Leicester and Hull earned vital away wins to leave Sunderland in the bottom three, Newcastle suffered a seventh straight league defeat against Swansea and Watford sealed promotion to the Premier League on a dramatic afternoon
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So, to conclude as concisely as possible – a good day for Leicester, Hull and Swansea, a bad day for Burnley, QPR and football in the northeast, a dark day for Tranmere and Cheltenham, and a day to remember for Watford and Shrewsbury, who were both promoted.
All the latest tables are here, and you can join Nick Ames for Man City v Aston Villa, which is moments away. Thanks for joining me. Bye!
Loose ends
That late Peterborough winner over Crawley means Leyton Orient and Colchester survive in League One. The final day will see six teams fight to avoid three remaining relegation places. – and you thought today was hectic.
Southend’s win over Luton lifts the Shrimpers into the third League Twoautomatic place, two points ahead of Bury and three ahead of Wycombe, with one match to go.
In the Bundesliga, it finished Cologne 1-1 Leverkusen, Dortmund 2-0 Frankfurt and Hamburg 3-2 Augsburg. PSG lead Lille 4-1 in Ligue 1, and it finished Espanyol 0-2 Barcelona in La Liga, which means Barcelona move five points clear of Real Madrid.
In Scotland, it finished Inverness 1-2 Aberdeen, St Mirren 4-1 Kilmarnock, Ross County 1-2 Partick and Dundee 0-2 St Johnstone in the Premiership, while it finished Hibs 4-1 Alloa and Rangers 2-2 Falkirk in the second tier. And finally, Brora stuck it to those big city types, earning a 1-1 draw at Edinburgh City.
League One
Bradford 1-0 Barnsley
Chesterfield 0-2 Bristol City
Coventry 1-3 Crewe
Fleetwood 2-3 Colchester
Leyton Orient 1-1 Sheffield Utd
Notts County 2-1 Doncaster
Peterborough 4-3 Crawley
Preston 3-0 Swindon
Rochdale 2-3 MK Dons
Scunthorpe 2-1 Gillingham (latest score)
Walsall 2-0 Oldham
Yeovil 1-2 Port Vale
League Two
Burton Albion 3-1 Northampton
Bury 2-0 AFC Wimbledon
Cheltenham 0-1 Shrewsbury
Dag & Red 4-0 Accrington Stanley
Hartlepool 2-1 Exeter
Mansfield 1-2 Portsmouth
Oxford Utd 2-0 Cambridge Utd
Plymouth 3-2 Tranmere
Southend 1-0 Luton
Stevenage 1-0 Carlisle
Wycombe 0-1 Morecambe
York 0-2 Newport County
Full-time scores
Premier League
Burnley 0-1 Leicester
Crystal Palace 0-2 Hull
Newcastle 3-2 Swansea
QPR 0-0 West Ham
Stoke 1-1 Sunderland
West Brom 0-0 Liverpool
Championship
Birmingham 1-0 Charlton
Cardiff 3-2 Blackpool
Fulham 4-3 Middlesbrough
Huddersfield 2-2 Blackburn
Ipswich 2-1 Nottm Forest
Millwall 3-3 Derby
Reading 0-2 Brentford
Rotherham 1-1 Norwich
Wigan 0-1 Wolves
Tranmere and Cheltenham relegated to Conference
That result, and Tranmere’s defeat to Plymouth, combined with Hartlepool beating Exeter, means both Tranmere and Cheltenham lose their Football Leaguestatus, with Hartlepool surviving despite being ten points adrift at one stage. Tranmere, who reached the League Cup final in 2000, end a 94-year run as a league team.
Shrewsbury promoted to League One
They’ll fight it out with Burton for the League Two title on the final day, but Shrewsbury’s 1-0 win at Cheltenham means they are promoted. Bravo.
FT: Stoke 1-1 Sunderland
Despite a commendable away point, it’s Sunderland who drop into the relegation zone, after Charlie Adam cancelled out Conor Wickham’s opener.
FT: Crystal Palace 0-2 Hull
A Dame N’Doye double earns Hull a win that keeps them out of the relegation zone.
FT: Newcastle 2-3 Swansea
It’s finished at St. James’ Park. Seven straight defeats for Newcastle, and another impressive result for Swansea.
