Tottenham and Aston Villa could gain from the extension of the Champions League, with the best League potentially securing another slot in Europe’s best competition.
Tottenham have secured a strong place in the Premier League table with seven games remaining in the 2023/24 season. Ange Postecoglou‘s squad is currently fourth in the Champions League standings, trailing just Aston Villa. They won 3-1 at Nottingham Forest on Sunday evening.
Spurs took full advantage of Villa’s 3-3 draw with Brentford 24 hours earlier, moving them equal on points with Unai Emery‘s club but ahead on goal differential. The Lilywhites have a game in hand against Chelsea at the start of next month, and that match at Stamford Bridge might be pivotal in determining the final Premier League position.
Of course, finishing fifth this season could be enough to secure a place at Europe’s top table in 2024/25. As the Champions League expands, four additional spots are available.
The European Performance Spots will award two slots to the leagues that have performed best throughout all three of UEFA’s club tournaments this season. The goal is that the Premier League wins with one of the two extra slots, allowing whomever finishes fifth between Tottenham and Aston Villa to gain a Champions League spot despite missing out on the top four.
Those two extra Champions League slots will undoubtedly be a talking point in the coming weeks, as European football resumes on Tuesday evening. So, who is leading the way in the European Performance Spots heading into the Champions League, Europa League, and Europa Conference League quarterfinals?
As things stand now, the Premier League will miss out on a sixth Champions League spot. However, with so much European football left to play, a lot can change.
Italy is now in the driving position, sitting at the top of the rankings with a coefficient average of 17.714. This season, Italian clubs have accrued 124.000 coefficient points, and their coefficient average is calculated by dividing the above amount by the number of teams (seven) that the country had competed in Europe at the start of the term.
Germany comes in second with a coefficient average of 16.357, with England not far behind at 16.250. England had the most coefficient points (130.000) this season, but their average is significantly lower because eight teams competed in Europe at the start of the season.
With Italy and Germany leading the way for the two extra spaces available, Roma and Borussia Dortmund, both in fifth place in their respective leagues, would be the two teams to gain from the current situation.
Arsenal face Bayern Munich in the Champions League, while West Ham face Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League, which might be crucial in the battle between England and Germany over the next two weeks. Given the two clubs’ different forms, the Gunners might easily win the two legs, but West Ham will need to do something truly remarkable to defeat Xabi Alonso’s unbeaten Leverkusen side.
Germany‘s only remaining representatives in Europe are Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, and Bayer Leverkusen, whereas England’s Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, West Ham, and Aston Villa are still competing for titles. Liverpool and Aston Villa are likely to perform well in the Europa League and Europa Conference League, respectively, as would Manchester City and Arsenal in the Champions League, potentially increasing the main League’s prospects of gaining an extra spot in UEFA’s main competition.
Tottenham and Aston Villa can only hope to finish fourth in the Premier League this season. If not, fifth place may suffice for Champions League football, but everything will become obvious in the coming weeks.
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