The Premier League title race is all but over with leaders Liverpool way above every other team in the league. The Reds have 25 points more than nearest challengers Manchester City and it’s just a matter of time before the league title is officially confirmed.

With the league title race almost over, the most intriguing race in the Premier League this season is the battle for fourth place. Liverpool, Manchester City and Leicester City are almost confirmed for the top three spots.

Seven teams are in the frame for just one Champions League spot with 11 games left to play though the slot could increase to two slots with the European ban on Manchester City.

The Citizens have appealed against the ban from European football for two seasons as imposed on them by UEFA. With one or two Champions League spots available, here are the top three favourites for next season’s Champions League:

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1. Tottenham Hotspur

Jose Mourinho made a bright start to his managerial career at Spurs upon his appointment in November before a below par festive period set his team back a little bit but things have improved in the past few games. Spurs have won their last three matches in the Premier League ahead of the crucial London Derby clash with hosts Chelsea this weekend. Mourinho and his players are in fifth spot and just one point from fifth-placed Chelsea.

2. Chelsea

The former Premier League champions are in pole position for a top-four spot but their form has not been good. Chelsea are without a win in the last four league games ahead of the next game at home to Tottenham Hotspur.

3. Manchester United

The Red Devils are firmly back in the race after the win over Chelsea on Monday night. Anthony Martial and Harry Maguire scored either side of the halftime interval to give Manchester United a 2-0 away victory over the Blues.

Chelsea are reportedly closing in on a move for Inter Milan midfielder Mattias Vecino ahead of this summer’s transfer window.

According to the Daily Mail, Chelsea are on the verge of making the Uruguayan international player their second signing of this summer.

Chelsea have already signed one player after the £38m agreement for Ajax Amsterdam star Hakim Ziyech.

The Moroccan international will join the Blues this summer after the two clubs reached an agreement for his transfer.

Hakim Ziyech has been the star of the Ajax Amsterdam squad over the last two seasons and he’ll be playing his club football at Stamford Bridge next season.

The Moroccan attacker can play in each of the four front attacking positions effectively and efficiently.

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Hakim Ziyech helped Ajax Amsterdam to a double last season. Ajax ended the last campaign with the Dutch Eredivisie title and the Dutch Cup.

Chelsea were not able to sign players in the last two transfer windows, but they could end up with two new players before the transfer window reopens. The Blues could wrap up a deal with Inter Milan for Mattias Vecino in addition to the Hakim Ziyech’s transfer.

Mattias Vecino has a release clause of £23m in his Inter Milan contract at the moment and Chelsea are willing to pay that amount to secure his transfer.

The Uruguayan midfielder was seriously linked with Manchester United last month but the Red Devils opted to sign Bruno Fernandes from Sporting Lisbon in Portugal.

Manchester United signed Bruno Fernandes in a £44m deal that could rise to £68m.

Bruno Fernandes made his debut for the Red Devils during the penultimate league game at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The Wolves game ended in a goalless draw and Bruno Fernandes played the entire duration of the game. He was also prominent in the last league game, a 2-0 away victory over Chelsea on Monday night.

Manchester United gave themselves a fighting chance in the top-four race after the big win over Chelsea in their second League meeting of the season.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his players were 2-0 winners at the home of Chelsea who are at the forefront of the race to finish as the fourth best team in the English top flight.

League leaders Liverpool, Manchester City and Leicester City are far ahead in the race for Champions League football next season thus leaving the other teams to fight for just a slot. It must be pointed out that Manchester City could open up one more slot after the Citizens were slapped with a European ban for two seasons for allegedly breaching Financial Fair Play rules.

The fifth-place team in the league will qualify for the Champions League next season if Manchester City lose their appeal against that ruling.

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For now, the target for Manchester United and other teams like Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, Sheffield United etc is fourth place and the Red Devils boosted their push for that spot via the away win over Chelsea.