GOAL! Newcastle 2-3 Swansea (de Jong)
Missed in the brouhaha was a consolation for Newcastle, as Siem de Jong makes a scoring comeback from injury.
Watford are promoted to the Premier League!
It’s finished Rotherham 1-1 Norwich and Fulham 4-3 Middlesbrough. Watford - welcome to the jungle.
FT: QPR 0-0 West Ham
Rangers blow their chance to catch their relegation rivals, as Charlie Austin misses a penalty at Loftus Road.
FT: West Brom 0-0 Liverpool
Precious little to report, except that West Brom are safe, and Liverpool won’t be playing Champions League football next season.
GOAL! Fulham 4-3 Middlesbrough (McCormack)
Boro pile forward, Fulham catch them on the break and steal a winner! Watford are moments away from the Premier League now. Extraordinary.
FT: Burnley 0-1 Leicester
Leicester bag a fourth straight league win, and climb out of the bottom three thanks to Jamie Vardy’s goal.
It’s Peterborough 4-3 Crawley, a scoreline that will save the bacon of both Orient and Colchester if it stands. Which it probably won’t. It’s also Plymouth 3-2 Tranmere in League Two.
GOAL! Crystal Palace 0-2 Hull (N'Doye)
N’Doye seals the win from a Ramirez through ball as Hull break away. Huge result for Hull.
Rotherham 1-1 Norwich (Bowery)
Bowery nods home for Rotherham, and Watford are a Fulham goal away from the Premier League! It’s also Millwall 3-3 Derby – more good news for Rotherham, and Wigan, who will stay up for today at least.
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GOAL! Fulham 3-3 Middlesbrough (Kike)
Absurd. Kike pulls rampaging Boro level, and they’re all set to spoil Watford’s party. That’s because...
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Newcastle fans, Neil Clough wants trouble: “I’m sure there’s another mass walk out at St. James Park. As a gesture isn’t that getting a bit tedious?” His words.
Anyway, it’s been a while since we had some massive goals, so how about these? It’s Wycombe 0-1 Morecambe, Bury 2-0 AFC Wimbledon and Southend 1-0 Lutonin League Two. That means Wycombe, who could have all but sealed promotion to League One, will drop to fifth.
Elmohamady spurns a chance to seal three points for Hull, while in theChampionship, it’s Birmingham 1-0 Charlton, and more pressingly, Ipswich 2-1 Nottingham Forest, care of Freddie Sears. A win would put those Tractor Boys in the driving seat for a playoff place.
Yaya Sanogo has a goal chalked off at Selhurst Park after heading home, for a foul on Paul McShane. In League Two, it’s Plymouth 3-1 Tranmere. With Shrewsbury still leading 1-0 at Cheltenham, and Hartlepool leading Exeter 2-1. Tranmere and Cheltenham are ten minutes from non-league football.
Schmeichel denies Burnley again, reacting to turn away Ben Mee’s deflected shot, while West Ham’s Kouyate has missed a chance to bury QPR’s survival chances – it remains QPR 0-0 West Ham. It’s not the only howler in recent moments – Derbyshire has missed an open goal for Rotherham.
There’s fifteen minutes left in most matches – plenty of time for cuticles to be chewed off at Loftus Road, Turf Moor and many, many other grounds. Not least Highbury (not that one), where it’s Fleetwood 2-1 Colchester. Colchester would go down if scores stay the same, while Coventry are about to get sucked in to a final day battle royale – they’re 3-0 down at home to Crewe. Aaaand it’s Leyton Orient 1-1 Sheffield United – Orient would be down too. Crikey.
Fulham 3-2 Middlesbrough (Ayala)
Ten-man Boro aren’t licked yet, as Daniel Ayala cuts the deficit. The Championship – best league in the world?
Good lord – it’s Leyton Orient 1-0 Sheffield United. Orient are on the verge of saving themselves. In the Championship, it’s Millwall 3-2 Derby, and up in Scotland, Niall McGinn makes it Inverness 1-2 Aberdeen.
GOAL! Newcastle 1-3 Swansea (Cork)
Seven straight defeats imminent for Newcastle, as Jack Cork takes advantage of errant defending to give Swansea a two-goal cushion.
