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The 2013-2014 season of the Barclays Premier League has been the most exciting and unpredictable one in ages. The English competition is currently witnessing three powerful teams battling each for the trophy after a long time. In spite of all the excitement the three horse race is a bit tricky. Here is a low down of each of the three teams’ fixtures and the final verdict.
Liverpool
| Opponent | Date | Time | Venue |
| Norwich | 20th April | 4:30 pm | Away |
| Chelsea | 27th April | 6:35 pm | Home |
| Crystal Palace | 05th May | 12:30 am | Away |
| Newcastle | 11th May | 7:30 pm | Home |
Liverpool have had a phenomenal 2013-2014 thanks to the heroics of their star strikers Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge who have a combined 49 goals in between them so far. The Reds recently overcame Manchester City 3-2 at Anfield and need to win all of their games and hope City drop points or lose in order to lift the title.
Norwich have lost just 1 of their last 5 home games and even held Manchester City to a goalless draw back in February but have won just one of their last five games and have recently changed their manager. Sturridge may miss the game against the Canaries with a hamstring injury, but Suarez is more than capable of leading the attack on his own and has scored an amazing 3 hat-tricks against Norwich including four in his last outing against them.
Crystal Palace will be a bit of a problem for Liverpool. Tony Pulis’ team have lost just 1 of their last 5 games and recently managed to defeat Chelsea by a goal. No other team besides Newcastle has scored against Palace for almost a month now.
Newcastle United are struggling to cope without star man Yohan Cabaye who was sold to Paris Saint Germain and have not scored a single goal in their last four games. Newcastle’s star striker Loic Remy should be available for the match against the Reds but can expect a strong resistance from the title hungry opposition.
Chelsea will give Liverpool some problems at Anfield but it should be noted that the Blues have lost two and drawn one of their last five home games while Liverpool have won every single one of theirs. Chelsea are expected to play an extremely defensive game but that shouldn’t stand in the way of the unstoppable Suarez and Sturridge. A Champions League fatigued Chelsea along with the incredible Kop support can work in Liverpool’s favour.
Chelsea
FIXTURE SCHEDULE
| Opponent | Date | Time | Venue |
| Sunderland | 20th April | 6:35 pm | Home |
| Liverpool | 27th April | 6:35 pm | Away |
| Norwich | 04th May | 8:30 pm | Home |
| Cardiff | 11th May | 7:30 pm | Away |
Chelsea are currently two points below leaders Liverpool and if they win all of their last four fixtures they will finish above the Merseyside club but will need Manchester City, who have two extra games in hand, to drop some points in order to win the Premier League.
Defeating Sunderland, a relegation threatened Sunderland, should be no problem as the Black Cats have lost all of their last 5 games and have a slim chance of breaking Chelsea’s unbeaten home record this season. Stats show that Sunderland are one of the dirtiest teams in the Premier League this year and have 7 red cards to their name so far which can go against them in the game against Chelsea.
The Liverpool game would be a bit tricky for the Blues as they travel to Spain to face Atletico Madrid for the first leg of the Champions League semi-final which can cause team fatigue. Chesea’s trio of strikers have just 16 goals between them while the combo of Suarez and Sturridge have scored 49 goals. The Blues have relied on the talents of top scorer Eden Hazard for most of the season and will be hoping to avoid facing former player Daniel Sturridge who picked up a hamstring injury in the win against Manchester City.
Overcoming Norwich who have won just one of their last 5 games and face Liverpool and Manchester United before heading to Stamford Bridge should be easy but the Blues could face some fatigue issues as they face Atletico Madrid at home just 3 days before the match.
Cardiff have just won one of their last 5 games so far giving Chelsea a good chance of emerging victorious. The main problem would be defeating Liverpool who have lost just 1 of their home games this season.
Manchester City
Manchester City sit 3rd with 70 points
| Opponent | Date | Time | Venue |
| Sunderland | 17th April | 12:15 am | Home |
| West Brom | 22nd April | 12:30 am | Home |
| Crystal Palace | 27th April | 8:40 pm | Away |
| Everton | 03rd May | 10:00 pm | Away |
| Aston Villa | 08th May | 12:15 am | Home |
| West Ham | 11th May | 7:30 pm | Home |
Manchester City are behind Chelsea and Liverpool in the title race but have two games in hand. The Citizens scored a 100 goals in record time this season but their shaky defence, unimpressive away record along with star striker Sergio Aguero’s injury issues have caused them problems.
If Manchester City win all of their remaining games then they may need Chelsea to defeat Liverpool in order to finish above Jose Mourinho’s men and lift the title. City will be with their top scorer Yaya Toure, who was injured in the 3-2 loss against Liverpool, for a couple of games which is a significant blow for Pellegrini’s team.
Defeating Sunderland at the Etihad should be a piece of cake as City have lost just 1 of their home fixtures all season. The Black Cats have lost all of their last 5 fixtures so they will have little hope of overcoming a determined City.
West Bromwich Albion who have lost just 1 of their last 5 games will be a bit of a challenge for City. City came back from a 2 goal deficit in a hard fought game against West Brom in December and will not want to take the same chances again.
Crystal Palace, who recently defeated Chelsea, will be another roadblock for City. Tony Pulis’s side have only lost 1 of their last five fixtures and Newcastle United are the only team to score against Palace since the 22nd of February. Hopefully City can avoid their away curse and beat them.
Manchester City will then head to Merseyside to face a high flying Everton side. Martinez’s men have been a revelation this season and will do everything they can to dampen City’s title hopes. Everton have always been a difficult team to beat at home and have lost just 1 of their 16 home games this season.
The Toffees, who recently hammered Arsenal 3-0, remain unbeaten in their last 5 games. City have a chance of overcoming the Merseyside club but their leaky defence needs to watch out for the menacing Romelu Lukaku.
City can have a good win against Aston Villa who have lost four of their last five games and will be missing the talents of star striker Christian Benteke who is out for the rest of the season.
West Ham have lost three of their last five games and have been defeated twice in their last five away games so City have a good chance of beating them at the Etihad on the last day of the season.
Verdict
If the Premier League has taught us anything over the years, it is to expect the unexpected and this season’s complex three horse race doesn’t make predicting the winner any easier. Any of the three teams can end up with the trophy but I’d say Liverpool and Manchester City just about have their noses in front.
