Five teams separated by two points – race for Europe is intensifying

The race to secure Champions League football is heating up with five teams in the reckoning separated by just two points.

Newcastle are third on 59 points while Aston Villa, in seventh, have 57 points.

The top five teams in the Premier League will be guaranteed to be playing Champions League football next season.

Manchester City, Aston Villa and Chelsea all boosted their chances with victories over the weekend.

Nottingham Forest have spent a large portion of the season in the top three but now find themselves down in sixth, although they will leap back up to third if they win at Tottenham on Monday night.

As many as 11 European places are up for grabs and there will definitely be a minimum of eight teams – up from the usual seven – playing in Europe next season, but things could change in the coming weeks.

It means Crystal Palace down in 12th still have something to play for.

Liverpool: Tottenham (H); Chelsea (A); Arsenal (H); Brighton (A); Crystal Palace (H)

Arsenal: Crystal Palace (H); Bournemouth (H); Liverpool (A); Newcastle (H); Southampton (A)

Newcastle: Ipswich (H); Brighton (A); Chelsea (H); Arsenal (A); Everton (H)

Nottingham Forest: Tottenham (A); Brentford (H); Crystal Palace (A); Leicester (H); West Ham (A); Chelsea (H)

Manchester City: Aston Villa (H); Wolves (H); Southampton (A); Bournemouth (H); Fulham (A)

Chelsea: Everton (H); Liverpool (H); Newcastle (A); Manchester United (H); Nottingham Forest (A)

Aston Villa: Manchester City (A); Fulham (H); Bournemouth (A); Tottenham (H); Manchester United (A)

Bournemouth: Manchester United (H); Arsenal (A); Aston Villa (H); Manchester City (A); Leicester (H)

Fulham: Southampton (A); Aston Villa (A); Everton (H); Brentford (A); Manchester City (H)

Brighton: West Ham (H); Newcastle (H); Wolves (A); Liverpool (H); Tottenham (A)

Brentford: Nottingham Forest (A); Manchester United (H); Ipswich (A); Fulham (H); Wolves (A)

Depending on how things pan out this season there will be between eight and 11 teams from the Premier League taking part in Europe next season.

A minimum of five of those will be in the Champions League, which is higher than the usual four because of England’s performance in Uefa’s coefficient rankings.

The maximum number of Premier League teams who could be competing in the Europa League is three.

Two places will likely go to the team who finishes sixth and the FA Cup winners.

However, if the cup winners have already secured a European place it will then go to the next highest placed side that has not qualified for Europe.

There will be one Conference League place awarded to a Premier League team.

Currently, that will go to Carabao Cup winners Newcastle, but that could change if Eddie Howe’s side qualify for the Champions League or the Europa League.

As Newcastle currently sit inside the top four that looks likely.

This could happen, but it is highly improbable.

It would require Arsenal to win the Champions League, Manchester United or Tottenham to win the Europa League and Chelsea to lift the Conference League trophy, and all three winners to finish outside the top six.