Updated
Crawley have retaken the lead at Peterborough – that means Crewe, Crawley and Port Vale are all winning away from home, meaning Leyton Orient will be down unless they can beat Sheffield United. It’s goalless there. Colchester are also cutting it fine – it’s now Fleetwood 1-1 Colchester.
My eternal gratitude to Simon McMahon, for this Scottish update:
“Inverness 1 Aberdeen 1, Ross County 1 Partick 2, Dundee 0 St Johnstone 2, Alloa 0 Hibs 3, Rangers 0 Falkirk 2, Edinburgh City 1 Brora Rangers 0.”
Updated
GOAL! Fulham 3-1 Middlesbrough (McCormack pen)
Come back, Watford fans! Kevin Friend sends off namesake George for Middlesbrough for a foul on Rodallega. From the penalty spot, McCormack restores Fulham’s two-goal lead.
Updated
GOAL! Fulham 2-1 Middlesbrough (Reach)
...keep looking away, Watford fans. Boro are back in it at Craven Cottage...
GOAL! Rotherham 0-1 Norwich (Hooper)
Watford fans, look away now. Ten man Norwich have taken the lead through Gary Hooper – a goal that leaves their hosts in big trouble at the other end of the table.
Raheem Sterling rattles the bar for Liverpool against West Brom, where it remains 0-0. It’s Peterborough 2-2 Crawley and Notts County 2-0 Doncaster in League One – not one of that division’s relegation battlers are currently behind.
A bad day for Rangers so far – Hibs lead 3-0 at Alloa, and they’re 2-0 down to Cup final-bound Falkirk. That means Rangers could be pushed out of second place in the Scottish Championship.
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GOAL! Burnley 0-1 Leicester (Vardy)
Yes, they will. Leicester storm down the other end, and take the lead! Marc Albrighton’s cross deflects off Michael Duff, and Jamie Vardy is on hand to prod over the line. Sean Dyche’s face is currently a deep shade of scarlet.
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Missed penalty for Burnley!
Burnley join QPR in passing up a vital opportunity – this time, it’s Matt Taylor who hits the post from 12 yards after he was fouled by Paul Konchesky. Will they rue that miss?
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GOAL! Fulham 2-0 Middlesbrough
Ross McCormack converts a penalty at Craven Cottage. It may be down to Norwich to poop Watford’s party now.
Lee Gregory get his hat-trick with a penalty – it’s Millwall 3-1 Derby. It’s alsoIpswich 1-1 Nottingham Forest – with Brentford and Wolves winning, it’s set up for an almighty final day stramash for the final two play-off spots...
GOAL! Newcastle 1-2 Swansea (Sigurdsson)
...and that list must include Newcastle, still mired on 35 points, and now behind at home against Swansea, as Gylfi Sigurdsson finishes from Montero’s pass.
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GOAL! Crystal Palace 0-1 Hull (N'Doye)
After spurning a couple of decent chances, N’Doye takes no chances, smashing the ball in from a yard out to crank up the pressure on their relegation rivals...
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All action in the early stages of the second half, in the Premier League at least – Rob Green makes a fine save to deny Aaron Cresswell from a free kick, while Dame N’Doye is denied by Julian Speroni at Selhurst Park.
Inverness’ good week continues, as the Cup finalists lead at home to Aberdeen. In League Two, playoff chasers Stevenage lead 1-0 against Carlisle, and it’sFleetwood 0-1 Colchester in League One.
Other business
It’s Espanyol 0-2 Barcelona at half-time, while in the Bundesliga, it’s currentlyHamburg 3-2 Augsburg, Cologne 0-1 Leverkusen, and Dortmund 2-0 Frankfurt. A slow start for PSG at home to Lille – they lead 2-0 after four minutes.
