Chelsea win ‘important’ in Champions League race – but who will prevail?

Enzo Maresca argued that defeating Liverpool was “important,” but that Chelsea’s struggle to qualify for the Champions League “is not over.”

Chelsea won three consecutive matches to extend their unbeaten streak to six with a 3-1 victory over the newly-crowned champions at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

With three games to go, Chelsea are now fifth in the table, three points clear of fourth-placed Newcastle after a 1-1 draw at Brighton earlier in the day.

With a 4-1 aggregate advantage to defend, Chelsea take on Swedish side Djurgarden in the second leg of their Conference League semifinal on Thursday.

“The victory was significant, but it hasn’t been accomplished. We must play three games at once, Maresca told BBC Match of the Day.

The second leg is on Thursday; we need to concentrate on that and try to reach the European final.

Nottingham Forest, who is third in third place, is only four points clear of Aston Villa, who is seventh.

The top five players in the Premier League will each be guaranteed a spot in the Champions League for the upcoming season.

With a win over Brighton, Newcastle had the chance to move up to third place, but they had to settle for a draw thanks to Alexander Isak’s 89th-minute penalty, which earned them a share of the points.

With only games against Chelsea, Arsenal, and Everton to play, the Carabao Cup winners are still in fourth place.

“It’s all to play for,” Three enormous and three extremely difficult games come at once. Eddie Howe, the manager of Newcastle, told Sky Sports, “Two of them are at home, and we hope that can make the difference.”

Things may change in the final weeks of the campaign, but there will be at least eight Premier League teams competing in Europe next season, an increase from the usual seven.

Crystal Palace, who finished second in the FA Cup final against Villa last weekend, could still qualify for Europe via the league or by defeating Manchester City in the FA Cup final later this month.

Liverpool (A), Newcastle (H), and Southampton (A) are at Arsenal.

Chelsea (H), Arsenal (A), and Everton (H) are at Newcastle.

Nottingham Forest: Chelsea (H), West Ham (A), and Crystal Palace (H), respectively.

Southampton (A), Bournemouth (H), and Fulham (A) are Manchester City.

Manchester United (H), Nottingham Forest (A), and Chelsea (A).

Aston Villa: Tottenham (H), Manchester United (A), and Bournemouth (A).

Aston Villa (H), Manchester City (A), and Leicester (H) are Bournemouth.

Everton (H), Brentford (A), and Manchester City (H) are Fulham’s (H).

Wolves (A), Liverpool (H), and Tottenham (A) are at Brighton.

Brentford: Fulham (H), Fulham (H), and Wolves (A)

Eight to eleven Premier League teams will travel to Europe next season, depending on how things turn out this year.

Because of England’s better performance in Uefa’s coefficient rankings, at least five of those will play in the Champions League.

If Arsenal wins the Champions League and finishes outside the top five, which is a remote possibility, or even seven if that happens and Manchester United or Tottenham win the Europa League, that number could rise.

Next year, there are a maximum of three Premier League teams that could compete in the Europa League.

The FA Cup winners and the team that finished sixth are likely to take second place.

However, if the cup winners have already secured a place in Europe, they will face the next highest-placed team that has not yet qualified for Europe.

If Chelsea loses the Conference League and does not advance to the Champions League, a third place might be awarded.

A Premier League team will receive one Conference League spot.

Newcastle, the current host of the Carabao Cup, will win, but that could change if Eddie Howe’s side earns a place in the Champions League or the Europa League.

That appears likely given that Newcastle currently belongs to the top four.

Although this is highly unlikely, it might still occur.

Arsenal, Manchester United, or Tottenham would need to win the Champions League, and Chelsea would need to take the Conference League title, with all three winners having to finish outside the top six.