Everton may not win another game.

Burnley 3-2 Everton. It is hard for me to fathom that a team with Richarlison, Calvert-Lewin, Demari Gray, Iwobi and Holgate would be in danger of relegation, but Everton are now in real trouble. Maxwel Cornet hit a late winner as Burnley beat Everton 3-2 in a wonderful relegation duel, moving within a point of the Toffees. Nathan Collins put Burnley ahead in the 12th minute, scoring his first Premier League goal as knocked in Cornet's corner. Everton responded in the 18th minute as Richarlison converted from the penalty spot after Ashley Westwood fouled Anthony Gordon. Richarlison converted another penalty kick to give Everton the lead, as a VAR review determined that Vitalii Mykolenko had been tripped in the box by Aaron Lennon. Richarlison nearly completed his hat-trick after the half, but his spectacular bicycle kick was saved by Nick Pope. The Clarets came storming back as Jay Rodriguez leveled the game just before the hour-mark, converting Charlie Taylor's low cross at close range. The Clarets went on to complete the turnaround with an 85th-minute winner when Everton failed to clear and substitute Matej Vydra squared for Cornet, who finished to the delight of the rain and wind soaked Turf Moor crowd.

Current Relegation Standings:
Team GP Points
16. Leeds 31 30
17. Everton 29 25
18. Burnley 29 24
19. Watford 30 22
20. Norwich 30 18

Huge weekend in the relegation battle as we have 2 six pointers. By the end of the weekend Everton could see themselves in the bottom 3, and in real, real danger of relegation. Will be a wonderful weekend of relegation watching!

Current Relegation Standings:
Team GP Points
16. Leeds 31 30
17. Everton 29 25
18. Burnley 29 24
19. Watford 30 22
20. Norwich 30 18

Saturday:

Everton v. Manchester United (6:30am, Goodison Park, USA Network). Maybe a home match against a big rival who is also struggling is what the Toffees need, as they will welcome United to Liverpool. Goodison Park has not been kind to Everton this season, however, as they will be looking for consecutive home league wins for the first time since September. Manchester United have won 37 Premier League matches against Everton only the Red Devils themselves (38 v Spurs) have beaten a single opponent more often in the competition's history. The clubs drew 1-1 at Old Trafford in October, and I think a repeat of that result would suit Frank Lampard and the Toffees just fine. Everton are 1-4--0 in their last 5 for just 3 points, while United have gone 2-1-2 for 8 points in their last 5. Everton need to start strong to keep the home fans on their side in this long standing rivalry.

Watford v. Leeds United. (9am, Vicarage Road, Peacock). Watford will welcome the Yorkshire club to North London on Saturday, looking to pull their way out of the bottom three, while Leeds can all but sill their safety for next season with a win over the Hornets. Leeds are looking to complete their first league double over Watford since the 1999/00 season, as the Whites claimed a 1-0 win when the clubs met at Elland Road in October. Watford have been terrible at home, having been beaten in their last eight Premier League matches at Vicarage Road. The Hornets have only lost nine consecutive home league contests once before, between December 1971 and March 1972. Jack Harrison has scored six Premier League goals for Leeds in 2022, twice as many as any of his team-mates (Rodrigo and Daniel James, 3). He has found his form under Jesse Marsch, scoring in his last two appearances, and is looking to find the net in three in a row for the first time in the Premier League. With a win Watford could pull level on points with 17th place Everton, while a win for Leeds could put the Whites 9 points clear of the bottom 3, and all but secure their safety, making this game especially important for both clubs.

Sunday:

Norwich City v. Burnley. (8am, Carrow Road, USA Network). If Norwich have any hope of avoiding relegation it must include a win at home on Sunday over fellow relegation battler Burnley. Burnley have kept a clean sheet in all three of their Premier League matches against Norwich City. Norwich City have won only one of their last 12 league meetings against Burnley (D3 L8) and are winless in seven against the Clarets since a 2-0 home victory in April 2008. The clubs drew 0-0 at Turf Moor in October, a result that Burnley would probably be happy with again. But not the Canaries, they need to start collecting points in threes. Neither side has been in any kind of form as of late, with Norwich only claiming one point out of their last five matches (0-4-1) while Burnley have not been much better, claiming only 3 points out of their last 5 matches (1-4-0), although the three points was won their last time out against Everton.

