A three-peat at the Etihad
The permutations of Chelsea’s visit for Manchester City’s title prospects are as follows: if Arsenal win at Nottingham Forest on Saturday, Pep Guardiola’s side have to beat their visitors to ensure a successful defence. A draw for the Gunners means City will all but retain their crown whatever the result against Chelsea due to a superior goal difference of 20, but a point will ensure this. And if Mikel Arteta’s team lose, the Etihad Stadium will be in party mode from the start, the scene of the coronation of City as the three-peat English champions, an achievement only Manchester United, Liverpool, Huddersfield and Arsenal have previously managed. Given the rampant form of Pep Guardiola’s side, the one scenario so far not mentioned seems highly unlikely: that, at the final whistle, Arsenal’s challenge will remain live. Jamie Jackson
Manchester City v Chelsea, Sunday 4pm (all times shown BST)
2) Partey the man to delay City party
After last weekend’s failure at home against Brighton all but ended Arsenal’s title hopes, Mikel Arteta will be looking for a reaction to make sure Manchester City at least have to beat Chelsea on Sunday to secure top spot and their shiny trinket. They will get more of the ball at Nottingham Forest than they did in the defeat by Brighton, but will need to have a plan to combat the work of Morgan Gibbs-White behind Taiwo Awoniyi and Brennan Johnson. Thomas Partey came on for the final half-hour last weekend and his return to the starting lineup on Saturday evening could be imperative to Arsenal’s gameplan. He has the tools to stop Gibbs-White but, without the Ghanaian at his best, the Gunners’ season could end with a whimper. Will Unwin
Nottingham Forest v Arsenal, Saturday 5.30pm
3) Bamford key to Leeds survival bid
If Leeds go down, denying Sam Allardyce a bonus of more than £2.5m, they will look back to Patrick Bamford’s penalty during their draw with Newcastle. They were 1-0 up and would have backed themselves to win if Bamford had scored. Yet his effort lacked conviction, allowing Nick Pope to save, and it could end up costing Leeds dearly. They are still in the bottom three before visiting West Ham on Sunday and they have to stop making errors at both ends of the pitch. An erratic defence is giving too many goals away – at least Junior Firpo, dreadful at left-back against Newcastle, is suspended for the trip to the London Stadium – and lack ruthlessness in the final third. Bamford, who has only six goals this season, has to step up. He has to get that penalty out of his system, and get Leeds out of trouble if he gets the chance. Jacob Steinberg
West Ham v Leeds, Sunday 1.30pm
4) Ten Hag to weigh up Rashford risk
Erik ten Hag cannot afford any slip-ups in the final weeks of the season if he is to make it a successful one for Manchester United. They sit fourth in the Premier League and face an FA Cup final against their rivals City next month, so it will be crucial to have Marcus Rashford fit and firing for the run-in. The forward missed last week’s win over Wolves but returned to training on Wednesday to give his teammates a timely boost. Without Rashford this season United have struggled in the final third and they lack the same pace and movement to trouble defences when Wout Weghorst isup top. The question for Ten Hag will be whether Rashford is worth risking from the start at Bournemouth, because a reccurrence of what kept him out last weekend could be damaging for United’s prospects. WU
Bournemouth v Manchester United, Saturday 3pm
5) An emotional goodbye for Firmino
The farewell started on Monday when Liverpool fans spent much of the 3-0 win over Leicester singing “Si Señor”, but the send-off for Roberto Firmino will ratchet up considerably on Saturday when Anfield gets its final chance to acclaim the Brazilian. James Milner is also making an honourable exit, along with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keïta, but Firmino will take centre stage against Aston Villa – hopefully in a playing capacity, having resumed training this week – and rightly. It is not the 109 goals in 360 appearances that explain why the £29m signing from Hoffenheim became one of Liverpool’s most popular recent players. Nor a roll of honour that includes Premier League, Champions League, Club World Cup, FA Cup and League Cup winners’ medals. It was the intelligence, the audacity, the selflessness and ultimately the sheer joy that Firmino brought to the heart of Jürgen Klopp’s team that elevated him in Anfield’s eyes. The timing is probably right for the 31-year-old but this is not the moment for regrets. What a player. Andy Hunter
• Liverpool v Aston Villa, Saturday 3pm
6) Bentley aims for pole position at Wolves