Leagues One & Two half-times
League One
Bradford 1-0 Barnsley
Chesterfield 0-1 Bristol City
Coventry 0-2 Crewe
Fleetwood 0-0 Colchester
Leyton Orient 0-0 Sheffield Utd
Notts County 1-0 Doncaster
Peterborough 1-1 Crawley
Preston 2-0 Swindon
Rochdale 0-2 MK Dons
Scunthorpe 2-1 Gillingham
Walsall 2-0 Oldham
Yeovil 0-1 Port Vale
League Two
Burton Albion 3-0 Northampton
Bury 1-0 AFC Wimbledon
Cheltenham 0-1 Shrewsbury
Dag & Red 1-0 Accrington Stanley
Hartlepool 2-1 Exeter
Mansfield 0-1 Portsmouth
Oxford Utd 2-0 Cambridge Utd
Plymouth 2-1 Tranmere
Southend 0-0 Luton
Stevenage 0-0 Carlisle
Wycombe 0-0 Morecambe
York 0-0 Newport County
Championship half-time scores
Birmingham 0-0 Charlton
Cardiff 2-0 Blackpool
Fulham 1-0 Middlesbrough
Huddersfield 1-2 Blackburn
Ipswich 1-0 Nottm Forest
Millwall 2-1 Derby
Reading 0-1 Brentford
Rotherham 0-0 Norwich
Wigan 0-1 Wolves
Premier League half-time scores
I’ll save you some time – every top-flight game is level.
Burnley 0-0 Leicester
Crystal Palace 0-0 Hull
Newcastle 1-1 Swansea
QPR 0-0 West Ham
Stoke 1-1 Sunderland
West Brom 0-0 Liverpool
GOAL! Fulham 1-0 Middlesbrough (Turner)
Michael Turner gives Fulham the lead, and that means, with ten-man Norwich still level with Rotherham, that Watford are 45 minutes from the Premier League.
GOAL! Newcastle 1-1 Swansea (Oliveira)
Nelson Oliviera equalises at St. James’ Park, bundling home Sigurdsson’s corner on the stroke of half-time, to mass lack of surprise.
Burnley and Leicester are playing out some textbook anxiety-laced head tennis at Turf Moor, while it’s still goalless at Loftus Road, Selhurst Park and the Hawthorns. Watford, Middlesbrough, Norwich, Bournemouth – this is what you’re fighting for.
Congratulations to JF Hasselbaink’s Burton, who will win League Two today. They’re 3-0 up at home to Northampton. At the other end of the table, it’s nowHartlepool 2-1 Exeter. As it stands, Tranmere and Cheltenham have 45 minutes of league football left.
There’s a glimmer of hope for Orient, as Peterborough have pegged Crawley back, thanks to Conor Washington. From Washington to Barcelona... it’s Espanyol 0-2 Barcelona. Which one was it this time? It was Messi.
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It’s Millwall 2-0 Derby, Lee Gregory gets his second from the penalty spot. Brentford and Wolves are winning, as are Ipswich, who lead 1-0 at home against Forest. Sweaty palms for Steve McClaren, and Steve Evans, I would imagine.
Yet more Football League goals – it’s Plymouth 2-1 Tranmere and Bury 1-0 AFC Wimbledon in League Two, and Coventry 0-2 Crewe in League One. As things stand, Leyton Orient will be relegated today.
A suitably big name for a hugely important goal in League Two, as MAX POWERmakes it Plymouth 1-1 Tranmere.
At the Hawthorns, Steven Gerrard, making his 500th Premier League appearance, has put a free kick inches over. Also, according to J.R. in Illinois, “Mario Balotelli has just tracked back”.
The Scottish Premiership’s bottom club St Mirren are off to a flyer against Kilmarnock – they’re already 2-0 up as they aim to close a ten-point gap to Motherwell. The same goes for MK Dons, who are spoiling Preston’s promotion party. It’s Rochdale 0-2 MK Dons. In the Championship, it’s Huddersfield 0-2 Blackburn and Cardiff 2-0 Blackpool. Neither game matters all that much, though. Sorry, guys.
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Kasper Schmeichel denies Lukas Jutkiewicz his first-ever Burnley goal with an outstanding point blank save. A pretty terrible day for Leyton Orient and Colchester so far – all their relegation rivals are leading, with Crewe opening the scoring at Coventry, and Marvin Elliott putting Crawley ahead at Peterborough.
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A red card for Norwich at Rotherham, with Lewis Grabban dismissed. Still goalless there, but good news for Watford, and indeed Rotherham. Not that they’ll be too happy – Millwall lead Derby 1-0, which means the Millers are in the relegation zone. Another big goal in the Championship, and the 32nd of the season for Benik Afobe – it’s Wigan 0-1 Wolves.
GOAL! Stoke 1-1 Sunderland (Adam)
Man of the moment Charlie Adam is at it again, firing into the top corner from the edge of the area to equalise for Stoke.
