Season 6 - The Final Five
Published: November 13, 2025
Premiership
Chelsea snapped a three game losing streak by going on a ten match unbeaten league run after Round 23, taking 22 points in the process and are now separated by just goal difference with Manchester United as they tussle for the league title. Both have been free scoring, but it is United's best defence in the league which is keeping them top of the pile for the time being. Tottenham look a little too far back in third to challenge after consecutive defeats derailed their charge, while Manchester City have lost three of the last six to be eight behind.
Portsmouth and Burnley have capped excellent seasons by all but mathematically confirming Champions League places, but Liverpool maybe still have work to do. They've only taken three points from their last five games and are being pursued by a large chasing pack, currently headed by Crystal Palace who hold the eighth and final CL qualifying spot (depending on the outcome of the DPT trophy). Blackburn Rovers, West Ham United, Millwall, Aston Villa, Leeds United and Arsenal are all within six points of Palace though, so there's plenty of movement still expected in the table.
Coventry City and Cardiff City have been cut adrift at the bottom for some time now, and will have their relegation confirmed should they fail to win their Round 34 games. Three points separate Newcastle United in 18th and Barnsley in 17th, with both sides shipping goals readily, and surely whoever survives will be right up against it next season. Wolves' four game winning run is bettered only by Burnley currently, and has seen them cruise to safety with games to spare.
EFL 1
The two top divisions certainly have their similarities; a neck and neck title race, a dogfight for the final Champions League qualification spot and an unresolved battle against relegation. Juventus and Atletico Madrid have risen to the top of the division - neither have an EFL title to their name although Juventus did finish second in Season 4 while Atletico are of course the current Champions League holders. The looming spectre of PSG in third cannot be ignored - who would bet against them taking fifteen points from the final five to really crank up the pressure? Bayern Munich were looking a strong contender - they sat top six games ago but just five points from the next six saw them slide with disciplinary issues starting to bite.
Real Madrid, Fiorentina and Roma will qualify for the Champions League, but the final spot (depending on the outcome of the DPT trophy) is still very much up for grabs. Barcelona occupy eighth with five games to play, with Inter Milan just a point back. No one else is in strong form behind them, but Sporting Lisbon, Rangers, Marseille and Real Sociedad may still fancy themselves to be in contention.
No one is mathematically down yet from EFL 1, however it's hard to see Sevilla making up the nine points that they need to get to safety. The bottom three haven't changed since Round 13, but Union Berlin are now just a point adrift of Bayer Leverkusen who sit on the right side of the line. Shakhtar are also in with a shout, but need points fast. Benfica, Lens and AC Milan look to have enough to be planning for top flight football next season.
Championship
Norwich City remain formidable in second tier football, and despite a little blip in form recently, they are poised to seal their Championship promotion possibly as soon as Round 34. Nottingham Forest are a strong candidate to follow the Canaries up automatically; they are six points clear of third place Wrexham in second who may need to be more worried about the challenge from behind than threatening above. Sunderland, Brighton and Leicester round out the current play off teams, but Ipswich Town are just a point off the top six, while Middlesbrough are hitting form at a good time. Fulham, Huddersfield and Everton will all be hoping the cards might fall their way to mount a late charge.
EFL 2
After some shaky results, Borussia Dortmund appear to have hit a nice groove to win their last four in a row, and hold a commanding ten point lead over 3rd placed Lazio, which should see their promotion to EFL 1 confirmed in the very near future. Celtic have only lost one of their last twenty-four league games, which is an outstanding record and sees them in second and also looking likely to seal their automatic promotion status. Schalke have been on the slide of late, losing three in a row but still looking strong for play offs. That being said, all three sides below them (Atalanta, FC Porto and Athletic Bilbao) are all in strong form should the Germans continue to lose matches. Sparta Prague and Feyenoord are not completely out of contention, but it may be too much of a gap for Lyon and those below to overcome.