Depending on how the weekend turns out, we could be in for a real 4 team battle for one spot or we could have this relegation battle down to two teams fighting for the last position.

Enjoy the Weekend!

Good article on the state of Everton:

Everton Fall

History tells us that 40 PTS will damn well secure a PL spot for the next year.

From an article I looked up:

" Over the past 23 seasons, the 18th-placed team, the highest to go down, have averaged 35.6 points."

Watched and Norwich are toast and don't have a chance to make it to 36pts, although it may not even take that much to stay up this year with how bad the bottom 4 are.

Here's the article if you'd like to read it!

https://www.premierleague.com/news/1174821

It seems I underestimated just how much United players don't care anymore.

Everton v United is a lot like Baylor vs Texas. I'd really rather they both lose but if someone had to win, I'd really rather it be Everton/Baylor as to maximize pain and embarrassment on United/Texas.

The drama of Everton going down has me entranced. To that end that was a disappointing result.

Hopefully Burnley can answer against NC.

Nope. Whew.

Few days behind on this, my apologies. Will condense a post-weekend review and weekend preview into one:

Last Weekend Results:

Everton 1-0 Manchester United. Everton looked bad for much of the match, but United said "hold my beer" and showed Everton how to play even worse. Brutal match of football that saw Anthony Gordon's first-half strike save Everton and boost their hopes of Premier League safety. Everton took a fortuitous lead just before the half-hour through Gordon, whose shot deflected off Harry Maguire and went in. Man Utd rallied in the second half but Paul Pogba and Cristiano Ronaldo were kept out by Pickford. A first win in three matches keeps Everton 17th, now with 28 points, four clear of the bottom three.

Watford 0-3 Leeds United. Leeds United looked to have secured their Premier League safety, while Watford looked all but to have accepted their relegation, thanks to goals from Raphinha, Rodrigo and Jack Harrison in a 3-0 win at Vicarage Road. Raphinha put Leeds ahead with a superb finish from outside of the penalty area in the 21st minute. Watford striker Cucho Hernandez tested Illan Meslier but was then forced off with injury in the first half. Rodrigo put Leeds two up in the 73rd minute after he pounced on a defensive blunder and got around Foster to score. Harrison added a third when he rifled in a strike at the far post. Leeds stay 16th but up to 33 points, nine ahead of Burnley in 18th. Watford, in 19th, have 22 points, six away from safety.

Sunday:

Norwich City 2-0 Burnley. Pierre Lees-Melou and Teemu Pukki both scored to keep Norwich City's dreams of safety alive with a 2-0 victory against Burnley in a relegation 6-pointer at Carrow Road. Norwich opened the scoring in the 9th minute when Lees-Melou's shot deflected off Josh Brownhill to go beyond Nick Pope for his first goal of the season. Pope denied Pukki seven minutes later to keep Burnley in the match, blocking the striker's effort with an outstretched leg. The Clarets answered, but Ashley Westwood, Jay Rodriguez and Matt Lowton were all denied by solid defensive blocks as Norwich defended resolutely. Maxwel Cornet should have leveled the match but missed a glorious opportunity in the 65th minute, firing over a wide open net from six yards. Pukki made the points safe for Norwich with a late finish. It was the Canaries first win since January and lifted them to 21 points, seven behind fourth-from-bottom Everton. Burnley remain in 18th spot, but lost ground on safety as they dropped four points behind the Toffees.

Current Relegation Standings:
Team GP Points
16. Leeds 32 33
17. Everton 30 28
18. Burnley 30 24
19. Watford 31 22
20. Norwich 31 21

Upcoming Weekend Matches:

Saturday
Manchester United v. Norwich City (9am, Old Trafford, USA Network)--The Canaries will be looking to build off their first win since January when they travel to Manchester to face United. Manchester United have won 12 of their last 15 Premier League encounters with Norwich, winning each of their last four in a row against the Canaries. Norwich head coach Dean Smith did claim a 1-0 win at Old Trafford earlier this season with Aston Villa. Norwich need points in any way they can find them and will be looking to avoid a second defeat to United this season, as the Red Devils claimed a 1-0 win at Carrow Road in December.

