Manchester City Hope to End a 43-year EPL Title Drought
QPR manager, Mark Hughes aims to stop Manchester City on Sunday
YAHOO SPORTS
The last day of a fascinating English Premier League season should be the final lesson in just how far an unthinkable amount of cash, in this case a cool half billion dollars, can take at team. Yet for all the lavish spending indulged by Manchester City's oil sheikh owners in pursuit of a championship, and with an EPL title now a single, tantalizing victory away, there is one factor no amount of money can eliminate.
That would be soccer's extraordinary ability to conjure up the remarkable, the impossible and the downright ridiculous at the moments of greatest importance. It is why logic would dictate that City, having triumphed over Manchester United and at Newcastle in its previous two games, will be taking nothing for granted against Queens Park Rangers, one of the most inept teams in the division. City, so dominant in the early part of the campaign, has recovered spectacularly from a mid-season dip that saw it fall behind United and seemingly surrender its chance of being crowned English soccer's champion again after a 43-year wait.
Its home record has just one blemish, a draw against Sunderland in March, to go along with 17 wins, most by a comfortable margin. Still, soccer's perverse nature means the three points that would guarantee the title cannot be regarded as a foregone conclusion, even against QPR, 17th in the table and in real danger of being relegated.
To thicken the plot is the delicious irony surrounding Mark Hughes, the QPR manager who was sacked from the same role at City in December 2009.
Hughes was embittered at the time and still harbours hostility toward his former employers over the manner and timing of his dismissal. Depriving them of the title would only be of secondary satisfaction to him, though, with QPR's own survival at stake.
Hughes was hired in January and spent heavily on new players, but was unable to reverse the ambitious West London club's fortunes. Defeat, coupled with a Bolton victory at Stoke on Sunday, would send QPR down and probably cost Hughes his job.
As if more intrigue was needed, the beneficiary of a QPR miracle would be United, the team where Hughes spent most of his playing career and became a fan favourite over two separate stints as a hard-working and clinical forward.
Even though relations between Hughes and United boss Sir Alex Ferguson have become frosty, Ferguson still is hoping for a favour and has the Red Devils primed to capitalize on any City slip-up. United visits Sunderland on the final day level on points with City, but the two clubs' respective goal difference means United has a chance at winning the title only if City fails to claim all three points.
"You never know," Ferguson said. "Stranger things have happened in this game of football. They are red-hot favourites, but we have won the title three times on the last day and we don't mind doing it again."
City has proven its big-game mentality and with the most expensively assembled squad in English soccer history, it should have more than enough tools to get the job done. An example that money doesn't just talk, but screams its lungs out, came when Cote d’Ivoire midfielder, Yaya Toure scored the two late goals needed to get past Newcastle last Sunday. Toure is a solid professional who generally shuns the superstar lifestyle, but his services do not come cheap. With a weekly pay packet of about $500,000, he is the highest paid player in the EPL.
While a title triumph would mean a great deal to every City player, the real beneficiary would be manager, Roberto Mancini, who looked to have crumbled under an onslaught of mind games from Ferguson during the cold winter months, but found new life in the spring. Failure to win silverware could have resulted in Mancini being discarded in the summer, but now he might be one victory away from inking a lucrative contract extension.
At the other end of the spectrum, the day dubbed Survival Sunday carries extreme repercussions for those in danger of seeing their EPL life extinguished for the time being. What was a six-team fight for survival just three weeks ago has now boiled down to a two-way scrap. Wolves and Blackburn will play next season in the second-tier Championship, Wigan and Aston Villa have secured their top-flight status, and either Bolton or QPR will slip through the trapdoor. .
Bolton carelessly let a two-goal lead slip against West Bromwich Albion last weekend when a victory could have boosted its chances, and it must beat Stoke then pray QPR loses at City.
Watching on from the stands will be Fabrice Muamba, the Bolton midfielder whose heart stopped beating for more than an hour after he collapsed during a game at Tottenham last month and whose recovery has served as inspiration for his colleagues.
While money is flush at the top of the EPL tree, the financial ramifications at the bottom are even more significant.
Dropping out of the EPL can cost a team up to $60 million and often leads to a fire sale of the highest-salaried players.
Survival Sunday will begin with no shortage of storylines and should have no shortage of drama.
Tags: Sports, World, Manchester City, EPL
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-The final day of the 2011/12 Premier League season on Sunday, 13th May, will finally draw a line under the remaining situations to be settled.
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-The final day of the 2011/12 Premier League season on Sunday, 13th May, will finally draw a line under the remaining situations to be settled.