The win over Chelsea took Manchester United to within three points of their opponents with 11 games left to play. Manchester United have put themselves in a fantastic position to meet their target and the return of star player Paul Pogba could help in the following ways:

1. Creativity

Paul Pogba has barely played for Manchester United this season but the Frenchman is still the best player at the club despite the recent arrival of Bruno Fernandes from Sporting Lisbon in January. He’s still the best creative force at the club when everyone is fit.

2. Goals

Paul Pogba’s absence has coincided with a lack of goals from the Manchester United midfield and his return is expected to guarantee goals in the middle of the park.

North London giants Arsenal have improved significantly on the defensive front since new manager Mikel Arteta was appointed in December 2019.

The Gunners were known for their numerous defensive errors before Mikel Arteta returned to the club as a manager. He was at Arsenal for five years before he retired from football.

Arsenal have conceded just seven goals in eight games in the Premier League under Mikel Arteta. He has been able to improve the Arsenal defenders but that has not stopped him from strengthening that part of his team.

The Gunners signed two defenders in January 2020 and more will follow this summer.

Arsenal signed Portuguese international player Cedric Soares on loan till this summer when he’ll become a free transfer. Right-back Cedric Soares is still injured and yet to make his debut for the club.

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The Gunners also signed a new centre back in Pablo Mari who joined on loan from Flamengo in Brazil. He’s also yet to make an appearance for Arsenal though the Spaniard played for the Arsenal reserves on Monday night.

Despite the signings of Cedric Soares and Pablo Mari, Arsenal and Mikel Arteta are still expected to sign more defenders. Here are four potential defensive signings.

1. Dayot Upamecano

The French junior international is a major defensive target for the North Londoners who tried to sign him last summer. His German club RB Leipzig rejected a big money move for him from the Gunners last summer. He has one year left on his RB Leipzig contract meaning that the Gunners have a good chance of signing him this summer.

2. Nathan Ake

Bournemouth defender is also a top target for Arsenal. The likes of Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur are also interested in him.

3. Lewis Dunk

The Brighton skipper is a transfer target for London clubs Arsenal and Chelsea.

Manchester United have mapped out their transfer strategy for star player Paul Pogba ahead of the next transfer window later this year.

Paul Pogba’s future at Manchester United is far from clear as he edges closer to the end of his present contract with the Premier League outfit.

The Frenchman has one year remaining on his Manchester United contract plus an additional year at the discretion of the club.

According to the Daily Mirror, Manchester United have concluded plans to sell Paul Pogba when the transfer window reopens in the summer.

It was revealed that the Red Devils have slammed a transfer fee of £100m on him as they want to raise money from his sale to spend on new players ahead of next season.

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Manchester United have eyes on a lot of young English talents and the funds from the transfer of Paul Pogba will come in handy to get their targets.

Borussia Dortmund star Jadon Sancho is a major transfer target for the Red Devils though they face a big battle to sign him with rivals Chelsea also interested.

Aston Villa skipper Jack Grealish and Leicester City star James Maddison are serious targets for Manchester United.

Young Birmingham City midfielder Jude Bellingham is also attracting the interest of Manchester United.

Pogba has been injured for several month this season and that has prompted him to make just seven appearances in the Premier League since the current season started.

In total, the Frenchman has featured for eight games in all competitions.

He has a lot of suitors as confirmed by his agent Mino Raiola who has been a thorn in the flesh of Manchester United fans.

Manchester United legend Gary Neville has warned the club to stay away from Mino Raiola in the future after their struggles with him.

Premier League table toppers Liverpool have stepped up their interest in one of the best young players in the top flight of English football.

Norwich City midfielder Todd Cantwell has been a revelation for the Canaries in the league this season and Liverpool are keen to sign him when the summer transfer window reopens later this year.

Liverpool are not the only Premier League team interested in the 21-year-old English midfielder.

Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur are all keen on Todd Cantwell according to The Athletic.