Watford v. Brentford (9am, Vicarage Road, CNBC)--After picking up just four points in an 11-match run between December and February (W1 D1 L9), Brentford have won four of their last five Premier League matches to get themselves out of the relegation battle. The Bees will be looking to win three in a row in the top flight for the first time since September 1946 when they travel to north London to meet Watford. The Hornets meanwhile, have lost four of their last five, and are languishing in 19th position, six points from safety. Roy Hodgson is still looking for his first home points as Watford manager, after four defeats in a row. Brentford claimed a 2-1 win in this London Derby when the two sides met at Brentford Community Stadium in December.

Sunday
West Ham United v. Burnley. (8:15am, London Stadium, Peacock). Burnley travel south to the Capital City looking to recover from their last weekend defeat in Norwich. The Clarets have won two of their last four Premier League trips to West Ham United, as many as they had in their previous 21 league visits to Upton Park or the London Stadium. West Ham have been good lately at home against relegation dwellers, having earned 25 points from their last 27 available in home matches against sides in the relegation zone. The clubs drew 0-0 in December at Turf Moor, so let's hope we don't get a repeat of that. Burnley have only claimed three points out of a possible 15 in their last 5 matches, so the Clarets need to right the ship soon to avoid relegation.

Everton is off this weekend, but will play midweek next week against Leicester, while Leeds do not play again until Monday, April 25 against Crystal Palace.

Happy Easter, enjoy the weekend.

Was a weekend of "what could have been" for the relegation battlers, as all three relegation dwellers missed on opportunities for more points. The battle took an interesting turn on Friday when Burnley announce they had parted ways with manager Sam Dyche. This move obviously comes very, very late in the season, and right before the club were set to play 3 matches in an 8 day period. Mike Jackson, the club's U-23 coach, has taken over in an interim role, but the question is will another manager be brought in? And if so, what impact could he have on the last 4-5 matches? Really odd timing for the change.

Burnley were the one club of the current bottom 3 that it appeared might have a chance to make the relegation battle interesting over the last few weeks of the season, but given this change I am not sure that will be possible. I assume that they will keep the interim manager in place now for the remainder of this season, but who knows.

Weekend Results

Manchester United 3-2 Norwich City. If you had no rooting interest in a game this match would have been a fun watch, I am sure fans of neither Norwich or Manchester United got much joy out of it, however, as the game was a back and forth affair that featured 5 goals and numerous squandered opportunities. In the end it was a Ronaldo hat trick that saved the day for United and led to another missed opportunity for the Canaries. The Portuguese scored his first goal in the 7th minute, converting a cross from Anthony Elanga, who had stolen the ball off a helpless Ben Gibson. United appeared to be cruising when Ronaldo doubled their lead in the 32nd minute, heading in Alex Telles's corner. But Kieran Dowell gave Norwich hope in first half stoppage time when he headed in a Teemu Pukki cross. Dowell then returned the favor and provided an assist for Pukki with a reverse pass to allow the Finn to level the score in the 52nd minute. Norwich looked destined to grab the lead but were denied a third by David De Gea's superb save from Milot Rashica's shot. Ronaldo completed his hat-trick to secure the points with a beautiful free-kick 14 minutes from time, breaking Canary hearts in the process, who remain bottom of the table on 21 points, seven from safety with six matches remaining.

Watford 1-2 Brentford. Pontus Jansson's stoppage-time header earned Brentford a dramatic 2-1 win over Watford to further dampen the hopes of the Hornets to avoiding relegation. Christian Norgaard put Brentford ahead in the 15th minute, when he shot from six yards after collecting Kristoffer Ajer's header from Ethan Pinnock's throw. Watford leveled the match in the 55th minute when Emmanuel Dennis powered in a shot from a narrow angle. The Hornets came close to a second goal several times. Ismaila Sarr and Dennis tested David Raya. Watford's Joshua King also hit a post in stoppage time before Imran Louza somehow fired over the rebound. So it looked like Watford would have to settle for a point, but in the 5th minute of extra time a Christian Eriksen's deep cross was met by Jansson's towering header, gutting Watford in the process. Watford remain 19th and have 22 points, six from safety.

