Predicting How Many Points Each EPL Team Will Have at the End of This Season

By

George Cushnie

7th Place: Liverpool

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Current Position: 7th
Current Points Total: 45
Remaining Fixtures: Aston Villa (a), West Ham (h), Reading (a), Chelsea (h), Newcastle (a), Everton (h), Fulham (a), QPR (h)
Key Player: Luis Suarez (pictured)
In years gone by, Steven Gerrard has been the man who has hauled Liverpool through games that they struggled to win.
This season, however, it's been the little Uruguayan magician Luis Suarez who's done that.
He has shown everyone what a fantastic player, and finisher, he is this season.
Yes, he still frustrates us when he hits the deck too easily and he's impetuous at times, but Liverpool fans wouldn't have him any other way.
The biggest problem Liverpool have had this season has been their inconsistency.
They've dropped points in games that they've completely dominated, like both games against Man City and against Arsenal at the Emirates,
Defenders like Jamie Carragher, Martin Skrtel and Daniel Agger have made horrific individual mistakes and it's cost Liverpool dear.
That same inconsistency will plague them until the season draws to a close, and my prediction is that Liverpool will win another nine points before the end of the 2013 campaign.
Predicted Points Total: 54

6th Place: Everton

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Current Position: 6th
Current Points Total: 48
Remaining Fixtures: Stoke (h), Tottenham (a), QPR (h), Arsenal (a), Sunderland (a), Fulham (h), Liverpool (a), West Ham (h), Chelsea (a)
Key Player: Marouane Fellaini (pictured)
Everton started the season on fire, playing some of the best football in the league and putting teams to the sword doing it.
They've beaten Man Utd, Tottenham and Man City at home this season, but they lose against the "smaller" teams in the league.
We've seen the good and bad of Everton in the last two weeks alone.
Two weeks ago, they lost 3-0 at home to Wigan in the FA Cup, but last weekend, they beat Man City 2-0 with 10 men after Steven Pienaar was sent off.
It's ridiculous, and David Moyes must pull his hair out sometimes!
Talking of hair—what a good segue that was!—that brings us to one of the contenders for player of the season, Marouane Fellaini.
The Belgian ace has been imperious at times during the season and he's put in some dominant performances.
Not only that, but he's added goals to his game as well.
At the age of just 25, Fellaini is coming towards the peak of his career and Everton will do well to hang on to him.
Everton have a pretty tough final run of fixtures as the season draws to a close.
They have to travel to Tottenham, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea.
Those games will be a true test for a side that harbours hopes of qualifying for Europe next year.
Even if they don't pick up any points from those away games, which is unlikely given the talent they have, Everton have more than enough about them to pick up another eight points from their remaining matches.
Predicted Points Total: 56

5th Place: Chelsea

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Current Position: 3rd
Current Points Total: 55
Remaining Fixtures: Southampton (a), Sunderland (h), Tottenham (h), Fulham (a), Liverpool (a), Swansea (h), Man Utd (a), Aston Villa (a), Everton (h)
Key Player: Frank Lampard (pictured)
Regular readers will know that Chelsea aren't exactly one of my favourite teams.
There are many reasons for that.
Like the influence that the senior players seem to have with the chairman, as well as the chairman's trigger happy nature when it comes to hiring and firing managers, but those are stories for another time.
Chelsea's fixture list between now and the end of the season is heavily congested, with some difficult domestic and European ties to negotiate before the players go on their summer holidays.
With John Terry apparently out of favour with Rafael Benitez, the Chelsea fans are looking more and more to Frank Lampard to inspire his team-mates.
As usual, Frank has stepped up to the plate when his club have needed him and been Chelsea's "Mr. Dependable" over the last few months.
The fact that Chelsea are prepared to let Lampard leave for nothing in the summer is nothing short of a disgrace.
Lampard has shown over the last few months that he can still dictate games and score goals, so why are they letting him leave?
It's madness.
Absolute madness.
If he does leave, Frank will want to go out on a high, but because their fixture list is so congested and tough, with games against Man Utd, Liverpool and Spurs to come over the next few weeks, that might not happen.
I can see Chelsea struggling to cope with an overloaded fixture list and only picking up seven points between now and May 19th.
If that happens, Chelsea will miss out on the top four and the Champions League place that goes with it.
Predicted Points Total: 62

4th Place: Arsenal

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Current Position: 5th
Current Points Total: 50
Remaining Fixtures: Reading (h), West Brom (a), Norwich (h), Everton (h), Fulham (a), Man Utd (h), QPR (a), Wigan (h), Newcastle (a)
Key Player: Santi Cazorla (pictured)
It's been a difficult year for Arsene Wenger.
Some of Arsenal's results have been embarrassing this season and, for the first time, sections of the Arsenal support have questioned his judgement.
They were turfed out of the Capital One Cup by lowly Bradford, before being put out of the FA Cup by Blackburn.
For a club of Arsenal's size and stature, that's just simply not good enough.
The time has come for Wenger to admit that some of his signings have been extremely poor.
With the greatest of respect, players like Gervinho, Squillaci, Chamakh, Arshavin and Andre Santos are nowhere near good enough to play for Arsenal.
It's time for Arsenal to go out and do something to give their fans some hope.
Ironically, their exit from the Champions League might just do that.
It allows Arsenal to fully concentrate on making sure that they can get back there next season.
If they're to finish in the top four yet again, then Santi Cazorla will play a huge part in that.
The little Spaniard is the one player who seems to make Arsenal tick.
Cazorla can influence the game better from the middle of the park instead of the wider areas, and if Arsenal play him alongside someone like Tomas Rosicky, they'll get the best out of him.
Looking at their remaining fixtures, I'd be amazed if Arsenal don't pick up at least 15 points before the end of the season, and there's absolutely no reason why they shouldn't.
Predicted Points Total: 65

