Chelsea vs Southampton LIVE: Premier League team news and line-ups as Jadon Sancho starts | OneFootball

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We can’t solely rely on Cole Palmer - Maresca

Chelsea take on Southampton at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League tonight, with the home side looking to restart their challenge for Champions League football.

Enzo Maresca’s side sit seventh ahead of the midweek fixtures, with three defeats in their last five matches meaning they’ve slipped from the second spot they occupied in December. But the Blues are just one point behind fourth-placed Manchester City as it stands, with a win tonight taking them back above the Cityzens, who play Spurs tomorrow.

Chelsea face a struggling Southampton side who have earned just nine points so far this season, with last weekend’s 4-0 defeat to Brighton the latest in a string go bruising results. The Saints are currently 13 points behind 17th-placed Wolves with just 12 games left, and Ivan Juric knows that they need to start picking up points immediately if they’re to have any chance of surviving.

The fight for survival

At the other end of the table, Southampton are still fighting for survival, but their hopes are fading fast.

The Saints have earned just nine points so far this season – the bottom four looks like this ahead of kick-off:

17th - Wolves - 22pts

18th - Ipswich - 17pts

19th - Leicester City - 17pts

20th - Southampton - 9pts

Chris Wilson25 February 2025 19:50

Will the Premier League get an extra Champions League spot next season?

An important factor in the race for the top four...

The race for the top four in the Premier League is often one of the most intriguing parts of the season as teams battle to qualify for the Champions League.

A place in Europe’s top club competition has long been the main reward for sides finishing second to fourth, but Champions League qualification could now include whichever team finishes in fifth in the 2024/25 season.

The Premier League is currently leading the race for one of the two ‘bonus’ spots that Uefa now award in the expanded Champions League format.

Uefa gives the two extra places to the domestic leagues who perform the best in European competition this season, and it means that the English top-flight could see up to seven teams taking part in the Champions League next season.

Will the Premier League get an extra Champions League spot in 2025?

The league could be awarded another place in Europe’s premier competition depending on how teams fare in 2024/25

Chris Wilson25 February 2025 19:30