West Ham United 1-1 Burnley. Tomas Soucek scored and leveled the match late, cancelling out an earlier Wout Weghorst header as West Ham United earned a 1-1 home draw, denying Burnley a big win in their bid for safety. The Clarets, managed by Under-23 coach Michael Jackson following Sean Dyche's departure on Friday, took a 33rd-minute lead when Weghorst headed in from close range after Jay Rodriguez had hit the bar. Maxwel Cornet missed a chance to double the visitors' lead in first-half stoppage time when he missed a penalty kick wide after being fouled by Lukasz Fabianski. Cornet's miss eventually came back to bite the Clarets in the 84th minute, as Soucek knocked in an lovely Manuel Lanzini free-kick from close range. West Ham could have won late, but Nick Pope produced a stunning save to deny Issa Diop and Michail Antonio soon after. The result takes 18th-placed Burnley up to 25 points, three below Everton who have played a match fewer.

Current Relegation Standings:
Team GP Points
16. Leeds 32 33
17. Everton 30 28
18. Burnley 31 25
19. Watford 32 22
20. Norwich 32 21

Who are we pulling for to make it up with Fulham?

I am hoping for Nottingham Forest and Huddersfield. Would love to hear who others are pulling for.

Bourne mouth pretty much has it locked up. I really want to see Forest come up but would be happy with Huddersfield or Sheffield or Millwall (currently in 7th).

Steve Cooper has Forest playing great after a TERRIBLE start to the season.

Forest

JJxvi said:

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Forest

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Yep! More Americans in EPL!

Would love to see the attention that both Mighten and Horvath would get from their promotion.

Mighten is a current England U-20 winger who was born in the US.

KCup17 said:

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Who are we pulling for to make it up with Fulham?

I am hoping for Nottingham Forest and Huddersfield. Would love to hear who others are pulling for.

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Lot of teams still with a puncher's chance of promotion to the EPL next season:

1. Fulham. 42 86
2. Bournemouth. 41 77
3. Huddersfield Town 43 73
4. Luton Town 43 71
5. Nottingham Forest 41 70
6. Sheffield United 43 66
7. Millwall. 43 65
8. Blackburn Rovers 43 63
9. Middlesbrough. 42 63
10. Queens Park Rangers 43 63

Fulham already have one of the two automatic spots, and it looks like Bournemouth are going to claim the second. Out of the remaining teams I would love to see Forest back in the EPL. An EPL season with Forest and Leeds would be awesome.

There are still 5 games left this season so I would say that the last auto promotion spot is still up for grabs.

We have a midweek relegation game today!

Current Relegation Standings:
Team GP Points
16. Leeds 32 33
17. Everton 30 28
18. Burnley 31 25
19. Watford 32 22
20. Norwich 32 21

Everton v. Leicester City (Goodison Park, 1:45pm, Peacock). The Toffees look to pull away from the bottom three when they host the Foxes on a Wednesday night clash. With a win, Everton would jump to six points clear of 17th place Burnley, a lead that would seem near insurmountable. If the Toffees are to score, it would appear Richarllson would be the man, as he has scored in four of his last six Premier League matches for Everton against Leicester. Leicester's Kelechi Iheanacho has been involved in four goals in his last four appearances against Everton in all competitions (two goals and two assists). Leicester have lost eight away Premier League matches this season, including six of their last eight on the road in the competition (W1 D1). This is the first time the clubs have met this season, as this is a rescheduled match. The two will face each other again at King Power Stadium on May 8.

KCup17 said:

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There are still 5 games left this season so I would say that the last auto promotion spot is still up for grabs.

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Bournemouth also have 2 games in hand. Not a done deal yet, but pretty close.

Richarlison saving Everton once again

Big point for Everton for sure.

Aston94 said:

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KCup17 said:

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Who are we pulling for to make it up with Fulham?

I am hoping for Nottingham Forest and Huddersfield. Would love to hear who others are pulling for.

