English Premier League Title Race to be Decided on Final Match Day of Season

Posted on: May 12, 2019, 01:00h. 

Last updated on: May 10, 2019, 03:23h.

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Manchester City has the inside track for the English Premier League title with one game left to play, but Liverpool is still alive as the clubs prepare to play their final matches on Sunday.

FanDuel Sportsbook has City as an overwhelming -850 favorite to claim their second straight league title, but Liverpool (+550) still has a chance to flip the script at the last possible moment.

City: Win and We’re In

Heading into the final day of play, City has a one point lead in the Premier League race. Manchester City will travel to lowly Brighton on Sunday, while Liverpool will host Wolverhampton in their final match.

The scenario is fairly simple: if Manchester City wins, they claim another Premier League title. But if they draw or lose, Liverpool can pass them with a win of their own. It’s also possible – though highly unlikely – that Liverpool could steal the title with a draw if City were to lose by five goals.

That will mean a lot of scoreboard watching for Liverpool fans. But since City merely need to win, manager Pep Guardiola won’t be spending any time worrying about what’s going on over at Anfield.

“It’s better to focus on what we have to do. If we win then you don’t need anything else,” Guardiola said at a press conference. “If they win we have to win, we don’t have to be distracted.”

Klopp: ‘It’s Only Pain’

Liverpool can consider their season a success even if they don’t manage to upend City for the Premier League title, as they still have a Champions League title to play for. The Reds have been dealing with a number of injuries, but should have striker Mohamed Salah back for Sunday’s match.

At a pre-match press conference, manager Jurgen Klopp took the opportunity to praise his team for showing resilience in the face of adversity all season long.

“The group of players we have here is so special,” Klopp said. “Since Tuesday, if I had to find a very short description for the group, I would say: ‘It’s only pain.’ That’s how they went through the season. It was always hard, always difficult, but it was only pain. So let’s carry on.”

Whichever team finishes in second place will go down as one of the best English squads not to win the Premier League title. Only one team – last year’s Manchester City side – has finished the EPL season with more than 95 points; if Liverpool wins and City earns at least a tie, both will surpass that mark, making them the second and third highest point-earning teams in league history.

But as Guardiola pointed out to reporters, that will be no comfort to the team that finishes in second place.

“To get more credit, you have to win,” the manager said. “We saw in the Champions League, when you are out, everybody destroyed the teams, destroyed the managers, destroyed clubs…we know the life in which we live. I know we will be judged. We have to win.”