3rd Place: Tottenham

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Current Position: 4th
Current Points Total: 54
Remaining Fixtures: Swansea (a), Everton (h), Chelsea (a), Man City (h), Wigan (a), Southampton (h), Stoke (a), Sunderland (h)
Key Player: Gareth Bale (pictured)
This season could see Spurs finish inside the top four for the second year running, and nobody would grudge them that.
They have been hugely impressive under Andre Villas-Boas this season and have played some of the best football in the country.
As things stand right now, Spurs are the only side to have taken any points from Old Trafford this season.
That's remarkable.
In Gareth Bale, they have something that every top side needs.
A match-winner.
Bale is in phenomenal form right now.  If he can eradicate the diving from his game, he could go on to be one of the greats.
Spurs have eight league games left.
That little three game run that's coming up will be their toughest test—Everton at home, Chelsea away and Man City at home.
If Spurs can come out of those three games with six, or even seven points, they're absolutely certain to qualify for the Champions League and finish third in the league.
Either way, Spurs will pick up 12 points from their remaining games, and like Arsenal, they'll qualify for next year's Champions League.
Predicted Points Total: 65

Runners-Up: Manchester City

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Current Position: 2nd
Current Points Total: 59
Remaining Fixtures: Newcastle (h), Man Utd (a), Wigan (h), Tottenham (a), West Ham (h), Swansea (a), Reading (a), Norwich (h)
Key Player: Yaya Toure (pictured)
It's a tough task to retain the Premier League title.
Manchester City have found that out to their cost this season.
They haven't looked like the same side.
At times, City have been disjointed, inept and all at sea.
It's incredible to think that this is the side that won the Premier League last season.
Simply put, they haven't been good enough.
The table doesn't lie.
Mancini either didn't have the option to enhance the squad with the players he wanted, or he's bought poor players.
While Man Utd were busy shelling out £24 million to buy Robin van Persie from Arsenal, City bought the likes of Javi Garcia, Maicon and Scott Sinclair.
It's like night and day isn't it?
David Silva hasn't been the same player, Carlos Tevez and Vincent Kompany have blown hot and cold, and Sergio Aguero has had injury problems.
City's two most consistent performers have been Edin Dzeko and Yaya Toure.
Without some of Dzeko's late goals, City would be further behind and in the big games, Toure has stepped up when some of his team-mates haven't.
I'd rather have 11 Yaya Toure's than 11 Samir Nasri's to be honest.
Toure's versatility is his own downfall sometimes, though.
He should be played in an attacking role, where he can influence the game more and create chances.
If City can do that in their remaining games, they might reduce the gap at the top, but I wouldn't bet on it.
Roberto Mancini's men will end up winning another 17 points, but it won't be enough to help them to retain their title.
Predicted Points Total: 76

Champions: Manchester United

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Current Position: 1st
Current Points Total: 74
Remaining Fixtures: Sunderland (a), Man City (h), Stoke (a), West Ham (a), Aston Villa (h), Arsenal (a), Chelsea (h), Swansea (h), West Brom (a)
Key Player: Wayne Rooney (pictured)
All signs point to Sir Alex Ferguson and his team reclaiming their Premier League crown this season.
Why?
Let's see.
They've only dropped three points at home all season, which was when they lost 3-2 to Spurs in September.
Manchester United haven't lost in the league since Norwich beat them 1-0 at Carrow Road way back on November 17th.
Since then, only Swansea and Tottenham have taken points off United.
They've won 15 of their last 17 league games.
That's why they're guaranteed to reclaim the Premier League title.
In fact, it's a fair assumption that they'll go through the rest of the season unbeaten.
If they are to do that, then United will need Wayne Rooney happy and playing well.
Rooney's infectious enthusiasm for the game is great to see, and he has the ability to conjure up something out of nothing.
Along with the likes of Ryan Giggs, Rio Ferdinand and Robin van Persie, Rooney's displays can influence the rest of United's season.
In terms of their upcoming fixtures, United may have to play Man City, Arsenal and Chelsea inside a month, but the way they've been playing, it's hard to see where they will drop points.
Those three games are the most likely places, but then again, United are capable of winning every single one of their last nine games.
My gut feeling is that United will pick up another 18 points before the end of the season and finish top of the pile with 92 points.
Predicted Points Total: 92

Recap of Predicted Final League Positions and Points Totals for Each EPL Team

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So, let's take a look at how I think the overall Premier League table will look by the time this season comes to an end on 19th May 2013.
Manchester United - 92 points
Manchester City - 76 points
Tottenham - 66 points
Arsenal - 65 points
Chelsea - 62 points
Everton - 56 points
Liverpool - 54 points
Swansea - 50 points
West Brom - 49 points
Fulham - 44 points
Newcastle - 44 points
Stoke - 43 points
West Ham - 42 points
Norwich - 42 points
Southampton - 41 points
Wigan Athletic - 41 points
Sunderland - 40 points
Aston Villa - 37 points
QPR - 33 points
Reading - 30 points
If my predictions are correct, Man United will win the league and qualify for the Champions League, along with Man City, Tottenham and Arsenal. Chelsea will end up in the Europa League again.
It would also mean that Aston Villa, QPR and Reading are relegated from the Premier League.
Keep in mind, folks, that these are just my predictions.
It doesn't mean that this is what will actually happen!
Hopefully we'll get some debate going.
Feel free to leave your own predictions below about where each team will finish the season. ------------- bleacher report