---

Lot of teams still with a puncher's chance of promotion to the EPL next season:

1. Fulham. 42 86
2. Bournemouth. 41 77
3. Huddersfield Town 43 73
4. Luton Town 43 71
5. Nottingham Forest 41 70
6. Sheffield United 43 66
7. Millwall. 43 65
8. Blackburn Rovers 43 63
9. Middlesbrough. 42 63
10. Queens Park Rangers 43 63

Fulham already have one of the two automatic spots, and it looks like Bournemouth are going to claim the second. Out of the remaining teams I would love to see Forest back in the EPL. An EPL season with Forest and Leeds would be awesome.

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Of these teams, I don't recall Luton Town ever being in the EPL. On that alone I hope they make it in. I'd also like to see QPR win the playoff and get in. I remember watching them 30 years ago in the premier league.

KCup17 said:

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Would love to see the attention that both Mighten and Horvath would get from their promotion.

Mighten is a current England U-20 winger who was born in the US.

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Think Duane Holmes is playing for Huddersfield but hasn't gotten a call up in a long while.

OregonAggie said:

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Aston94 said:

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KCup17 said:

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Who are we pulling for to make it up with Fulham?

I am hoping for Nottingham Forest and Huddersfield. Would love to hear who others are pulling for.

---

Lot of teams still with a puncher's chance of promotion to the EPL next season:

1. Fulham. 42 86
2. Bournemouth. 41 77
3. Huddersfield Town 43 73
4. Luton Town 43 71
5. Nottingham Forest 41 70
6. Sheffield United 43 66
7. Millwall. 43 65
8. Blackburn Rovers 43 63
9. Middlesbrough. 42 63
10. Queens Park Rangers 43 63

Fulham already have one of the two automatic spots, and it looks like Bournemouth are going to claim the second. Out of the remaining teams I would love to see Forest back in the EPL. An EPL season with Forest and Leeds would be awesome.

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Of these teams, I don't recall Luton Town ever being in the EPL. On that alone I hope they make it in. I'd also like to see QPR win the playoff and get in. I remember watching them 30 years ago in the premier league.

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12 west london derbies huh?

OregonAggie said:

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Aston94 said:

---

KCup17 said:

---

Who are we pulling for to make it up with Fulham?

I am hoping for Nottingham Forest and Huddersfield. Would love to hear who others are pulling for.

---

Lot of teams still with a puncher's chance of promotion to the EPL next season:

1. Fulham. 42 86
2. Bournemouth. 41 77
3. Huddersfield Town 43 73
4. Luton Town 43 71
5. Nottingham Forest 41 70
6. Sheffield United 43 66
7. Millwall. 43 65
8. Blackburn Rovers 43 63
9. Middlesbrough. 42 63
10. Queens Park Rangers 43 63

Fulham already have one of the two automatic spots, and it looks like Bournemouth are going to claim the second. Out of the remaining teams I would love to see Forest back in the EPL. An EPL season with Forest and Leeds would be awesome.

---

Of these teams, I don't recall Luton Town ever being in the EPL. On that alone I hope they make it in. I'd also like to see QPR win the playoff and get in. I remember watching them 30 years ago in the premier league.

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No, Luton spent the 80s in th first division but got dropped in 92 when the EPL was starting. Had a spell on the 50s and 1 year in the 70s.

We have ourselves a relegation battle!

Thursday Results:

Burnley 2-0 Southampton. Connor Roberts hit a magnificent strike to score his first Premier League goal and Nathan Collins added another as Burnley moved to within one point of Everton. The Saints began on the front foot but it was Burnley who took the lead in the 12th minute when Roberts sent a curling shot beyond the reach of Fraser Forster. Wout Weghorst had two chances to double the lead only to be denied by two great saves by Forster. Forster then tipped away a Jay Rodriguez header before Weghorst hit the post as Burnley continued to press for a second goal. Their efforts were finally rewarded in the 44th minute when Collins headed in the Clarets second. Burnley remain 18th on 28 points, but if they avoid defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday the Clarets will move above Everton, who face Liverpool at Anfield later that day.

