West Ham’s quest for a top-seven Premier League finish to qualify for Europe next season looks like it could turn into a fight for the top 10. A resurgent AFC Bournemouth team beat Brighton three-nil today and are now only one point behind the Hammers, with a superior goal difference.
Chelsea’s draw with Aston Villa yesterday places them only one point behind West Ham; however, with two games in hand, the West Londoners are surely favourites to finish above David Moyes’ team.
West Ham visits Stamford Bridge for a Premier League fixture next Sunday, and Bournemouth must face an in-form Arsenal team still gunning for the title. With Manchester City and Luton Town still to play in the league this season, it’s not going to be easy for West Ham to finish in the top half of the table.
For what it’s worth, Chelsea seem to be inconsistent so winning next weekend is not beyond the realms of possibility. Unfortunately, we need a series of unlikely results from everyone else to go our way too, which would require something of a miracle.
Looking at every other teams fixtures I’m sorry to say that a 10th place Premier League fixture is far more likely than 7th.