Updated
Valencia misses an excellent chance to rub QPR’s noses in it, but fires wide with Matt Jarvis available in the box. In League Two, Shrewsbury lead at Cheltenham – victory for the mighty Shrews would see them go up, and the Robins possibly go down.
Missed penalty for QPR!
James Collins handles in the penalty area to give QPR the chance to take the lead. Charlie Austin takes it... but Adrian saves!
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GOAL! Newcastle 1-0 Swansea (Perez)
Goals don’t come much more welcome than this; Ayoze Perez puts the hosts ahead from Emmanuel Riviere’s cross.
Updated
Diverting dramatically away from the lower league relegation battle, it’s Espanyol 0-1 Barcelona in La Liga. Neymar got the goal. Returning to the Football League, it’s Rochdale 0-1 MK Dons in League One, Cardiff 1-0 Blackpool in the Championship... and Hartlepool 1-1 Exeter in League Two.
It’s Hartlepool 1-0 Exeter in League Two – that scoreline puts Tranmere and Cheltenham in very real danger of losing their league status this afternoon. It’s not been a good few minutes for those teams below the Football League’s various red lines – in League One, Port Vale have taken the lead at Yeovil, which is bad news for the teams who may need Vale to do them a favour.
Liverpool yet to make a breakthrough at the Hawthorns, despite the best efforts of Mario Balotelli up front, while Burnley and Leicester have made a predictably tenacious start. At Selhurst Park, N’Doye has missed a sitter for Hull, while the first chance at a (presumably) tense St. James’ Park falls to Swansea’s Ashley Williams, who misses with his header.
The goals, they are a-flying in already in the Football League. Playoff chasersBrentford lead 1-0 at Reading, while it’s Notts County 1-0 Doncaster in League One, and Burton 1-0 Northampton in League Two.
At Craven Cottage, Grant Leadbitter comes close with a volleyed lob from distance. At Rotherham United’s New York Stadium, it’s goalless between the hosts and Norwich. In League Two, a Reuben Reid penalty means it’s Plymouth 1-0 Tranmere. Grim news for the visitors.
Alistair Donegan says simply “I like football”. Me too, Alistair. Me too.
Big goal in League One, as Joe Garner makes it Preston 1-0 Swindon. A loss for MK Dons would see North End go up automatically. Probably for the best, as they have tried and failed in the playoffs 9 (NINE) times previously.
Enner Valencia sees a header cleared off the line at Loftus Road, while Hull are making the early running against Crystal Palace.
A couple of interesting Bundesliga scores for ya – relegation-threatened Hamburg lead sixth-placed Augsburg 2-1, while Dortmund lead Frankfurt 2-0, with goals from Aubameyang and Shinji Kagawa (remember him?)
GOAL! Stoke 0-1 Sunderland (Wickham)
That didn’t take long. Dick Advocaat’s team get a gift, as Wickham taps in when Begovic spills the ball in front of him, after just a minute of the match.
Peep, peep, peep, peep...
That’s the sound of games kicking off all over the country. Exciting.
In the Premier League’s lunchtime kick-off, it finished Southampton 2-2 Tottenham. But who cares about that, right? The 3pm games are, well, three minutes away.
Live from Turf Moor, it’s Jacob Steinberg...
Here’s Simon McMahon with an update from north of the border:
Afternoon Niall. Big day in Scotland too, as the battle for promotion and relegation really hots up. In the Scottish Premiership, Cup finalists Inverness host Aberdeen and Ross County face Partick, while in the Scottish Championship a win for Hibs against Alloa would mean that Rangers could not afford to slip up in their match against the other cup finalists, Falkirk. And a sure contender for guest match of the day is Edinburgh City v Brora Rangers, who meet in the first leg of the first ever play off for a place in the Scottish Football League.
Indeed – the winner of that two-legged affair, between clubs representing Edinburgh (pop. 500,000) and Highland village Brora (pop. 1,140), will then play bottom club Montrose for a place in Scotland’s League Two next season.
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Where are you? Let’s be havin’ you
On this big old day of ups and downs, we always have room for you, the reader. If you’re watching, or even, heaven forfend, participating in a game that could see a pitch invasion, or grown-ups crying,come full time, let me know.
