- Seven PL games remain and the race for European football continues to heat up.
- Everton’s fixture list features home tests against Man City and Merseyside Derby.
- Seven points separate fifth and 13th, so table could change very dramatically.
Everton’s final push for European football begins this weekend as they take a trip to the GTech Community Stadium as they take on Brentford.
This is one of many difficult fixtures for the Blues, as their final games include fellow European hopefuls and teams scrapping for Premier League status.
An additional European spot could open, which aids Everton and their rivals, but the remaining games are no less difficult, regardless of how many slots are up for grabs.
The Toffees are in for an exciting end to the season, but what about their competitors?
Liverpool – 5th
Everton’s city rivals are just three points ahead of the Blues and are yet to make their first trip to the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Following a thrashing in the FA Cup, Liverpool remain in the Champions League but must square up to the reigning Champions, Paris Saint-Germain, which will only complicate their run-in further.
Fixtures: Fulham (H), Everton (A), Crystal Palace (H), Manchester Utd (A), Chelsea (H), Aston Villa (A), Brentford (H).
Chelsea – 6th
Everton comprehensively defeated Chelsea just before the March international break, which sucked them further into the pile of clubs battling it out for Europe.
Manager Liam Rosenior has come under fire in recent weeks, and failing to qualify for Europe could spell certain doom for the Englishman.
Fixtures: Manchester City (H), Manchester Utd (H), Brighton (A), Nottingham Forest (H), Liverpool (A), Tottenham Hotspur (H), Sunderland (A).
Brentford – 7th
Their run-in begins with a visit from Everton, and their confidence will be high after crushing the Blues 4-2 just four months ago.
Talisman Igor Thiago bagged a hat-trick that day, and with 19 league goals to his name, he could be a key defining factor in the Bees’ charge for Europe.
Fixtures: Everton (H), Fulham (H), Manchester Utd (A), West Ham Utd (H), Manchester City (A), Crystal Palace (H), Liverpool (A).
Fulham – 9th
Fulham are one of the few teams Everton have managed to do the double over this season, but they remain hot on the heels of Moyes’ men and sit just below them in the league.
Ex-Everton manager, and current Fulham boss, Marco Silva coached the Toffees from 2018-2019 and narrowly missed out on European football in his first season with them.
Fixtures: Liverpool (A), Brentford (A), Aston Villa (H), Arsenal (A), Bournemouth (H), Wolves (A), Newcastle Utd (H).
Brighton and Hove Albion – 10th
The Seagulls made their European debut in 2023 after reaching the Europa League, but fell at the round of 16 hurdle following a defeat against The Friedkin Group-owned AS Roma.
Brighton struggled to find similar heights since that season, but they remain firmly in the race for Europe and are just three points behind Everton.
Fixtures: Burnley (A), Tottenham Hotspur (A), Chelsea (H), Newcastle Utd (A), Wolves (H), Leeds Utd (A), Manchester Utd (H).
Sunderland – 11th
Sunderland remain on a high after their late winner against bitter rivals Newcastle, and have found life back in the Premier League to be swell.
Four years ago, the Black Cats were fighting for promotion to the Championship, so to be in contention for Europe in such a short space of time is remarkable.
Fixtures: Tottenham Hotspur (H), Aston Villa (A), Nottingham Forest (H), Wolves (A), Manchester Utd (H), Everton (A), Chelsea (H).
Newcastle United – 12th
March proved to be a relatively difficult month for Newcastle after crashing out of the FA Cup and the Champions League and suffering a second defeat of the season against Sunderland.
Eddie Howe has faced criticism for their performances this year, but qualifying for a European competition could satisfy their fanbase.
Fixtures: Crystal Palace (A), Bournemouth (H), Arsenal (A), Brighton (H), Nottingham Forest (A), West Ham Utd (H), Fulham (A)
Bournemouth – 13th
Proving to be one of Everton’s bogey teams in recent years, Bournemouth continue to surprise the league with their top-quality recruitment.
Although firmly in the bottom half of the table, the Cherries are only six points behind Chelsea in sixth and can make a serious challenge to secure European football for the first time in the club’s history.
Fixtures: Arsenal (A), Newcastle Utd (A), Leeds Utd (H), Crystal Palace (H), Fulham (A), Manchester City (H), Nottingham Forest (A).
Everton excitement instead of Everton nerves
In recent years, the end of the season has usually meant relegation stresses and praying for other teams to do Everton a favour.
While the Blues will hope their rivals can slip up, they can enter the final few games with the confidence that they can secure European football on their own merit.
It’s exciting times for Evertonians, and they will also be going into the final stages of the campaign with a fire in their belly.
