It seems that a mini-league is being formed between the teams placed 7th to 11th in the Premier League table, but which of them will be able to get into the European standings?
I would be surprised if anyone could give me that answer at this moment for these teams. There are so many questions surrounding this battle. How will the team bounce back, positive or negative, following recent results?
What kind of turnaround will we get from West Ham? Chelsea have shown some signs of improving when needed, and their team and attacking ability should allow them to move up the table quickly. The wolf continues to surprise everyone. It would be incredible if they could continue this season and make it to Europe. It would be great for Gary O'Neill and the team to get ahead of Brighton, Newcastle, West Ham and Chelsea. At Newcastle, there's a lot of unity in the team and there's an understanding with Eddie.
Truth be told, who do I believe will come out on top once the season is over? I really don't understand. It was not possible to nominate one team, nor to say that one team was the favorite to win. With their support and home form they could get closer to Newcastle United. If they pull themselves together a little bit, they can probably get through it.
When it comes to who needs those European places the most, that's also difficult.
It would be completely unsurprising if Chelsea failed to achieve that. Brighton might say: “Well, we were prepared to push for it and we've achieved European status again.” Newcastle will be a huge disappointment after last season. West Ham would have wanted to achieve that and would have been in a good position, but did they say they would finish above Newcastle United and Chelsea? I don't think they will, but West Ham supporters will be hoping they do.
With a team like Aston Villa this season, that's a team that everyone can look at and say they've achieved hugely. If you think about the complete turnaround of Brighton and the players they had, they could still sit well and contribute and finish seventh, which would be an incredible season for them. Dew.
Michael Brown was speaking to BBC Sport's Nicola Pearson