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Everyone’s talking about the football today – even David Cameron, who has chosen a strange time to switch allegiance from Aston Villa to West Ham...
A result from the south coast, where it finished Brighton 0-2 Watford. That means Watford can go up today – and even if they’re denied by Boro and Norwich, they will start their final game, at home to Sheffield Wednesday, on top. It’s looking good, Hornets fans.
Speaking of Wednesday, they’re currently watching Leeds leg it out of Hillsborough with Yorkshire’s bragging rights – it finished Sheffield Weds 1-2 Leeds.
In other Championship news, lanky wastrel Nicola Zigic has refused a place on the subs bench for Birmingham, ahead of their final home game of the season against Charlton.
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And finally, two places nowhere near each other - Turf Moor and St. James’ Park...
Burnley v Leicester
Burnley: Heaton; Trippier, Duff, Shackell, Mee; Boyd, Jones, Arfield, Taylor; Ings, Jutkiewicz.
Subs: Gilks, Wallace, Kightly, Sordell, Ulvestad, Ward, Keane.
Leicester: Schmeichel; Wasilewski, Huth, Morgan, Konchesky; Albrighton, Cambiasso, Drinkwater, Vardy; King, Ulloa.
Subs: Schwarzer, De Laet, Upson, James, Mahrez, Wood, Kramaric.
Newcastle v Swansea
Newcastle: Krul; Janmaat, Williamson, Coloccini, Anita; Colback, Ryan Taylor, Cabella, Gutierrez; Ayoze Perez, Riviere.
Subs: De Jong, Gouffran, Obertan, Ameobi, Abeid, Armstrong, Woodman.
Swansea: Fabianski; Amat, Williams, Fernandez, Rangel; Montero, Cork, Shelvey, Sigurdsson, Dyer; Nelson Oliveira.
Subs: Ki, Britton, Emnes, Grimes, Tremmel, Bartley, Fulton.
More team news, fresh from the M6 corridor:
Stoke City v Sunderland
Stoke: Begovic; Cameron, Shawcross, Wollscheid, Pieters; Nzonzi, Adam, Ireland, Walters, Arnautovic; Diouf.
Subs: Bardsley, Whelan, Odemwingie, Wilson, Sidwell, Butland, Crouch.
Sunderland: Pantilimon, Jones, O’Shea, Coates, Van Aanholt, Gomez, Cattermole, Rodwell, Buckley, Defoe, Wickham.
Subs: Bridcutt, Reveillere, Graham, Mannone, Vergini, Honeyman, Agnew.
West Brom v Liverpool
West Brom: Myhill; Dawson, McAuley, Lescott, Brunt; Morrison, Yacob, Fletcher, Gardner; Berahino, Anichebe.
Subs: Olsson, Baird, Ideye, Gamboa, McManaman, Sessegnon, Rose.
Liverpool: Mignolet; Johnson, Lovren, Skrtel; Ibe, Can, Henderson, Gerrard; Sterling, Coutinho, Balotelli.
Subs: Jones, Toure, Manquillo, Lallana, Allen, Borini, Markovic.
Team news!
Starting, for no particular reason, at Loftus Road...
QPR v West Ham
QPR: Green; Onuoha, Dunne, Caulker, Hill; Phillips, Barton, Sandro, Henry; Zamora, Austin.
Subs: Fer, Wright-Phillips, McCarthy, Yun, Isla, Kranjcar, Taarabt.
West Ham: Adrian; Jenkinson, Collins, Burke, Cresswell; Jarvis, Kouyate, Noble, Downing, Nolan; Valencia.
Subs: Nene, O’Brien, Amalfitano, Jaaskelainen, Poyet, Cole, Oxford.
...then taking a (probably quite awkward) journey from West London to Selhurst Park...
Crystal Palace v Hull City
Crystal Palace: Speroni; Kelly, Dann, Delaney, Souare; Puncheon, Jedinak, McArthur; Zaha, Murray, Bolasie.
Subs: Hangeland, Sanogo, Hennessey, Gayle, Lee, Mutch, Ledley.
Hull: Harper; Chester, Dawson, McShane, Elmohamady; Livermore, Huddlestone, Quinn, Brady; N’Doye, Aluko.
Subs: Rosenior, Figueroa, Bruce, Hernandez, Sagbo, Ramirez, McGregor.
