Who will be top of the Premiership come Sunday evening?

By: Martini Extra Dry | October 3rd, 2008

Villa have their biggest chance to go top of the Premiership in far too long on Sunday, but it will require a good performance and a chunk of luck. It’s mathematically possible for any of five teams to top the table after this weekend’s games, so let’s run through who and how:

Man Utd and Fulham are the only teams with a game in hand but the result of that couldn’t help send either of them top so they’re out of the equation.

West Ham currently sit in fifth place on 12 points, so although it is possible, the chances of it are extremely slim. They need Villa and Chelsea to draw, Liverpool to lose or draw, Arsenal to lose or draw AND they need to beat Bolton by a seven goal margin. My advice is to stick a pound on it at your local bookies and if it comes up you will be laughing all the way to the Bahamas! I’m not giving you the pound back when it doesn’t happen though, so do one!

Arsenal are in fourth, also on 12 points, so they need a similar string of events to Wham, but they only need to beat Sunderland by 2 goals. Still unlikely but infinitely more likely than their fellow Londoners.

In third place sits the Mighty Villans, just one point of the leaders. We need to beat Chelsea and for Man City to get at least a point at home to Liverpool. That doesn’t sound like the hardest task, I hear you say, but then take into account that Chelsea haven’t lost at Stamford Bridge for four and a half years! However, if the pre-match reports are correct, they will be without Terry, Deco, Essien, Drogba and Cole, so if ever there is a chance it is now. Fingers crossed.

In second is Liverpool, on level points with Chelsea, so they need to win and hope Chelsea don’t or win by 5 more goals than them.

Currently top is Roman Abramovich’s boys with 14 points. To stay top they need to win and Liverpool not to spank Man City or draw and Liverpool draw or lose. A loss will definitely take them off top, no matter what other results occur.

So Sunday will be a very exciting day, us Villans need to keep one eye/ear on our game and one on Man City v Liverpool. There’s a snooker club a few miles from me that may well have the game on on C+ Sports, so I’ll be watching or failing that listening in on Radio WM.

PS For the stats fans and internet scourers out there: when were we last top of the Premiership? and/or when did we last have a mathematical chance of getting there?