Current Relegation Standings:
Team GP Points
16. Leeds 32 33
17. Everton 31 29
18. Burnley 32 28
19. Watford 32 22
20. Norwich 32 21

Key Weekend Relegation Matches:
Saturday:
Manchester City v. Watford (9am, Etihad Stadium, USA Network). Watford travel to the northwest for a matchup with City, desperate for points to keep their hopes of avoiding relegation alive. It will be a near impossible task for the Hornets, however, as Manchester City have won their last 14 meetings with Watford in all competitions and will be looking to become the first English league side in history to win 15 consecutive competitive matches against an opponent. City claimed a 3-1 win when the two sides met at Vicarage Road in December.

Norwich City v. Newcastle (9am, Carrow Road, Peacock). Like Watford, Norwich have reached the point of desperation, needing points from every match. The Canaries have to feel better about their chances for securing points this weekend, as all five of Norwich City's Premier League wins against Newcastle United have come at home. Newcastle have lost each of their last three away Premier League matches. Norwich are looking to win their first consecutive Premier League home matches since August 2019, the second fixture of which was against Newcastle. The two sides drew 1-1 at St. James' Park in November, a result that Norwich cannot afford to repeat this weekend.

Sunday:
Burnley v. Wolves (8am, Turf Moor, Peacock). Burnley will have a chance to pull out of the bottom three on Sunday when they welcome the Wanderers to Turf Moor. After losing their first three Premier League meetings with Wolverhampton Wanderers, Burnley are now unbeaten in their last six against them (three wins and three draws). Wolves have lost three of their last four Premier League away matches. The two clubs drew 0-0 when they met at Wolverhampton in December. Hopefully Sunday's match will be a tad more entertaining.

Liverpool v. Everton (10:30am, Anfield, USA Network). The Toffees could enter this match in te bottom three if Burnley are able to win earlier in the day. Trips across Merseyside are generally not favorable to the Blues, but Everton won this exact fixture 2-0 last season, ending a 20-match winless run at Liverpool in the Premier League (D9 L11). They have not won consecutive league visits to Anfield since February 1986. Mo Salah scored twice in Liverpool's 4-1 win against Everton in the reverse fixture played back in December. Everton rarely have success lately in the Merseyside Derby, but come into this one desperate for points.

Monday:
Crystal Palace v. Leeds United (2pm, Selhurst Park, USA Network). Leeds will travel to London for a Monday night battle with a tough Palace squad. Crystal Palace are unbeaten in their last five home league matches against Leeds (W3 D2), winning this exact fixture 4-1 last season. Leeds have won their last two league matches against Palace, though both have been at Elland Road. They are looking to complete their first league double over the Eagles since 1994-95, following up on a 1-0 win at Elland Road in November.

Should be a great weekend of soccer in the relegation battle. Enjoy the weekend!

It's interesting that Leeds haven't played a game since April 9, and CP have had a pretty loaded schedule. Leeds will clearly be more rested than CP, but might also be rusty.

Watford and Norwich look pretty much doomed to relegation. Let's face it, they both really deserve it at this point. Today a 5-1 loss for Watford and a 3-0 loss for Norwich, putting another nail in both their EPL coffins.

Aston94 said:

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Watford and Norwich look pretty much doomed to relegation. Let's face it, they both really deserve it at this point. Today a 5-1 loss for Watford and a 3-0 loss for Norwich, putting another nail in both their EPL coffins.

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I'm tired of Norwich and Watford yo-yo ing up and down. Ready for some new clubs to try and come in and make it work.

ChipFTAC01 said:

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Aston94 said:

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Watford and Norwich look pretty much doomed to relegation. Let's face it, they both really deserve it at this point. Today a 5-1 loss for Watford and a 3-0 loss for Norwich, putting another nail in both their EPL coffins.

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I'm tired of Norwich and Watford yo-yo ing up and down. Ready for some new clubs to try and come in and make it work.

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I would agree with that especially this year. I don't feel like either club put forth much financial effort to stay up this season. Fulham has been on the same yo-yo, but they really seemed, at least last year, to invest in staying up. With Silva as manager I hope they will invest wisely this summer.