EPL: 10 Games To Watch in the Final Weeks of the Season
Joe Tansey@JTansey90Featured ColumnistApril 4, 2011EPL: 10 Games To Watch in the Final Weeks of the Season
The final eight weeks of the Premier League season will provide a lot of drama and intrigue.
With a relegation battle that contains eight teams, a title fight between Manchester United and Arsenal and a battle for European spots between the usual suspects Chelsea and Liverpool plus Manchester City and Tottenham.
Here are 10 games that all Premier League fans should look forward to watching towards the end of the 2010-11 season.
Manchester City at Liverpool, April 11th
This is one of the bigger tests for both clubs to start the stretch run of the season.
Manchester City is trying to secure a Champions League position while Liverpool is trying to make a late run to snag a Europa League spot.
With City's less-than amazing record against the big clubs this season, this match will give them a chance to better that record while Liverpool is feeling a resurgence under Kenny Dalglish and are close to snatching the European spot in fifth place for the Europa League.
Wigan at Blackpool, April 16th
This match is one of the few that two relegation contenders are playing head-to-head towards the end of the season.
Blackpool's decent home form and Wigan's horrible away form could already tell fans the result, but in a battle to stay in the Premier League, past form does not matter much as both clubs are desperate.
Liverpool at Arsenal, April 17th
A week after Liverpool take on Manchester City, they take on a struggling Arsenal club at the Emirates.
If Liverpool want to make their Europa League run, they need to win against big clubs because it shows that they are back to the level that they were at when they were a consistent Champions League club in the past decade.
Arsenal have slowly been declining in form since their loss in the Carling Cup final to Birmingham and have since been knocked out of the FA Cup and Champions League, a win against old rivals Liverpool would give the Gunners a boost in the title race.
Arsenal at Tottenham, April 20th
This version of the London derby will have more impact again because of Spurs' rise to the top of the league.
Spurs are still fighting for the Champions League spot they won last season, and Arsenal are still contending for the title.
No matter what, this London derby should be entertaining.
Bolton at Fulham, April 27th
This game may have no impact on the championship battle or the relegation battle, but it will be an entertaining match between two sides who are in the middle of the table.
Bolton has been impressive under Owen Coyle this season and deserve a top spot while Fulham have rebounded from a rough start under Mark Hughes.
This match also features some prolific goal scorers in Johan Elmander and Kevin Davies for Bolton while Fulham has Bobby Zamora and Clint Dempsey in their attack.
Tottenham at Chelsea, April 30th
This is another tough game for Spurs, and they continue their quest to get back to the Champions League for the second season in a row.
Chelsea are a club that sit currently fourth in the table and may be fighting with Spurs for the fourth Champions League spot.
This game could have a ton of Champions League implications, and it could see one of these two London clubs not play in the Champions League next season.
Wolverhampton at Birmingham, May 1st
Both Wolves and Birmingham are trying not to end up back in the Championship two years after they were both promoted.
A win in this match for either team will have a ton of impact on the relegation battle for either team because of the small gap between the eight teams in the relegation fight.
Manchester United at Arsenal, May 1st
Manchester United and Arsenal are the two main title contenders, and this will be their title fight at the Emirates.
Both clubs are in different directions right now as United are on a roll, but Arsenal have hit a speed bump in their title fight.
This match will decide who wins the title.
West Brom at Wolverhampton, May 8th
This is a yet another big match in the relegation battle.
Wolves have a chance to beat West Brom the week after Birmingham and solidify their place in the Premier League for next season.
West Brom now have Roy Hodgson in charge, who was the architect behind Fulham's great escape in 2007-08 and could keep the Baggies afloat with a win over Wolves.
Chelsea at Manchester United, May 8th
No matter what place in the table these two teams are in, this is the queen matchup of the Premier League.
Everyone looks on the schedule for Chelsea versus Manchester United and after their Champions League is over, this will be a huge game for the loser of that matchup to gain revenge on the other towards the end of the season.