Liverpool have been in sparkling form in the Premier League this season but that has not stopped plans for new players ahead of next season. The Reds have already signed one player this year.

Japanese international Takumi Minamino signed for Liverpool on the first day of this year following his transfer from Red Bull Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga.

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Liverpool paid his £7.25m release clause to secure his signing from the Europa League campaigners.

Takumi Minamino was an obvious absentee at the weekend during the Premier League clash at Norwich City. He was omitted for tactical reasons.

Todd Cantwell impressed a great deal for Norwich City during that game but it was not enough as his team lost narrowly to Liverpool who are miles ahead of all the other teams in the league.

Sadio Mane came off the bench to score the only goal of the game in the second half of the game.

The Senegalese international star had missed the last two games because of a muscle injury.

Apart from Todd Cantwell, Liverpool have also been linked with a move for players like RB Leipzig attacker Timo Werner and the Norwich City teammate of Todd Cantwell, Max Aarons.

Liverpool have 25 more points than their nearest challengers Manchester City at the top of the Premier League.

Manchester City attacker Raheem Sterling has made a decision on his future at the Etihad Stadium amidst the transfer links involving Spanish La Liga giants Real Madrid.

The future of Raheem Sterling at Premier League champions Manchester City is in doubt after the Citizens were slammed with a European ban for flouting Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules.

Manchester City have been suspended from European competitions for the next two years and that has led to doubts over the future of their players.

Aymeric Laporte, Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling have all been linked with moves away from the club after the announcement of the aforementioned European ban.

The agent of Raheem Sterling has now doused the tension surrounding the European ban.

According to his agent Aidy Ward, the future of former Liverpool player Raheem Sterling is at Manchester City.

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Raheem Sterling is presently out of action after the injury he sustained during their last Premier League game.

He suffered a muscle injury during the 2-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur.

According to Pep Guardiola, Raheem Sterling could be in line for a return when Manchester City travel to the King Power Stadium this weekend to face Leicester City.

Sterling will definitely miss the West Ham United game on Wednesday night as a result of the injury.

The fixture was initially billed for nine days ago before it was called off due to extreme weather conditions.

Manchester City players are not the only ones linked with an exit from the club as manager Pep Guardiola is also said to be a target for Italian champions Juventus.

Pep Guardiola has just one year left on his Manchester City deal at the moment and he could still leave the club in the summer with Juventus seriously interested in him rather than wait till the summer of 2021.

Chelsea were boosted by the news of a new signing last week following the agreement with Dutch club Ajax Amsterdam over the transfer of Hakim Ziyech.

The player won’t join Chelsea from Ajax Amsterdam until this summer.

Chelsea will pay £38m for his transfer from the Dutch champions and he could be the man to replace Willian on the right side of the attack.

Brazilian winger Willian has less than six months on his Chelsea deal meaning that his contract will expire in the summer. He would be a free agent by then amidst the interest from the likes of Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in the Spanish La Liga.

Chelsea have struggled in the past weeks and that has put their quest to qualify for Europe’s premier club competition, UEFA Champions League, in serious doubt.

The Blues are in fourth position on the Premier League table and they have one more point than Tottenham Hotspur in fifth place though they have played one more game than their London rivals.

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Their game in hand is the home clash with Manchester United on Monday night.

Chelsea have struggled against bottom-half teams in the Premier League this season and Hakim Ziyech could be the player to solve that problem for manager Frank Lampard when he joins them as from the start of next season.

Moroccan international Hakim Ziyech would improve the Chelsea team in the following ways:

1. Quality

Chelsea have struggled a bit without the star quality of Eden Hazard and Hakim Ziyech could be the man to fill the void left by the Belgian international.

2. Goals and Assists

First choice striker Tammy Abraham has been the only source of goals at Chelsea this season. Hakim Ziyech scores goals and assists. He has scored 22 goals and provided 25 assists in the last 48 league games for Ajax Amsterdam.