Leagues One & Two
A special bonus preamble for the lower leagues today, starting at the top of League One, where second-placed Preston play fourth-placed Swindon needing a win, and an MK Dons loss at Rochdale, to be promoted. Swindon are bound for the playoffs, and will be joined by Sheffield United and Chesterfield, if Rochdalefail to beat MK Dons, the Blades avoid defeat against Orient, and Chesterfield beat champions Bristol City.
At the bottom of the table, three teams can join Yeovil in slithering through the trapdoor into League Two today - although it will take a heady concoction of results. If Leyton Orient lose at home to Sheffield United, Crewe win at Coventry, and Crawley avoid defeat at Peterborough, last season’s playoff runners-up will be down – and the same goes for Notts County, who play Doncaster at home. Draws for Orient and/or County could see them go down, if every other ruddy result goes against them. Colchester, two points behind those two with a game in hand, go to Fleetwood facing the same scenario – although the U’s can get a reprieve if Port Vale lose at Yeovil. Got that? Good.
On to League Two, where Burton have saved me a job by getting promoted last week. The Brewers wll be crowned champions if they beat Northampton, andShrewsbury don’t beat 23rd placed Cheltenham. If Shrewsbury do beat Cheltenham, they will go up, and will send their opponents down if 22nd placedHartlepool beat Exeter at home.
A win for Hartlepool win could also send Tranmere down after 94 years in the Football League, unless they can beat Plymouth at home. Wycombe, Southendand Bury, gamely chasing that third automatic promotion place, are all in action too, while Stevenage can sew up a playoff spot.
Preamble
Hello. Are you sitting down? There’s a lot to get through, so put that sandwich down and pay attention.
In the Premier League, seven of the bottom eight teams are in action. All three promoted clubs are in the relegation zone at present, but all have the chance to climb out today. After three straight wins, Leicester suddenly look the most likely to survive – they travel to Burnley, who are bottom, but could conceivably finish the day in 16th. Sandwiched between the two are QPR, who would probably have hand-picked West Ham at home for a winnable home fixture today.
Above the red line sit Sunderland and Hull, two teams who are not in the bottom three for reasons I’m struggling to explain. They travel to Stoke and Crystal Palacerespectively, and both are likely to find themselves in the danger zone if they come away empty handed. Newcastle, continuing their quest for the unlikeliest relegation since the last time they were relegated, are at home to Swansea. West Brom, comfortable enough in 13th, host Liverpool. who are hoping to make the top half of the table worth looking at again with a win that would move them to within four points of fourth.
Time is running out in the Football League, where a whole host of issues can be decided today. We start, as logic dictates, at the top of the Championship, withWatford, who can book their Premier League ticket today. Victory in the early kick-off at Brighton could see the Hornets promoted, if Middlesbrough lose at Fulham, and Norwich fail to beat Rotherham. It’s currently Brighton 0-1 Watford. Boro and Norwich stuffing things up would also put Bournemouth, who play Bolton on Monday, one win away from promotion.
Nobody in the top four wants a play-off spot, but two will have to take them. They will be joined by Derby, if the Rams win at home to Millwall, or match the results of Brentford and Wolves, who travel to Reading and Wigan today. Ipswich need to better those two teams’ results in order to confirm their top six status; they’re at home to Nottingham Forest.
Just when you thought things couldn’t get any murkier, here come Rotherhamwith a three-point deduction (subject to appeal) that makes things pretty, pretty interesting at the bottom of the table. If Rotherham beat Norwich they can condemn Millwall (if they lose) and Wigan (if they fail to beat Wolves), regardless of that pesky points deduction. If the Millers fail to win, both the Lions and Latics can climb out of the bottom three today - provisionally, at least.
We haven’t even mentioned Leagues One & Two (more on which to follow), nor Scotland, where Inverness host Aberdeen and St Mirren need a win at home to Kilmarnock to kick-start an unlikely escape bid. Then there’s Europe, where there’s a La Liga derby between Espanyol and Barcelona, hot Bundesliga action including Cologne v Leverkusen and Dortmund v Frankfurt, and PSG v Lille in Ligue 1 at 4pm. It is, quite simply, all happening. Team news from 2pm. Now finish your sandwich. Quickly!
