Absolute Chelsea
·24 May 2025
Chelsea's chances of Champions League qualification revealed as Nottingham Forest finale awaits

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Yahoo sportsAbsolute Chelsea
·24 May 2025
Chelsea's chances of qualifying for next season's Champions League have been revealed ahead of their crucial Premier League clash against Nottingham Forest.
Enzo Maresca's Blues head to the City Ground on the final day of the season and Champions League qualification is in their hands. A win will guarantee a return to the competition they have won twice, a draw will leave them hoping for results to go in their favour elsewhere, while defeat will likely see them fall out of the top five.
Chelsea, Nottingham Forest, Newcastle United and Aston Villa are all vying for a spot in the Champions League, however they are likely to be competing for just two places. Manchester City look certain to clinch qualification, however it's not completely mathematically done.
Chelsea and Nottingham Forest face each other, Aston Villa travel to Manchester United and Newcastle host Everton. Man City travel to Fulham.
IMAGO / NurPhoto
Maresca's side hold their own fate and everyone at Chelsea is aware of what is at stake. Ahead of Sunday's clash, the 45-year-old admitted: "When you join Chelsea you feel the pressure from day one. You don't need this game to feel pressure. It's a club where you need to win games. We won many games this season - but we probably need one more, the most important one."
He added: "We are quite lucky. If we win, we do our job, we don't need to pay attention to other results. If we are not winning, we have to pay attention. We have the privilege that it depends on us. (The players) know - they are aware that it's an important game. The most important one."
As revealed by Opta, Chelsea's chances of clinching a top-five finish in the Premier League, which would qualify them for the Champions League next season, are rated at 57.4% by Opta's Supercomputer.
- Manchester City: 96.9%- Newcastle United: 82.7%- Chelsea: 57.4%- Aston Villa: 42.6%- Nottingham Forest: 20.4%
If Chelsea finish sixth, they will qualify for next season's Europa League. If the Blues finish seventh, they will be back in the Conference League unless they win the final against Real Betis to guarantee Europa League football.