Julen Lopetegui was giving nothing away on Thursday when asked who will start in goal for Wolves at Molineux on Saturday. Daniel Bentley, a January arrival from Bristol City, impressed on his Premier League debut in defeat at Old Trafford last weekend. José Sá, part of the Portugal squad at the World Cup in Qatar, has been one of Wolves’s best performers since signing from Olympiakos two years ago, but a dip in form presented the Wolves head coach with the perfect opportunity to assess his options. Bentley was dropped by Nigel Pearson at second-tier Bristol City, where he was also club captain, and now Sá’s recent wobble has given the 29-year-old an opportunity that few saw coming. Lopetegui’s goalkeeper conundrum represents just the beginning of a busy few months of big decisions. Ben Fisher
Wolves v Everton, Saturday 3pm
7) Eze can strengthen England credentials
Eberechi Eze has been in excellent form since Roy Hodgson’s return to Crystal Palace. The midfielder has six goals in his past seven appearances and is in contention for an England call-up next week. Gareth Southgate is paying close attention – he was going to give the former QPR player a provisional spot in his Euro 2020 squad, only for injury to scotch those plans. The England manager also thought about taking the 24-year-old to last year’s World Cup. Now, with Euro 2024 qualifiers coming up against Malta and North Macedonia in June, Southgate is thinking about Eze again. England are always on the hunt for technically gifted midfielders and Eze, such an elegant carrier of the ball, would have a chance of shining at international level. He is versatile, intelligent and skilful, and another standout display when Palace visit Fulham would surely make it impossible for Southgate to resist him. JS
• Fulham v Crystal Palace, Saturday 3pm
8) Spurs can show they are right for Raya
Tottenham are looking for a new goalkeeper and Brentford have a very good one who is willing to leave, making this fixture a great opportunity for David Raya to show he is ready to step up. Admittedly, Spurs come into this match a mere two places and four points above the Bees but they can boast greater consistency when it comes to top-six finishes than Thomas Frank’s side. Raya has shown he is a fine shot-stopper and is supremely confident with the ball at his feet, making him an ideal signing for managerless Tottenham. This could be where the problem lies, however, because Tottenham do not have a planned style for next season as a result of their lack of a manager and there will be plenty of demand for Raya. Rather than the goalkeeper auditioning for the club, it could be the other way round with Spurs eager to impress the man that could be their future No 1. WU
• Tottenham v Brentford, Saturday 12.30pm
9) Saints should accept fate and look to future
The good news for Southampton is they have finally been put out of their misery and know they will be playing in the Championship next season. They have two more games to endure before waving goodbye to the Premier League and starting afresh in the second tier. It does give Rubén Sellés 180 minutes to try things out because it is highly unlikely he will be kept on as head coach, although stranger things have happened in football. Saints need to look to the future and that is certainly not the 33-year-old keeper Alex McCarthy. Sellés has the chance to recall Gavin Bazunu in goal to give him further top-flight experience and show whoever the new manager is that the club have a great goalkeeper for years to come, rather than rely on the past. WU
Brighton v Southampton, Sunday 2pm
10) Magpies and Foxes’ role reversal
Remember 2016? It marked the death of Shimon Peres and Fidel Castro, while music lost David Bowie, Prince and George Michael. It was also the year of the Fantastic Foxes, with Claudio Ranieri’s Leicester winning the Premier League to prove that, just occasionally, miracles really do happen. Things were significantly less joyous in Newcastle where not even the arrival of Rafael Benítez as Steve McClaren’s replacement could prevent a club suffering under Mike Ashley’s ownership being relegated from the Premier League. Seven years ago few would have believed that it is Leicester who are now staring at the Championship, while Saudi-owned Newcastle fight for a Champions League place. Who could have imagined that, having sacked Brendan Rodgers, Leicester would end the campaign with Dean Smith, while Eddie Howe would be thriving so far north of his supposed Bournemouth comfort zone? Louise Taylor
Newcastle v Leicester, Monday 8pm
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Man City | 35 | 61 | 85 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 36 | 41 | 81 |
| 3 | Newcastle | 36 | 35 | 69 |
| 4 | Man Utd | 35 | 10 | 66 |
| 5 | Liverpool | 36 | 28 | 65 |
| 6 | Brighton | 35 | 18 | 58 |
| 7 | Tottenham Hotspur | 36 | 6 | 57 |
| 8 | Aston Villa | 36 | 4 | 57 |
| 9 | Brentford | 36 | 9 | 53 |
| 10 | Fulham | 36 | 3 | 51 |
| 11 | Chelsea | 35 | -5 | 43 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 36 | -9 | 43 |
| 13 | Wolverhampton | 36 | -22 | 40 |
| 14 | AFC Bournemouth | 36 | -32 | 39 |
| 15 | West Ham | 36 | -14 | 37 |
| 16 | Nottm Forest | 36 | -31 | 34 |
| 17 | Everton | 36 | -24 | 32 |
| 18 | Leeds | 36 | -25 | 31 |
| 19 | Leicester | 36 | -18 | 30 |
| 20 | Southampton | 36 | -35 | 24 |