The big focus, naturally, is on the title race, where the battle of Manchester has been raging all season.
Manchester City are in the driving seat as they host relegation threatened QPR at the Etihad Stadium, knowing that a win will guarantee them their first league title in 44 years.
- Manchester City stand on the verge of lifting the Premier League trophy. If they beat QPR at home, the title is theirs.
City have dropped just two points at home this season and the blue side of Manchester is looking favourite to be celebrating on Sunday. But QPR need a point from their trip up north to guarantee their Premier League survival, so former City boss Mark Hughes may just have a score to settle.
Sir Alex Ferguson will be hoping that there will be one final twist in the tale of the season, come Sunday. The Red Devils will be ready and waiting to pounce, should City slip up, as United head to the Stadium of Light to face Sunderland.
In order for Man United to win the league, they have to better what Man City accomplished against QPR. If City win, then United will not be defending their league title, even though they go into the final day level on points with them. United are trailing in goal difference by eight to Man City and that is highly unlikely to be overturned.
So while the title race will be the highlight of the day, there is a three-way race going on behind the two Manchester clubs in order to try and book a Champions League spot next season.
Arsenal will start the day in third place, but their winning ways have deserted them recently. The Gunners head to the Hawthorns to face West Brom without a win in their last four matches now.
Arsene Wenger’s men hold just a one-point advantage over fourth placed Spurs, who have home advantage in a London derby against Fulham at White Hart Lane. Like Arsenal, a win for Tottenham would secure a top four finish, but any slip ups at this stage could be highly costly.
That is because Newcastle are waiting in the wings to capitalise on any mistakes from the two north London sides above them. Newcastle are just a point behind Spurs and two points adrift of Arsenal, so the Magpies have everything to play for.
However, Alan Pardew’s men have a very tough end of season fixture as they head across the country to face an in-form Everton at Goodison Park. Only a win will do for Newcastle now and along with that, they would need either Spurs or Arsenal to fail to win.
Should Newcastle draw and Tottenham win, those two would finish level on points, but Tottenham would take fourth because of a far superior goal difference.
- Wenger, Redknapp and Pardew are in a three-way fight for Champions League places. One will be left disappointed tomorrow. However, if Chelsea win the Champions League, only one of these managers will be competing in Europe’s top club competition next season. Photo: Daily Mirror
Getting a Champions League place out of a fourth place finish is dependent on Chelsea losing this season’s final against Bayern Munich. If Chelsea win the final, then only the top three sides in the EPL will enter the tournament along with the Blues next season.
The other outstanding business to be settled on this super Sunday in the Premier League is who will be joining Blackburn and Wolves in the Championship next season?
Two clubs are fighting for their survival on the final day of the season, QPR and Bolton. QPR are two points ahead of 18th placed Bolton, but the R’s have that daunting trip to title-chasing Manchester City, while the Trotters have a winnable fixture away at Stoke. So while Rangers hold a slender advantage, Bolton actually look as if they have a big window of opportunity to jump through and maintain their Premier League status.
Predictions:
Man City v QPR: Home win. Tough to see City letting this slip after two defining games against United and Newcastle. City lift title, QPR get relegated.
Man City v QPR: Home win. Tough to see City letting this slip after two defining games against United and Newcastle. City lift title, QPR get relegated.
Sunderland v Man Utd: Away win. The Red Devils have seemed a little lifeless in the run in, but would expect a response in a tough match.
West Brom v Arsenal: Draw. The Gunners are faltering at the wrong time and the Baggies are a good, solid side at home. Good enough to frustrate Arsenal. Arsenal drop to fourth.
Spurs v Fulham: Home win. Fulham are a good side, but Spurs have the bigger incentive to go chasing three points. They should do, Fulham have been poor on the road. Spurs land third place.
Everton v Newcastle: Draw. Tough match to call, both have great qualities. Everton don’t give up much on home soil and it looks a very even match. Magpies miss the top four.
Stoke v Bolton: Away win. Bolton simply have to give it their all and Stoke are not a high scoring team and not in the greatest form. Bolton survive.
Chelsea v Blackburn: Home win. Chelsea will have one eye on the Champions League final, still good enough to ease past a relegated Rovers.
Norwich v Villa: Home win. Hugely disappointing season for a poor Villa side. Norwich should go out with style here, even though both are stumbling towards the finish.
Swansea v Liverpool: Draw. The Swans and their exciting passing game could give the Liberty Stadium faithful something to cheer about with a point here.
Wigan v Wolves: Home win. Wolves are without a win in 13 games and Wigan have been the form team in the Premier League over the last eight matches.
